2
Eleara
Once I heard my mother shut her bedroom door after her attempt of quietly sneaking back inside, I got out of bed.
I wonder what she is keeping from Yuince and I. Each day after lunch, she leaves our small cottage in the woods and doesn’t return until the early morning hours before breakfast while it is still dark outside. She doesn’t tell me what she does for work. She used to be a seamstress’s assistant up until a year ago. Since leaving that job, the one time I had asked her about her new job, she slapped me across the face and told me that anything she does with her life is none of my business.
So I have never asked her again.
I pad across the cold wooden planks of my bedroom floor over to my armoire. I raise my hand and run my fingers along the gold swirly details that line the edges of the dark wooden doors.. I had painted them when I was younger after being yelled at and tossed across the room from my hair by my mother. All for ‘wasting’ perfectly good paper that she needed to write on to send letters.
I truly don’t know what I have done to make her hate me.
I grab the golden knobs on each door of the armoire and pull them open. My wardrobe consists of mostly black clothing. I reach inside and pluck a black long sleeve off of the metal hanger. The sound of the hanger swaying against the metal rod that holds all of my tops sends a chill down my spine as I cringe from the squeaking. I bend down to the drawers that rest underneath the armoire doors and slide the top one open. Leggings or jeans? I’ll go with jeans today since I need to head into the woods. I shut that drawer and move onto the one underneath, opening it and grabbing a pair of black strappy underwear, long black socks, and a black bra.
I walk back over to my bed and toss the clothing onto it. Since I did not gather any wood last night due to my urgent rescue mission, the house is cold. My nipples are practically cutting through my white nightgown.
I reach my arms down to the bottom seam of my nightgown and pull it up, over my head - tossing it onto the foot of my bed. I slip my feet through each side on my strappy thong, as the lacy material slides up my thighs and rests upon the curves of my waist, the thought of River’s lips jumps into my mind.
Why am I thinking about him right now?
I shake my head - erasing the image from my mind and continue to get dressed. Once I am fully clothed in my all black attire, I head towards my bedroom door and reach for the handle. As I slowly pull my door open, trying to avoid the moans that cry from the hinges, I slip through the doorway.
All of our bedrooms are on the second floor of our cottage. My mother’s room is at the end of the dimly lit hallway and Yunice’s room is directly across from mine. When Yunice and I were younger we used to run across the dark hallway at night into each others room, scared of what we let our minds believe was lurking in the darkness of our home. But now, Yunice and I hardly speak. When we do it’s usually her spitting her sour attitude out at me like poison from a venomous snake.
I glide my hand on the wooden banister as I walk down the stairs, avoiding the spots that cry out when you step on them. I leap off from one foot when I arrive at the final step and land onto both of my feet on the main floor. The orange beams of light peak through the curtains hung over the windows as the sun rises.
I need to hurry up.
I quicken my pace as I walk over to the front door and slide my feet into my black boots. Before grabbing the door handle to head outside, I reach over to grab my black jacket that is hanging from a hook on the cream colored wall and slide my arms inside.When I twist the door handle, a strong sudden wind roars from outside pushing the door into my body. I stumble back, gripping the handle tighter to keep me from falling backwards.
The cold wind pushing towards me harder, raising goosebumps on every inch of my body underneath my clothing. I raise my free hand to shield my open eyes from the wind burning into them and that’s when I hear something whisper my name.
Eleara.
It was the softest, smoothest whisper I have heard, ever. Maybe I imagined it. The wind is strong.
I put my arm down and lean forward to push against the wind but as soon as I do, the world calms itself and the wind siezes.
I shut the door behind me as I stand at our front doorstep. We have a small swinging bench on our weathered porch, the perfect spot to relax and listen to nature. I used to sit there with my grandmother when I was younger as she spoke stories to me.
My boots click against the wooden planks as I walk forward to the single step leading downward onto the dirt path.
In front of our house is a small dirt path that separates our cottage from the traveling road, bright green blades of grass coat the ground on either side of the path. We have no neighbors on either side of our home, making our sanctuary quiet. Spirit and the barn take residency on the left side of our house and miles of fields reside to the right.
