Chapter 13

In the forest Emma and Mercury followed a trail. Still Mercury didn’t let go of Emma’s hand.

“I just want to let you know that I know what woods are,” Emma said sarcastically. “We have them on our planet too you know”.

Mercury smirked: “Haha. It’s not where I’m leading you”.

“Where to, then?”

“Told you”.

Emma sighed but didn’t say anything. It annoyed her when somebody didn’t tell her the whole story. And after a few more minutes of silence she said impatiently: “Can you at least give me a hint?”

“OK,” Mercury said. “Remember Margaret Langley?”

“The woman who made men and women equal? Sure”.

“Well, on the 11th of October we celebrate the monarchy day, as the last day of the rule of king Henry VIII. And the next day his son was born and we celebrate the Bravery day”.

“Ok,” Emma said thoughtfully. “So we are going to what? Like a celebration of the Bravery day?”

“For all the women who fought for what’s right,” Mercury nodded. “People understand that they fought for freedom. And that’s inspiring”.

“Not all people are like that”.

“Sure. Some are afraid of freedom. But some, once they’ve tasted being imprisoned they know the value of freedom”.

“And they are ready to fight for it”.

“Exactly”.

“This Margaret Langley, she’s a little like Joan of Arc in our world,” Emma pointed out. “The woman was French and claimed to have heard the voice of God who wanted her to help the French army. But Margaret was much more epic”.

“Was she successful? That Joan”.

“Well, the French won, but I don’t remember what happened to her”.

Mercury didn’t say anything else. So Emma was left with her thoughts of what will she see at this celebration. Emma could hear the laughter not far ahead so she assumed that soon they’ll reach their destination. Mercury said just before they started climbing up the hill: “Here we come”. He was smiling and it made Emma happy.

They stepped out of the forest on a clearing and Emma gasped with amusement. There were a lot of people down the hill. And it looked like a trading fair. They were going around, walking into the little shops scattered around the clearing. Some merchants were yelling and trying to get as many people to buy their stuff as they can. Most people were dressed in white. Except children, who wore the knights’ dresses. The girls just as well as the boys. It looked like a picture from a History book. Laughter could be heard from afar and the smell of food made Emma’s stomach growl. And a little farther a small town could be seen with cobble-stone streets and houses that seemed to be miniature.

“Welcome to our Bravery fest,” Mercury said.

Bravery Fast, Emma thought. What a wonderful name.

They went down to the market. Everything was so colourful and bright. Almost like Christmas. Emma shared this thought with Mercury. He nodded still smiling. He took her hand again so as to not get separated in the crowed. Emma was kind of happy he did.

They walked through the fair looking at all the things on display, watching children play and laugh. Merchants sold blue candles as well herbs and fur coats.

“Why are all the candles blue?” asked Emma.

“It’s inspired by the blue eyes of Miss Langley,” answered Mercury. “Or at least they are said to have been blue. People all over Groat are lighting the candles to indicate the way the Queen of bravery would go and bless everybody. And not only here. It’s celebrated in the whole country”. Emma smiled. It was a nice tradition. To celebrate bravery. She really needed some now.

“Is that why you came to Sandy’s palace in the first place?”

“Yes and no. As I’ve said on the 11th of October we have the Monarchy day. And later on the 26th of October it’s Women’s day. They create a set of festivals we celebrate. All of our families have a tradition to spend the Bravery day together,” said Mercury smiling.

“Did you come with that Sebastian?”

“Yes, and his son Mikle”.

“Do you get along? With Mikle I mean,” Emma asked.

“Yes, actually,” said Mercury deep in thought. “We are very alike, Mikle and I. We both lost our mothers at a very young age. Plus Sebastian is still devastated by his wife’s death. So we are left to ourselves most of the time. I sometimes don’t know how Sebastian can even handle public places”.

There was a note of hatred in Mercury’s voice when he talked about Sebastian. But it didn’t show a lot, so Emma decided she only thought she had heard it.

“Here,” Mercury interrupted Emma’s thoughts. “Let’s go inside this shop. I think you’ll like it there”.

