Fairy Tale Devices

Chapter 4 - Windy Walk in the Woods

Cecily stared up at the tower. He was certainly taking his time up there. She couldn't help wondering what he was grabbing.

The boy climbed back down the tower easily. He looked as if he had done it a thousand times. When he reached the bottom, he hesitated. He turned back up to the window, still clinging to the wall. Then he pushed off the wall and backed up a few steps. He started tugging the straps of his backpack.

"Are you ready?" she asked softly.

He turned to face her. His jaw set and he gave her a small nod. "Let's go."

"Lead the way!" she gestured to the forest.

He raised his chin up and walked into the woods with her.

The walk towards town was especially windy and cold. Cecily could feel the wind biting at her ears and nose. It was a bit awkward. They didn't talk for a while.

He finally turned to her. "I never really thanked you for saving me. You could have left me there, with the beast and the tower. But you didn't. So... thank you."

"I just did what anyone else would've done." She replied, hoping her confidence would distract from the flush of her cheeks.

They walked in silence for a moment after that. She finally gathered her courage again and turned to him.

"I never got your na-" she started.

"I haven't introdu-" he blurted out. "Oh! Go first."

Cecily snorted. "I'm Cecily." She reached out to him.

"Gabriel." He took her hand. She shook it once. He readjusted her hand and brought it up to his lips, brushing them softly on her knuckles. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Cecily."

She gave him a small smile and cleared her throat. "So... is the town far away from here? I'd rather get there before the sun sets. I'm tired of sleeping out in the woods."

"I don't think its far..." he replied, squinting down the road ahead.

"Wait. You don't even know how far away it is?" She asked, incredulous.

Gabriel raised his eyebrow at her. "How am I supposed to know how far away it is, if I haven't been there in years?"

Cecily shrugged, "you have a point, I guess." She didn't want to back down, but she knew it was pointless.

They walked in silence for a few minutes. Again. Cecily tried to keep her focus on their surroundings. There were lots of trees. The road was becoming less grass and more dirt. Cold air was burning the tips of her ears at this point. Her knuckles were still tingling. She raised up her hood and shook her head.

When she glanced over to Gabriel, she noticed how badly he was shivering. He had his arms crossed and his jaw was tense. His shirt was a thin material, probably linen, and it didn't do anything to protect him from the cold. He had rolled down his sleeves a while ago.

"Do... you want to borrow my cloak?" She asked, already digging through her bag.

He scoffed. "I'm not cold."

"Oh, please." she pulled out a black, fur cloak. "You're shaking!"

"I'm fine" he snapped. "Besides, it's yours."

"It doesn't fit me that well anyways. It's too long. I'd rather not drag it around the dirt."

"So you'd rather I do it?"

"No, you're taller than me! It'll fit you better."

"Well, it's a bit much."

"I think it suits you" she declared, stepping in front of him. He stopped and rolled his eyes, dropping his backpack. His lips were starting to turn purple. She lifted her heels and swished the cloak over his shoulders, in a surprisingly smooth motion. She set back down and adjusted the buttons on the cloak. She could feel him staring at her and his breath shook her eyelashes.

She looked back up to him and smiled. "There!"

His cheeks were very red, but Cecily figured it was from the cold.

He looked at his backpack quickly and picked it up. "I think we're almost there."

They kept walking for another twenty minutes. Cecily couldn't stand the silences between them. She had to go back to observing the road to the town. They were still surrounded by trees, but the road had gradually gone from dirt to a paved path.

"It's so abnormally cold here... isn't it? I almost forget it's summer..." She said.

He nodded. "I could never get used to how cold it is here during this time. It always screws me up. I'm never actually sure what month it is because of it."

"Well, I can assure you it's May."

"May?" he asked, surprised.

"Mhm." She replied, "almost June"

"Already..." he murmured, pulling the cloak around himself.

She was about to say ask him about that, but she was cut off by his gasp. She turned to see what he was staring at.

The road was finally leading out of the trees and into the big town square. Houses and stores lined the wide street and trees decorated almost every block. Stands selling all sorts of food and souvenirs stood in front of them. The square looked bright and green as people talked and walked around.

"It looks... almost exactly like I remember it." He whispered to her.

He looked at everything with awe. He took a few tentative steps towards one of the stands. Then he turned to continue observing the town.

"Except for that."

He pointed at the center of the square, towards a big slab of concrete. It was smooth, of dark gray stone, and was raised up by a few steps. To Cecily, it resembled a tomb.

Gabriel frowned at it. "There used to be this huge, lovely fountain there."

"Oh! I remember it!" Cecily nodded. " I wonder why they replaced it."

"I'm not sure it was the town." Gabriel replied uneasily. He had tensed up again.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

He shook his head and turned away from the slab, but didn't take his eyes off of it. "Never mind."

Cecily turned her attention to the sky. The sun was just beginning to set, washing the town in orange lighting and shadows. Some of the streets lights were being turned on and the stands had began to put out their own colorful lanterns.

"It's getting dark. Why don't we go check into an inn? I'm sure they will have some rooms for us." She grabbed his wrist without waiting for his response and pulled him down the street to their right.

She stopped at a sign that read Briar Rose Inn and pushed the dark blue door open.

                                                                      .  .  .

After asking for two rooms and paying,  the innkeeper led them down a well lit hall and gave them their keys. She walked off to the reception room without saying anything else to them.

Cecily hesitated in front of her door. She turned back to the boy, who was opening the door to the room in front of hers.

"Hey..." she said softly, poking his shoulder. He turned towards her. "We can search for help tomorrow. Maybe we'll find someone who can help you or take you home."

His mouth twitched and he glanced at the ground. When his eyes met hers again he nodded once. He slipped into the room after murmuring a quick "Goodnight."

Cecily stared at his door for a while. Then finally went into her own room.