The Cursed Girl, #1

by Maria Vermisoglou

  He smiled. “I told you the meeting was boring.”

  Meow. “Exactly. Boring. And time for food, I know.”

  We ate and then Alicia and her family knocked on our door, to say goodbye.

  “So soon?” I said.

  “There will be a next time, I am sure.” Alicia smiled.

  “How will you leave?” Jonathan asked.

  “By the sea,” the father said.

  I was impressed. Few would have dared to go by sea in the winter. “All right. Be careful.” I embraced the children and the mother and I shook hands with the father.

  The boys said their goodbyes and the family left. I watched them from the window, and Alicia blew me a kiss when she saw me watching. “You like her, don’t you?” Alec asked.

  “She’s easy to like. She’s one of those people you can’t help but love, like Ritta.”

  Jonathan stood next to the window. “That’s why you like her.”

  I smiled a little. “One of the reasons, yes.” I watched them until they turned a corner and I couldn’t see them anymore.

  “So what are we going to do? Leave?” Jonathan asked.

  I shrugged. “I don’t think it’s wise to go around the country like this, with no purpose. We should stay here and rest while we can.”

  We spent the days resting. We went out as little as possible during the daytime but often went out when the sun had set. We walked on the beach and watched the stars. We even swam in the sea once, but I learned I preferred swimming when the sun was up.

  One day when the boys were talking, I noticed something that made my skin chill. I stared at them in horror. They caught me staring at them. “What? What is it?” Jonathan checked his clothes, and Alec pulled his knife and looked behind him.

  “The paint is almost gone.”

  “We thought there was an assassin behind us,” Alec said.

  “Don’t ever do that again,” Jonathan chided me.

  “Sorry.” I prepared the hair paint mixture and then made them sit so I could apply it. “You know, you should think of doing this as a job. You are good at it,” Alec said.

  Jonathan grinned. “Well, you are good at anything, so you can be anything. Unlike others who can do only one thing.”

  “Well, it’s good that I will have a job after the war.” They laughed. “Here. You are done. Pretty as gold.” They looked at the mirror. Our room at this inn had a mirror, which I looked at every morning. You might think it was kind of narcissistic, but it wasn’t—we didn’t have mirrors at home.

  A few days later, I was sewing something and Jonathan sat next to me; I still have not forgiven him for almost killing my cat, but we have reached an understanding. He understood how I felt about Midnight and he paid attention to things concerning her now. “Can you tell me a story?”

  “Aren’t you a little old for bedtime stories? And it’s still daytime anyway.”

  He laughed. “Not that kind of stories. I want stories from the village, you know... regular ones. The ones you tell your friend Ritta, your neighbor, your mother, or someone you are close to.”

  I wished he had said that without mentioning Ritta or my mother. I missed them a lot. “Sure. What kind of stories do you want? Happy or interesting?”

  “Let’s start with interesting.”

  For several days he came to me and asked me to tell him stories. At first, it was interesting and happy stories, but then there were sad ones and painful ones, and I told him every story I had heard or lived. After telling him some stories, I realized that he asked for stories to learn about me, life, and things he didn’t know.

  Eventually, Alec listened to the stories too. When I told them the legends my mother used to tell Ritta and me, they questioned the stories. “And then the Blue Knight crushed him, and he turned to dust—”

  “Wait, that’s not possible. You can’t turn someone into dust.”

  Yes, you can. “Jonathan, it’s a story. It means the knight was powerful—”

  “And why all knights are colorful?” Alec questioned.

  “I don’t know. I don’t make the legend, all right? Now, will you let me finish?”

  “Yes, madam,” Jonathan said, so I continued. I told them legends mostly because we had seen some of them and it was good for them to be prepared. Maybe the next time a Red Death or another legend is fighting them, I won’t be there to save them.

  The days continued to pass uneventfully. I had to go to the market because our supplies were running low. I put my hooded cloak so I wouldn’t be recognized. When I returned, the boys had puzzled expressions. “What’s wrong?”