They got up a small set of stairs and went inside. There weren’t a lot of people in there. But when Emma saw what was inside she didn’t really care about people or anything else for that matter anymore.

“It’s an art shop,” she gasped in wonder.

“I remembered what you have said about wanting to draw and I thought you would like to pick up some supplies,” Mercury said.

Emma was halfway down the raw looking through all kinds of paper they had when she remembered that she had no money. The girl turned to tell it to Mercury, but he said:

“And don’t you worry about money. I have some on me”.

“But I can’t take your money,” said Emma. Where she grew up money was important. And when there was a situation involving money it was always taken seriously.

“But I want to give you this as a gift”.

“Well, then I’ll be in your debt and I won’t be really able to pay you back”.

Mercury smiled: “How about you do something for me and then you’ll let me buy some art supplies for you?”

“What do you want me to do?” Emma asked suspiciously.

“You’ll have to call me Cury. Deal?”

Emma looked at the guy and smiled.

“Deal,” she said. “Cury”.

Mercury smiled and gestured for her to pick something out.

Emma’s eyes glistened when she looked through all the supplies. It was something familiar. Something that made her feel at home.

At the end Emma chose a few sheets of watercolour paper, a pencil with a rubber on the other end and a set of 6 watercolour pens with brushes.

When they got out of the shop Emma got so excited to start drawing something that they had to stop in the middle of the squire where a fountain was. They sat and Emma scribbled away. Her hand felt heavy at first but as she drew more it became less stiff.

The art supplies were quite nice as well. Except for the rubber: it crumbled something nasty and smelled bad. But Emma would have anything at the moment than nothing at all.

“You know, it’s beautiful,” said Mercury when she finished painting the scene. He was silent up until that point and Emma almost forgot that he was there.

“Thank you,” she smiled.

“Would you mind painting me one day,” Mercury said making a face. Emma laughed.

“But of course, my Lord”.

Mercury laughed as well.

“I remember once,” Mercury started. “When I was little my father took me to an art exhibition. It was rare for us to go somewhere that wasn’t woods. And I didn’t think I’d like it”.

Mercury was silent for a moment. Then he said: “The artist drew a lot of nature. He had mountains, lakes and sea. I have never been more wrong about something in my life. His art impressed me so much, it looked so real. For a week after that I asked my father if we could go see the mountains”. He chuckled softly.

“Did you?” Emma asked. “Saw the mountains that is”.

“He took me to a place not far from where we lived that had a lot of hills. It looked like mountains to me,” Mercury smiled. He was clearly fond of the memory.

They were silent for a moment, then Mercury said: “It’s the middle of the day already. We should go find some place to eat”.

Emma nodded. She realised she was starving. She took her supplies and a painting and followed Mercury to the nearest café.

Emma found out that food wasn’t as different here. There were a few unknown names but nothing supernatural. After eating a whole bowl of a potato soup and drinking tea with chocolate chipped cookies, Emma and Mercury went outside.

“What are we going to do now?” Emma asked.

It wasn’t dark yet and she wanted to see some more of what this Bravery Fest had. But as she looked at Mercury she noticed something wrong with him. He was deep in his thoughts and she knew he didn’t hear her.

“Cury?”

He looked up. There was a stamp of worry on his face. Instead of answering he looked around as if afraid that somebody would see them.

“Is something wrong?” Emma tried again.

Mercury looked back at her. He studied her eyes for a while, then said, his voice hardly audible: “We should head back”.

Emma was taken aback by his sudden change of mood. But she didn’t say anything. As they started back Emma remembered that Sandy is still probably worried about Mercury. So she forgot all about Mercury’s strange behaviour and urged him back to the palace as fast as possible. Emma felt really terrible for not thinking about Sandy the whole day. Sandy was her only friend in this world after all. And she was the one who came to the summer palace to help Emma.

When they ran back in the palace Emma was about to rush to the library to look for Sandy. But stopped suddenly when she realised Sandy was actually right in front of them. She was pacing and looked quite agitated.

“Sandy?” Emma looked at Cury to see if he was seeing the same thing.

Sandy looked up abruptly.

“Oh my word!” she cried out and ran to where Cury and Emma were standing. She hugged both of them. “You are alright!”

