Have you ever met someone that no matter what you did, you just could not get rid of them? Kit was like that. All day long, she followed right beside me. I began to wonder just how big this forest was; would I ever get rid of her?
“Ugh, please,” I moaned, “Just go away, leave me alone already!” I pleaded, but to no avail.
“No can do Ethan, you may not realize it just yet, but we will be working together for a very long while.” Kit said as she skipped along. She had been saying something similar for some time now, and I still didn’t understand why. Why was I stuck with this impossibly annoying child?
The sky had begun fading to a deep orange color as the sun descended. Night time was approaching. And in my rush to leave the Academy, I had not thought of what would happen should I not find shelter before nightfall. I could keep going, see if I could find an inn or something, but the dark was growing fast, and the forest was an even darker place at night, as the stars and moon were blocked by the high reaching trees.
So lost was I in my thoughts, I did not notice that Kit had stopped moving, and I ran right into her. I pulled away, rubbing my tingling nose. “What the hell? Kit? What are you doing?”
She spun around, smiling, “Nightfall approaches, we should set up camp!”
“With what?” I grumbled, “And who said we? I plan on leaving here without you, so just go away.”
But, she just ignored me, and instead stepped into a clearing. She raised her hands high up in the air, and mumbled some words in an unknown language, so quietly I could barely hear,
“Arcum ante mihi, Dare portum tutum, Nihil videre potest, Intus nos trichila.”
Pointing her middle and pointer finger up into the air, she slashed downwards, and as this happened, all our surroundings followed. I stumbled, throwing my arms out to catch myself; The whole forest was bending and twisting, throwing me off balance. The trees bent forward until they formed a sort of tent around us. Soft moss sprouted from the ground until there were two soft beds, and fireflies glittered like orange stars, lighting up the makeshift camp.
“What the-” I stared in shock at my new surroundings. Did Kit do this? And in just a matter of seconds too? I stared at her warily, this girl frightened me more than ever before.
Kit turned towards me, her green eyes shining in the pale orange glow. The effect was mesmerizing; Amber and jade, all swirling together in an almost hypnotic way, drawing me in. I looked away. I peeked again, and saw her smiling brightly at me. For such an annoying and frightening creature, she had an inhuman form of beauty I had never seen before. She made all other girls seem plain and unrefined.
I remembered tales of human men falling for Druid’s before, and what once seemed impossible, now seemed utterly infallible. Perhaps it was possible to fall for a Druid, if not for their personality, but for their beauty. I shook my head, these thoughts were false and silly, brought about by exhaustion. I scowled, and promised myself to never look at Kit again.
“Well,” She said, “What do you think?” Her voice was excited, and hopeful, no doubt awaiting the appraisal she expected from me for her magically constructed camp.
What should I say? I was no fool, this was an amazing feat, and worthy of many compliments, but should I give in and allow her to feel proud, she may expect more of me, and I might think well of her. Both of which were feelings I could not allow. Should I lie? No, she might be able to sense that, just as she had sensed those men’s willingness to destroy this place. I decided to bestow a grudging compliment, but nothing worth even half of the amazement I felt at that moment.
“It’s...nice, but still rather dirty.” I mumbled, before placing myself upon the soft beds of moss that lay before me. “Now, if you don’t mind, I am tired and wish to sleep. Good night Kit.” As I lay down and closed my eyes, I felt something sharp in my chest. Beside me, I could sense Kit hesitating, trying to determine how to take my comments.
“All-all right. Thanks, and um...good night, Ethan.” She sounded disappointed. I had been right, she truly wished for my approval, which was something I refused to give.
How I regret those moments the most. I now wish I could go back in time and bestow upon Kit all the compliments she deserved, the compliments I shall never be able to give. Perhaps if I had been kinder back then, I would not feel the guilt I feel now. But it is the stupidity of mankind to only learn when the mistake has already been made.
That night, I ignored the pain in my chest, and fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.
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When I awoke, the branches that had once formed a tent around us were straight once again, and morning sun shone bright upon my face. Blinking the sleep out of my eyes as they grew accustomed to the change in light, I heard a deep rumble. I clutched my stomach, wondering when I had last eaten. I had never before missed a meal, and the hunger that pained me now was a new experience.
