Tove continued to wander about the castle, keeping Hrollief’s cloak close around her and being careful to avoid the armories. After wandering about for at least a couple hours she found a balcony looking out into the woods around the castle. The wind pulled at her hair, and she felt an odd urge to climb over the balcony and run into the woods. The wind seemed to be pulling her in, and she almost began to climb over the rails, but suddenly she smelled warm spices mixed with pine. Her heart skipped a beat, and all thoughts of the woods were chased away as she looked around her, looking for someone. The blush that had reached her cheeks dimmed when she realized she was alone. Her hands pulled the fur cloak around her, and she pressed her nose to the soft fur, taking in Hrollief’s scent. She stood in this way for a long time, enjoying the peace of the outside air, and only moved when the light began to wane, her collar feeling comfortable on her neck.

* * *

“I need to know if there is any connection between Tove’s family and demons of any sort.” Hrollief was pacing in the library, speaking to his two trusted advisers. They had helped him with many a war-time decision, and could find information on almost anything he asked about. “If possible, find the meaning behind the golden collar they all wear, I have a guess that it may be their connection to something, or perhaps each other, but I need to understand as much as possible before acting.” His advisers simply nodded, having known Hrollief long enough to not ask questions. He left them to their work, then began his routine of checking in with the soldiers who had returned from posts at every city or village in his possession. They came back with disturbing reports of Hagen’s men causing trouble on the border, so Hrollief made plans to go and take care of the problem. He attended to his duties, bustling from one end of the castle to the other, and only glimpsed Tove once until dinner. She was standing alone on a balcony looking out into the woods, wrapped up in the cloak he had given her the night before. The darkness that was usually thick around her seemed to have lightened some. He felt the same odd feeling that he had in the woods, and almost went to speak with her, but then remembered his tasks, and decided to wait until dinner.

They ate together in the formal dinning hall, just the two of them. He sat at the head of the table, while she sat next to him on his right. He noticed the cloud of darkness around her had grown thick again.

“Were you able to find your way about the castle?” He asked.

“Yes, thank you for showing me your home. This castle is quite magnificent.” She spoke softly, as if afraid to speak beyond a whisper.

“There is yet more to see, though I am sure there is nothing here quite as extravagant as your father’s palace.” A note of venom made its way into his voice. He had a great disdain for kings who used their power and wealth as frivolously as King Hagen. His palace was made of fine marble and stone, with gold and gemstones embedded everywhere possible, and every room was filled with lavish trappings and delicacies. This Hrollief well remembered, though he had only been there once. Hagen also had more servants then Hrollief could fathom ever needing, or ever being able to trust, not to mention he had even given away his own daughter as though she had no value to him. Granted, she had been sent to kill Hrollief in his sleep, but a man’s family should not be used as bargaining chips or pawns.

“He… certainly has a style all his own.” Tove’s face lit up with mild amusement, and Hrollief laughed, causing her to jump.

“Indeed he does!” He felt a smile creep onto his face, and at his comment Tove blushed and busied herself with her food. Hrollief watched her carefully for a moment, then finished his own dinner.

As he walked her back to her room, he thought of what could have penetrated the darkness around her. Without knowing exactly how she and her demon were connected (if there even was a demon) he had no idea what could have made that connection waver. Then, a thought crossed his mind. Perhaps, the magic within the woods was able to weaken the connection. However she and that darkness are connected, the woods would find a way to weaken and reveal it. They had reached her door. “I will leave you here, may you find rest tonight Tove.”

She blushed again, then said “And you as well, Hrollief.” Her cheeks reddened even more when she said his name, then she quickly pushed the door open and disappeared inside. He walked back to his room, his thoughts now occupied with visions of her face, and he could hear her saying his name. A blush reached his cheeks.

* * *

Tove closed the door softly behind her, cursing herself for saying his name and not his title. She wanted to grow closer to him, but if she did she would have to go through with her orders. Her collar tightened, and she knew there was no way to save his life except to keep her distance. She took off his cloak, threw it aside, and wrapped herself in the covers of her bed, letting her tired body and mind finally rest.

