A Stroll In The Woods

Amory watched in stiff curiosity and a sliver of fear when he saw his wife's hands glow. The tips of her hair raised and he bet that if he could see her eyes, they would be glowing as well.

'A witch.'

He tried to reach through to grab her but was stopped by the same barrier. Her voice gasped and she convulsed in pain. 'What was happening to her?'

"What's wrong with you?" He asked and began to circle the stone circle. His eyes narrowed at the strange reflections that mirrored him as he walked by each gap in the stones. She still sat in the same position directly in between the two of the stones no matter how far he walked around it.

He growled in frustration, "Listen, I can't pull you out of there so you're going to have to get out of there yourself."

Her head lifted itself from her glowing hands and he watched as the glow faded. She didn't seem to notice it. Her eyes were still glowing however; their glowing irises piercing through the veil. "Why can't you?"

"Because the stones are enchanted. They only allow those with magic in their blood through." He huffed.

"But…" She raised her head further and her hands dropped to her lap, the glow reduced in her eyes, "I don't have magic in my blood."

'Clearly, you do.' He thought matter-of-factly. "Just.. get out of there." He said. She raised her eyes to search the circle of stone before she began to stand and exit the magical place. He took her hand and hesitated about vanishing.

He didn't necessarily want to compel her to forget this night and think of it only as a dream. He was curious about what she had seen; she may be mad, but the magic surrounding the place had him thinking otherwise. She was evidently not aware of the fact she had magic in her.

Viland was known for having witches and sorceresses, but he'd never heard of anyone in the royal family having magic. Which made him believe his theory that she was not a relative of Mirella's stronger. Who was this woman?

He could ask her, but there was a voice in his head telling him not to. A feeling. There was something about this entire situation that was off.

"Your majesty?" He looked down and saw that she was looking up at him expectantly.

'Right.' He thought, annoyed, 'Walking.' He pulled her forward and began to lead her into the woods. His senses slowly came back and he looked down when he heard just how slow her heartbeat was. He stopped in his steps and listened to her chattering teeth.

Looking at her he realized she had no cloak on. What was she doing out in the woods with no cloak? He thought in frustration. She inhaled a shaking breath and asked in a shaking voice, "Your majesty?"

His shoulders slumped and he hoisted her into his arms. She shrieked and gripped his shoulders. She was trembling. "I'm f-f-fine, I-I-I can walk on my own."

He simply rolled his eyes and began walking. She struggled at first but eventually surrendered with a huff.

After a few minutes of walking through the ghoulish woods, the mist still clinging to the ground, she asked with a voice filled with less tremors, "Could you not see the creature?"

His eyes flickered to hers before looking straight ahead again, "No."

"Why not?" She prompted.

He scoffed, "Maybe because I still have some sanity left in me."

She was quiet. Her mouth opened a few times before she finally spoke, "I'm sorry if I'm losing my mind. I can't help it. The nightmares only started after our wedding day and they've only become worse since." She said it all in a measured and definitive tone, one that he could sense an anger behind. "But… a part of me feels as though the creature is real—even though you can't see it. It-it feels real."

He shrugged, "Alright. Why didn't you know about your magic?"

"I don't have magic." She objected firmly.

He scoffed again, 'And I'm not cursed.' "You have magic. How else would you have been able to enter that circle?"

"I don't know. One moment I was walking back to the chalet, the next the creature was there and I… was brought to the circle." She answered vaguely.

"What is this creature?" He finally asked.

"I don't know." She replied in exasperation, "All I know is that it wants to know if I'm the one."

He stopped, "The one for what?"

She looked at him through the veil, "I don't know."

"When did you first see the creature?" He asked, still unmoving.

She sighed and was thoughtful for a few moments, "In the city centre. I didn't see it though… it just spoke to me."

He began moving again, his thoughts now on what she had said. He could think of a few different meanings behind what the hallucinatory creature was asking. But the only meaning his mind kept going back to was the prophecy; the one that his people were up in arms about.

"What do you think it means?" She asked. He could sense the hesitancy in her voice, mingled with fear.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye before looking up upon hearing voices. "I do not know."

He watched as a line of concentration was drawn between her brows.

"Your majesty, your highness." They both looked at the few knights that had discovered them. The lanterns hardly helped to dissuade the mist from clouding their surroundings, but it did illuminate the people somewhat.

"Show us to where the chalet is." Amory ordered and they immediately began leading them into the woods.

His wife spoke no more while in his arms, but as soon as she was handed over to her maids and ladies in waiting, she began reassuring them. They soon rushed her up the steps and he could hear that they were preparing her for tomorrow.

Taking a seat by the fire he stared into it, pondering what he had learnt of his wife. Mirella possessed no magic, that was one of the many reasons he was fond of her. He then began that tortured cycle of wondering how he would save her. He missed her desperately, and knew she must feel the same.

Rising he looked around the large empty room and vanished to find some food.