“I am Ashwa Miracle, of the, erm, Vil,” she heard herself say, against her wishes of speaking to a stranger in the middle of nowhere, let alone a stranger who bought her an hour ago.

But a feeling made her feel as if this Kayla elf lady wasn’t a threat. She felt calmed, maybe a little warm at Kayla’s side. Maybe her elf powers had included soothing people, meddling with emotions. She had heard of people gifted with that power before.

“Now, we will have a very long time to chat, Ashwa Miracle. And you surely can’t resist my offer, young one,” Kayla said, pushing a chair towards her. She made her sit down as she started talking again.

“As you may have heard, two men sold you to me a while ago. They are greedy and they can be easily fooled. Right now, I want you to explain things for me. Just a thing to tell you before you start, the villagers of Vil are safe. They are in deep hiding, and do not question me about their whereabouts. Even I do not know, for my master never said anything,” she sighed. “Begin.”

Ashwa started to speak about the day before the fire. For a few minutes, Kayla just sat there, still as a rock, listening to every word she had spoken aloud.

Her heart started beating wildly as she told the elf lady about how she knew she had started the fire without starting it, which held onto Kayla’s interest for a long time. Then she finished, waiting for Kayla to answer.

“I am sorry to trouble you with so many burdens, child. But I must send you to my master, and I also fear the Black Guards will find us. But my master needs to know of this strangeness. We will set of tonight by my steed.”

“May I rest?” Ashwa said, feeling still uncomfortable and what to think of Kayla.

“Of course. Tonight, I shall wake you up and we will go,” Kayla somehow took out a shawl in mid-air. Then Ashwa knew what it was: magic.

She gasped.

“Now, off you go, into the small room over there,” Kayla guided her across the wooden floors to a tiny room with many blankets.

Without thinking of another thought, and filled with the tiredness of walking so long that day, she fell on the bed and started to snore loudly.

Kayla chuckled. “I hope it is not what I think it is…” she mumbled; her voice low.

That was the least of Kayla’s problems just yet. It was the dreams that she was having, which disturbed her to have dark circles under her green eyes. She silently tapped her foot back into the kitchen, to sit down and read a book. Promising herself not to sleep at all, she read, chapter after chapter. But in the end, she still slept, with a terrible nightmare.

~