Inktober Day 9: Bounce

 Chapter Seven

Magda found herself glad that the hill was not higher as she was bounced by the branches and rocks that littered its edge. When she found herself at the bottom again, the sun had all but retreated fully behind the horizon, leaving only the pale light of the moon to guide her. It should not have been difficult to find the way back to her camp, but these woods were indeed treacherous and where she landed did not look like place where she had ascended.

She looked all about her in fear, eyes nearly watering. She wanted to call out for Sir Wendell. Surely, he could not be far away. But then she remembered the snap she had heard at the top of the hill and wondered what manner of beast may lay in wait for a young girl foolish enough to raise her voice in the night.

She blinked quickly and steeled herself against the chill dark. There had to be a way to find Sir Wendell again and she would discover it. Her father had left her in the care of Sir Wendell, but the responsibility was not with him alone. If he was to escort her, she was to stay at his side and not let herself be carried away by folly or curiosity.

She kept her hand on the wall of the hillside as she skirted its borders once again. As she did so, her thoughts strayed to her mother. At home, her mother would be putting her hair into braids right now, singing her tales of the kings and queens of old, of the wizards who had served in those days, creating beautiful artifacts which brought fortune and ruin to great houses. Magda always thought these stories were a little silly, but her mother’s voice was a comfort to her.

She quickly blinked away fresh tears, and suddenly noticed that she could suddenly see remarkably well for the late hour. At first, she thought this must be a result of her eyes adjusting the low light of the moon above, but then she noticed the source of her illumination was not coming from the moon, but from her own brow.

Her circlet had begun to glow a low, pale silver light. She marveled at this, hovering her hand in front of it to verify the light was indeed sourced in the gemstone encase in woven metal on her forehead. She began to walk more confidently then, and the light of her circlet became more focused. She noticed for the first time in the night, the light of the evening star shining bright and silver above her, much the way her circlet glowed. She thought again of her mother’s stories, and this filled her with hope.

 Following the light, she finally found herself near their campsite again, where she found Wendell looking for her.

“Lady Magda,” he began, looking stormy. “Where did you run off to?” He approached her swiftly, but he did not touch her. He merely looked at her dress and arms, no doubt noticing the dirt and tears which resulted from her fall. “What happened?”

She hung her head and explained what happened, telling him about the dripping and the statues, then about finding her way back by following the hillside wall. The only thing she left out was the strange light from her circlet which had guided her steps. She could not explain why, but she felt protective of this moment and decided he did not need to know. 

She wasn’t sure he would have cared to know however, as his face changes immediately upon her description of the toad statues she had discovered. In reply to her tale, he only uttered two words.

“Show me.”