Emerald Hearts

Chapter Fourteen

Hae Ri

We turned and found a woman dressed in a purple hooded cloak. The light from the lantern shined on her pale face. She looked to be in her thirties, she held herself like a woman but was still youthful. Her eyebrows were thick and straight. The curve of her chin made a soft "v" shape. Her full lips were pink like the tip of her button nose.

She removed her hood and revealed her long hair that was so black, it appeared to blue. "It is so late, and not safe out here."

I was still grieving over Mother, so I could not keep my composure. "We're... fine." I managed to say between labored breaths.

She knew something was wrong. "Dear, you don't look so good." She shook her head and got closer to us. "This won't do, you look like you're going to faint. Come with me ladies."

Areum looked at me, unsure of what to do. We were in a predicament. This woman was a complete stranger and could be dangerous. On the other hand, if we refused, we would run the risk of her following us.

The lady was right though, I did feel like I was going to faint. The news of Mother's passing certainly did a number on me.

"You don't look good Hae Ri." Areum said.

I did not know how I felt about this woman and if she could be trusted. It was difficult decision to make. My body chose to decide for me. A wave of heat came over me and I began to lose my hearing. The last thing I saw was Areum's frightened face. Then everything turned black.

~~

I woke and found myself in a cozy cottage with Areum by my side. The fireplace lit the small room, which seemed to be everything in one. There was a kitchen, a sitting area, and a place for sleeping. By the front door there was a little light blue bird in a wooden cage. It had a patch of yellow and white feathers on its chest.

Areum smiled at me, her green eyes crescent moons. "You're awake."

I still felt weak, but I could sit up. "Where are we?"

"Si Eun's house. She helped me carry you."

"Si Eun? Who is that?" I asked.

As I said that, the woman from earlier walked through the door with a basket around her arm. "Oh, you've woken up. How are you feeling Hae Ri?" she asked.

Areum must have told her my name. "Much better," I said.

"That's wonderful," She set the basket down and hung her hood behind the door. Her hanbok was simple, the top portion was blue, and the skirt was a dark grey. "Your friend was going to have a heart attack." She laughed before reaching into the basket and taking out a line of dried seeds.

The bird chirped a happy tune as she hung it above its perch.

"A cute one isn't she? She's the one that loves to keep me up at night," She walked over to the kitchen and began to stir the contents of a big pot on the stove. "You ladies live far?"

I decided to do the talking. "It's quite a ways from here, but it's not so bad."

"Even so, try not to travel at night. I know these woods better than anybody and there's all kinds of dangerous things around," she warned.

All the times that I've went into the woods I've never seen her, but then again never traveled too far. Areum doesn't seem to know her either, which concerns me.

Si Eun shared out some soup into three bowls. "If you're not careful you could step into a pile of leaves from a lacquer tree. I'm itching just thinking about it. Then there are bandits and mamushi snakes." She shook her head. "No good at all."