The walk back was brief. When she approached the town, she could tell that it was in semi-controlled chaos. Arwyn was prepared for some sort of punishment. She had left her duty for far too long to not be noticed. The crow on her shoulder nudged her cheek. Arwyn patted the bird's proud chest, reassuringly. "It's okay."
She stepped into the bustle of the villagers startling them with her presence. Some stopped in mid step, mouth agape, "The young lady is back!" Their voices were mixed with relief and frustration. "She came from the woods!" Arwyn looked down at her wardrobe. Her clothes were covered in rips and dirt. She was sure her hair was crazy wild and free. Also, the effect of the crow on her should must have been suspicious.
An Older woman with gray hair wrapped to the side in a string came up to Arwyn. "My lady, The Marchioness has been so distressed when you didn't come back from mid-day meal." Arwyn nodded respectfully to the woman. Her heart hurt at the thought of causing pain to someone so warm and caring. Arwyn was worried that her mother would even be angry...
"Thank you, madam, can you please take me to my mother?" Arwyn had asked apprehensively.
The woman was surprised at the respect the young lady showed. It wasn't normal for lords or ladies of noble or royal titles to treat normal commoners as such. Granted, the Marquess and Marchioness were also like that. She blushed. "Come this way My Lady."
Arwyn followed behind the village woman. They walked past the river relief set up. It looked as if work was still going, but it looked like less people were there. They walked along the pastures; it wasn't too bad of a walk. Arwyn was brought to the gates of Viscount Casion Maylock's estates. "Your mother with a few other villagers are there setting up a search party."
"Thank you so much for bringing me here. May I know your name?"
"You may call me Ashta."
"Ashta, I have a question before you head back, if I may?"
Ashta nodded.
"About the woods, what are the barriers protecting the villagers from?" Arwyn had asked several other villagers when she was working, and they had given her generic responses. Ashta seemed different. She seemed other worldly. Arwyn met her eyes. There was a moment of silence. The corners of Ashta's lips curved upward.
"I only know that monsters exist in this world, and not even the emperor, nor the strongest mages can banish them."
"Is that what the barriers protect from then?"
"Who knows? There might be other things to keep US normal humans away from." Arwyn caught the twinkle in the older woman's eyes.
"Thank you Ashta, you have been a great help." Arwyn decided that if she pushed too hard for answers she would be acting suspiciously. Besides, she got enough from Ashta's answers.
Arwyn looked into the gate at the large mansion. Dreading having to deal with her mother. The tight feeling in her chest started to grow heavier. Flashbacks of her past life experiences with her mother were pouring in. Beatings, fear, getting screamed at, cussed at, starved...She breathed in. That's not here.
Pulling open the gate, she walked in her fingers trembling. After getting out of the woods, her mind was pretty foggy, she had been on auto-pilot. Now her mind was racing a million miles an hour. It was a defense mechanism of Arwyn's to be able to mentally check out. Will her mother scream at her for her lack of respect and responsibility? Who was the man in the woods? Would her mom let her keep the crow? "I look ridiculous." She mumbled under her breath. She was avoiding her thoughts on the darkness that lurks forest.
She reached the steps and the front door swung open. Her mother stormed out. "Where in pan have you been spirited away too!?" The Marchioness yelled, she was emotional, tears were streaming down her cheeks. Had she been crying?
Arwyn clammed up. Her body rigid, half expecting a blow. She shut her eyes. What she felt happen, instead of pain, was a warm embrace. Her mother had hugged her, sobbing. It was an instant, but that moment, something started to fill up her heart and it wasn't pain, but it didn't feel pleasant. It was almost as if the lock on her heart started to come loose. Was it from her near-death experience that happened today? Was it the whole ordeal of dying and waking up in a new world? These feelings were something she hadn't felt in a long time, they were welling up inside. The door that was firmly shut to guard herself from pain, began to crack open shedding light into the dark room that is her heart.
