Yvette groaned and sat up. The pain across her body was almost entirely faded, though her body was still sore and stiff. She felt like she had slept for days, though the sun was still out, so she assumed it must have only been a few hours.
It was one of the most restful sleeps she’d had in ages, especially compared to the prior night. She slid out of bed and paused. Gervas was gone, his bed unmade. His weapons and armor were still resting on the ground and across the desk. However, a silver tray was resting on the desk as well, filled with slices of meat, cheese and a small roll of bread. The sight of food sent hunger pains through her stomach and she quickly made her way to the plate, stuffing the food into her mouth.
She didn’t know how long it would be until she would be able to eat again, but at least her stomach now felt full. She then walked to the window, opening the wooden slats. It wasn’t a big drop to the ground below. On top of that, there didn’t seem to be a lot of people about. They were likely eating their own dinner or working in the fields. There was a light chill in the air, though.
Yvette moved back to her garments and quickly began to get dressed. She’d imagined she’d be terrified now. She’d never been out on her own before, there had always been servants or helpers to deal with the things she just didn’t know or understand. It was scary out there, especially when you didn’t understand everything.
But instead she felt excited. Even if she didn’t know everything about traveling on her own, she’d finally be in control for once. She’d be able to be who she was, who she wanted to be. She’d never have to pretend to be a boy for fear of being shamed, humiliated or worse. She could be Yvette.
Besides, she was a mage. She could handle herself. All she had to do was keep following the road until she came to the vault. She could offer her services at the keeps and towns along the way. It would be easy.
Once she was dressed, she quickly went through the process of straightening her hair and smoothing her face. She wished she had a mirror to see herself, but she had to trust that she hadn’t missed anything. She promised herself that, the next town she stopped at, she’d request a bath. She walked to her bag and slid it over her shoulder, reaching in to pull open the map.
The next town was a few days away. Fortunately, there were a handful of keeps along the way, ruled by different lords. She could easily request supplies there, as well as offer her services for lodging.
The more she looked over the route, the more confident she felt. Even if she had to run through the night, she could make it somewhere she could rest, she was sure.
She moved to the window again and paused. She felt guilt claw its way through her heart, glancing back towards the door. Despite Neil’s words, he had been a generous host. He’d been so happy to have a guest, as well. Leaving him without so much as a note felt almost cruel. She chewed on her lip for a moment, weighing the consequences.
Finally, she shook her head and started trying to climb out through the window. If she left a note, Gervas would know where she was. He might come after her immediately, rather than giving her the time she needed to escape. Even if it made her feel guilty, she had to believe she was making the right choice.
Squeezing through the wooden slats wasn’t easy and she had to push them roughly to get enough space to squeeze through. Her robe caught twice, forcing her to pause and free herself. She was eternally thankful that there didn’t seem to be anybody around to see her, as she couldn’t imagine she looked like anything less than a fool.
She was halfway out when there was a soft crack and then one of the slats gave in, jarring to the side. Without the wood to help keep her supported, she fell forward out the window. She flailed her hands, trying to catch herself, but only managing to snag the rim for a second before she lost even that precarious grip, flipping through the air.
She landed on her back, hard. Dazed and confused, she stared up at the sky, her body a host of new aches and, likely, bruises. She did a quick inventory of her body, fortunately nothing seemed broken. She slowly rolled over to her side and got, shakily, to her feet.
She was out. She was free. She glanced up at the sky for a moment, before making a dash north, heading towards the northern road.
She’d been wrong before. It wasn’t evening, it was morning. She couldn’t believe she’d slept almost an entire day away, but at least now she knew why she felt so much better. More importantly, that meant she had a full day to put as much space between herself and Gervas as she wanted. By the time he realized anything was wrong, she’d be too far away for him to even bother trying to find her.
It was the perfect plan.
At least, it was until she nearly ran into him. She turned the corner of the last house and there he was, talking with a young man working in the fields. It took her bodyguard only a moment to notice her, his face etched with surprise. “Tebaud? What are you doing out here?”
“I...” she whispered, staring at him. He wasn’t wearing his armor or his sword. His horse was nowhere to be seen, likely in the stable. How long would it take him to get it ready to travel? How much time did she have?
“Tebaud? What is it?” he asked again, stepping towards her.
“STAY AWAY FROM ME!” she finally screamed, shaking her head. “I hate you and I WON’T LET YOU STOP ME FROM BEING ME!” With those words, she placed her left hand against her bracer, forming the desired symbol before unleashing her magic.
She could feel the light tingle while her body shifted. Parts becoming thinner and narrow, while others thickened. New muscles she didn’t have began to grow, while the ground itself seemed to rise up and she was forced to bend forward. From her forehead, small antlers blossomed. Within a few moments, she was no longer a human, instead having taken on the form of a reindeer.
She then charged forward, forcing Gervas to leap aside to avoid being trampled. “Tebaud! What in the world are you doing? TEBAUD! GET BACK HERE!”