Turning my head, left and right, I searched for Kit and found she was nowhere to be seen. Had she left? Was I free to go? I stood up and gathered my small pack of things; Not one to miss this opportunity, I began walking speedily away, before Kit returned.
I did not get very far however, for she chose that exact moment to once again pop out of nowhere right in front of me. I shot backwards, falling down, and once I had gotten over the shock, I grew angry.
“Just leave me be!” I cried, “You are not welcome company!” My stomach complained again, and it’s vast emptiness aided in fueling my anger. I scowled at her, and began yelling, “I wish to be rid of your presence and travel alone! Are you so stupid as to not understand my feelings toward you! Leave!”
Kit just raised an eyebrow and replied calmly, “Would you continue saying that to me if I told I know where to find food?” She smirked, as if knowing she had me now. Which, of course, she did.
I froze. Food? Perhaps, I thought, I could eat and then leave. After all, my escape would require a strength I currently lacked in my starving state. I crossed my arms reluctantly, “Fine,” I growled, “Food, then go away.”
Kit nodded, still smiling, and beckoned me to follow her, “This way! I know of some berries that men have fought over. You are quite lucky to get a taste!”
I didn’t care about taste, all I cared about was if it was edible. So I shook my head, and followed Kit, my hunger and shock at what had happened to me in such a short period of time making me feel a tad light headed.
Kit began running. And panting, I ran as well; Dodging branches and weaving around trees, her laughter bubbling up and bursting, filling me with a euphoric joy. It was as if her very voice made everything a little bit brighter and better. It was then that I realized that that was not the only effect her voice had; Everywhere we ran, grass grew into a perfect green, flowers bloomed and the growing sunlight filtered through the bright green leaves of the trees creating a rainbow of yellow, orange, green, and blue. It was amazing.
Finally, we reached our destination, slowing down as we came across the strangest berries I had ever seen. So odd in fact, I could barely feel the thickness in my lungs and heavy feet from running so far on such little fuel.
Some were iridescent, rainbow’s dancing across them; Others see-through, with an odd blue shape writhing within. The oddest thing about them, however, was that they seemed to be humming a soft tune I had never heard before. The overall effect was an eerie, calming presence radiating outwards in waves of hypnotic beckoning.
I could also smell them, an overwhelming smell of bitter sweetness that called to me, begging me to try one, just one. I began inching forward, salivating, but Kit grabbed me.
“Eat only the iridescent ones, the see-through are poisonous and not yet ripe.” She warned, letting go of me, smiling as she saw how entranced I was by the berries. I nodded and moved forward once again, every inch of me aching to take a bite. I reached an arm out, I could almost taste them, my fingers began groping the soft, furry skin of the berries...Suddenly, I was snapped out of my stupor by a loud screeching noise. I pulled back, and dove out of the way just as a pair of sharp talons grazed the air above me.
“What the-!” I cried, staring in awe at a massive, and by that I mean taller than the average man and wider than three cows, bat.
It’s wings stretched out to it’s sides, a thin layer of skin with bulging red and blue veins, ending in sharp yellow talons. Matted brown fur that gave off the smell of rotten fish, bulging yellow eyes glaring down at me with a fury most saved for only the worst of criminals. Its large ears stood taller than me, twitching as if they could hear every noise in the world.
I stood in paralyzed terror, ready to die, when Kit pulled me away and handed me a big stick. “This creature, the Ahool, has taken your breakfast for it’s own. Fight it, defend your food!” She cried triumphantly, as if overjoyed at the thought of our impending doom. Which, given her personality, she probably was.
Kit pushed me back towards the Ahool, but I remained in a frozen state of fear. She honestly expected me to fight it for breakfast? Was she honestly that stupid? I had heard somewhere that the average human being could live up to three weeks without food. Three weeks seemed a lot longer than three seconds. I decided to starve.
I turned around to flee, but to the Ahool, I was already breakfast competition. It slashed its talons at me, and the tip of one grazed my back, slicing through the thin fabric armor, and breaking skin.
