He was alone. Alone and hungover in the dark. He'd never been hungover before. To make things even better, he couldn't remember after Crow shooing away a whore at the tavern.
Declan shot up. And instantly regretted it. His head throbbed and he dropped it down to his lap with a groan. The world was a swimming, black mess and Declan didn't have the faintest idea what to do. Both of the horses were there but Crow was gone. If his head didn't hurt so much, he probably would've panicked and run around looking for him. But at the moment he couldn't bear to even stand up. He did, however, call out Crow's name. Well, more accurately, he called out for Erik. But he regretted the decision when he heard his voice echoing through the trees. Declan froze. The fullness of the forest sank in on the prince and he felt his heart begin to race. All around him, leaves and twigs and branches rustled and the wind howled.
Then, out of the darkness, the silver stag emerged.
He knew that the creature had stabbed him but it had been because Crow spooked him. And he did return to heal him. Declan wasn't sure how he knew that but somehow he had just known when he woke up the next morning. So seeing the stag appear now soothed the prince.
The stag slowly approached Declan. Despite the throbbing in his head, Declan rose to meet him. He held out his hand to the stag, who dropped his muzzle to meet it. His fur was soft and he was very eager to let Declan wrap his arms around his thick neck. The stag knelt down on the ground, indicating that he wanted Declan to mount him. It took him point two seconds to make up his mind and climb on.
He began reconsidering as he realized that he left the horses and perhaps Crow would come back for him after a while of running through the forest on the back of the sliver stag. But the stag slowed at the base of a massive oak tree that seemed to glow in the midnight. Once the stag stopped, Declan slid off the creatures back and stepped towards the tree. A golden flash of light flooded out from a wide gap in the base of the tree and a girl stepped out. She held a small, flame-lit lantern that cast shadows over her young features. A bright smile lit up her face when she turned towards Declan and she sank into a curtsy. Her dress looked like it was made out of leaves and her feet were bare and muddy. When she curtsied, her wild red hair flew all around her.
"I'm so glad we found you, Your Highness," the girl said when she rose. Declan smiled.
"Who are you?" he asked. The girl stuck out her hand. A green vine spiraled it's way up her arm, seemingly part of her.
"I'm Fern of the fae. I was sent to bring you home," the girl said.
"Home?" Declan gulped. Did someone from the palace send her?
Fern offered her hand again. "Come with me."
If the king was looking for him, he wouldn't have sent a small girl who came bout of a tree.
So Declan took her hand.
Leaving the stag at the base of the tree, Fern led Declan through the gap in the trunk. She was small enough to fit through easily but Declan had to duck down to avoid colliding with the top of the opening. Inside the tree, he was able to straighten up. It seemed to be completely hollowed out. Declan craned his neck to look around, but the dim light made it difficult. But suddenly, the hollow trunk was filled with a golden light, warm and comforting, which molded around Declan's body. All of the aches and soreness that had made every step a challenge melted away. The light became so blinding that he had to close his eyes. When he opened them, it was dark again. He felt Fern tug at his hand and followed her out of the tree.
