The Weaver's Source

Chapter 22

I carried Gerald for what seemed like an age and still the woodlands went on. Darkness was heavy against my eyes, almost blinding me if the moon hadn't been full and the clouds scarce. But even with the soft light I still couldn't see the uneven ground in great detail. Roots and rocks stubbed against my toes, nearly causing me to fall and drop Gerald several times.

I was relieved when I felt him stir. He had been quiet throughout our flight as the blood loss rendered him weak and I was certain he had slept most of the time. I had grown anxious that he'd never wake up and soon I'd be hulking about a corpse but there wasn't much I could do for him. Annis had stopped the bleeding and stitched the wound so it was up to Gerald to recover from it. It was as I grew tired, my arms and legs aching and growing numb, that he lifted his head and spoke.

"Where are we?" He asked with a heavy tongue.

I hesitated. "I don't know." I said honestly. "I just ran and didn't really think where to."

I felt him nod then wriggle in my arms. 

"Let me down now, Lyra. I'll walk now."

I paused. "Are you sure? I can carry you a little longer."

He wriggled again. "It's fine. Let me down." He asked again.

I let him down gently and didn't move as his legs wobbled a little when they took all his weight. His small hand clutched onto my arm for support until he felt strong enough to stand on his own. I watched with sad eyes as observed his shoulder. His left hand felt around the stump where his right arm had been almost frantically. He seemed a little horrified but he quickly swallowed the panic I saw welling up and instead focused on me.

"We need to keep going." Gerald said and marched off blindly.

I was pleased at the strength he was showing but told him to slow down as worry whispered.

"Don't push yourself, Gerald. You'll get tired." I warned softly.

Gerald shrugged. "As long as we get as far from that village as possible, it doesn't matter." He said then slipped down a small dip in the earth, beckoning to me as he stood. 

I followed him, just about managing to keep my balance as I ran down. 

"Annis will look for us. She doesn't like people running from her." He warned.

I sighed a little. "I didn't think she would." I muttered and linked my hand in his. "But I don't know how much further this forest goes on for."

Gerald scrunched up his face in thought. "I can't remember. I haven't left the village before but we did used to find travellers who were lost in here. But then they started to keep away." He said. "People had begun to say a monster lived here." He paused. "I guess they're right."

I glanced down at his shoulder and frowned. "I'm sorry for your arm, Gerald. I should have listened to you earlier."

He cast me a sharp glare. "The poisons are what kept you there, not you. It's what they do. I've tried to keep people safe before but each time they would say their home is with Black Annis. I couldn't do much else other than warn them." He frowned. "They always got eaten in the end, even if I tried to get them away."

I remembered the hidden room of flesh, blood and bones with a cold chill. "Annis really eats people?"

Gerald nodded. "She needs to. The blood and meat of people keep her strong and she can't keep the village safe from monsters if she doesn't eat regularly. It's why my village was so welcoming to you. They were helping the poison work, making you think you belong there and not want to leave."

My throat became dry and my hands daintily felt around my larger waist. I really had been in danger but even now, after running for so long and after Gerald had his arm taken from him, I still didn't feel like I was unsafe with Annis.

"Why don't I feel scared of her?" I asked softly.

"What she gave you is still there. It'll take a while for you to think normally and for your memories to come back." Gerald said and squeezed my hand. "Just remember not to listen to your head right now."

I nodded numbly. I didn't know what to think. I had been in danger, I was going to be eaten by an elderly healer, I knew that but it didn't feel quite real. Something stirred within me. Confusion, I think. I knew something was meant to guard me, that I would've had some sort of warning if I was in danger, I just couldn't remember what. My head began to hurt and my focus became muggy the harder I tried to remember.

Gerald noticed my furrowed brow and the serious expression my face had adopted. "You trying to remember something?"

I glanced at him and my expression softened. "Yes. The fog is still there though."

"It'll go away soon." He promised.

I sighed and a thought came to me as realisation dawned. "You can't go back, can you?"

Gerald shook his head and kept his eyes focused on the uneven earth. "The village kept Annis safe and she kept the monsters away. No one was meant to know about her. Anyone who did and tried to leave were killed."

"So where will you go?"

"I don't know." He said in a small voice.

He was scared all of a sudden. The idea of being alone frightened him. I didn't blame him. He had never been outside of the village and was still only a young boy, he wouldn't know what to do to survive in a land strife with danger and monsters. My hand tightened around his.

"You can stay with me." I said warmly.

Instantly his eyes snapped onto my face, filled with hope. "I can?"

"Yes. You protected me and it came at a cost for you so I'll take care of you for as long as I can." I said and swung our hands slowly. "I'm looking for someone, that much I know. You can stay with me and help me look for him."

Gerald nodded his head enthusiastically, all fear wiped from his face. "I'll do my best."

We went on for another hour, wandering aimlessly through the forest but edging our way further and further from Annis and her horrible hut. Eventually fatigue took its toll. While I could've gone on if I tried, Gerald couldn't and I didn't have the strength to carry us both anymore. We decided to sleep and run when dawn arrived. It took us a little while to find some sort of shelter and we huddled under a fallen tree full of white mushrooms and covered in moss. I held him close to me, keeping him warm and giving him something a little more comfortable to rest on instead of the hard and stony earth. Soon he drifted off to sleep, leaving me awake to listen to the gentle wind and hum of insects.

Sleep didn't come to me instantly. My mind was awake and whirling away, trying to remember what I had been forced to forget. I couldn't recall much. Just a small house and a river and the smell of smoke and spice. That was it. And still I wasn't bothered by this. I didn't feel panic or confusion at the lack of memories. I sighed and looked down at Gerald, silently thanking the small boy and his courage for keeping me safe.

I shifted my weight a little in hopes of getting a little more comfortable and tightened my grip around him. After a while, I fell asleep, dreaming of an adventure with Gerald that was never going to happen.