Eflana

Chapter 2

I gasped and rushed to her side. I looked over her body for any sign of injury. She must have been wearing a white shirt and skirt, but it was shredded and bloody. Some wounds still had blood seeping from them. They must be fresh. The injuries didn't look too deep, but it was pretty hard to see in the shade of all these trees. I could just make out the slow steady movement of her chest, so at least she was still breathing. I felt her eyes on me, and I turned my gaze back to her. She had raven black hair. Her eyes were very beautiful, an unusual shade of blue. I've never seen such a color. Though that might be because I can't remember anything...

I returned my gaze to her scratches and considered moving her into the meadow, wanting to be able to assess her wounds more clearly. But taking her into the clearing might make her a quick target, being so easy to see. I weighed my odds.

Quietly, so as not to startle her with my voice, I leaned in closer and whispered, "I'm going to move you into the sunlight so you're injuries don't get infected, and I can clean your wounds as best I can." She seemed to understand, and her eyes locked on mine, giving me permission.

I carefully crouched by her motionless form and slung her arms over my shoulders. I hooked my arms under her knees and hoisted her higher up my back.

Being just a tad bit heavier than I anticipated, my knees wobbled as I struggled to lift us both. Some how I managed to get us both in the meadow, where I stumbled and almost feel. Was she really this heavy? Or was I just ridiculously weak? Doesn't matter. I need to help this girl. Whose name I didn't even know.

I stopped when I got near the creek and laid her on its bank as gently as I could. I knelt by her head and cupped some water in my hands. Realizing it could be dangerous for her wounds if she sat up, I poured the water into her mouth as best I could without spilling any over the sides. She gives a shaky cough, the closes her eyes and takes several deep breaths. I think she's asleep.

I look at the clear water in front of me. I hold up my too-long sleeve. Then I rip it off at the shoulders, leaving nothing to cover my arms. I do the same on the other sleeve. I rip the rags again, but I rip it vertically so I have one long cloth. I promptly dunk both rags in the water, making sure to clean off as much dirt as possible. Holding up the soaking wet rag, I twist it until it's only slightly damp. Then I turn and gently dap at the girl's cuts.

I continue this process: dunking, wringing, dapping, dunking, wringing, dapping. As I wash off the dried blood, I slowly see that the cuts aren't too bad, only a few are deep. As I accidentally squeeze to hard on the cloth over a cut, some water drips into it. A strange hiss of pain comes from the girl, making me flinch. I try to be more careful from then on.

There were more cuts than I thought, though most were only little tears in the skin. When it looks like all cuts have been cleaned, I rip my rags vertically again, making four long, thin makeshift bandages. I try to get my rags as dry as possible. Only three cuts are bad enough that they need these bandages: one on both arms and one on her right leg. I tie them around her cuts, to keep out diseases and infection. I tie the remaining one around my upper arm. I might need it later.

When her wounds have been assessed, I attempted to help her stand up, wrapping an arm under hers and around her back. She could barely stand, still weak and injured. I ended up supporting most of her weight as we walked over to the large oak tree near where the brook enters the clearing. I helped her sit between two visible roots and she leaned against the trunk of the tree. She breathed deeply and closed her eyes. I sat a few feet from her, not moving, not looking at her.

After a while, she opened her eyes and finally seemed to take me in. she whispered, "Thank you." I gave a small nod. More silence.

"My name is Ylva, "she said, gaining strength the more she talked. Her voice had a natural edge to it. "It means female wolf. It was my grandmother's name." My eyes meet hers. There was an awkward silence, and I realized she was waiting for me to tell her my name.

"I don't know my own name," I admitted sadly. "I can't remember it. Or my parents. Or anything about myself." I couldn't meet her pitiful gaze.

To break the silence that followed, I asked, "How'd you get all banged up?" It seemed a harmless question, but darkness filled her eyes. "I was running." I could tell she was holding something back. "What? What were you running from?"

"I'd rather not talk about it," she said darkly.

"Will it follow you here?" I asked cautiously.

"No, they won't look here."

They. She was running from several things. I wondered what it was that gave her those cuts.

"How about I give you a name?" She asked. I blanched. "Just until you remember your real name," she said hurriedly.

I hesitated, and then shrugged. Why not?

Ylva squinted her eyes and studied me for a while. Then her face lit up, and she said excitedly, "I got it! Ayisha! It means life."

"Why choose a name with the meaning of life?" I asked curiously.

She blushed, "Because you helped tend to me." She looked at me again, and then asked, "Orianna? Meaning golden. I chose it because you're the only one I know of with eyes that never stop changing color, though right now they're gold."

I stare at her in shock. "W-what?" I sputter. "What are you talking about? My eyes don't change color . . . do they?"

She nods. "I've never seen anything like it. One second they're blue, but when I try to get a closer look, they're green or brown. And they aren't normal colors, too. I've seen them in purple, gray, even pink. Like they can't decide which eye color they want to be. It's very strange, but I like it.

I had to take several deep breaths to calm down. The meadow was quiet again, save for the soft burble of the creek.

"What do I look like?" I asked softly. I felt Ylva's eyes on me, but I kept mine on the patch of grass in front of me. I wanted to know. I needed to know.

"You have blond hair. It's a bright color. Almost white. You have very light skin, but no freckles. Or blemishes. Or any other marking I can see. Wow, your skin is pretty much flawless. You already know about your eyes. Your clothes are another matter entirely." We both laughed at that. Ylva had a loud laugh. It wasn't annoying. It made me want to laugh loudly, too. "Although neither of us are wearing any shoes." Interesting. I could probably come up with some makeshift shoes, but I could see the sun was going to set soon within a few hours, and we needed food and shelter in we wanted any chance of living.

"We should find some food," I announced. "Do you know anything near here we could eat?" She nodded, and then started to stand. I moved as if to assist her, but she brushed me off and made her way to the other side of the clearing. At least her injuries weren't bothering her too much.

There was something about Ylva, something that made her very easy to trust. I knew I should be more careful, but she just seemed so innocent and happy. I kind of wanted to be her friend.

"Come on Orianna!" she called from the other side of the clearing. I thought through this. I could stay in the meadow, without food and leave this injured girl to fend for herself, or I could take a risk and follow her into the forest with the promise of food.

I followed her over the brook and into the woods, wondering if I would see the meadow again.