by Talia Haze
“Or perhaps we just don’t care,” interrupted Ryan, waving his hands around.
Princess Connie spun to me next. “Present yourself!” She quickly stood straight, waving her hands at my slouch. I jerked into the stiffest position I could manage. “Tell me what your mistress calls you.”
I paused, shocked. My mistress? Even Aunt Beth wouldn’t degrade me in such a way. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She was a princess…a real, live princess! Of course, she behaved haughtily. We certainly were not equals. I would remember my manners. She didn’t need two enemies.
“Gabriella.”
“Now you.”
“Sean.”
“You are not worthy of even bearing a name,” she added, looking sideways at Ryan. Ryan growled, throwing his arms in the air. “Explain what it is that we are to accomplish…”
“If we sit around explaining everything, we’ll never accomplish it!” Ryan complained, pulling me to my feet. “Let’s go, already!”
Chapter Seven
Shortcut
“Do you suppose we would be so lucky?” Ryan asked, kneeling near a small path that veered from the main road. The path twisted through the massive oaks on the border of the Dofleece estate, and out of sight. “Could lead us straight to the oaks, that.”
“It could,” agreed Sean. “It certainly is better than inspecting every tree. I say we try it.”
I paused as the three disappeared into the shade of the trees. The forest stretched for miles, far past the boundaries of Tempton. How far exactly would we have to follow the path? Did the path even lead us to our destination? And how long would it be before we returned?
I gave another look back. The thought was easy when we just talked about. The thought felt splendid when the Chancellor gave us such nice things. But…staring at the thick wall of high trees, it was no longer a thought, it was reality.
I wasn’t ready to leave my home! And what if Angel came back while we were gone? Or what if Uncle Harrison did something horrible to Anna, or even his own family once we weren’t there? Wouldn’t that fall on me? Wouldn’t that make it my fault?
“Gabby!” Sean came back, looking for me. “Hey. What’s wrong?”
“I…are we really going to do this?” I turned to look back towards home. “Are we really about to leave everything we know and love?”
“Gabriella, we’re not leaving everything we love. We’re together. And you’re safe. Isn’t that enough?”
I sighed, taking a deep breath. I couldn’t describe what I was feeling, or why. I just knew I felt torn; torn between the uncomfortable life in familiarity, and the promise of safety in the unknown. I hung my head, trying to fight the tears. Such a feeling of helplessness. Sean bent and grabbed my shoulders.
“Gabby is it so bad?” he whispered. I remained silent. I couldn’t explain to him what I was feeling because I didn’t understand it myself. Ryan had stopped fighting with the princess and stood at my other side. “It is frightening. But it is not worse. It won’t be worse.” Sean stared at me, his face contorted. “Gabby, I cannot protect you. I try…we try! But Uncle Harrison’s rage is directed towards you. You may be ready to forgive him, butI…” Sean trailed off, gently brushing over my bruised face. “I’m afraid he’s going to kill you one of these times. And there is nothing I can do to stop him. All I know to do is to take you away. We were going to leave even if we didn’t find the papers.”
I nodded. Perhaps if I behaved better, perhaps if I wasn’t always so defiant, Sean and Ryan wouldn’t feel so burdened to protect me.
Sean easily read my face. “This is not your fault. I would fall down the stairs again and again if it meant you were safe. So, please Gabby, let me keep you safe.”
“Yeah, Gabby,” Ryan added. “This is no more than one of your tales! A proper adventure! The daring escape! A brilliant quest! Happily ever after! Don’t be sad! This is not bad; it’s just different!”
I nodded again. He was right. It would be exciting…how exciting it already was when I actually looked at it. Off and away from the day’s chores after having spent the night in the royal palace? And in the company of a princess? I had no tale to liken it to. Princess Connie stood several paces ahead of us, confusion and concern on her face.
“I’m ready.”
I followed Sean and Ryan down the path, and I didn’t look back.
