The Sisters of the Woods Ch.11

They rode hard for some time, the pegasus dancing between trees as she put as much distance between them and the pixies as possible. Nic mostly just held on for dear life, trying not to pull out too many hairs from her mane in the process.

Eventually the pegasus slowed from gallop to trot before finally coming to a halt, sharp, snorting breaths issuing from her muzzle in laboured rhythm. Nic raised his head, looking around to find they had emerged into a large meadow, the long silver grasses waving in the pleasant afternoon breeze. A small stream ran through its center, widening to a shallow pond where the pegasus had come to a halt.

Letting out a long breath of his own, Nic sat back, releasing his arms from around the pegasus’ neck. She gave an appreciative whinny in response, leaving Nic briefly confused before realizing he had been squeezing harder than strictly necessary.

“Sorry,” he said.

The pegasus snorted again and flicked her head towards the water. Nic got the message and moved to dismount, only to realize that Geniveve’s arms were still wrapped around his chest. He looked over his shoulder to find she was pressed right up against him, cheek against the nape of his neck and eyes squeezed shut. He couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her face all scrunched up like that, taking longer than he should have to gently nudge her with his shoulder.

“Hey, I think we made it.”

Slowly Geniveve’s eyes cracked open, one at a time as if each were making sure things were truly safe before coming out of hiding. They opened wide once they were convinced, looking around like a skittish cat, half curious, half confused as she took in their surroundings.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“Dunno,” Nic shrugged. “Not back there is the important part.”

She stared up at him with eyes like dinner plates, iris’ sparkling in the afternoon sunlight. Nic cast her a reassuring smile, holding her gaze for a moment before the pegasus gave another snort, throwing her head in annoyance.

“I think she wants us to get off,” Nic said, gently tapping the back of her hand. She jumped at the contact, her eyes somehow going even wider as she snapped her arms back like they’d been burned.

“Right, sorry, I was just, I didn’t want to fall off and there wasn’t anything else to hold onto and I, that is, um…”

She trailed off, keeping her eyes on anything but Nic. He found this cute too but decided against saying anything, instead swinging his leg over the side and sliding to the ground. He brushed himself off before turning back to offer a hand to Geniveve.

“Need a hand?” Nic asked.

She looked at it with all the intensity of a laser, slowly reaching out for it like his palm was a venomous snake. Eventually she managed to take it and used it to slide off. Her landing was far less graceful, and she stumbled forward into Nic’s arms. She was much lighter than he’d expected, certainly more than he remembered from the last time this had happened earlier that morning.

Though such thoughts were unhelpful as it made him realize just how close the two of them were. For a moment he and Geniveve just looked at one another, a bloom of embarrassment erupting in his chest, joined by something else he didn’t recognize. Geniveve seemed to be sharing a similar feeling, her cheeks colouring ever so slightly.

Eventually something broke and they pulled away from one another, mumbling half formed apologizes. For a moment more they milled about, Nic unsure of what to do until he cleared his throat and took a stab at words.

“Well, that was exciting,” he said, badly stumbling over the syllables.

“Yeah,” Geniveve replied, rubbing the back of one arm and refusing to meet his gaze.

Unsure what to say back, Nic was eternally grateful when the pegasus whinnied, bending down to drink deeply from the small pond. Geniveve followed it to the edge, leaning against the creature’s neck and stroking her mane.

“Thank you for saving us,” she said.

The pegasus chuffed in reply before returning her attention to the water. Nic approached from the opposite side, joining in on the petting effort, taking care to ensure that his touch stayed light against her pelt.

“Does she have a name?” Nic asked.

Geniveve shook her head. “If she does, she’s never told us. Or, not me anyway.”

She glanced away, still absently stroking the pegasus’ mane. The dreaded silence, Nic completely at a loss for how to break this one.

“I’m sorry,” Geniveve said.

Nic started, caught by surprise.

“For what?” he asked.

“Just, you know.” She tilted her head back towards the woods. “For what happened back there.”

“Hey, it’s not your fault.”

She cast him a look, Nic already wondering where he was going with this.

“I mean, you tripped. Last I checked, tripping is not grounds for getting attacked.”

Geniveve made a non-committal sound, clearly not buying it.

“Hey, if nothing else, we got out of there. And even better, no one got hurt.”

Perfectly timed, a rustling broke out from the edge of the clearing. Nic turned to face it, fingers already tapping out a spell when he caught sight of a familiar brushy brown shape emerging from the trees. The old bear lumbered its way towards them, limping slightly, though not badly enough for Nic to be concerned. Frankly the thin layer of toothpick sized spears sticking out of its fur took precedence on that one.

With an air of great annoyance, the bear closed the distance between them and flopped to the ground with a huff. The bear leaned its head forward, using its snout to bunt at Nic’s hand, occasionally pulling back to look at him expectantly.

“Uh…” Nic said, mildly confused. The bear chuffed in fresh annoyance and repeated the action, this time with enough force to lift Nic’s hand up onto his furry head. Getting the message, Nic began to stroke the bear’s fur, earning a low but content grumble for his efforts.

