Winter's Child

Chapter Twelve~Corecry

Elodie endured insufferable nightmares for the next two nights. The night after her first nightmare, the visions that were brought to her unconscious mind increased in disturbing intensity. But, when she woke and looked to the door, she saw the servant slip away quietly. She breathed a sigh of relief at seeing this. She was still shaking and she knew that North would calm her down. He always somehow managed to.

Sure enough, moments later, North appeared in the doorway. He gave her a gentle smile and she was unable to return it, far too shaken from the nightmare. But, as she knew he would, he managed to calm her racing heart.

For those next two nights, he came to talk to her about other things in order to take her mind off her nightmares. They usually started with their riddle game but, then he just spoke with her in a soft, tender voice, like a normal friend would.

Now, Elodie had decided that she would go visit Jack. She walked down the path through the woods, unaware that Darcelle still wanted her revenge. She slowly walked down the cobblestone path under the grey skies, keeping her hands in the front pocket of her sky-blue hoodie as she watched her feet.

Suddenly, she heard a sound. It was a sound unlike Elodie had ever heard before. It was light and ethereal. It was almost musical and fluttery. A child's laughter accompanied it. It had an eerie, echoing sound to it that made it seem like it encircled Elodie completely. Her brows furrowed with perplexity as she turned in the direction of the sound. She saw small shadows darting this way and that among the birches. She heard the lilting, sweet voices and, each time, she thought she saw a figure dart behind a tree. She glanced left and right before taking a few steps towards the trees, curious about what lived among them.

Elodie rested a hand on the bark of one of the trunks, using it for support as she leaned into the forest, hoping to catch a glimpse of whatever she heard. The sounds became louder the more she slowly made her way into the forest. Even adventurous Elodie was now cautious of the woods after her recent encounter.

Elodie looked around as the high-pitched, songful voices darted back and forth around her. She began to get a sense of foreboding and decided that it would be best to turn back. When she turned around, she gasped.

There was a little girl standing there. Her eyes were white at the irises with a very small, black pupil in the center of them. She had silver, nearly-white hair that flowed down her back like water. It seemed to be shifting slightly, though there was no wind. It flowed continuously, almost like she was underwater. Her small, grey dress did the same. She was thin of figure and her arms and fingers were slender. The only thing that set her apart from most children was that her skin was alabaster like the snow around them. Elodie was taken aback by the girl's appearance. Her simple, grey dress was accompanied by nothing more than her two, bare feet. She tilted her small head to the side as her pretty, purple-tinted lips parted.

"Ellie?" Elodie turned around at the sound of Jack's voice. He stood on the stone path, giving her an amused look. She turned back to the little girl to find that she had vanished. She turned back to Jack, wondering what in the world she had just seen.

"Jack," she said while letting out a breath, trying to find a way to explain why she was standing in the forest with a startled look on her face.

"Are you...okay?" he asked, offering a small smile. Elodie nodded and chuckled as she stepped out of the trees.

"Yeah...all good." Jack gave her an unconvinced look. She had never been a very smooth liar.

"Really? You appear a bit shaken up,"Jack inquired suspiciously, crossing his arms over his chest as he adjusted his stance. Elodie sighed, deciding to just get it out in the open. Perhaps Jack could explain what she had seen.