The Cursed Girl, #1

by Maria Vermisoglou

  We entered the door and lying on a silver bed was Jonathan. When I saw him, I almost turned back. He was white as a sheet. I walked closer to him when a man, most likely the doctor, near the bed stopped me. “Who are you? You don’t belong in here.” His tone was condescending.

  I wanted to throw my knives at him, but I tried to control myself as Alec explained, “She’s a talented healer and very good at what she does.”

  I was sure my cheeks turned pink at his words.

  “She’s a peasant,” the man said decisively.

  “She saved our army. She saved us all by curing us from the poison the enemy threw at us. She helped us win this war.”

  My cheeks grew warmer.

  “But she’s—” I took a step ahead, leaned toward him, and crossed my arms. “Do you care if your prince lives or dies?”

  He looked at me. “Of course, I care.”

  “Then you shouldn’t care who heals him, and since you can’t make him better, let me do my job.” I passed by him without a second glance. He was mumbling something, but I couldn’t make out his words.

  I leaned in to examine Jonathan. I checked his temperature and using human techniques, I tried to figure out if there was any kind of poison in him. “Alec, I have everything I need. I will have the cure in a couple of days.”

  The doctor looked at me with awe, and his mouth was in the shape of an O. Alec’s face brightened and he took my hands. “Thank you. Thank you! I will wait to hear from you.”

  I bowed and then turned to the doctor. “You know it’s rude to have your mouth open like that. Don’t you have manners?” I was pretty sure Alec was trying not to laugh.

  I left the room feeling satisfied, but after I had left the palace, my smile faded. What I had to do to cure Jonathan wasn’t simple. The cure was quite simple, but the tricky part was obtaining the plant that was the main ingredient. The plant grew in the Dark Forest, a dangerous place, and only desperate, like me, went there. But I was not stupid. I wasn’t going to do this alone.

  I arrived at home starving, and when I opened the door, my mother and Ritta were waiting for me. “Where did you go this time?” my mother asked.

  “At the palace.”

  Speechless, they looked at me. They knew I hated the palace and everything related to it. I explained how my day went. Ritta smiled when I told them about the incident with the doctor, but she frowned when I told her my intentions.

  “You absolutely are not going!” my mother said.

  “But—” I tried to object.

  “No discussion. Now eat and go to bed.”

  When my mother got like that, there was no arguing with her, so I did what she said. Ritta followed me to my room. We lay down in my bed and started talking. “So, when are you going?”

  “How do you know I am going?”

  She snorted. “I know you. You said you were never in love. You may not admit it, but you do love him.”

  Sometimes she thought everything was so simple. “Even so, there is no way I am going to break my heart by staying with him until he dies. No, no way. But I am going to the Dark Forest tomorrow night to find that plant. Why couldn’t it be in a garden or in the market? It would make things so much easier...”

  “Love is never easy, they say. If you go, I go, and there is no way you will argue with me,” she warned.

  “I wasn’t. I need you, but we have to prepare carefully. If we live through this adventure, I am going to be grounded for life.”

  “Don’t worry, I am sure she’s just worrying like all mothers do.”

  “I guess...”

  We made a plan and then strangely fell asleep quickly as though nothing dangerous would happen the next day.

  The next day was like any other day. I went to the shop and Ritta stayed to help my mother with the chores. The tricky part would come when we would try to sneak out of the house. Somehow, my mother always knew when I was trying to sneak out, but how? That was beyond me.

  Later, when I returned home, Ritta came to greet me and help me with my basket. I always carried a basket in case I came across plants I wanted to study or someone brought me something. Ritta carried my basket to my room and then closed the door. “Your mother is going to see her friend, and she will be going soon.”

  “Which one?” My mother had two friends who were witches on Earth. Glinda, a kind lady, lived in the woods. Marguerite was French, and she lived across town in a beautiful mansion. While odd at times, she was nice and had a good heart.