“You’re welcome,” Nic said. “Thanks for the save.”

The bear chuffed, raising a paw to bat at some of the spears lodged in his neck. A few of them came out, though most remained stuck fast.

“Don’t!” Geniveve said, squeaking like a mouse when the bear turned a side eye at her. “I mean, let me, you’ll just push them deeper in doing that.”

The bear snorted but acquiesced, lowering its paw and allowing Geniveve to begin pulling the miniature weapons from its back. Most came out easily, like picking twigs from the bear’s fur, but a few drew quiet grunts of pain, each of which Geniveve apologized for profusely. Nic continued to provide the demanded pets all the while.

He was so focused that he was caught by surprise when something nudged his leg. Turning to look, he found the ridgeback pressed low to the ground like a cat, staring at him with big, expectant eyes.

“Yeah, yeah,” Nic said, running his other hand over the reptile’s furred mane. The gecko arched its back to follow the contact, a low rumbling purr sounding from its chest. Nic stroked again, the gecko following the action and pressing itself into Nic’s side.

“Good boy,” Nic said, offering more pets. The gecko gave a long, low hiss, sounding about as content as any mortal creature could be.

“They really like you,” Geniveve said, the ghost of a smile dancing on her lips.

“Well, I like them too,” Nic replied, scratching behind their ears and earning happy noises from each creature.

A proper smile briefly bloomed on Geniveve’s face, though it quickly withered as she turned to stare into space. It didn’t take a genius to see that recent history was still eating at her. Nic was searching for words when a giggle drifted in from above them.

“Found your way out, did you?” Nic said as Zephyr came wafting into view.

“They were fun!” Zephyr exclaimed, circling Nic’s head like the most annoying sibling imaginable. “We should go back!”

Nic went to retort when a small trill of laughter rang out. He glanced over to find Geniveve with a fresh smile on her face, small but not fading. It did wonders for Nic’s own mood, his annoyance and worry draining away, even Zephyr only mildly able to drag him down.

“I’m glad you’re alright Zephyr,” Geniveve said, reaching out to offer him a little pat. Instantly, the little sprite began to preen like a peacock, making a point of showing off to each of the creatures. Only the gecko seemed to care, in the sense that he immediately started trying to play fetch with Zephyr as the ball.

“How did you get away?” Nic asked. “Or are there a bunch of angry fae about to swarm us?”

“Nah, they have snackies,” Zephyr said, deftly zipping between a snap of the gecko’s jaws. “Big one tried to make them but not very hard.”

Geniveve gave a small shudder.

“Yeah,” she said.

“Yeah,” Nic repeated. “Shame we didn’t get any of the sap though.”

“The what?” Zephyr asked.

Nic rolled his eyes. “Heart sap? The stuff we came out to trade for?”

“Is that why we came out here?”

Nic glared at Zephyr, trying to determine if he was being a brat on purpose or not. Unable to figure it out, he kept the sharper venom out of his voice when he answered.

“Yes, Zephyr, that’s why we came here.”

“Oh.” The little sprite drifted over to where Nic sat. “Guess you’ll want these then.”

Before Nic could question further, the surface of Zephyr’s sphere split open, revealing an impossible compartment sitting underneath. He tilted, spilling a stream of bright red pellets over the edge that glittered brilliantly in the midday sun. Nic barely managed to get his hands up in time to catch them, filling his cupped palms almost halfway. For a moment everyone, animals included, just stared in dumbfounded silence before Nic asked the obvious question.

“Zephyr, how did you get these?”

“Trade!”

“No, I mean-” he stopped, reorienting himself. “Did you steal them?”

“Never!” The little sprite drew back, insulted by the accusation. “There are rules! I would never break the rules!”

He was silent for a moment, before adding in a very quick voice.

“Besides, finders keepers and they kept the snacks.”

Nic gave a sigh before turning to Geniveve, offering her the droplets. “Are these what you need?”

She leaned forward to examine them, picking one up to roll it between her fingers. It cracked, releasing a smell that reminded Nic of paper and sugar, a strange but not altogether unpleasant aroma. Whatever it was, it made a delighted look spread across Geniveve’s face.

“This is it! This is exactly what I need!”

She produced a pouch from her pocket, holding it open to let Nic pour the droplets inside. Once they were all in, she cinched the bag tight and pulled it close to her chest, holding it like the most precious treasure in the world.

“Maybe you’ll win this talent show yet,” Nic offered with a smile.

“It’s not really a competition,” she said, though she did pull the pouch a little closer.

“Anyway,” Nic said. “We should probably be getting back before everyone starts wondering where we are.”

Hurt noises met his words, two big pairs of eyes and an eyeless sphere turning to look at him in dismay. Even Geniveve joined in, looking like he’d just suggested they leave the cotton candy forest for broccoli town.

In the end it was the bear that settled the argument, lifting its enormous head and plopping it back down on Nic’s lap. Moving was firmly no longer a possibility, the bear simply nudging his hand for more pets.

“Or maybe we stay a bit longer. They can wait.”     

A chorus of happy sounds had the final word on that.

*

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