Wake of Darkness [1]

Chapter Four

♕ Wood Sorrow ♕

It was cold. The wind brushed her hair softly, but that wasn't the only thing that forced her eyes to burst open. There were rough autumn leaves on the palm of her hands. The branches of the crooked tree wrapped around her, pushing her as close to the sky as they could. Aubrette looked down, the top of trees surrounded her for miles, disappearing in the horizon. It took her a whole minute to realize why exactly she was unable to breathe properly, and all came crashing down to her like a bucket of cold water.

A single tear fell on her face as she let the sight of the cloudless night sky cool down her emotions.

Her breathing was slow and heavy, but the world no longer blurred around her, nor could she hear the pitching sound on either of her ears. If it hadn't been for the heavy sound of her breathing, she would have thought she could not hear anything at all.

Aubrette did not need to look up to know the moon shined directly above her. From its position she knew it was already past midnight. Which meant she'd been asleep for more than three hours.

Swallowing down the urge to cry, Aubrette turned around, expecting to see her home lit up in flames. Exilium stood in the distance, silent and lonely, not different from how It'd been this morning, but Aubrette couldn't see pass the clouds atop of it, she couldn't see the black walls of the castle or any sign of golden light flickering in the night.

"I'm okay"

Her voice trembled as she let her hands brush over the leaves.

"I'm okay"

She spoke again, a little louder and steadier than before. Aubrette didn't know if she had heard her at all until the branches started descending, carefully placing her on the branches below, letting her make her way back to the ground.

Aubrette let a tear run down her cheek as she saw the small M and A tangled together in the wood. Her lungs begged her to breath as she fought the tears away, focusing on the letters and tracing them with her finger as she tried to calm down.

Mason would come and both of them would find a way into the castle. She'd get back to Sybilla and would kick her ass for being so damn stupid.

Aubrette rested her hair against the trunk of the tree, and closed her eyes, letting sleep erase reality once more.

☾

There was a crack in the leaves below her.

Aubrette opened her eyes as two pair of steps walked through the trees, not carrying to cover their path at all. She held her breath, sitting as still as she could as she searched for them in the dark.

The two of them stepped into view, one of them holding a sword in his hand, the other a bow. She could tell the latter cared more about their safety, his eyes moving into every direction as they continued down their path. Everywhere but above them, where Aubrette hid behind the trunk, waiting for them to walk away.

"There's no way we'll find the queen here" The guy with the bow said. Stopping right beneath Aubrette.

The mention of her mother sent a thrill of coldness down her spine, and for a moment she thanked Luna that her energy was so low the coldness that ran through her veins barely touched her skin.

"No if you keep talking, we won't" The guy in the sword looked back, watching as the other leaned on the crooked tree, seemingly uninterested in continuing walking.

"The princess will talk soon anyway" he shrugged, playing with the string of his bow. Aubrette felt every muscle in her body tense up.

"You saw her Taj" The guy said, grinning. "The girl is not talking"