  “We don’t know, but Midnight is acting strange,” Jonathan said.

  “How so?”

  Alec pointed at the bathroom. “She made us come to the bathroom, but we couldn’t locate anything that bothered her.”

  I went to the bathroom and asked Midnight, “What’s wrong, sweetheart?” Meow. She shook her paw in the air. I looked around and finally saw a pigeon as white as snow. No wonder the boys didn’t see it; it was the same color as the bathroom walls. When I saw the pigeon, I knew what it meant, and it was like someone had poured a bucket of ice water over my head. I put out my hand, and the pigeon sat on my hand, and I brought it to the main room. The boys saw it, and their expressions grew serious, I retrieved the letter and gave it to them. They read it silently, and I waited patiently for what I knew would be bad news.

  Jonathan lifted his gaze from the letter. “We must go.”

  “Will you tell me the entire story or do I have to read it?”

  He played with his hands. He did that when he was nervous. “We are going back to Spain...” So, you are going back home? “We will meet them in the North of France.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yes, what’s the problem?”

  “How about it will take us three days at least? And oh. We will pass near the palace and they might arrest us?”

  They looked determined. “We know, but we have to go...” Alec said.

  “They will recognize you.”

  “Not if you come with us,” Jonathan said with a little smile.

  “I am a woman. Women are not allowed to fight. Remember?” I rolled my eyes. “You want me to come to France so I can watch you die? Can’t you find a better excuse?” I was angry that I wouldn’t be able to do anything else but watch them go to war and get killed in the process. They were silent for a few moments. Alec took my arm and Jonathan laced his fingers through mine. “The royal trio,” Alec said.

  “Where did you see royal? Try the runaway trio,” I said. Midnight climbed up and settled on the back of my neck.

  “With a cat,” Jonathan added.

  At lunch, no one talked much, but Midnight climbed onto Alec’s neck. “Oh. There is one more thing,” Jonathan said after we had cleaned.

  “What?” I asked, preparing for worse news.

  “You have to paint your hair again.”

  I stared at him. He couldn’t be serious. I started laughing and the boys laughed too. It was nice like the rain after many hot days, and the mood lifted a little. “You are going to war and all you care about is my hair?”

  “You are a wanted person, aren’t you? And in the same place as a common thief.”

  “I am not.”

  “Yes, you are. Ten thousand francs qualifies for the lowest place in the criminal world.”

  “I am not a common thief, Jonathan. How dare you say that?”

  “All right, stop,” Alec said. “What about your hair?” We looked at him. “Stop the cat fighting,” he said.

  I grinned. “I am a cat, and he’s a woodpecker. So I can eat him.”

  Jonathan looked at me incredulously. “You will not do any such thing. And I am not a woodpecker.”

  “According to your character, you are.” I laughed at his angry expression. “You shouldn’t have put me in the same place as a common thief.”

  “If common thieves were anything like you, the people wo
uld have been running scared,” Alec said. “So, what about your hair?”

  I shrugged. “We have a war. They obviously have better things to do than to chase a girl.”

  “You can’t be serious,” Jonathan said.

  “It’s not like they can win in a fight.”

  “Yes, but why take such a risk? Why don’t you want to do it?” Jonathan asked.

  “I can’t do it unless you know how to paint.”

  “Can’t you do it yourself?” Alec asked.

  “Unless I grow eyes on my back, no.”

  “We can help you,” Alec said. Yes, and make me look like a clown. “You can instruct us and we will help you.”

  They were right, it might be too risky not to keep my appearance different. The worse that could happen was that the color wouldn’t go everywhere. I prepared the paint and instructed them how to do it. I hoped they would do a decent job. Jonathan painted my hair with the brush and Alec supervised.

  “You missed a spot,” Alec said and Jonathan scowled.

  I thought about how I could help them, but I couldn’t think of anything. The only way to save them was to stop the war, but witches couldn’t do everything. Even magical powers had limitations.

