Chapter 11

Erin and Lark had chosen a room in a secret passage for their date for the evening. Everyone thought they were asleep. Torches burned in sconces in the walls and they sat on blankets Lark had managed to sneak from the laundry room.

They snacked on bread, cheese, and wine as they enjoyed themselves.

“What would your father do if I asked him for your hand in marriage?” Lark asked.

Erin laughed, “You know what he told you before. First, he will inquire how you managed to get into the castle, and then he will have you thrown out or worse, into the dungeons.”

“I am being serious,” Lark said.

“And so am I,” Erin replied. “What makes you think he will change his mind?”

“I don’t know. But if we see him together, perhaps he will understand,” Lark persisted.

Erin shook her head. “You do not know my father. We are commoners just like you. But father has worked hard for many years to be rewarded with these lands by the King. He wishes to ensure it will remain in the family after he passes. The only way to do that is to ensure that I marry into royalty. If I am to marry you, it will disgrace my father and the family. The King will never let these lands pass to a commoner he does not favor.”

“What are we to do then?” Lark asked. The frustration in his voice was clear.

“There is only one option,” Erin said.

“Which is?” Lark asked curiously.

“We have to elope.”

“Elope?” Lark asked incredulously. “Elope? Where to?”

“Who cares? We will find somewhere to settle, Lark. I love you more than anything but my time grows short. Unless we elope I will soon have to bow to my father’s demands and marry who he chooses.”

Lark was quiet as he contemplated Erin’s words. He sighed eventually. “When do you want to elope?”

“My father is away now. I do not know when he shall return but we must leave as soon as possible. Tomorrow night if we can.”

“Tomorrow night?” Lark asked, surprised. “So soon?”

“Yes,” Erin said taking Lark’s hands. “The sooner the better. I hope my father will not be back by tomorrow evening. He is watching me like a hawk now. It might be harder to get away.”

Lark looked unconvinced.

“What is it?” Erin asked.

“Are you sure you’re okay to run away with me?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Erin asked.

“Because if you do, you will leave this life of comfort behind. I cannot offer you this,” Lark said emphatically.

“Oh, Lark. It’s not this that I want. This doesn’t make me happy. You do,” Erin said as she leaned forward on her knees.

“Do you mean that?” Lark asked.

“Yes,” Erin whispered as she leaned in to kiss Lark. He kissed her back and looked deep into her eyes.

“You know I will strive my whole life to give you this,” Lark whispered.

“You can try and you can succeed. As long as I am with you, I will be happy,” Erin whispered in reply again and kissed Lark again.

Lark closed his eyes as he kissed her back.

Then, as they kissed something strange began to happen. A soft breeze seemed to enter the room with them. Sometimes a soft breeze passed through the passages briefly. They did not know where the breezes came from but they would disappear as suddenly as they arrived.

This time though, the breeze did not wane as it usually did. It grew in strength and as they kissed it tugged at Erin’s long golden hair, swirling it around their faces. They thought it odd but did not stop kissing for the kiss was more important. The breeze increased further in strength and finally, Erin and Lark broke their kiss as they could no longer ignore the breeze that was now a wind. It gathered strength further but appeared to be confined to the room in which they were. It clung to the walls but the torches in sconces on the walls did not flutter. It was as if they existed in a world beyond the wind. Soon, the wind blew so hard they had to shout to make themselves heard.

“What’s happening?” Erin asked fearfully.

“I don’t know,” Lark shouted back. “It must be magic!”

“Yes, but who’s magic?” Erin shouted.

“I don’t know!” Lark replied. He reached out to touch the wind and a line appeared in the howling gale that surrounded them. Lark extended his other fingers and they all drew lines in the gale that circled them. Despite the strength of the wind, Lark’s fingers were not tugged along with it when he pushed them into it.

Erin pulled Lark away from the wind and held him close. “Don’t do that!” she exclaimed. As they huddled together in the eye of the hurricane that confined itself to the chamber they began to see images in the wind.

Erin saw her father in what looked like a cabin. He stood with an incredibly beautiful woman. She wondered who the woman was and why her father was with the woman. Her father seemed to be observing the woman. The woman’s head was thrown back but as they watched she lifted her head. Her eyes had rolled back in her head and in that instant, she realized the woman was a witch.

Her eyes were drawn to what the woman held before her in her hands. Lark was looking too and Erin pointed to the object.

“What is it?” he cried above the howl of the wind.

Erin reached out and her fingers entered the wind. They seemed to snag the object and as Erin pulled her hand back the object seemed to come with it. They realized Erin somehow held an image of the object the witch held.

“That’s my shirt!” Lark said as he recognized the material.

“That’s my hair!” Erin exclaimed.

“What’s the red? Is it… blood?” Lark asked.

As they watched the image disintegrated and seemed to be sucked back into the hurricane.

“She is casting a spell,” Erin cried.

“What? Why?” Lark cried confused.

“I don’t know but I think they’re casting a spell on us,” Erin cried.

Lark felt his blood run cold. “Get out! Get out now!” he cried.

Erin looked at him bewildered.

“Go!” Lark cried again and pushed Erin to the entrance of the chamber. The wind shrieked louder and she seemed to bounce off it as if were a solid wall.

Lark tried and was repulsed as well. He bounced back and fell to the floor on the far side of the chamber. Erin made as if to approach him but then stopped as her face took on a look of terror.

At the same time, Lark felt a dizziness sweep through him. His vision started to change. It seemed to narrow as if it became super focused and then it became normal again. At the same time that his vision narrowed everything became black and white and his hearing ability increased immensely so he had to clamp his hands over his ears. As he did so he felt fur on his hands. In one instant it was there and in the next, it was gone.

He pulled one hand away from his ear and looked at it. He watched as it alternately changed from a hand to a claw.

It was then that he realized the shrieking had changed. He looked beyond his hand and saw Erin on the opposite side of the chamber. Her hands were balled into fists in front of her mouth as she shrieked in horror.

Lark moved toward her but she screamed even louder. “Get away from me! Get away from me! No! Please no!” Lark hesitated. For an instant he could not understand why Erin was so terrified of him and then he realized that he must look like something strange. Even worse, something horrific. If he could see his hand changing to a claw and back, what was the rest of him changing into every time his hand changed?

He paused and tried to calm Erin. “Okay, okay,” he said holding up his hands in surrender. “I won’t come any closer,” As he spoke part of the sentence came out in his normal voice and part of it as a growl. The growl was actually a roar given that he was trying to shout above the howling wind. He began to retreat so that Erin would calm down but she remained terrified and continued to scream until she buried her face in her hands and cried.

Then, gradually the hurricane diminished and soon the wind stopped altogether. Lark’s vision returned to normal and he studied his hands. They were no longer changing to claws and back again. They were… well, just his hands.

Relieved he tried began to crawl closer to Erin.

“Erin,” he whispered. She sat with her face still buried in her hands. She was so terrified that Lark did not think she had realized the hurricane had ended. “Erin,” he whispered again.

She continued sobbing in the corner. He reached her and softly he put out his hand to touch her arm. She flinched and retreated into the corner until she could retreat no more.