Truly Me

|| Mateo Sinclair ||

She didn't talk when she walked me to the edge of the forest. The silence was thick, filled with unspoken words and secrets. Her eyes were fixated on the path in front of us. When we finally reached the end of the forest and the village already appeared in our sight, she stopped. "I hope you can find the way back home on your own." Cassidy said, looking at me. "I think I'll manage." I nodded.

I opened my mouth to say some more when I heard a sound from near us in the forest. I'm guessing Cassidy heard it too because she looked up. She narrowed her eyes and looked around. "Keep walking." She murmured, pushing me forward with a soft hand. I started walking once again, my pace steady and quick. Cassidy walked beside me, her eyes scanning every part of our surroundings.

On both of our sides, men walked out of the alleyways and blocked the way. Cassidy quickly smiled kindly. "I think we went the wrong way, come on." She took my arm and turned us around, only to find more men surrounding us. She heaved a sigh.

"You could've just let us walk off gentlemen." Cassidy said, turning around once again. The man in front of us didn't seem very amused by this. "Give me your money lady, then no harm will be done." He said, his voice stern. The bold girl beside me sighed another time. "You men really should stop underestimating women, it's getting annoying."

With that, the first man leapt at us. But Cassidy seemed to be prepared. She grabbed a dagger from her thigh and swung at the man. She cut him firmly in his abdomen, making him stagger back. She kicked him hard in the stomach and he fell.

Another man tried, but she didn't hesitate while she cut his throat. I moved along with her, making sure I didn't stand in her way. My eyes were wide and my head started throbbing. The pain the man felt in the last seconds of his life were unbearable. I looked up at Cassidy, who wiped away some blood at the corner of her mouth. Another dead man was in front of her. I took a deep breath when I saw out of the corner of my mouth another man rushing toward us.

The man leapt from me, but at the same moment, Cassidy turned around and stepped in front of me. She threw herself at the man, the blade of our attacker piercing through her shoulder. She winced but that didn't stop her. Her own dagger settled inside the man's chest, making him gasp and fall back. She pulled back the dagger and wiped the blood from the blade. The pain of the dying man made me gasp and take a step back.

Cassidy turned around on her heel, concern clouding her face. "Are you hurt?" She questioned, her shoulder bleeding heavily. "No, no I'm fine. Sorry." I looked at her, placing my hand on the unharmed arm. "We need to treat that wound." My voice was not much more than a whisper. Cassidy quickly looked around at all the dead men laying at our feet. "Yes, we should." She nodded. "My house is not far." I said. I laid my hand on her lower back and supported her on our way to my home.

My mother wasn't poor. She was one of the richest people in the village. That's probably why she got murdered. She left me our huge estate and all of her money. I hated every single part of the house. But I felt the need to live there, to keep my mother's legacy well cared for. Cassidy looked at it, her eyes wide. "Well, you didn't tell me you were rich." She let out a breathy laugh. "Even I have secrets, Missy." I smiled, leading her into the house. I brought her to the kitchen, helping her up the counter. From a drawer, I grabbed some bandages and some disinfectant. "Could you zip open your suit a little bit?" I questioned, placing my stuff beside her.

She didn't complain and zipped open her suit, only the curves of her breasts showing. She shoved away the fabric from her shoulder. It was a nasty cut, blood seeping through. I took a little bit of disinfectant on a handkerchief and pressed it on the wound. She winced. "Sorry." I murmured. "All fine, I've handled worse." Cassidy told me casually. The throbbing in my head slightly faded away, but Cassidy's pain coursed through my body, making me shiver for a moment. She felt guilty, for killing those men I'm guessing. Ashamed that I've seen it.

"Thank you for saving me." I said. She looked at me. When I pressed on the wound again she snapped her eyes shut. I wanted to apologise again when I saw something change in her face. I stepped back. "What was that." My eyes betrayed me, I'm sure they did. She opened her eyes and lifted her eyebrow. It happened again, her face somehow shifted a little. I think she felt it too, because her hands flew in front of her face, shielding it from me. "Cassidy, what was that." I demanded.

Cassidy shook her head firmly. "Don't tell anyone, I will get executed, please." She begged. Her fear hit me hard. I swallowed. "I won't tell anyone, but I need to know what just happened. I can't help you if I don't." Her hair was changing too and I swallowed once more. The short honey blonde hair turned into long, straight black hair. When she lowered her hands, her face changed and I saw a completely different girl. But god, she was pretty.

Her skin was slightly tinted, freckles all over her nose and cheeks. High cheekbones, a friendly round face. Beautiful blue eyes shimmered with tears. She released a shaky breath. "I'm a shapeshifter." She murmured, her voice so soft I almost couldn't hear it. "You have a gift?" I asked, almost in disbelief. Only a few people in the kingdom had gifts, most of them already murdered by the queen. I've always been scared someone would find out I have a gift, but luckily I had magic that you couldn't see. Cassidy on the other hand lived with much more risks.

She nodded. "I am one of the gifted, yes. You need to promise me you won't tell a soul." She begged, her eyes pleading. "I won't, I promise." I paused for a second. "I won't because I'm gifted too." Cassidy's relief made me smile only the slightest, but surprise overruled it in an instant. "You too?" She asked and I nodded. "I'm an empath." She frowned. "That's why you were breathing so heavily, you felt everything they felt." Cassidy said slowly and I nodded once more. "I'm sorry, I can't imagine how hard that must have been." Guilt filled her emotions. "You did what you had to do and you saved me." I smiled and she gave me a ghost of a smile back. I went back to treat her wound, bandaging it tightly.

"Life here is hard." It was a little while later, we were sitting in my sitting room with a cup of hot tea. "It is." I agreed, taking a small sip. "Don't you live in constant fear? Scared someday the government will know and they take us to the queen?" Cassidy questioned. "Not anymore, I was when I was younger though. But my gift isn't visible to the untrained eye, not visible to most humans." I told her. She leaned back with a sigh. "I wish I had that. Pain makes me lose my concentration." Twirling around my teaspoon, I looked at her. "Is it only the face you can change?" I asked. She hadn't changed her face after the incident and I knew she felt comfortable with it. "No, I can change into anything I want to. It needs a lot more concentration and energy, though." She said, smiling slightly.

She looked back at her teacup. "I wished we could escape this stupid kingdom, leaving forever." Cassidy's voice was soft, severe. I had dreamed of that too, more times than I could count. The queen is harsh with letting people go out of her little land. She's afraid she'll lose her reputation if everyone leaves. That's why she lets no one out of the gate surrounding our kingdom. Many have tried, most of them dead or locked up. The ones who succeeded never looked back. I never tried it. It was a suicide mission to do it alone.

But Cassidy was skilled, she was swift, and she can change into anything and anyone she wants to. I can feel people their presence from a distance. I can feel what they feel, if I concentrate hard enough I could predict their next move. We could be a good team. When I looked back at the desperate girl, I knew that we needed to escape this dark kingdom. Be safe and be free.

"Then why won't we try and escape?"