Spirit of Shadows

| Chapter Seven |

Matthias and Em had followed Svana through the swamp for a good half hour until they came to stop in a clearing of trees. The strangest thing about Svana's place was that her house seemed to be located in an entirely different district–it was impossible, of course but still strange. And even though it was still incredibly dark in the swamp (and would be for quite awhile), Em could hear the water dribbling off of smooth rocks below them.

"Please, make yourself at home." Svana spoke, her feathers ruffling slightly in the humid wind of night. She opened the door to her home and held it open for her two human guests to enter.

"Wow." Matthias breathed as he took in the sight of it all.

The cottage was a two story, perfectly insulated, and beautifully decorated. There were vases full of lilies and morning glories, carved furniture made from fine wood, and lanterns glittering on the ceilings. The walls were painted a light green and the floors were swept clean.

Em thought it was a perfect escape from the nightmares running around outside. She shivered at the thought of another Grobhin attack and took a step closer to Matthias without meaning to.

"Both of you must be starving by now. I'll prepare a nice meal." Svana said, closing the door behind her. The Swan Maiden had a smile across her pink lips as she all but skipped toward the kitchen.

"Actually! We already ate..." Em said, feeling bad about letting the girl down.

Svana stopped skipping but merely shrugged her shoulders. "Alright then. Is there anything I can get for the two of you? Water? Some snacks? Oh! Sunflower seeds?"

Matthias stepped in to save Em from answering.

"No thank you to the food but would you happen to have a place for Em and I to sleep?"

Svana's face lit up at something she could help with. "Oh, yes! I have many open rooms. They're upstairs. Go ahead and choose which you'd prefer. Is there anything else I can help with?"

"No thank you, Svana. We'll be up in a few hours to continue toward the border, alright?"

"Sounds good to me. If you need anything I'll be in my room." She pointed a feathered finger toward a bedroom door beside the kitchen. "Goodnight!"

Matthias and I bid Svana a goodnight and began to climb the wooden stairs toward the abundance of empty bedrooms. It was quite odd that Matthias had requested a place to sleep in the first place, Em thought he'd be watching Svana's every move.

"One thing I need to do before bed..." Matthias spoke, snapping Em from her thoughts. She saw him touch the bandages around his neck and felt a pang of guilt at the sight of them. Immediately, she hid it, not wanting Matthias to talk to her about it.

"Would you like some company?" Em asked.

Matthias smiled and it was such a rare and unexpected sight that Em had actually become speechless. He rolled his eyes and pulled Em with him down the hallway, in search of the bathroom.

...

Once inside the small space, Matthias began to snoop through Svana's cabinets and vanity, wanting to find some sort of gauze.

"I got some." Em said, hopping down from the toilet seat. She was looking in the cabinet above the bath and had found a roll of gauze and a few padded bandages.