  “Marguerite.”

  No, we couldn’t be that lucky.

  “Yes, I couldn’t believe it either, but we should go eat before she gets suspicious.”

  Dinner was a Spanish pie with tomatoes. “Mmmm... my favorite,” I said while smelling the delicious food. Then I looked at my mother suspiciously. “What’s the occasion?” She hadn’t made me a favorite food for no reason. Usually, she only made my favorite if I was angry, sad, or depressed or we were celebrating something.

  “Nothing, I just wanted to make you happy.”

  I didn’t believe that, but nonetheless, I started eating the pie. The Spanish pie was heavenly, and in a matter of minutes, I had emptied my plate. I looked sadly at my plate.

  “Was it good?” my mother asked.

  “Too good. No one can enjoy anything too much except the smell and taste of good food,” I said, smiling contently.

  “You are welcome. I am off to see Marguerite now. Will you be all right with the washing?” she asked, taking a box that probably was a gift for Marguerite.

  “Yes,” we answered and started cleaning the table. I heard the door shut, and I felt a little relieved. I didn’t like that we were doing something without her permission, but I had to save him, and it wasn’t the first time we did something without permission.

  “Why do you like that pie so much? I mean, it’s only tomato, after all. Why not apple pie? That I would understand.”

  Ritta and her sweet tooth. “I like tomatoes very much. I like apples too, but in a pie, it’s best to have something not too sweet, don’t you think?”

  Ritta was looking at me like I was crazy. After cleaning we gathered the things we would need, dressed in black clothes, and headed for the Dark Forest. No matter which forest a witch wanted, or where it was located, all a witch had to do was go to the nearest forest, and the forest she needed would soon be found. We went to the village’s forest, and I looked at the spot where the Plant of Wishes, the plant that had saved the soldiers’ lives, used to grow. There was no sign a plant had ever been there. Ritta had transferred it to the White Land one day, and the princess had planted it in the square where everyone could see it. We cherished these and thought of them as treasures to be shared with everyone. I had to keep my plant concealed from humans and other witches. I was not going to give away my lovely plant that my cat enjoyed so much.

  We walked farther into the forest and began our journey to the Dark Forest to find the healing flower. Some information about the Dark Forest: don’t go, just don’t. Everyone should avoid the Dark Forest if possible. The best advice I could give you was don’t go unless you have no choice. All you needed to know about this place was that it was dark—hence the name—creepy, and every poisonous plant resided in it. I had no idea how we were going to find a flower that would heal a certain poison and escape with our lives.

  We traveled a long way, and at first, it wasn’t bad because we knew the village’s forest. After a while, it turned into a different forest and then another one and another one. We moved through forest after forest, and it became darker and darker and creepier. Eyes everywhere watched our every move, but we kept going.

  I had trained to face dangers, but being in an unknown place, I was scared a little. I was glad Ritta had come with me—not because I was scared—I was glad she came because it was good to have someone to talk to, to rely on, and to ask for advice. Like me, Ritta wasn’t a witch to mess with.

  We had been walking for a long time,
but all we could do was continue walking until we found the forest we needed. We were approaching the edge of the current forest when something made me stop. Ritta must have felt it too as she stopped and turned toward me. I sensed something lurking in the next forest. It was the darkest forest I had ever seen. This forest wasn’t dark because there was no light. No, this one was different—even if someone lit a fire, its light wouldn’t have penetrated the darkness. It was weird, and I sensed that even the sun wouldn’t go inside that place. It was almost like it was evil. I looked at Ritta and asked, “Have you ever heard of this place?”

  “I think I would remember if I had heard about a place that evil resided in,” she said sarcastically.

  “I see... well, whatever this place is, we should keep going.” I continued looking around us.

  She nodded with a worried frown. “I don’t think this place is on Earth.”

