Standing on the other side of the mountain, in the same place where I re-met my brother, I looked out over the ledge. I could see everything from here. The New Woods, the fields of tall grass, the woods surrounding the school, and even the Academy itself. Fear flooded my body with the realization that Alastor could see everything from here. Every clearing Erik and I stayed in, the paths we walked, every rock, tree and blade of grass we stepped on or sat by. My brother had to have been watching us, but how could he have known that we were coming?
"Aysh." I growled.
"What?" asked Lee, who had climbed out of my pocket and was rubbing his eyes sleepily.
"Ayshlin lied to us. She came to my school and talked to us about the history of HMABS, then disappeared. Then she was standing on top of this mountain and waved to me, before crossing to the other side. Then when we met her under the tree in the garden, she said she could only be seen by family, and only between midnight and one. Alastor used her to trick us into coming to the castle, so he could capture our souls in the mirror." I was shaking with fury at the thought that my brother, or at least the man I thought was my brother, had used our sister to lure us in.
"I have to get back to the school. The teachers will know what to do. You can fly down or you can hang on to me, but I'm not going down this mountain the slow and steady way." I said with determination.
"What does that mean?!" asked Lee, terrified for my safety.
"Erik's life is on the line here. I'm not going to take my time climbing down this mountain, and risk him getting hurt or worse in the time it takes me to get down. I'm just going to jump."
"WHAT?! NO! YOU'LL KILL YOURSELF!!"
"I'm not jumping all the way down. We're wasting time, let's go already." I said as I leapt off the ledge. I fell a short ways before my feet hit the mountain, and I slid down some of the way before jumping again. I used the jumps to spot flatter places to land, so I didn't end up on a sharp point or on loose ground. I used my hands to keep my balance against the mountain and to slow my decent if I needed too. Although this cut my hands and caused them to bleed, I didn't care. My safety was secondary I had to get back to the Academy. I had to get help. I had to save Erik.
I made it to solid ground much faster than I would have if I had climbed. Lee had dove after me once I leapt off the ledge, and had held onto my hair, before climbing to my shoulder and holding on while I went down. He was shaken but unharmed.
"Are you alright Lee? No cuts, bumps or bruises on you or Erik?"
"No, I'm fine, just remind me to never go down a mountain with you ever again."
I laughed and stood for a moment, letting the pain in my hands catch up to me, and giving my body a rest. I was aching all over, but I forced the pain aside. There was no time to sit and relax. I had to keep going.
"Ready Lee?"
"For what?"
"To keep going of course. We don't have much time left in the day."
"We still have the entire day! It's just past dawn! We can take a break for a while, can't we? Plus you're bleeding. I'm sure Linn has got cuts all over her, and Erik is wondering what's going on."
"I'll be fine Lee. He's not going to be paying attention to Linn. He's focused, I'm sure, on figuring out how to get me into that mirror. It's at least two days to get to the Academy, but if I run full speed and take maybe one break then we can make it across the New Woods and most of the fields by early afternoon. I've trained for years to run fast for long periods of time, in precarious situations. I'll be fine. You just have to hold on, because you won't be able to keep up with all the branches that'll be in your way while flying."
"Ok fine. I'm ready if you are." Lee sighed and he tightened his grip on the back of my shirt. He had tied some strands of my hair around him to keep him secured to me.
"Alright. Let's be on our merry way then." I said and took off. I dodged tree branches, jumped over roots and rocks. The trees and the leaves were a blur as I went by. I felt like I was back at the Academy, training for Master Ginsing and Ms. Chamomile's classes. Trying to bring up my endurance and speed, adding to my agility. I remembered what they had taught me, their voices floating through my head as I ran.
"Relax. Be prepared for anything. Slow your breathing. Pace yourself, don't use all your energy at once. Move in a rhythm. The wind is your song, your feet are your drums, and your mind is your maestro. Nature will guide your path, you just need to listen to her and she will tell you where to go."
The pounding of my feet on the forest floor matched the beat of my heart. My mind slowed the world down and I saw where every tree, rock and branch was so I could dodge them. I was running faster than I ever have, my feet moving so fast that I felt like I was flying. The forest ended much faster than I had expected and i was speeding through tall stalks of grass. I slowed myself down to a light jog as I entered the clearing Erik and I had slept in. I walked to the nearby river and cleaned the blood off my hands from the mountain. I drank and splashed my face and hair with water. Lee had untangled himself, and climbed off my back and was sitting on a stone near the river's edge. I used my fingers as a comb to loosen some tangles in my hair and braided it all behind me.
"It's not even mid day yet. We made good time Lee."
"You mean, you made good time. I didn't do anything except hold on for dear life."
I laughed and leaned back on my hands. I watched the water flow by, and the wind rustling the leaves. I watched Lee, and his little wings as he jumped from stone to stone, and splashed around in the water.
"Can you hear me?" Lee asked. "Are you there?"
"I'm right here Lee. What do you mean?" I questioned, very confused.
"That was Erik. The real Erik." Lee said.
"What?!"