Find Edward

Chapter Six: Claudia

Humans. It was a strange word but something familiar to me. I couldn't tell where I had heard it, that part was fuzzy. Only, this word made Florent nervous. I wasn't human so Florent didn't have to worry.

"Are humans bad?" I tried to read Florent's face but it was filled with many emotions.

"You could say that," he muttered, I caught him looking at me. He was doing that a lot, staring at me. Was I different than normal people? There had to be someone who looked like me. Right?

"Do you think Edward is a human?" If Edward was a human then I shouldn't look for him. There's no point in attracting danger to yourself.

"He probably is, no one in these Lands has such a weird name. We like to name our kind after the element they come from. His name has no connection to an element." Edward is a human. Why would I want to look for a human? That doesn't make sense. I'm not human and there don't seem to be any humans here. Nothing adds up.

"Then I guess there's no point in finding him," I said with as much cheerfulness as I could muster. This was a strange day and I was exhausted despite just waking up.

"Yeah, if Edward is here someone else will find him and return him to his homeland. Humans aren't welcome here." I nodded, and that made some sense. Why keep someone who was unwelcome?

"So, are you going to take me to my home kingdom?" Florent seemed to be confused by the question.

"Why would I take you to the Air Kingdom?" His tone was harsh, a sudden change from his previous tone.

"Well, you said I should return home but I don't know how to get to the Air Kingdom. I was just wondering if you could help me find my way." Florent glared at me as if he didn't want anything to do with me.

"I'll give you directions but I don't think I can get you there myself. I have things to do. My life can't be put on hold because you don't remember anything." I flinched a little, he was being very mean. The way he treated me seemed familiar but I couldn't figure out why.

"Oh, okay. That's fine." Florent was right, he must have a busy life. He probably has a job and a family to provide for. I couldn't expect him to drop everything to help me out.

"I'll keep you company tonight but tomorrow you'll be leaving bright and early." I nodded, feeling disappointment welling up. I thought Florent would be a friend, turns out I was wrong. I layed down and my side and wrapped my wings around me. It was going to be a long night and I was not going to get enough sleep.

I woke up the next morning to Florent loudly shuffling around. I had a feeling that was his way of waking me up. I shifted my wings back and sat up. My body was stiff from the hard ground. I clasped my hands together and strained them forward, feeling my muscles complain and my back crack. I stood up and noticed Florent looking at me. As soon as he saw me looking at him he glanced away.

"So, where am I going?" Florent glanced at me for a moment before responding.

"You're going to head North East until you find water. There should be a bridge nearby. Then you're going to cross that bridge into the Enchanted Forest. Once there you're going to head South If you do it right you'll come across the Ice Kingdom border. You'll know you're there because the temperature is going to drop and the ground is going to get frozen. Once you enter the Ice Kingdom you're going to head West until you get to the Air Kingdom. If you ever think you got lost just ask someone for directions." Florent had covered the remains of the fire with dirt, once that was done he turned to look at me.

"I have to head back to my home. Good luck on you're journey. I hope you get home safely. I'm sure you're family is worried about you." I watched as he leaped into a tree. There was some rustling but soon it stopped. I was all alone in an unfamiliar forest.

"Alright, head northeast until a bridge. Cross then head South. Go into the cold kingdom and head West. Then you'll enter the Air Kingdom. Sounds simple enough. Now, which direction is North West?" It took me a while to figure out what I hoped to be North West. Then I started walking. I'm sure flying would've been easier but I decided to walk until my feet got tired. Then I'd fly. I was only truly confident in one thing. This was going to be a very long and lonely journey.