"I'm sorry mother." Arwyn hugged her mother back tightly. 'So, this is what it feels like to have someone care for you'. To Arwyn, that alone in itself, felt nice and warm. She hadn't known what it felt like to be safe in the care of anyone. Tears streamed down her face, overwhelmed by these emotions. The incident earlier came back to Arywn and she started to sob in her mother's shoulder. Arwyn had been truly scared. She did not want to die again.
The Marchioness caressed her daughter's wild hair, she was so relieved to have her daughter back safe. She had almost brought down Viscount Maylock for not getting a search party quick enough. She pulled away from her daughter and took full look at Arwyn.
"Whatever happened to you, my poor baby?" more tears welled up in her pitiful eyes. She was devastated at her daughter's condition.
Arwyn looked down at her shoes, the crow had flown off to a nearby tree when she was embraced by her mother. Apparently, it only liked her touching it. "I took a walk and well, I got lost." Which was somewhat the case. "I fell down a ravine, and had attempted to find my way again, but I was going in circles..." She looked over to the nearby tree at her new friend. "A crow came and guided me out, can I keep it mother?" Her story was provided in a nutshell, and then to add value to her words the crow flew back over to her shoulder. It was safe since the Arwyn was no longer being hugged by her mother. Looking at her mother, she couldn't tell that she was contemplating hard on the matter.
Just then the Viscount opened the doors, "Everyone is free to go and continue their work on the riverbeds," Men poured out of the manor, bustling out and back to their previous task. They were all relieved to not have to go near the woods on the mountains. The Viscount approached The Marchioness and addressed her and her daughter. "Let us retreat indoors, where we can have some tea and relax." He bowed to Arwyn, she sized him up and bowed delicately back. She was not in the best state of appearance. "My wife should have some dresses to lend you or would you perhaps prefer trousers?" both the Marchioness and her daughter were in mens cloths that day. It would be odd to go back in a dress.
"I would prefer mens cloths as we are still busy with the project." She looked at him, square in the eyes and slightly nodded her head. "Thank you for the option of a dress, however a dress would be severely inconvenient when doing labor" Arwyn watched the passing look of frustration cross the noble man's face, it was but a second, but that was all it took. Arwyn wasn't sure if it was the fact that she was the Marquess's daughter that he seemed so rigid, or the fact that she is in men's clothing, or even that she had wondered off and came back in such disarray? Too many possibilities as to why he was rigid. She didn't sense any malicious intent, so she shrugged it off.
The two ladies were led to the parlor where The Viscount's wife was waiting with fresh tea. "Arwyn, dear, follow my maid, she will lead you to a room to rest and wash up, we shall have to cloths brought up to you shortly."
They were a younger couple, in the mid-thirties, one of the few couples in court that were close in age. Arwyn's own parents had a ten-year difference. She bowed in respect to the Viscountess and obliged by quietly following the maid to a spare guest room.
Inside the room, a bath was already waiting, hot and ready with herbs and scent oils. Arwyn dismissed the maid, "Thank you but I can manage, I appreciate you preparing the bath." The maid curtsied; she was a young maid. She had wanted to assist the young lady as it would be something to gossip about with the other maids. She left without any complaints or objections, however, just disappointment.
The bath was fresh and warm and relaxing. Arwyn let out a sigh. Her frustration and fear escaping with her breath. 'Just what on earth was that thing?' her mind was swirling with confusion.
KAW
Arwyn looked over at the crow resting on the vanity. It was a smaller crow, with a purple sheen to its feathers. The magic swirls of color that she saw in the forest were gone.
"What shall I name you?" Arwyn assumed her mother would let her keep the bird, after all, Gineve had three pets, whom she hardly even pays any attention to. So what is one bird?
Kaw! It cried in response.
"How about blacky?"
Kaw! Kaw! It did not seem to like that name…
"Moss?" The crow shook its head, as if to silently yell no. Arwyn watched the bird for a moment. After all this bird is not ordinary. Who is to say that it doesn't understand human speech? "How about Cheshire?" The crow flew over to the edge of the bath. The crow was purple and seemed to have magic capabilities and was in the woods. Why not? "Cheshire it is, then." The crow purred happily, content with the name.