Silver Knives and Blackened Petals (Hiatus)

Chapter 20: Shadow Consuming Life

 Charles swung the sword so hard that it had cut the mannequin's head off. It rolled towards the forest. "Oops..." Charles muttered.

"That's alright. But you did put a nice dent into the blade though." Bill grabbed the silver sword and examined it. It was an easy fix, but it'll take some time to hone it out. Bill gave him a knife made of the same material as the sword. "Don't take that off of you whenever you're outside. It's yours now." He grabbed a small stone from his pocket and started sliding it across the surface of the blade. Walking back to the house. "Be a dear and grab the mannequin's head." Charles stared at the dark forest line. The wooden head was two to three feet away from the forest. He slowly walked towards it. His heart pounded rapidly as he reached for the head. A bush beside him shook and he grabbed the head, running quickly over to the house like a flailing chicken. A couple seconds later an albino feral squirrel jumped out of the bush. Sniffing the ground for something to eat. Bill looked dead serious. Staring at the squirrel intensely.

"You gotta be fucking kidding me..." Charles muttered as he stood up. He had face planted after tripping over his foot. "I had a heart attack over..." Bill covered his mouth. Pointing to the bow.

"Get it... Now." He whispered. Charles heart started to thud against his rib cage again. He slowly walked to the bow on the porch and grabbed it. Going back to Bill. Bill slowly grabbed the bow and notched an arrow onto the string. He pulled back and released. The arrow pinning the squirrel into a tree. It turned black as midnight, dissolving into the shadows.

"What the hell?!" Charles yelled out.

"Everything is not what they seem Charles... Even a white squirrel is corrupted in these forests." Bill said darkly. "You were smart to run. Now go inside. I'll deal with the mannequin." He gave Charles the bow and walked toward the mannequin, pulling it out of the ground. Charles walked inside, his heart still pounding.

"What's wrong Charlie?" Toriel asked him, her arms behind her back.

"Shadow consumed squirrel." Bill muttered as he walked from behind Charles. Toriel's ears laid flat.

"O-oh... That's not good..." She whimpered softly.

"Is it made?" Bill asked. Toriel's shiny black ears perked up.

"Yes! I finished it while you two were training." She produced a folded green matted cloak from behind her back. Charles tilted his head. "Here Charlie, put it on." Charles walked forward and picked it up, putting the cloak on. There was a slight purple sheen to the fabric. "It looks perfect on you!" She smiled happily, showing all of her bright white teeth.

"Tomorrow you learn stealth. Then I want you to practice everything." Bill patted Charles's shoulder. Charles gulped. Bill looked at his watch.

7:20 PM

"Dinner then time to go to bed" Bill walked to the kitchen. Cooking dinner while Toriel read a book. Charles went into his room, pulling the cloak off and sat it on the dresser. After a few minutes Toriel walked in and gave him the blue, green, and red book. But not the amber book.

"Here Charlie. You should read up, it'll help you with tomorrow and the future." She smiled softly. She kissed his forehead and walked back out into the living room. He stared down at all three books and grabbed the green book and opened it.