Magic: Emma's Story

11

Henry coughed over and over again until he got attention form the guards. One ghostly looking guard walked over to our cell. "Quit the coughing." His low voice echoed through the cell.

"But sir," started Henry, but cut himself off by coughing again, "if I could, don't think I would?"

"Well we have the Black Plague again, now can we? It's one of the laws here that you have signs of influenza, we have to kill you." Henry gives me a scared look from the rock bed he is sitting on. "So I will get someone who has the keys to your cell and they will take you to a different room, where if you didn't get better you will be killed." The troll walks away, leaving us alone.

Henry slowly nods and I can see the fear in his eyes. I want to reassure him, but I can't think of the right words.

A few minutes later, a troll starts unlocking our cell. It is the ugliest thing I have seen. She had pitch black hair that was longer than she was tall with pieces of mud stuck in it. She had green color skin that reminded me of barf. She wore a black shirt and a pair pant that were covered in holes. Henry coughs again as the short troll lady opened the door. "Follow me."

She closed and locked the cell and I stood up to watch were they were going. Before they could walk away, Henry starting coughing again.

"I-I don't feel good," Henry said.

"That's why you're going to the rooms for everyone who has influenza."

Henry leaned against the cell door and clutched his stomach. He bent over and started to hurl.

"You're not going last long. They'll probably hang you in the morning." The troll bends down and helps him up.

But the scene does not end there as he stands, he sleeps in the hurl, and, luckily, he just missed. as he fell, he knocked the key out of her hand and it fell by his foot. He kicked it to me and I kicked it under the bed. I slightly waved my hand and another key appeared by his foot, but it was different from the real one.

Henry slowly stood. "I-I'm so sorry. I didn't think I would be this sick."

The ugly troll lady called over a few other trolls. "Start cleaning this mess up. And you," she said gestureing to a gray-hair troll, "take him too the room." All them started cleaning as Henry just watched and coughed like no tomorrow.

I walked toward the door and Henry came closer to me. "Henry, please, please don't leave me. I need you," I said taking his hand. "I can't go on without you. I'm scared. You're the one who got me here and I need you to stay by my side."

"I would, darling, but the reason I'm leaving is so that you can be safe. You won't be sick, I would rather die than to have you die."

"I wish you wouldn't have to go. You must know that I love you."

"I love you, too," he said. He slowly leaned closer to me, and I found myself leaning closer to him. Our lips touched, and a spark of joy flashed through me.

"I will never forget you," I say as I start to whisper something in his ear. "Stop acting so sick, they will kill you. I don't want you to die," I say softly. As we start to move apart, he kisses me again, but this time it was quick.

"Follow me," said a troll, who had clearly missed what just happened. I watch as Henry follows him down the hall.

As they walk, a frantic woman runs the edge of her cell. "No! No! You can't take him anywhere, that's my baby!" She is clearly his mom. "If I find out you even touched him, I swear on my life that I will have you hung!"

I walk over to the bed and lay down, the kiss still lingering in my mind.