Light peeked through the cracks of the leaves, casting the forest in glimmering golden light. The air felt cooler than before, yet no wind blew. Everything was so still and serene. The maiden Gabriella became queen of the elves and slowly wandered through her woodland home. The birds chirped soft greetings and other creatures sang a melody she had never heard before. How lovely it all was! How lovely the new queen felt! No longer under the oppression of the wicked Uncle Harrison, the maiden Gabriella was finally free to just be.
I spun around as the other’s voices slowly faded. I felt the huge weight lift from my shoulders. Free. Every noise sounded new. Each breath felt different. All my senses seemed awakened. I breathed. I smelled. I listened. I touched.
The tree I leaned on felt strange under my fingers. I stepped back to see Liasbu carved into the bark. Kan was carved on another tree nearby.
“Come see!”
I ran my fingers over the letters as I waited for the others to catch up. Ryan huffed.
“Ah! It was as easy as following the path...!”
“These trees state their name,” Princess Connie announced upon seeing it. “Liasbu is the Aramigon name for oak, and kan is the Alanicate name.”
“And look there, lads!” Ryan beamed at Princess Connie. “She isn’t completely useless after all! Decent, Bittersweet,” he added to me, before the princess could pounce. “I don’t see why we have to walk between them. We can right see to the other side…it’s no different, there.”
“Perhaps it is like the stone face we found,” Sean answered with a shrug as he began to walk between. “Perhaps it will…”
Sean disappeared. We called out in a panic. I followed quickly. A flash. Whish!
I blinked as I landed in a soft bed of autumn leaves next to Sean. We lay in a thicker forest with no oaks in sight. How odd! Ryan was more than right; it was beginning to be an amazing tale.
“What just happened?”
“I’m not sure.” Sean stood, brushing himself off and looked around in shock. We certainly weren’t in the same forest. The forest where we stood wasn’t nearly as thick as the one outside the Dofleece estate. Ryan cried out as he appeared in the leaves. “Perhaps, the trees are enchanted…like the stone man in the tomb. I just don’t know…”
We turned as Princess Connie loudly landed in the pile of leaves. She simply stood and brushed herself off, folding her arms in front of her. Princesses.
“Good, Sean. That was the first clue. What’s the second?”
Sean was already looking over his scroll. “From the oaks, to the bluff where in breeze lies.”
“Bluff?” I repeated. “Like a lie?”
“Bluff is another name for a hill,” Sean explained with a smile. “It is the rest we need to figure out.”
“Perhaps the word is ‘wherein,’” Princess Connie suggested, stepping closer. “Perhaps it means to the bluff where the breezes lie. Perhaps an ocean side?”
“So maybe below the bluff is an ocean!” Sean beamed with excitement.
“Onward then!”
The maiden Gabriella followed behind the mighty Sean, the fair princess and witty Ryan. The dark trees entwined with each other overhead, covering the soft path in a dark tunnel, just barely big enough for a coach to pass through. The sunlight so slightly peeked through the tangled mess, only just enough for the four to see. The air cooled enough to make their warm breath visible, but not enough that they shivered. The four continued through the magical portal in silence.
The mess of trees stopped suddenly, and we overlooked a beautiful valley dotted with tiny flowers and a small pond. Above, clear twi
light skies began to reveal a few stars, and a crescent moon gleamed merrily.
A wooden stake stood next to the road. One arrow pointed west of us and read Lithelle. Another pointed east and read Lyon. The last arrow pointed ahead to a high, rocky hill and read Tyme.
“There is the bluff!” I pointed up the slopes. Sean didn’t budge.
“Why have you stopped?” Princess Connie demanded. “Continue! Haste! Ere it becomes dark!”
“Our fair princess is afraid of the dark, then?” Ryan teased. The princess huffed. Sean still wavered.
“But, there’s a town up there!”
“So? Let’s just go and see!”
We just reached the bottom of the hill when Ryan stopped suddenly, his face twisted in thought as he stared at the princess.
“Why do you tarry? Continue!” she demanded before passing him. His lips pressed hard and he reached out, grabbing her arm. “Unhand me!” Ryan did not answer as he pulled the silver crown from her head. “I demand you return my crown! That is an order!”