I spin on my heel, turning to the right and walking across the stone path that leads to our wood shed. Memories of younger me digging out shallow holes with Yunice so we could plop the rocks into them, but my expression stays blank as the memory floods in. Hopefully she doesn’t wake until I collect enough firewood to warm the house.
I grab the wooden wheelbarrow next to the shed and walk around to the back of the house. About thirty feet behind our house lies the dense woods. As I walk into the slim opening between two trees, a heavy chill runs down my spine. I look around and continue forward, leading myself deeper into the woods.
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*thwack*
*thwack*
I toss the final two logs into the wheelbarrow, the contents almost spilling out. I lodge the axe into one of the logs and brush my hands off on my thighs. Sweat drips down the center of my back as I wipe away the sweat lining my forehead. Out of breath, I grab each handle of the wheelbarrow and begin pulling it behind me as I walk over the leaves and dirt crunching beneath my boots. The sun has almost fully risen above the trees, brightening the woods since I had first entered them.
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Eleara.
I whip my head around, my long chestnut braid a near inch away from smacking my face from the sudden, sharp movement.
“Hello?” I call out.
No answer.
I turn my head back to face forward and continue walking. The chilly air suddenly feels thicker and I quicken my pace, breaking into a jog while pulling an overflowing wheelbarrow. I dart my eyes around in front of me - hoping that nothing comes jumping out at me. I manage to break through the small opening that clears me from the woods and back into my backyard. Breathing heavily, I haul the wood over to the wood shed and begin unloading everything.
Once I finish packing the shed with everything that I gathered, I look down to my hands and see them full of splinters.
“Hard at work I see.”
I turn around to see River standing behind me.
“What are you doing here?” I ask breathlessly with wide eyes and scrunched brows.
“I was just on my way home from fishing.” He says as he pats the rope resting upon him.
I look to the side and notice the rope slung over his broad shoulder with fish dangling all the way down to his calf.
I raise a brow.
“And then you decided to creep into my backyard?” I say - holding back a smirk.
He runs his hand through his hair and stretches a smile across his face.
“No. As I was coming around the corner I noticed you unloading wood and wanted to ask you how your horse was doing after her run in with the mud pit yesterday.”
“She’s doing fine,” I say. “She just needs to rest. She must have been struggling in the pit for a while before I had found her.”
River is looking down at my dirty, beat up hands before reaching out and grabbing them. He turns them over from front to back, examining them. He drops one of my hands to free his and reaches into his back pocket, grabbing a cloth. He wipes the palm of my hand with the cloth and brings my finger to his mouth. He parts his lips, gently places my finger in between them and starts sucking.
I freeze. My eyes widen as my mouth drops open. My heart starts beating so hard under my chest that I fear he may feel it vibrating from me.
His teeth nip at my fingertip. Finally catching onto the tip of the splinter and pulling it free from my skin. He looks up at me, his eyes meeting mine - dropping to my mouth. I snap my lips shut and he looks back to my hand, bringing it back up to his mouth so he can suck the second splinter out.
Why am I just standing here letting this happen?
Because I quite enjoy watching my hand inside of his mouth.
He rips out the second splinter and wipes my hand with the cloth again. He drops my hand and turns his head to the side - spitting out both of the splinters he just sucked out of me.
“You should really start wearing gloves.” He says with a smirk.
I pull my gaze from his and brush my hands off onto my thighs. I notice his eyes wander to my lips for a second time and I feel my cheeks redden. I clear my throat and turn back around to face the shed, sucking in a sharp breath.
“Thank you.” I say as my voice shakes.“I have to get back to what I was doing before my family awakens.”
He smirks, “what would they do without you?”
“Live happily ever after.”
Assuming that I am joking, he lets out a loud roar of laughter.
“No lifetime of mine would be lived happily without the appearance of you.”
There it is once again, my heart. It’s thumping underneath my breast, trying it hardest to emerge from my chest. I close my eyes, behind my dark eyelids River grabs my face and ever so lightly presses his lips against mine.
I feel a hand on my back and I shake my head of the thought intruding my mind.
“Hey, I’m just teasing you.” River’s deep voice rolls of off his tongue, sending the vibrations down his arm and rolling onto my back.
“I know.” I say, “I just really need to get inside and get a fire rolling to warm up the house since I fell asleep last night after everything.”
