Utopia

Chapter 7

The wind is screaming, while traveling through the high branches of the tree. Air is coming in through the small creaks of the treehouse. We have retreated, they let us go. We did not suffer more casualties. We lost many men and women. It has been a few hours since I retreated to bed, but I cannot sleep. I am still thinking of the man with the poisoned arrow. Sebastian, the kiss and how we fought together. I hear the even breathing od Lilliowy beside making me sigh. I throw back the soft pink blankets back and slide out of bed, my toes hitting the cold floor. A shiver runs up my back, the cold making my feet tingle. At these moments I wish I could put on warm woolen boots, but I know it is of no use, since I need to pull them off only seconds after. Slowly I walk through the room, being careful not to wake anyone, not of the two families, not my two friends. I make my way over to Sebastian's handmade closet. When I am three steps from it, the wooden beam under me cracks loudly and I freeze. I look around to see if anyone woke up. Nobody. With a deep breath, I walk the last few steps and grab a soft pink dress out of the closet, along with my boots. The sound of something falling on the ground makes me turn, looking over my shoulder, as I am undressing myself. When I hear nothing else, I shrug my shoulders and pull the dress on, lacing the front up. Stepping into the boots, I too tie them up. I grab my bow and quiver and make my way over to the door. I reach my hand out to open the door, grabbing the door handle. Instead of the cold wooden stick I am supposed to grab, it is warm. Soft yet sturdy. Strong. With five fingers. He grabs my hand and pulls me along. The feeling of his rough hands on mine makes me want to scream. Who is this? I feel the cool night breeze brushing through my hair and think about screaming. I try to figure out who the man is, but I cannot recognize him in the darkness. If I scream, I would only scare people, so I decide it is better to stay quiet and face him in a little. He has on a pair of dark hunting pants and boots, a light colored blouse and a sword is bungling from his hip. He looks threatening. Screaming would only cause me unnecessary trouble. He leads me to a horse, which is saddled up and ready to go, I see it has wings and... a horn? Only two in these surroundings are like that, Elita and... Fernaco. He quickly gets on and holds his hand out for me to take. I take it, looking into his face, which is lit up by the moon. He pulls me up and I sit down behind him, my arms wrapped securely around his waist. His body also feels familiar, the smell I remember so well is coming off his clothes and drafting into my nose. I lay my head down on his shoulder blades and close my eyes.

The woods are covered in a soft white glow coming from the moon. A shiver runs over Sebastian's back and I hold on tighter, also feeling just slightly cold., his arms have goosebumps. On the leaves of the trees and plants hang dewdrops, shining in the moonlight. We ride silently through the woods, enjoying the quiet time. We arrive in this beautiful open space, small flowers are covering the ground, giving the place a magical feeling, even if everything is grey and black. A beautiful blue light is coming from the small flowers though and I gasp, the sight is gorgeous. Sebastian gets of Fernaco and holds his hands out, asking me to let him help me down. I smile and grab his upper arms, leaning forwards onto him. He pulls me up into his arms, twirling me around a few times before pulling me against this chest and slowly bringing me down to the ground, my toes just touching the dewy grass. Still no word is said and I look at him with a bright smile. He slowly turns me around and holds me from behind. I can see a target in the far back of the clearing.

'This is where I come to practice, let us make some shots.' He tells m and I smile brightly at him. I take the bow and an arrow, holding the bow with my left hand and pulling the string with my right. The arrow leans on my fingers and I point it at the target. I let go and... It went wrong. The arrow goes completely to the right, missing the target by seven meters. I curse and look at the sky with a heavy heart.

'Let me help you, gorgeous.' I look gratefully at him, his eyes are dancing over my face, searching me. He stands behind me, his chest pressed against my back. I feel myself relax due to his warm body, just as his hands grab mine and pull the bow into position. An arrow is placed on my left fingers and I hold the back with my right. The feeling of his arms on mine, his body against mine and his breath running down my throat, makes me shiver and goosebumps appear on my whole body. His warm hands softly stroke mine and his lips touch my earlobe.