Shadow Princess

Chapter Thirteen: Pulling Ties

Anger pulses through her as she lays in her bed, thinking about the day she had. Jacob wanted to be nice and give her a tour, though she was being difficult the first half. Julius takes over and he makes a comment, that makes her cheeks flush with anger. The audacity the male had to even mentioning that this is an adventure. She takes a deep breath, the tavern ceiling staring at her. Lights flicker from the crack under the door. It indicates people coming and going, but it is always the same graceful footfalls.

She had Julius drop her off, after the intense awkward moment they had after he quit talking. That was hours ago. The way his emotions were clear on his face as he looked at her, like she was something to be figured out, but there was the moment, when the emotions were slammed behind shutters. The rage that flickered in his eyes as he leaned down to whisper the threat in her ear. She shivers, pulling the thick cover over her. The warmth surrounds her and she closes her eyes.

A creak from outside made her sit up on her elbows. She watches the crack and the light through it, as it weaves when footsteps go by. The day seem to go by fast, so she guesses that it was late at night. She hears a low murmur as the footsteps continue. She recognizes the voice, it belonging to Julius. Callista sits up, her head turning to the door. Where could he be going this late at night? Shrugging, she lays back down and has a hard time falling asleep. The air around her darkens and pulls her to sleep, the dark swallowing her.

Callista opens her eyes and she looks around her, cool air hitting her skin. The sky around her darkens with orange and red on the horizon. White and grey falls around her, getting stuck in her hair. She stands up, her knees wobbly as the ground shakes. Swallowing, she takes in a deep breath, breathing in smoke. Coughing, she spins around, the air stuffy with heat and ash. She squints toward the horizon, the sky splotching with orange and red, like a sun rise, but a thick blanket of ash fogs the sky.

Coughing, she bends closer to the ground, too scared to move. The field around her came into her vision, ash a thicket on the ground. Corpses scatter all over the field, blood spreading through the ash. Callista feels her breath leave her all at once, as the fire spreads toward them. The heat sears her and she reels back, sucking in a breath of stuffy air.

A lone wolf limps toward her, a feline grace about it. Callista freezes, her eyes taking in the size of the wolf, the size of a horse. The she-wolf stalks closer, her paw bloodied. She lowers her head, growling. Callista sShawcrossbles back, terrified.

"You caused this, girl," the creature snarls, baring her long sharpen canines, "now pay the price." The wolf lunges and Callista knock back into a heap of ash. She screams, pulling more particles of ash into her.

Callista sits up, her heart hammering in her chest. She feels nauseous and sShawcrossbles out of bed, letting the cold ripple through her, calming her stomach. She breathes in, allowing the air to race through her. Callista stands in the middle of the room, with her hand against her stomach. Nodding, she slowly sits back down, the soft blanket rubbing her legs.

The light below her door had died, meaning it was night fall. Beside the door are two food trays. Her eyebrows furrow in confusion and she stands, walking to them. They were cold, and left there, will warm milk. Had she slept through a whole day? It makes sense, the nightmare she had gotten sucked into. She reaches for her arm, when she hisses in pain. Pulling back her sleeves by her shoulder, a patch of red, angry blisters formed. Shuddering, she pulls the sleeve down. She blinks rapidly, thinking of her nightmare, when she was harmed by the fire.

But it never happened, the dream is just a nightmare. She shakes her head and heads back to the bed, when a long creak sounds outside her door. She stops cold, too curious to move. She knew who it was, he did its last night as well. Julius is on the move again, and Callista feels a shot of curiosity flow through her. She creeps toward the door, avoiding the creaks hiding in the floorboards.