Frostbitten

Wednesday

I sat up and groaned due to the intense pain on my head. I lied back down, and furrowed my brow as my head rested against something warm and soft, slowly moving. I looked up and saw my head resting on a woman's torso. It was just any woman. It was Joli Heart, Cupid's mom. She was wearing a pink dress that was dirty. Her hair was messy and she had bags under her eyes and dirt on her face. I looked around and suddenly realized I was in a cold, dark, damp, stone room. I slowly sat up.

"How's your head?" Mrs. Heart asked.

"Fine, still kind of sore," I replied. "Where are we? What happened?"

"Darcy. He hit you and tossed you in here with me. He got me early yesterday morning."

"How long have I been in here?"

"Since yesterday."

"Why are you here? Why am I here?"

"He told me his entire plan. He wants to use you, and he said he apparently has a way to do that. Then he brought me here to lure Cupid."

"Why Cupid?"

"He blames Cupid for losing his powers. He wants revenge. The funny thing is though that he didn't even have to bring me here. He would've come knowing you were kidnapped. He doesn't know you two have a relationship."

"What's going to happen?"

"He's going to hold us hostage."

"So...he's going to lure Cupid and...kill him?"

"That's his plan, but he doesn't know Cupid's strength. Then he plans to use you. Oh, and there's more."

"What?"

"The Holly King and the Oak King are both awake."

My eyes went wide. No. No possible way. The Oak King and the Holly King were sworn enemies. The Oak King was awake for spring and summer but the Holly King was asleep for that time. Then the Holly King woke for the winter months and the Oak King slept for that time. The last time they were awake at the same time...it took everyone a long time to get one to sleep at the right time. They're very, very powerful, and so they fought off people, killing them. That was centuries ago, and now I was terrified. They might not know they're awake at the same time. It's not snowing, so maybe the Oak King thinks it's still a warmer month. Maybe...

"How?"

"Darcy is friends with both, and he didn't tell either of them. He some how convinced them."

"How long are we going to stay in here?"

"Until Cupid gets here."

And so we sat. Occasionally, food would be tossed into the room, but we'd never see a face. As we sat, I got to know more about Mrs. Heart. She told me about her history with my parents. She said her and my mom were best friends, and Mr. Heart use to be good friends with them, too, in their younger years. Then they grew up and my dad came along. She said really liked my dad from the beginning. He said he was very kind and shy, but in high school he changed and became louder and more extroverted. He became a people person. He went from talking to Mrs. Heart to flirting with her - and leading her on. I felt bad. Her best friend stole the man she loved, and the man she loved knew she loved him. Were my parents really like that? They sounded like jerks. And yet, Mr. Heart guessed. He felt like he had to be with my mom, but even in that time, he knew there was something separating them. So he shot them with arrows, and he was wrong. He discovered he was wrong, and saw the misery on Joli. So he married her, and even though they weren't right for each other, they were content with each other.

"Knock knock knock!"

We both looked up and Darcy came in. He had a smile on his stupid face. Prick. Hit me over the head...put humanity in danger...