With three logs stacked onto both of my arms, I brush past him and head towards my front door. I feel his eyes on me as I walk away from him.
“Hey wait,” he hurries past me, leaping off of one foot over the single step and landing his black boot on my porch. He reaches out to the door handle and swings the door open for me, hoding out his arm gesturing me to walk inside.
“I’ll see you later Eleara.”
I smile and nod my head as a thank you as he turns to leave my porch. My smile widens as the events that just occurred replay in my mind. The warmth of his touch, his calloused hands and soft lips. My stomach warms at the thought of his lips on mine. I make my way to the fireplace and drop the wood inside.
“Ahem.”
I turn to see my sister Yunice sitting on the couch with her feet pulled up to her chest and a large blanket wrapped around her.
“Why isn’t the fire going? It’s freezing in here.” She hisses.
Her face revealing an expression of disgust - like she’s just seen a rotting animal on the side of the trail.
“We were out of wood. I had meant to go out yesterday to cut a few small trees down for firewood but you somehow managed to let Spirit run loose and not help me look for her. I spent all evening trying to find her.”
She rolls her eyes.
“If you’re so cold, start the fire yourself.”
She huffs. Throwing the blanket off of her and stomping over to the fireplace. Lifting up her hand, she balls her fist. She kneels down next to the fireplace and closes her eyes. Once she opens her eyes, she opens her fist, revealing a small fliker of a flame. She brings her hand close to her mouth, puckers her lips and blows. Flames flying towards the logs and igniting them.
“There.” She shakes her wrist. “You’re welcome.”
I laugh.
“I was perfectly capable of lighting the fire without your help.”
She rolls her eyes and pads back over to the couch - snatching her blanket and bundling back up inside of it before plopping down onto the cushion.
“You know that you’ll never be with River, right?” She asks me.
“Wha- what do you mean?”
“What I mean is that you will never be with River. He is probably the most handsome man in Clydane and you will always be here taking care of mother and I. You have no magic so therefore, there is nothing special about you.” She spits.
Anger fills inside of me, heating my blood to boiling temperatures. I keep my mask on, hiding my rage.
“You’ve got it wrong Yunice. Having no magic is exactly what makes me special. You, on the other hand, are just like every other person in the Kingdom.”
“No.” She snaps. “You have got it wrong. You will be serving others your entire life, never feeling the power of being served upon.”
My insides are on fire. The more she continues to talk the angier I am becoming, the mask becoming too hard to keep up any longer. I look over to the fire, noticing how the flames have grown larger and the light emitting from it is brighter. In the living room, the fireplace is on the far wall, opposite of where I am standing. Yet, the room is becoming unbearably hot as if I am standing right next to the burning flames.
I look down at my feet, my vision is becoming blurry, it feels like I am shoulder deep in water rocking side to side from the waves. I roll up the sleeves of my shirt and cough, bringing my arm up to cover my mouth. When I pull my arm away from my face, It looks like black ink has been splattered on me.
“What is going on with you?” Yunice asks as she stands up and begins walking towards me.
Her voice infiltrating my head and breaking the mask I’ve tried so hard to keep up. Black mist starts rising from the floorboards, slowly creeping up my legs.
“Eleara!”
The mist travels up my legs, swirling around my body and coating my arms in the cloud of ink. I feel my eyes roll to the back of my head.
Eleara.
The voice I heard in the woods today. It’s back.
Eleara, let us take control.
“No!” I scream.
The mist explodes from my body, dispersing, and disappearing. The house rattles and I pant hard as I struggle to steady my breathing. My heart is racing and sweat drips down the back of my neck. I look over to Yunice who has a look of terror and curiosity.
“Holy shit. What was that Eleara?”
I look around the room. Scanning the area for any trace of the dark mist. Whatever that was, I have no idea. Who’s voice was that and how were they inside of my head? My body shakes as I walk to the couch. I take a seat and stare at the fire. The flames growing as I keep my eyes locked on them.
“Eleara, what is going on?” Asks Yunice.
I clear my throat. “I have no idea Yunice, but promise me that you won’t tell mother,”
She nods as she walks over and plops down beside me. When the mist faded away, I felt something. Something dark, something negative. I wonder if this is what River had talked about, or the Hag that had hunted me in the woods. Has this happened to them as well?