For Eternity - Edited Version

Chapter Six - An Old Friend

~SLIGHT DESCRIPTION OF BLOOD AND GORE - Just warning you ahead of time.~

        You hadn't stopped running since you left the castle. The foliage of the trees only grew thicker the deeper and deeper you fled into the forest. When you felt you put enough distance between you and that wretched place, you decided to take a break to catch your breath. You stopped at a small that opened up after a few more minutes of running. A waterfall cascaded down the side of a mountain, the clear liquid running into a wide river, causing a white froth to stir up where the water collided. To either side of the river were large patches of multiple species of brightly colored flowers. Their fragrances blended, giving the area a sweet, pleasant scent. A rock, roughly the size that a fully grown bear could sunbathe on, sat near the waterfall and another in one of the flower patches on the left side of the river. A stepping stone path led from one side to the other, which you used to cross the river to get to the one in the flower patch.

        You sat upon the rock to rest your sore feet, your labored breathing slowly returning to normal. Sleep eventually took over your thoughts. The sun, which you could see peeking up over the treetops, told you that you had been awake for seventeen hours or so. The adrenaline rush you had from escaping the clutches of the prince began to rapidly wear off, leaving you tired and in dire need of sleep. Your eyelids fluttered closed as you laid down, using your arm as a cushion for your head as you felt sleep's ever loving embrace wash over you.

        Little did you know that The Hunter had already tracked you down and was watching you silently from the shady canopy of a tree that hung over the rock you slept on. He decided to let you rest for the time being. Luciano would be asleep by now anyway, so there was no hurry to bring you back at the moment. He had plenty of time to capture you and return you to his employer. The upside to your sleep was that he could enjoy the nice weather while he waited. He savored the time he had away from the castle. While he did have his own place away from the hustle and bustle of the castle life, he found himself spending most of his time there. It was much easier to perform his job efficiently that way. There was no running back and forth between his home and the throne room to receive assignments. Most days all he had to do was roll out of bed and walk down a few halls. However, palace life did get to him on occasion, which is when he'd retreat to the calming safety of the woods to de-stress and reflect on his past life. Now he'd do just that, cleaning his weapons as he waited for your slumber to end.

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        A rouge ray of sunlight hit your closed eyes, causing you to awaken. You noticed the sun setting through the tree trunks of the forest, signalling that nightfall was quickly approaching. You sighed with a stretch and sat yourself up, noting that you had kicked off the flats that you had worn during your sleep.

        "Shit... Shit, shit, shit... I've slept too long," you cursed as you hastily slipped on one of the shoes.

        Your attention snapped to the bushes in front of you as a low growl sounded. Hesitantly, you walked towards the lines of bushes, flat in hand in case you needed to use it as a makeshift weapon or distraction. You were about to throw the shoe to force out whatever creature lurked in the shrubbery but stopped as the leaves began to shake. Backing up a few paces out of panic, you nearly fell over as the back of your knees made contact with the rock you had previously rested on. A small cream colored rabbit hopped out of the bush, twitching its nose cutely. You gave a short laugh of disbelief, lowering your shoe to your side.

        "Pfft! A rabbit! Of course. What else would it have been? A bear?" you scoffed, crouching down to the animal's level. "Hey there little guy. What's a cute bunny like you doing out here all alo-"