  I had the same sense. We linked hands and little by little we moved toward the center of the forest without touching the trees or the plants. There were no flowers to be seen. Since there were no other flowers in this forest, finding one flower shouldn’t be that difficult. We walked for miles but still had not seen a single flower.

  I thought of Jonathan, how sick he was, and how pale his skin had been when I saw him last. I didn’t know how much time he had and knew we should hurry. A light appeared in what looked like the end of the forest, but with all the darkness, we couldn’t be sure if there was an end. We stopped and looked at the light with awe; it was like seeing a rainbow in the middle of Hell.

  “What’s that, Ritta? Is it real?” I hadn’t heard of illusions in total darkness, but anything was possible.

  “It must be because it’s not leaving.”

  The light was there like it was waiting for us. It could be harmful, but I didn’t sense anything like that. I sensed goodness if that was even possible in a place as dark and evil as this. Ritta squeezed my hand tighter as we walked toward the light. When we were close enough, we saw that it wasn’t a light, but a tiny little creature with butterfly wings. It wasn’t a fairy exactly, but I didn’t know what it was.

  “I am a pixie,” said the creature with an incredibly strong voice for its size. “I am Trevor and I am trapped in this forest for eternity. Please free me and I will be always in your debt.”

  “Do you mean lost? Can’t you find your way out?”

  He shook his head abruptly. “I am trapped and this darkness is my cage.”

  “How can we free you then?” asked Ritta.

  “You are looking for the flower that cures most poisons, isn’t that correct?” Pixies could read minds too but they did it regularly with no shame. When we nodded, he continued. “Then you should go get it. It’s up there in the branch of this tree. Beware! The flower will ask a question, and only if you speak the truth of your heart will it allow you to use its powers. Be careful when climbing, the trees are poisonous.”

  Ritta turned to me and started toward the tree. “I’ll get it.”

  I stopped her. “I need it. I’ll go get it. You don’t need to risk harming yourself.”

  “But—”

  I waved my hand in an attempt to reassure her. “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

  Ritta got down on all fours, and a confused look crossed Trevor’s face. I took a few steps back, ran and jumped on Ritta’s back and then jumped into the tree. “Who said anything about climbing?” I asked Trevor who was looking at me like I was nuts or stupid or both.

  “You witches are totally crazy. You know that?”

  I continued my way carefully, and when I was near the flower, I said, “What’s your question, flower?”

  The flower opened its closed petals and a voice rang in my head. “If you seek to use me for a holy purpose, proceed, but if you want me to be a token of your collection, leave or be destroyed.”

  What a warm welcome. “My purpose is to save someone I care about, so please let me make some medicine out of your petals, and then I will return you here.”

  “You are a kind-hearted witch, and I see a bright future ahead of you, but this is not my home. It used to be the most beautiful forest man has ever seen, but alas! Demons destroyed it and made it a forest of darkness...”

  “Is this what you want from me? To restore your home?”

  “I do want that, but you can’t do this. It would require a power which you do not possess. What I want from you is to answer my question: Do you love the person that you want to save?”

  It would have been simpler if it had asked if I loved him or hated him but now... I did care for Jonathan enough to come here, but love him? Did I love him? I closed my eyes and thought about what came to my mind when I thought of him, and suddenly everything came to me. The way he smiled, the way he talked, how he dreamed about trips away from duties, our walks in the meadows and the market... I thought about how his eyes lit whenever he saw me. The pixie had appeared when I thought of Jonathan, and I remember hearing that pixies would lead you to happiness. Maybe I hadn’t allowed myself to dream because I knew I would lose him, but the way I was going, I would lose him anyway to someone else who wouldn’t love him at all but would want him only because of his money and power.

  Normally, I wouldn’t care. I shouldn’t care, but I was selfish. Yes, I was because I wanted him to love me for who I was and not because I was rich. He was doing everything to draw my attention, but I was not looking because he was a human. I was the blind one, not him. They said love was painful, but I couldn’t lose him. But I cared and I would help him at any cost. I opened my eyes and looked at the flower. “I do.” I knew then that I loved him very much and that I couldn’t let go of him—not now, not ever.

