Page 13 of The Princess of Nothing
The sun was low in the sky when we finally reached a walkway resembling a path. It took us twice as long as it could’ve if he’d have let me used my staff, but I didn’t dare bring it up. He was right, and I supposed, the leaves were alive. Feeding back into the soil and ground, giving us life.
He dropped his bag onto the mossy mattress below and sighed.
I rolled my eyes. “You shouldn’t have brought so much. I did tell you.”
“I’m fine.”
“And stubborn,” I mumbled.
“I heard that.” He still managed a grin, despite looking exhausted. He wasn’t the only one. It felt like we’d walked for hours, yet we’d barely moved according to the map. I swear it had been faster with Birch, but then we had talked so much. It passed the time.
“Here.” I grabbed my staff and pointed it at the bag, remembering a spell I used when I was younger, one I’d learned at the academy. I would unburden the loads from servants. My father used to get so mad when he found out I was using magic to aid them.I mumbled a spell of weightlessness. “Try now.”
He lifted the bag, and his eyes widened. “How?”
My lips curved up. “I’ve always loved that spell. It lightens the heaviest loads. Sorry I didn’t do it before. I honestly forgot all about it.”
“Very handy.” He looked impressed. We were surrounded by millions of hues of greens, yet my eyes kept drifting back to the brightest thing in the forest. Cedric. He was athletic but not too muscular. His smile was the most infectious thing about him. He flashed his pearly whites my way, and the lines at the corners of his eyes creased. He had a chiseled jaw and strong features, but they softened when he laughed. His eyes were like deep pools of honey, matching his vibrant personality. The imperfections were what made him look human though: a couple of freckles dotted above his nose, his untamed eyebrows, and laugh lines that wrinkled into his dimples. He was the epitome of the sun in every sense, brightening everyone’s day.
“What’re you thinking about, princess?”
I blushed. “Nothing. Um, I’m actually quite hungry. Aren’t you?”
He searched my expression, then looked to my right. “Yes, and lucky for you, I spotted these. They’re called honeybarrels. I used to love finding them when I was a young faery.” He kneeled on the ground and plucked a flower from the mud. Its gold petals curled to close. Carefully, he peeled two down and tipped it up as if he were drinking from a cup. Out of the flower poured a thick, yellow liquid. It oozed out, and a drip landed on Cedric’s chin. “It’s very sweet.” He picked another and handed it to me.
I peeled back a petal but didn’t tip it in time. The liquid oozed onto my hand. Quickly, I licked it off my palm. The taste was cloying. I scrunched my nose and placed the flower next to me. “A little too sweet for me.”
“You’re already sweet enough,” he replied.
I chuckled. “So inane.”
“It made you laugh though,” he said before drinking another honeybarrel. “I did pack some tarts just in case.”
My mouth filled with saliva. “I loved the ones you made before. I swear, I haven’t found confectionaries as good as you baked since then.”
“Stop.” He laughed. “You’re too kind, but really, I made them this morning before we left.” He pulled out a silver tray of strawberry tarts, lightly dusted with sugar. “First, admit you’re glad I brought a bigger bag.”
I grumbled. “Still, it wasn’t practical and—”
“Fine, don’t have any then.” He grinned.
“Okay, yes, yes. I’m so happy you brought the overly large bag full of things we don’t need. Now please.”
“That wasn’t... never mind.” He chuckled, and I took the tarts from him.
***
The sun was slowlysetting, and I remembered what Daisy had told me the last time I was in there about black-spotted lizards coming out at night. I looked around nervously, when Cedric grabbed my wrist.
“Careful.” He pulled me back as something green slithered at my feet, then disappeared into the underbrush. “We’re almost there,” he promised, looking at the map again.
We walked a little further, then I saw it. A small stream I had seen when Birch and I trekked to Woodbarrow. It was less than half an hour from the village.
The stream was darker than I remembered. It bubbled a deep mossy green. I looked around at the trees. Bark was stripped from their trunks, curling down to the roots that had erupted through the hard mud. Everything was slowly dying. “Something bad happened here,” I stated.
A clearing had been made. They were indeed cutting down the forests. I kneeled and touched a charred log. I wiped the soot between my fingers and sighed. “Solises. This was elemental magic. They must have used it to frighten away any animals or—”
“Elves,” he said. “That’s why everything looks so dead. I had no idea the solises were doing this. I—”
