The Princess of the Moon

Chapter 32

After Carter finished whatever it was that he was doing, he turned his attention to us and grinned while he grew smaller and smaller until he was at his normal height that I was used to.

"So," he said and clapped his hands together before he cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. "I take it that you two are wanting to know what I have planned for you?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question while he looked between the two of us.

Zën rolled his eyes and gave Carter a deadpanned look, earning an amused grin from the giant in front of us. "Why yes," he said sarcastically with a flick of his tail. "We have been dying to know what you have planned for us and why you were in your giant form."

"Zën," I warned and patted his neck, for I hadn't gotten off of his back while Carter shrugged and placed his hands behind his back. "Be nice."

Zën rolled his eyes and flicked his tail in annoyance. He nudged my foot with his beak before he looked at Carter again, unamused. "She's right, for I wasn't being nice to you." He bowed his head ever so slightly and flicked his tail again. "My apologies, Carter," he said, and I could tell that he wasn't sorry for being rude.

I rolled my eyes and scowled but didn't say a word about his behavior while I turned my attention back to Carver. "What is it?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question. "What do you have planned for us?"

"Well, for one thing, I want to make sure that you both are comfortable with me as a giant," he said and raised an arm above his head, and I could tell that he was wondering if we would be fine with him being taller than he was now.

"I will be," I said and shrugged with a small grimace on my face. "I am curious about what you are wanting us to do, and if that means that you have to be a giant for us to do it, then so be it."

Zën looked at me and narrowed his eyes. "Are you sure?" he asked, and I held back an eye roll while I looked at my griffin. "And what if he is easier to control if he is in his huge form?"

"By who?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question. "Who is going to control him? We're in an "air tight" bubble that is hidden away from everyone and everything that I know."

"But others know about this place," Zën replied, and he gave me a pointed look while he cocked his head closer to the side with his eyes filled with annoyance and worry. "They know of this place, Synthia."

The hair on the back of my neck stood up at attention, and my heart skipped a beat while I looked at the griffin and narrowed my eyes with a small scowl on my face. "What do you mean?" I asked, my voice firm and hard. "What do you mean that they know about this place?"

Carter looked between the two of us and pressed his lips into a thin line. "What's going on?" he asked and looked at me. "What are you talking about, Syn?" he asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

"Do they know where I am?" I asked and looked at Carter with a blank look on my face. "Those things that were wanting to kill me?"

Carter bit back a small sigh and moved a hand through his hair. He opened his mouth to say something but closed it before he opened his mouth again to say something else, but nothing came out.

"Do not lie to me," I said and scowled while I narrowed my eyes. I shifted on Zën's back and stared at the giant that had been sent here to help me. "Do they know where I am?"

Carter sighed and slowly nodded, and he seemed to grow smaller while he became filled with defeat. "Yes," he said before he cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. He looked down and bit the inside of his lip, and there was a frown on his face. "They know where you are."

"How?"

"They followed me," he said before he cleared his throat and shifted on his feet some more. "They followed me here and were attached to me when they took control of me. That's how they know that you are here, hidden away from view."

I narrowed my eyes further and shifted on Zën's back again. I didn't say a word while I stared at him, not knowing if he was going to be a danger to not only myself but to those that were with me.

Even though I had a feeling that they would be able to protect themselves better than I would be able to...

Carter cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. A look of pain and guilt flashed through his eyes while he looked at me before he tucked his head closer to his chest. "I won't hurt you," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Please, Syn," he said with a small begging tone in his voice. "You have to believe me."

I bit back an annoyed sigh and closed my eyes a little before I moved a hand through my hair and across my face.

Debate filled my body, and I had no idea if I did believe him or not, even though a part of me did.

But that was before I found out that he was a giant and a part of a magical world that I now found myself in...

"Please," Carter said. He cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. "I'm not going to hurt you. I can not hurt you, Syn, especially when I am in control of myself." He paused and cleared his throat again. "I have sworn to protect you, which is why I am here in the first place."

Zën flicked his tail and looked at Carter before he looked at me. He narrowed his eyes and stayed silent, and I could tell that he didn't want me to fully trust him like I had done in the past.

"He hasn't hurt me, yet," I reminded Zën, "especially when we were training. Why are you doubting him now?"

Zën didn't respond and flicked his tail some more. His mind was blocked from me, and I couldn't help but wonder what was going through his mind and if it was him that was being controlled at this point, trying to turn me away from those that were there to help me.

Zën scoffed and rolled his eyes when my thoughts entered his head. "I am not doing that, Syn," he said, and annoyance filtered through his voice while he did so. "I have not been outside of the forcefield since we entered, and even if I did go outside of the forcefield, they can not get to me."

"And why not?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question. "Why can't they get to you?"

"Because I am protected," he replied. He sighed and shook his head while he flicked his tail in annoyance when he felt my confusion. "We can talk about that later, but I can assure you that I am not being controlled."

"Then why are you trying to turn me against him?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question.

"I am not," he replied with a shake of his head. "I am trying to make sure that you think about everything that has happened to him and be smart about everything so that you do not end up in dager."

I rolled my eyes and scowled. "We will talk more about this later," I replied coldly after I weighed the pros and cons about wanting to do everything with Carter. "And I want to see what you mean by them knowing where I am. Ok?"

Zën sighed and shook his head. "Then be careful," he said before he paused. "I will have your back for whatever you decide, but I want you to be careful."

I held back an eye roll and looked at Carter. "I still trust you, Carter," I said, and the giant breathed a small sigh of relief and slowly nodded, and it seemed that the weight of the world was lifted from his shoulders as soon as I uttered those words. "I don't know what's going on, but I do trust you because you haven't given me a reason not to."

"That is all that I ask, Your Highness," he said and nodded before he cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. "That's all that I ask. Now, are you ready to do what I have set up for you two?"

I hesitated for a small second before I slowly nodded, pressing my lips into a thinner line. "I am," I said before I cleared my throat and shifted on Zën's back, praying that I was not making a grave mistake. "What do you have planned for us, Carter?"

Oh, Gods.

Protect us...