I cried out in pain, falling to the ground and rolling away, still clutching the large stick in my hands. I spun around to face it, tears prickling in my eyes. I was beyond fear at this point, now, a cold, creeping numbness was making its way through me. I could feel the wound, however, burning hot, pulsating waves of pain and pushing me to my limit. The Ahool roared, and I roared back, a monster seemed to grow inside me. I could feel something, acheing to be free, but only just touching its prison cell. Something was holding it back, but still, it called to me. Which is probably why I raised the stick, and cracked it against its chest.
Adrenaline and that animalistic creature within pushed me forward, and I found an almost inhuman strength. Behind me, Kit was cheering. “Yay! Go Ethan! Yeah, you beat that Ahool! Wohoo!”, I wished she would just shut up. I was no match for this creature, but fleeing wasn’t an option, and I was determined to live as long as I could before I died, to go out fighting. And dying while being cheered on was a pretty sad way to go.
As the Ahool moved towards me, it’s white fangs primed and ready to bite into me, I lifted the stick once more, and slammed it against its head. The Ahool pulled back, shaking, its eyes screwed tight. It screamed out once more, leaving a ringing in my ears, then lifted its wings, and flew off, deciding that this was far too much work for a simple meal of berries. I would live a little longer.
My knees shook and I dropped the stick, falling to the ground. Tremors ran through my body as Kit ran up and hugged me, still cheering. “Yay! You won! I knew you could do it!”
My back ached, and the cuts stung where Kits hands touched it. I pulled her away. I thought about hitting her for a split second, but my limbs felt too weary as the adrenaline that had once given me strength now left my body, pulling all my energy out with it.
I settled for pushing her away and glaring. “Never,” I growled, “Make me go through that again.” And with that said, darkness beckoned to me, and I fainted.
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When I awoke, I found Kit spooning some weird mixture into my mouth. It tasted of strawberries and oranges, sugar and milk, roasted beef, grilled ham, and all sorts of other tasty delicacies that shouldn’t have gone together but somehow did. I swallowed the mix, and sat up. Reaching behind me, I touched my back, and was surprised to find no injury.
I stared at Kit in shock, and her smile, now becoming more and more familiar to me, widened. “Glad to see you’re up. Do you like the berries? I told you men fight over them, they have a sort of healing property and also taste amazing.” I just nodded in a stunned silence. “Sorry you got hurt, guess I got ahead of myself. But hey, not many people can say they’ve fought an Ahool and won before, so I feel it was worth it.” She said, shrugging as she stuffed another spoonful of the berries into my mouth.
They flooded my senses and trickled down my throat in a cool, soothing way. My head cleared and my limbs gained back their lost energy. I cleared my throat. “I hope you don’t expect me to thank you for healing me, after you got me almost killed. Of all the stupid things to do! Just how old are you?” I grumbled.
Unpausing, Kit replied, “Forty two.” She jammed another mouthful of berries into me.
I choked, and coughing, said, “Forty--forty two?” I wiped mashed up berries from my mouth with a sleeve, “Er, you look young...for forty two.”
Kits smile fell and she frowned at me, “It’s not that old to us Druids. We age twice as slow as human beings, I’m hardly twenty one in human terms.”
I blushed deeply, “Oh, um, sorry.” Sorry mom. I had done what no self respecting son of hers should ever do and comment on a woman’s age. The only crime worse than that in her books was commenting on their weight.
“I forgive you, just understand that time is different to us magical folks.” Kit said, smiling again, and sticking the spoon in my mouth a little softer this time.
“Yes Ma’am.” I said, nodding. That made her around two years younger than me...in human terms that is. I shook my head, why did I care about age difference? I tried to think about how much I hated Kit, her following me, her terrible cheerleader skills; But all I could think about was her smile, her positivity, her odd form of kindness, and the way she managed to actually believe in me, enjoy my presence. Which was something no one else, save my mother, had ever been able to do.
I was surprised by this fact. How had I managed to grow to like her? I never trusted people, but this girl, whose true name I didn’t even know, had somehow acquired it. Perhaps I was stupid, or maybe the berries were affecting my mind. Either way, I refused to think that way, from now on, I would forever loathe Kit.
This I swore, swallowing another spoonful of berries. But the thing about promises is, they are meant to be broken, just as secrets are meant to be told. And just as I would soon break my oath of everlasting hate, an unknown secret, buried in the ages, would soon find itself spilling out into the world, from the mouth of none other than Kit herself.
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