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She ignored him, galloping as quickly as she could away. She’d done it. She was free. She refused to even turn away, unwilling to risk looking back until she was certain he couldn’t have kept up.
Once she was certain she was out of sight and her stamina began to weaken, she reduced her speed from a rapid gallop to a steady, but slightly slower canter. This was one of her greatest forms for long distance. While it lacked the speed of a horse, its endurance was far higher.
He’d never catch her. She’d just run as hard as she could, as long as she could. She’d escape. She’d be herself.
Even when the strain of the long canter began to weigh on her, she felt lighter than she ever had, drawing on reserves of energy she never knew she had and supplementing it with her magic. Her mind focused on only one simple thought. Her freedom.
She didn’t know how long it had been when she finally began to slow. Judging by the sun, it had been a few hours. Still, she felt a giddy glee. She’d finally escaped. She slowed down from her canter into a trot and then, finally, a walk. Her mouth was dry and her heart pounded in her chest, sweat glistening off her coat. Her magic was at its limit, though. Once she turned back into herself, she knew she’d probably collapse from exhaustion. Even if this form could maintain its speed for an extended duration, she could not.
She glanced back once more, before turning into the forest and walking into it. All she had to do was find a place to rest and regain her energy. Perhaps a long nap, maybe she could even--
Her thoughts were shattered by a sudden piercing pain in her right side, just above her back leg. She froze in place, only to feel a second pain in her abdomen. She stumbled forward and then collapsed, something flying over her head mere moments after. Her spell collapsed, reverting her back to her human form.
The pain didn’t recede. She looked down for the source. An arrow was lodged in her side, a second in her hip. Slowly, she reached down and tried to grip one of the arrows and yank it out, only for the pain to make her pull her hand back and let out a shriek of pain.
She tried to focus, but the pain made thinking harder. Who had attacked her? Why? She could hear footsteps, someone making their way through the woods.
“It fell over here, I’m sure of it,” a voice said.
Yvette shook her head, trying to clear it. Her vision was clouded, confused and disoriented. “H-help...” she mumbled softly.
The sounds stopped. “Did you hear something?” a different voice from the first said.
“H-help!” she called out, as loudly as she could. The yell sent a wave of dizziness through her.
She laid her head flat against the ground, trying to will the world to stop spinning. Two figures ran out from the woods, soon towering over her. “It’s a mage! Oh by the Lion you shot a mage,” the first voice said.
“Me? You shot it! My shot missed!” the second voice said.
“It doesn’t matter who shot it!”
“H-help,” she pleaded, giving a light whimper. One of the figures knelt down by her.
“It’s okay, it’s okay,” the man said, the owner of the second voice.
“If his lordship finds out we shot a mage, we’ll be hung. Or have our souls torn out. Or turned into frogs! We aren’t even supposed to be here!”
“Well we’re here now!” the second voice snapped. She felt a sharp tug in her hip, eliciting a scream from her lips. The pain caused lights to flash across her vision, blinding her for a moment.
“W-we can’t let him tell anyone. If word gets out what we did, we just can’t!”
“What? We can’t just-- wait!”
She felt a hand on the back of her head, lifting it. She had only a moment to feel panic, before her head was slammed into the ground and darkness, mercifully, enveloped her.
------
Yvette’s eyes opened, groggily. She could feel herself being dragged by her legs. She tried to speak, but there was something covering her mouth. She tried to move her hands, but they were bound tightly together.
She hit a root and she felt something snag one of the arrows in her side, eliciting a muffled shriek from the girl.
“He’s waking up, hit him again!” the first voice said.
She tried to do something to defend herself, but she couldn’t move. Another sudden blow to the head drove the thoughts away when she sank into unconsciousness.
------
It hurt. She was resting on a bed of rocks. Dying. She was going to die. She could hear the two arguing again, but she couldn’t make out the words anymore. Her head was throbbing and she felt like she’d throw up.
She tried to focus, to use some small form of magic, but she’d used all she had taking the form of the reindeer for so long. She had nothing left. The more she tried, the more distorted the world seemed to become, spinning around her.
She closed her eyes. The end was here.
At least she could take comfort that she would die free, little though it was.
------
Water. She heard water. More yelling. Shadows dancing on the edge of her vision. Something was poking her back.
------
She was shaking, her head rolling from side to side. She felt something on her cheek. Hitting her.
------
Yelling, someone was yelling at her. She couldn’t understand the words, though. So much shaking. Why?
------
The world was going up and down, flying around her vision, making her nausea even worse.
------
Fire. She felt fire coursing through her veins. She wasn’t gagged any longer, allowing her screams to tear from her throat. It felt as if her body was being burned from the inside, awakening her once more.
She felt a hand covering her mouth and, through her dim, clouded vision, she swore she saw Gervas.
The pain seemed to last for hours but, eventually, it dimmed and then faded, leaving her with an empty feeling. Darkness mercifully embraced her one more time, taking her weary mind back into sleep.