  After the paint dried, we cleaned up and packed. We left the room and went downstairs. I held Alec’s arm to keep up appearances that I was blind while Jonathan let the innkeeper know we no longer needed the room. We went to the stables and Jonathan helped me mount my horse. They mounted their horse, and we started our journey to the north of France.

  It would be tricky getting to the north of France. With the war, I imagined cities and villages would be more cautious with outsiders coming in. We saw fields, cows, and horses but few people. We only stopped to eat and traveled until the sun had set. When we stopped for the night, I took out a tent from my bag.

  “The magic bag,” exclaimed Jonathan. He didn’t know how close he was to the truth. We set up the tent and Jonathan asked, “So we have to sleep in there? I have never slept in a tent before.”

  Yes, you slept on fluffy pillows at the palace. “You can sleep outside if you want. Don’t worry, since you slept in a cave, that qualifies for a palace.”

  Alec and Jonathan went inside the tent. I tied the horses to a set of trees near the river so they would have grass and water nearby. “Goodnight, Blackie. Goodnight, Blueberry. Goodnight, Sunshine. I stared at the stars and then entered the tent too to find the boys talking. “Why aren’t you ready for sleep?” I asked.

  “We thought it was better to be ready for departure, and anyway someone must take watch. It’s dangerous outside,” Jonathan said.

  I nodded. “You are right. We are too close to Versailles, that’s where the palace is located.”

  “But how do we pass Versailles without being seen?” Alec asked.

  “And how come we didn’t see it last time or get questioned by any guards?” Jonathan asked puzzled.

  “Because we were going from the fields. Who is going to think to check the cows for papers?”

  “I will take the first watch,” Jonathan said.

  “Do not forget to wake me up.” Alec and Jonathan shared a look. “I will tell Midnight to put worms in your beds.”

  “All right. But no worms please.” Alec held his hands up and I smiled.

  “Jonathan, don’t forget to put on something. It gets cold at night,” I said. He grabbed a sweater to take with him and went outside for the first watch. “Thank you,” he said, and surprisingly, Midnight went with him and stayed.

  I woke up to Midnight pushing on me. I opened my eyes and saw it was still dark outside. I pulled on a sweater and went outside. Alec was on watch, and I sat next to him. “Anything to report?”

  “No, everything is calm.”

  “Go get some sleep. You’ll be up in a few hours anyway when the sun rises.” Alec went inside and Midnight stayed with me. “Did you sleep at all tonight?” Meow. “Come to sleep now.” She curled up in my lap and slept. The sky was dark, but a sweeter dark than other nights. I saw our horses in the distance and it fascinated me how they could sleep standing. Didn’t they ever get tired of standing?

  A few hours passed and the sky became a pinkish-orange color. I thought of what lay ahead of us; it would be difficult, but there was a way out of it. There was always a way out, especially if you were with me. Ritta used to call me “the map of possibilities.” If we were stuck, I was able to get us out in the most unusual way. Midnight could always get us to the exit, but if the exit was locked or hidden? That was where I came in.

  I heard rustling inside the tent and then talking. The tent flap opened and Alec and Jonathan stepped out. “Good morning. So how was your first watch?” Jonathan asked.

  “It’s hardly my first. I have done many others.”

  “Anything happened?”

  “No. Midnight slept. I didn’t see much of a sunrise. That’s it, no one passed that way.” We prepared breakfast and ate quickly. Midnight was still sleeping so I put her in the tent.

  “So how are we going to pass unnoticed by the king’s guards? Even if we had nothing to hide, we have no papers. They won’t let us pass like that,” Alec said in a low voice that reminded me we were in enemy territory. Even the trees had ears—in a manner of speaking, I hoped.

  “We won’t pass by the guards at all then,” I said with a smile that confused them.

  “Isn’t it a little dangerous to pass through the tunnels now?” Jonathan asked.

  “Who said anything about the tunnels? We are going to pass them on a normal road.” I laughed at their puzzled expressions. “There is another way that passes beneath the road of the palace and therefore is harmless.”