“Bother your orders!” Ryan held the crown high so she couldn’t reach it and held his other hand out to keep her away from him. “You can’t just walk in there.” He put the crown in his bag. “Out here, you can’t be a princess anymore. I don’t want to be attacked by who-knows-what just because they want to take your royal self.” Ryan pulled a dirty handkerchief from his pocket and dipped it into the pond. “Wash your face. That makeup doesn’t do a thing for your looks, anyway.”
Princess Connie let out an exasperated sigh but did as asked. Sean’s eyes widened, and I turned to find Ryan gathering handfuls of dry dirt.
“What are you about to do?” he asked. Ryan just grinned.
“What is who about to do?” Princess Connie looked up from the handkerchief, just as Ryan smeared the dirt into her face. I gasped in surprise, but the situation just escalated. Princess Connie cried out and slapped Ryan across the face. I quaked to my knees with laughter. Sean just stood in shock.
“What was that for?” Ryan complained, rubbing his cheek. As if he were so innocent.
“You insulted me! How dare you treat me so?”
“You aren’t dirty!” Ryan yelled, bouncing a second handful of dirt.
“Of course, I am not dirty; I wanted to remain that way!”
“I have told you before, you aren’t a princess anymore. You have to look simple.” He tossed the remaining dirt in Princess Connie’s hair, and though she shuddered, she took it without remark. “And furthermore, when we get to the town, the first thing we are to do is sell that gown and find you simple clothes. That thing will get us robbed.” Ryan spun around, stalking towards the town. Sean sighed heavily as we followed.
“Welcome to Tyme.” I ran my fingers over the sign. The streets were nearly empty. The few people in sight were busy packing carts or pulling commodities from shelves. We wandered through the town, towards the other end where the land dropped off. I yawned and stretched. We weren’t working, of course, but I was certainly tired from all the walking. I felt grateful for my new slippers. We passed an inn and I longed to go inside to rest. The chancellor had given us money; how much it would cost for few rooms?
We reached the edge of the town and the edge of the bluff. Below us wasn’t an ocean, simply another vast forest, and in the distance, outlines of more hills. We groaned in unison and collapsed to the ground. Princess Connie behaved more dignified and sat on her heels.
“I suppose we’ll have to go all that way and look at those other hills, then?” Ryan asked, covering his face.
“Let’s just start again tomorrow and get a room tonight,” Sean said. Wonderful. I let out a relieved breath. “It’s late.”
We walked back into town towards the inn. Sean opened the door for Princess Connie as Ryan suddenly bent over in wild laughter.
“You are mad!” Princess Connie cried out.
“Look there, My Princess,” Ryan answered as he pointed to the sign near the window of the inn. The sign read ‘Inn Breeze.’
Chapter Eight
Hot or Cold
I sighed and stretched again. After we ordered a room and Princess Connie a simple frock, we sat by the warm fireplace eating dinner. It was ridiculous how long it took us to make her eat the “commoner’s food.” She excused herself to bed first and Sean left soon after.
I lay across the hearthrug, propping myself up with my elbows and stared at the dancing flames. I never sat by the fire for very long at home; it wasn’t my place. Besides, having my back to the door was dangerous as Uncle Harrison could sneak up on me.
My eyelids felt heavy, but I didn’t have the resolve to get up and walk up the stairs to my bed. I didn’t want to go to sleep. Perhaps, if I were to close my eyes, everything would melt away like a dream. Perhaps, I’d just wake up in my tiny room in the servant’s quarters.
Ryan sat cross-legged on the armchair, looking over the scrolls. “Inside, the tomb Dasimé will show the direction you aim…ah! Your favorite, Bittersweet, dead people.” I groaned. “Under the third column marked Laye, the ring is nigh. Maybe if we open a tomb marked Dasimé, an arrow will be pointing to the column marked Laye.”
“Perhaps.” I yawned and stretched. Ryan glared at me. “What?”