But before either of them got a chance to answer she let go and yelled, this time with anger in her voice rather than with relief:

“Where have you been? I was so worried!”

“We are so sorry,” I started. “I shouldn’t have…”

But Mercury didn’t let me finish:

“That was kind of my fault. I just wanted to show her the Bravery Fest”.

“But I should have never agreed to it,” I said guiltily. “I knew you were worried already. It was so crappy of me. I’m so sorry”.

“Wait, wait,” Sandy stopped both of us. “You did what again?”

I looked at Mercury.

“Ah,” he started.

“We,” I said. “We went to the Bravery Fest”.

“You went to the Bravery Fest?” Sandy asked shakily.

She stopped to breath.

“I’m sorry, did I get it right? We come all the way here so that you would be safe. And you just say ‘screw it all’ and go out to the Bravery Fest?”

Emma and Mercury stayed silent.

“Here I am, worrying that my brother will see you, and you go and show yourselves to the world”.

“You brother?” Emma asked. “Why would your brother see me?”

“Forget it. It’s not like it matters to you anyway”.

“But it does”.

Sandy shakes her head.

“I’m too tired for this right now. I’m going to sleep”.

And just like that she turns and leaves.

Emma tossed and turned but couldn’t fall asleep. She really hurt a friend today. She had this one great thing going and she just went and screwed it up.

Sighing, Emma got out of bed and went across the hall to Sandy’s room. It was really hard to actually make herself knock. No answer. Another knock. Still nothing. Maybe Sandy’s already asleep? Emma was about to turn and leave when she heard a muffled sob.

When Emma entered Sandy’s room everything was in a complete disarray. The owner of the room was lying face-down on her bed.

“Sandy?”

The said woman looked up, sniffed and then slowly sat up on her bed pulling her legs up to her chest. After another sniff, Sandy finally managed:

“Finn came to the mansion today”.

She paused then looked at Emma.

“We had a fight”.

Another pause.

“I said I hated him”.

Tears started running uncontrollably down Sandy’s cheeks.

Seeing it as an invitation, Emma closed the distance between them, sat on the bed and hugged Sandy with one arm. Sandy didn’t protest, she put her head on Emma’s shoulder.

“I’m sure you didn’t mean it,” Emma started.

“No, but that’s the point. I did. I meant every word I said. And I saw it hurting him. And it was hurting me. But…”

Sniff.

“I feel so relieved that I told him everything. Am I a horrible person?”

“What?” Emma was surprised Sandy would say that. “No, of course you are not”.

Emma paused to take a breath.

“Listen, I know we don’t know each other well, OK? But as far as I’m concerned you are a wonderful person. Who else would have let a stranger stay in her room overnight, believing in a crazy story about time travel and then actually tried to help said stranger?”

Sandy smiled a little.

“I guess that does make me a wonderful person, doesn’t it?”

“You kidding?” Emma said, smiling. “That makes you the best person there is. At least on one of the Earths”.

Sandy actually laughed a little. Then the women stayed silent for a moment.

“Family,” Emma said, sighing. “It’s never easy”.

“It isn’t, is it?”

“Mhm,” Emma brushed some hair from Sandy’s face. “But it’s family. You still love them, even if you hate them. I would know”.

Sandy stayed silent. She did still love her brother. And her parents. Even if sometimes they draw her mad. They were still her family.

“You think he’ll forgive me?”

“I know he will. What’s family for?”

Sandy smiled again.

“And forgive us,” Emma said. “You know, for running away on you”.

“It’s OK. I know how maddening it can be to stay cooped up for a long time”.

“So… We are good?”

“We are good,” said Sandy smiling and giving Emma a side hug.

“Good”.

“You should go sleep now,” said Sandy after a few moments of silence. “Tomorrow will be a hard day for all of us”.

Emma nodded and got up.

“Can I ask something before I go?”

Sandy nodded.

“Do you really think we were in danger today when we went to Groat?”

Sandy thought about the question for a second. Then said: “I really do. But I hope it’s nothing we cannot handle”.

Emma nodded again and left Sandy’s room.