In her dream, she was surrounded by trees so tall they blended into the gray sky. She walked through endless rows of trees with the strong feeling of something watching her. She turned and saw behind her a pair of bright red eyes. It is almost time princess… The creature came out of the gloom, leering at her. Suddenly, her heart froze as she saw dozens of red eyes staring out at her from the darkness of the woods. She began to panic, turning and looking in every direction for a way to escape. Finally, she saw a pathway, a dim light coming from far up ahead. She began to run towards it, and she could feel the creature following her. The darkness chased her, but the light steadily grew stronger. Soon she could see a way out of the woods, a gap in the trees. She was so close, she could feel the creature falling behind, but then something odd happened. She felt a weight holding her back, something had grabbed hold of her, but it wasn’t the creature. She turned her head, and saw a wolf as large as herself, with cold blues eyes. It had its teeth gripped onto her cloak, and was holding her back from leaving the forest. She wrestled against it, then managed to take off her cloak, making a break towards the edge of the forest. She had almost reached it when a heavy weight knocked her over from behind, sending her face-first into the snow. The cold and damp felt so real, almost too real…

She woke with a start, and realized that she was outside, lying face-first in the snow, a heavy weight on top of her, keeping her pinned down. The weight moved and she rolled over, shivering and sweating at the same time, to see Hrollief lying in the snow next to her, half-dressed and with a concerned look on his face.

* * *

Hrollief locked himself in his room and tried not to let images of Tove’s face distract him. He wanted to know more about her, her family and her connection to the darkness, but he still had a kingdom to run, and tomorrow he would have to leave to check in on some of the villages. Ever since Hrollief had refused Hagen’s peace treaty Hagen’s men had been stirring up trouble. Nothing too serious had happened yet, but Hrollief needed to put a stop to it before something did happen. He shrugged off his cloak and outerwear and boots, thinking over how best to handle the situation, when Tove’s face came to mind again. He felt heat rush to his cheeks again, and he quickly splashed his face with cool water, then crashed onto his bed. The fire was roaring, and snow was blowing outside his window. His thoughts still roaming back and and forth between Tove and what her life and family were like and how to handle them, he eventually fell asleep.

He dreamt he was a wolf, running through close-grown trees so tall they blended into the sky. He felt in his gut that there was something important he had to do, something he had to find. He ran and ran, with nothing changing, but finally he saw something. A figure in the distance, surrounded by darkness, with a red-eyed creature standing in front of her. She turned about as Hrollief searched for a way to get to her, then suddenly a bright light shone from a path behind her. She turned to it and began to run. Hrollief felt his stomach lurch. He knew that light, and he knew what she was running towards. He tried to give chase, but instead he bolted awake, the faint sound of the entrance doors opening echoing throughout the halls.

He pulled his cloak and boots back on, strapping his sword to his side as he ran out into the hall. He raced to the entryway, meeting a few of his men there, all of them drawing their swords, ready for the worst. But as soon as they stepped through the door, they lowered their arms. The person who had opened the door had been Tove. She was walking slowly across the courtyard, moving as though tied to a string. The guards along the walls had their bows half-cocked, waiting for something to happen. Hrollief moved towards her, signaling them to put their weapons down. “Tove?” He called softly to her, not sure what had made her come out here. He walked in front of her, hoping she would stop when she saw him, but she merely walked around him, her eyes glazed and empty. Then, with a start, he remembered the dream he had been woken from. The light she had been moving towards had been the woods.

There was no explanation for why the woods were calling her, they had never called anyone to them before, not like this. They were using her dream to pull her towards them, but Hrollief knew she wasn’t strong enough to handle the trials she would face in there. No doubt her demon would end up ripping her apart just trying to get out of there. He had seen it happen before, and he did not intend for that to happen to her. He put an arm around her, trying to wake her from her dream gently, but the second he tried to change her course she began fighting against him, struggling to get to the woods. She broke from his loose grasp and began to run. “Close the gates!” His men obeyed immediately, but the gates were made of heavy wood and iron, and Tove was too close and running too fast. She was going to make it through and he wasn’t. He sprinted towards her and just managed to throw himself on top of her, landing them both in a thick pile of snow before the gates shut with a deafening bang.

Her body tensed, she began to breath irregularly, and Hrollief knew she had woken up at last. He moved himself off her, and she sat up slowly, turning to face him, a look of mild panic mixed with confusion on her face.

“Are you well?” He asked, not sure what else to say. She looked around at her surroundings before answering.

“I-I am not sure. H-how did I end up here?” She was shivering violently. Hrollief almost reached out to brush the snow from her shoulders, but thought better of it, and instead gave her his other cloak. She took it with shaking hands, almost looking scared of it.

“I believe the woods were calling to you in your dream. You were walking in your sleep, and I suppose you may have been walking or running in your dream as well.” Her face paled when he mentioned her dream, and a delicate hand reached up towards the collar around her neck. He stood and offered her his hand. “Come, you need warmth and rest.” She took his hand and he pulled her up. She was so light he almost pulled her too close. They looked at each other for a moment, then she took her hand back, and Hrollief remembered they weren’t alone. He coughed awkwardly, then yelled to his men. “Back to your stations!” As he escorted Tove back to her room, he hoped his beard hid the blush on his cheeks.

* * *