“If you are tired, why don’t you go to bed?”
“I’m comfortable!”
“And you’ll also be lonely in a bit,” he answered, closing the scroll and rising. “I’m going to sleep.”
“Ryan!” I objected. “You weren’t planning to go to bed for a while and you know it!”
He just blew me a kiss. “From me,” he said, strutting to his room.
~
“Excuse me, sir.” Sean politely waved the innkeeper to us the next morning. “This might sound like a silly question, but do you have a crypt somewhere under here? Near here?”
“Of course not!” The innkeeper’s panicked voice drew eyes from the bar. Princess Connie’s eyebrows rose, and I shifted uncomfortably, but the patrons soon went on as usual.
“Thank you,” Sean replied. The innkeeper walked off, staring at us sideways.
“Perhaps it is hidden, then,” Ryan suggested.
“Let us look for it,” Princess Connie exclaimed, folding her napkin and setting it on her plate. “Follow.”
We searched the sitting room, the parlor, the dining room, the library, the kitchen and the bar. There were no secret passages, no hidden doors…nothing. I collapsed on the rug by the fire.
“We’ve searched everywhere except the rooms and we can’t get inside those. That’s probably where it is.”
“Hand me the scroll.” Princess Connie opened the scroll and scanned the lines. “Perhaps the clue is somewhere inside the poem like Inn Breeze. Perhaps you have just read over something and we missed it. ‘Inside, the tomb Dasimé will show the direction you aim.’ You said we sought a crypt, not a tomb!”
“And where do you suppose a tomb is, Goldilocks?” Ryan snapped.
“Innkeeper!” demanded Princess Connie. After a few seconds, the innkeeper rushed into the room.
“I have told you, there is no crypt in here!”
“But a tomb?” asked Princess Connie.
“No! Why do you think there is? I don’t know what kind of rumors you have heard…”
“And pray! Why then, does this poem states there is?” Princess Connie protested.
The man took the scroll Princess Connie handed him. “We do have a library,” he answered, reading it over. “Perhaps you seek a book, not a grave.”
“A book?” we repeated. The man nodded.
“A tome, perhaps. Tome. Not tomb. Search the library for your treasure hunt.”
“Thanks!” We followed Sean down the corridor.
“Children!” the innkeeper muttered as he went about his business. It took only a few minutes for Princess Connie to announce her find. We gathered around as she opened the dusty cover. The first page had only one simple word on it.
Cold.
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“Odd,” Ryan commented.
“This whole journey has been odd,” Sean replied as Princess Connie flipped through the pages of the book.
“The next page reads, ‘This is usually in a pot nine days old, but it is also on the menu of a triad of suspicious characters.’”
“But the scroll says, ‘Under the third column marked Laye the ring is nearby,’” Sean answered. “Come, just bring it to the table so we can all see it.”
We followed him to the table and sat around it. Princess Connie opened the book again to the first page.
Warm.
“It changed!” she cried out. “Did it not read ‘cold’ only a moment ago…?”
“Let me see it, then!” Ryan jerked the book from Princess Connie’s reach.
“Ryan…”
“I’ve got it.” Ryan was amazed. “It’s a game! Dragonboy, why don’t you take Goldilocks here to ‘fetch our belongings,’” he added, trying to mimic Princess Connie’s voice. Princess Connie glared, but Sean grabbed her arm and led her down the hall. Ryan spun around a few more times before getting back to the point. “Cold, cold, warm.” I followed close behind. “Warm. Warm…this is so grand!”
I threw open the door for Ryan and followed him alongside the cliff edge down a rocky path. Sean and Princess Connie ran to catch up. “Warm. Warm. Warm…”
“Do you think we’re going through another pair of trees?” I asked, looking around.
“I don’t know.” Sean looked back. “This whole trip has been odd; it would only make sense for us to end at another enchanted passage.”
We followed Ryan up the dirt path, around huge boulders and over randomly spewed rocks. The book didn’t seem to be taking us anywhere in particular; we passed the same place three times.