The Path to Love

Chapter 9 : Whintar

Somewhere in the midst of all the darkness that encapsulated me ,I heard a menagerie of voices. They were like soaring birds in the sky that one could see but could not reach .

Beside me ,there was something akin to a whispering lullaby . So hushed and effortless. A gentle caress was felt on my chest before I gradually opened my eyes to someone .

Her eyes were silver ,her lips grey. She was archaic but not aged . White hair drifted from her head to her waist, seemingly flowing , without the need for wind .

I was amazed, stupefied. But those feelings were quickly replaced with uneasiness. I was in a strange white windowless room with a phantom like being .

I quickly stood up from the bed, becoming agitated. The last thing I remembered was feeling a debilitating pain in my chest and Luna's face .

"Where am I ?" I asked . At first ,I could not recognize my hoarse voice. The woman stared at me intently , without replying.

Then , she gestured to me ,as if telling me to follow her . I reluctantly did . I was beginning to feel claustrophobic anyways and she was too old to attack me . As I followed her out of the white room , I planned on sprinting at the nearest exit .

We exited the room and entered a large living room designed with the most exquisite decorations and furniture. Silver and gold lights hung from a circular ceiling, etched with a mural of white and wooden wolves.

Dark chairs and a center piece table floated from the ground, levitating in thin air .

I was stunned ,too stunned to articulate any form of speech . Reality is truly stranger than fiction.

The white walls had marvelous calligraphy and designs , seemingly in another language. I was so blown away by the magnificence of it all that I didn't notice the woman till she snapped her fingers in my face .

She handed my a grey cup and led me to a silver couch. She sat beside me and gestured to me again ,telling me to drink .

I looked into the cup , shocked to see a sparkling gold concoction . I wasn't going to drink something I did not know .

" Thank you but I'm really not thirsty . I will like to leave now ." I said ,standing up .

The woman frowned at me, as I walked away ,looking for an exit . Unexpectedly, a strong force returned me back to my seat and I began to panic .

" What are you ?" I stuttered, trying to move . I was pinned to my seat and could only move my neck.

"Please ,let me go . I won't tell anyone. I don't know what you want ." I said , panic evident in my voice .

The woman got up and put the cup to my mouth ,pleading with her eyes ,for me to open my mouth.

I shook my head and stubbornly refused . Then ,she smiled and put the cup down .I was immediately free from her hold and ran out of the living room .

I didn't know where I was going but I ran through a hall full of mirrors, becoming more confused but determined to escape this madness .

Then ,I stopped in my tracks . I could sense something familiar. Almost like a scent ,but instead, it was a feeling .

I walked down another hall , trying to track something . I didn't know what I was going to but I felt that I was on the right path.

There were 3 doors . But I somehow knew which one to enter . I chose the door and turned the doorknob, my heart beating in my chest .

After I opened the door, it was as if I was transported into another realm , another opening in time .

The sight before me raised more questions within me than the satisfaction of answers .

" He's in a deep sleep . His fear led him to this state."

I turned around to see the woman holding a damp cloth in her hand .

"Fear of what ?" I asked ,with a puzzled expression on my face.

Mr. Augustus looked so serene, so angelic and delicate. As if a light breeze would be enough to disturb his peaceful state .

He was laying down on air, levitating above the ground. His room had no bed ,but had a closet and a bathroom . I started to wonder if I was in a dream

I walked towards him ,to his side . His eyes were open . One would think he was awake .

" Fear of possibility." She responded, patting his face with the cloth. I watched him, wondering how such a fear could freeze someone in time .

"How is this possible ?"  still , confused at what lay in front of me. She gave no response, leaving me to do nothing but ponder .

" When will he wake up ?" I asked, my eyes focused oh him.

"He will wake up when he is ready to . But he will not grow until he conquers his fear." A voice spoke from behind me. I turned around and was met with the sight of a tall and lean man with messy brown hair and large brown eyes.

"I'm Thane. The brother of the fool levitating in the air. I just came back from hunting." He smiled. "Check this out." He said, poking Mr. Augustus' head. " If you touch his head, he moves a bit. " He chuckled.

I watched in amusement as Thane poked Mr. Augustus before the woman slapped his hand. For someone who went hunting, he was quite clean, which fascinated me.

"Sorry Whintar. But someone needs to lighten to the mood." He grinned.

The woman , whose name I learnt was Whintar shook her head in disapproval and ushered Thane out of the room. Moments later, I was in a lounge playing Solitaire with him. However, no matter how much he made me laugh, I couldn't get the image of Mr. Augustus of my mind and I began to wonder when he would wake up.

The realization that I missed school also dawned on me but I pushed it to the back of my mind. I was still trying to make sense of everything. I feel as if I am in some strange story , not truly aware of who the characters are.

"Helloooo? Is anyone there?" Thane playfully asked, snapping his fingers right in front of my eyes.

I exited my thoughts and answered, "Sorry, I am still confused. What is going on?" Thane's expression became more serious and he told me that over time, everything will make more sense. " The good news is that Caelan will be fine. Whintar is protecting him from , well...himself." He explained, shuffling some cards.

After talking a while longer, I learnt that Whintar was Mr. Augustus 'or Caelans', great grandmother who had a gift of healing amongst others. According to Thane, she found me lying in the woods with a bruise on my chest and nursed me back to health. I had no recollection of being hurt in any way or why I was lying in the woods. I could only remember being at Luna's house two days ago. Nothing really made sense.

 I was surprised that she was still alive. I asked about Caelan and her furniture levitating but all of Thanes' responses were evasive. I eventually kept my questions to myself.

The clouds began to darken outside and Thane offered me a ride home, to which I reluctantly agreed. Whintar's house was in the forest, just Like Luna's. Thane was quite talkative throughout the ride, telling me some of Caelan's embarrassing childhood stories.

"So, I hid all his clothes when he was 14 and he had nothing on but a towel for hours!" He spoke, wiping tears from his eyes as he laughed hysterically. I laughed with him and watched as my house came into view. We said our goodbyes and before I opened my door, he sped off.

I walked into an empty house, unprepared for the loneliness that awaited me.