Reincarnated as an Ugly Step Sister

Chapter 38

"Maybe you should tell Chase. About the thing you told me," Nicholas whispers. We're back on the road now, trying to make up for the time we lost during my visit to Cinderella.

"I don't know. I'm worried that telling people may have some... cosmic consequences."

"You told me," Nicholas points out. "Nothing's happened yet."

"It slipped out and that was only a few hours ago. There's still plenty of time to get hit by lightning or caught in an avalanche."

"Yes, but what if it will benefit us to tell him and it turns out there's no karma? Why not risk it?"

"It would feel good to stop lying. But what if he doesn't believe me or he gets angry that I lied to him for so long?" My stomach drops at the thought of it.

"I believed you and I didn't get angry."

"Yes, but you're very gullible," I remind him. "And you never get mad at anyone."

"Well that's not exactly true-"

"I just called you gullible and you didn't even give me a dirty look," I point out. He rolls his eyes but I can tell he knows I'm right. "Also, I've known Chase longer than I've known you."

"Yeah, by a few months. In the grand scheme of things that's not a lot."

"He was my first real friend. I was a hermit until one day I went to the market. The first time I went to the market I met him. His friendship means a lot to me," I sigh. One glance at Nicholas makes me regret saying this. His face falls and he stares at the ground. He confessed his feelings for me today and I turned him down then started talking about how much his best friend means to me. "You mean a lot to me too, you know. You're putting your whole life on hold for me. I can't express how much I need you in my life."

He smiles sadly. "You don't have to say that. I know your relationship with Chase is different than your relationship with me." A sad silence falls over us. Finally he says, "I'd think about telling him if I were you," before speeding up to ride next to Chase.

It's definitely something to think about. Now that I'm being partially honest and partially lying even more than before it would be easier to tell everyone I'm close to this story. If I could tell my friends all the fairytales I can recall that might help us solve the riddles too. Chase isn't as forgiving as Nicholas though.

The rest of the day is anticlimactic. Our lunch stop is shorter than usual and we only take two bathroom breaks the whole time but it's still dark when we get to the inn. This one is worse than any one we've been to yet so I convince Nicholas and Chase not to even try the food they're serving. We eat leftover vegetables instead. Our sheets are yellowed with age and mysterious stains, our water basin is brown and murky, and I saw a rat chasing a roach through the lobby so they aren't even afraid of humans.

We strip the bed, since it wasn't even made when we checked in, and use our cloaks as blankets. I usually take the middle spot but the thought of being between two guys still makes my stomach churn so I sleep at the bottom of the bed. It's not a fun night, since I get kicked a lot and hygiene is hard when you're living on the road. I never fall deep-enough asleep to see Cinderella.

The next day we're eager to get out of the inn and onto the road. I estimate it's around 7:30 when we leave, which is very early for us. The sun hasn't even reached its peak when we stop for lunch.

"I'm worried we'll run out of money," I say as I unwrap my sandwich. "We've been on the trail for almost a week and we aren't even out of the woods yet." I can't fully recall the "Jack and the Beanstalk" story but I don't think it takes place near any forests. I think it's in some very poor farmlands, which is pretty vague but it'll be easy to spot a beanstalk that goes into the clouds from far away.

"I know how to set snare traps. If we caught some small animals we might be able to sell it," Chase says.

"You mean, killing animals?" I ask uneasily.

"Yeah, it's really the only way to make money when we're on the road. It's either this or we'll run out of money in a few weeks and we won't be able to afford the inns or food and we'll have to hunt anyway."

"How are we losing money so fast? I thought Nicholas brought a lot."

"I tried but there wasn't a lot of accessible money that belonged to my family in Miola's palace," Nicholas explains.

"Oh, that makes sense. Why didn't you tell me that earlier? I wouldn't have tipped the innkeeper," I say, feeling a little annoyed.

"I don't know, I didn't want to stress you out. You're already so worried about everything."

"That's a nice thought but I'm a master negotiator. I could have saved us money this whole time. They give you discounts if you go to the manager and complain about any little thing."

"So, are we doing my snare trap plan?" Chase asks.

"Yeah, I guess," I mutter, still unhappy about the situation.

Chase pulls out some wire from his bag and hands me and Nicholas each a piece. We begin walking around, looking for a good spot. I'm not really sure what to look for but Chase says we should find an animal nest, whatever that looks like. Once we've found a good spot Chase shows us how to make stakes out of sticks using a pocket knife. I contemplate saving an extra one in case I run into any vampires but decide that Dracula isn't a fairytale. He then demonstrates how to wrap the wire around the stake and form a slip knot.

"Wait, what did you just do?" I ask, shocked by his speed and gracefulness as he forms the wire loop. I look at Nicholas who is struggling more than I am.

"You need to twist this so it makes a little loop for the slip knot," he says, pointing at the loose end of my wire. I move to give it to him so he can show it to me but instead he takes my hands in his and gently guides my fingers. I can feel my face turning red so I stare down and try to focus on what he's showing me and not how warm his hands are.

We each make three snares. Chase shows us how to place it in front of a squirrel nest then tells us to spread out to place our own traps. I really want to do a good job with my trap, even though I'd prefer not to kill any animals. I sometimes feel so inferior to my friends, dumb and helpless. Doing a good job setting these snares could prove I am equal to them.

I'm lost in thought as I wander through the forest, scanning the ground for signs of animals. I must wander farther than I intend because eventually I realize I can't hear my friends anymore. "Guys?" I call out. The forest remains silent for a moment before I hear footsteps. "Oh good, I thought I got lost." I turn and go back to looking for a place to set my snare. I kneel down to set my trap in front of a tree clearly inhabited by squirrels. The steps get closer and closer behind me but I'm so concentrated on what I'm doing that I don't bother to see who it is.

Well, until they grab me from behind and slap a heavy hand over my mouth, that is.