The Girl in the Woods

Chapter 3

I sat nervously in the gossamer armchair, extremely uncomfortable. We were in a huge crystal chamber with a high ceiling that disappeared in a  cloud of the same floating lights that drifted out in the streets. However, they all cast a soft white light instead of the colourful show outside, and the light made everything glow. The room was circular, with a round dais in the middle, and hundred of the same chair I was sitting in surrounded it, rising like the seats in an opera theatre. Almost all of the seats were filled, but Edilara had found us good seats in the middle of the rise. I was glad all the front seats had filled up; everyone seated there could be easily seen, and I was already being stared at regardless.

From the second I had walked into the room, I had gathered the attention. I remembered that Myrnah had been afraid of a violent reaction, and although most of the stares were simply curious, some of them were definitely dangerous. Vampires watched me silently, except I felt uneasy in their gaze. One of the male ones had locked eyes with me, and had proceeded to lick his lips seductively. I'd blushed immediately, and he smiled indulgently as if the red in my cheeks made me more attractive - as prey. Apollo obviously noticed; he held me close to his side with an almost iron grip.

The goblins watched me almost disdainfully. They were short, stocky creatures with unpleasant faces; their noses were bulbous and foreheads large. They watched me with beady eyes and whispered darkly to each other when I looked back.

Everyone else only stared in curiosity. A klaae woman touched my hair as I passed her, but I was alarmed for no reason; she smiled shyly at me with violet eyes that reminded me of Jannosh before dropping her hand. Her bottom half was of a purple tiger; she curled up in her chair looking surprisingly comfortable. Multitudes of elves and faeries stared at me unashamedly; not for the first time I wished I wasn't so normal.

"When are we going to begin?" Idrissa drawled, looking around the room. She and Edilara were sitting on my left; Apollo sat on my right, and Ildor and Isidre sat next to him. No one bothered to answer her, but from the buzzing around the room, a lot of other people were wondering the same thing.

"Apollo." I leaned in close and he cocked his head to hear me better. "If this is a council, who is the leader?"

"There's not really a leader." He replied to me. "There's a tribune who simply moves the proceedings. He usually sits in that seat-" He pointed at an empty seat right by the dais. " - but he hasn't arrived yet."

"Who is he?"

"You mean what?" Apollo smiled. "It always changes; tribunes shift roles every council meeting to prevent bias. Last time I was here, it was a faerie."

"When was the last time you were here?" I asked him curiously.

"Well, I came here maybe fifty years ago to see an elvish theatre, but the last time I sat in this chamber was another forty years before that." Apollo told me, looking back at the dais. From the faraway look in his eyes, he was obviously remembering it. I wondered what had happened last time to call a council meeting.

Before I could ask about it, the floating lights suddenly brightened. The buzzing of voices around the room instantly silenced, and I watched as a figure traipsed lightly down to the dais. I blinked and leaned forward so I could see better; was that...?

"Astera?" Apollo whispered, evidently as surprised as I was. We both stared at her figure; she looked the exact same as the last time I saw her. She still had the same languid, bored expression, the same wildly curly black hair, the same slightly pouting lips. She had changed out of her leather jacket into a long, pretty green dress.

"Greetings, magical parties." Her voice wasn't raised at all, but the curved walls of the chamber carried it perfectly. "My name is Astera Ambrosia, and I am your tribune for this meeting, and all meetings regarding the same issue."