The Price Of Wishing

The forest

The lightheaded feeling faded and was replaced by a severe headache.

She kept holding on to Echo long after she didn't have to, so she could keep her eyes closed against the tiny light hanging on her ear. She didn't hear anyone talking. She opened her eyes and noticed that Caleb and Davis were missing.

She looked at Echo. Echo flinched away from her but said nothing. Miriam opened her mouth to demand an explanation but Echo shushed her.

Slowly, incrementally she began to recall fuzzy memories of what had happened.

Then she started to get mad.

Echo had led her away from the others, separated her from what she knew. She had done it again. Miriam just wanted to yell at Echo, at anyone. 

Just scream out her frustration and annoyance and anger and fear until there wasn't anything left in her. But she couldn't. She had to let in rest and fill and infect her.

She glared at Echo, willing every curse she was thinking of the look. Echo whimpered and backed away from her. They had been safe with the others. Well, safer than they were alone anyway. Caleb had been taking them home. 

Didn't Echo want to get out of this place? Didn't she want Miriam to?

Miriam turned and walked back towards where she thought was the way that they had come. Echo grabbed her hand and tried to stop her but Miriam pushed her away and shook her head angrily. 

Echo sat on the ground and cried. Miriam looked at her, once, before walking again. Echo stayed where she was and cried louder. When Miriam got too far, she jumped up and ran after her. She walked next to Miriam, still crying but quieter.

Caleb always found what he was looking for, Miriam remembered. He would find them. Davis would be with him. Then Miriam could tell him that it was alright, that they could go and find his brother. It would all work out okay. The red earring spread a pleasant warmth through her, as though it approved of what she was thinking.

They hadn't gone far before they spotted something in the distance. A town? 

No, it was huge and unbroken. It spread wide across the landscape and as they got closer, Miriam recognised it as a forest. 

Curious, she walked towards it. What was a forest doing in the middle of a desert? Had they passed next to it? She didn't think Echo had led her through it while she was dizzy and confused.

She saw something move through the trees, a small figure. She looked closely and again saw it. A small figure with long chestnut hair and a red dress with white polka dots.

Forgetting about the others, forgetting about Echo and being careful, Miriam ran after the figure. 

She thought of Ichabod. She hadn't even consider that he would might find a replacement for her.

Echo cried out in dismay but Miriam kept running. She ran right into the trees. She knew one thing:

Nothing was going to hurt her little sister.