  The flower turned like it was bowing its head at me and said, “Take some of my petals for your medicine. You really do have a big heart. Guard it well and give it only to those who deserve it.”

  I bowed, took some petals, shoved them into my pocket, and turned to go down as smoothly as I had gone up the tree. That was my intention, but something went wrong along the way. I slipped and landed on one of the branches, and I scraped my knee on the poisonous branch. It was burning like a volcano, but I got up, jumped, and landed on Ritta’s feet. “Are you all right?” she asked. She could always tell whether I was feeling good or bad even if I hid it well, so I had to tell her the truth.

  “I scraped my foot on one of the branches and it burns.”

  The pixie spoke up. “If you took the petals, then use them for your leg.” Selfish pixies. “No.”

  Ritta took a look on my injury and applied a cream she had with her. It felt better but not much. I had to get home to heal. “Did you get it?” she asked.

  “Yes. Now,” I said while Ritta helped me up, “where is the way out?”

  We looked around, but it was all darkness. There were no trees. There was no forest. There was nothing except the pixie and us. Trevor had been trapped for an eternity, so I doubted he would know the way out. We had to find it on our own. I tried to move forward, but I tripped again and fell on the ground. I looked around to find what had made me fall. I was injured, but not that injured. Near my foot, I saw what looked like a twig. How could there be a twig if there were no trees? I had heard stories that forests could regenerate with a ritual and a twig from its former days. It couldn’t hurt to try.

  I told my plan to Ritta but she hesitated. “I don’t know if this will work. This forest is very big and very dark and more than a thousand years old. We don’t know if it will work.” She was always cautious with rituals.

  “Can the ritual backfire?” I asked.

  “No, the worse that could happen is well... nothing,” she said.

  “So, no risks. I think we should give it a try. This flower will help us, and besides, do you see another way out?”

  “No,” she said, scowling.

  We asked for Trevor’s help, and he was more than happy to help. If this worked, he would be free to go home at last. After gathering all the ing
redients, I started chanting and Ritta threw the ingredients in the circle. I recited the verse carefully. The language was ancient Latin, so I’ll just translate it for you: The one that was once whole please let it be one again. I plead with you with all my heart so that you will flourish again. Not a complicated verse, huh? Well, in Latin it was.

  I said it again and again, even though my leg hurt like hell from the poison. Each time I said it, I felt like something was happening, I felt like peace was inside me, but why? Then I understood. It was the trees. The spell was working. I don’t know how I did it, but I drew power from somewhere inside me, and suddenly light was everywhere. It was a bright white light, filled with peace and happy feelings. It was like an angel had descended on Earth and when I opened my eyes the forest was whole. It was no longer dark, and I could see flowers, nymphs, and animals. Ritta and Trevor looked at me with an expression of awe on their faces.

  “What, Ritta?”

  “You did something unheard of,” she said once she found her voice.

  “Errr... no, the spell did it and it worked. Look how beautiful this forest is.” I admired the nature around me.

  “No, you did it. The spell is said to only bring the forest back to health little by little, but it would take years for that. You did it all at once. I never saw anyone do that. How did you do it?”

  There was a first time for everything. “So... I sped up the process a little. I don’t know... I just did it.”

  Trevor was so happy he was flying and dancing and crying at the same time. “Thank you. Thank you. You are amazing. You are a silver miracle!”

  “From where do you gather I am silver?” I asked him curiously.

  “You are all silver. You are a melting fountain of silver.”

  Ritta spoke to me telepathically. “He must mean your aura. It’s silver, but liquid. What are you feeling right now?”

  I didn’t know how I felt exactly, but there was a calm inside me. Or maybe it was relief? “Peace and the feeling when something good is done... or close to its end. We have to get the medicine back to Jonathan.”