  They raised their eyebrows. “And you know this how?” Alec asked.

  “Market people talk and you can learn plenty of information. Especially if you are compassionate. French people don’t like the king and how he rules. They are poor and live in bad conditions.”

  “Is anything wrong with that road?” Alec asked.

  “Not from what I have heard, except that it is longer than the normal road, so we might need to leave soon if we want to be at the meeting point by nightfall at least.” They nodded and started packing. I gave Midnight her share of food. She went to sleep again, and I put her in my bag along with the other things. I gave the boys some food to carry because we might not be able to stop for a break. We mounted the horses and traveled until I pointed to a cut in the road. We took the left side there, and then we turned right. The road was good, but there were more trees and bushes in front of us than what a normal road had. We continued and watched for the signs that indicated where we were. “Yes. We passed it,” Jonathan said when we saw the sign that read “PARIS.”

  Yes, we had passed it, but in my opinion, we were in an equally dangerous place. “Shouldn’t we go back to the main road?” Alec asked, and I yelled, “No. It’s better here. There won’t be many people, and it will be faster.

  We ate our lunches on horseback while crossing half the country. It was cold for a February, and I wished it was springtime. There would have been flowers to admire rather than bare trees and bushes. We passed cities and towns, but we didn’t see them. All we saw of the cities and towns were their signs. That was good because if we don’t see them, then nobody can see us.

  We continued riding until we found ourselves in the last city before the mountains—Pyrenees, they called them. I stopped and Jonathan stopped too and asked, “What’s wrong?”

  “I think we should pull up here.”

  “Why?” Alec asked, stopping on the other side of me.

  “Because it’s the last city before the mountains, and over the mountains is Spain. Your meeting is tomorrow, right?” They nodded. “So we can find an inn or put the tent up for the night, and you can go tomorrow.”

  We took the way to the main road and searched for an inn. We found two right near each other. “This or that?” Jonathan asked, pointing to the two inns respectiv
ely. I pointed to the one that had poorer decoration than the other. “Why? You don’t like fancy?” he asked with a smile.

  “No, but the poorest decoration means that they are good and don’t need any fancy decorations to prove it.”

  He laughed and we went to the Inn de Pyrénées. “Not a very creative name, if you ask me.”

  “It’s good thinking,” Alec said before we entered. Like the outside, the inside had poor decoration too. Some pictures of the mountains and one of a dog were hanging from the bare wooden walls. We requested a room for three and then went up to our room.

  The room looked wonderful—and then I saw there was only one bed. The bed was big enough for three people. How unusual. Usually, beds at inns were only big enough for one or two people. “Are they joking?” I asked as I stared at the large bed.

  The boys looked confused too. “Back to square one, I guess,” Jonathan said.

  Midnight came out of my bag to explore the room, but when she jumped on the bed, she made circles like she couldn’t decide. She looked just as confused as I was. She finally sat on the left side of the bed, but she was still confused. I prepared dinner, and the boys set the table, but we didn’t meet each other glances. Well, Eva, you suggested we rest so it’s your fault.

  We ate and joked like every other night, but this night was different: this was a goodbye. After we cleaned the table, the time had come to address the problem at hand: how we were going to sleep. “I can sleep on the floor,” Jonathan said.

  “You can’t sleep on the floor. It’s uncomfortable and you won’t be rested well for tomorrow.” You won’t be rested well for the battle, the war, the doom, I thought sadly. “Same goes for you, Alec,” I said before he could offer. “I will sleep on the floor”

  “It will not be the right thing to do,” Alec said.

  “And what would be the right thing to do?” I snapped. “Cut the bed in two?”

  Jonathan smiled. “It’s an idea.” I stared at him. “You suggested it,” he said.

  I was tired, too tired to think. Horseback was good, but not for a long time. In the end, I said, “We’ll all just share the bed. It could have been worse. Now sit.” I pointed to two chairs.