There was nothing. No sound of birds or bugs. No growls nor heavy footfalls. Nothing at all. The rugged forest floor had become extremely uncomfortable as Ealga had remained locked in her cowed position for an unknown span of time. At least the tears had stopped falling now.
Whatever had been hunting beyond the cloth of the cloak eventually lost interest stalking off into the woods beyond. She had heard it push through the low brush as it went. Once it had gone there was just the sound of her own breathing amidst the gloomy dim lit hideaway. The shock of fear still had her shaking despite the warmth of the shelter surrounding her.
The whole ordeal replayed in her mind again and again while she tried to steady her heart. Ealga tried to remember if she had called on her magic to hide herself. Maybe the cloak was just reacting as part of the enchantments on it. There had been the briefest sensation of something like a tingling in her belly bursting outward just before she dropped down to stay out of sight. She'd thought it was fear initially, but there was a chance this was something mystical instead of mere panic. It was also likely that if it was magic it safeguarded her against whatever that creature was roaming in the woods. Regardless of how she looked at the situation it was clear she didn't know anything about what was happening.
Ealga didn't know what to do. Whatever was out there had been some sort of monster, there was no uncertainty about that. Just being near it as it prowled the edges of her tiny sanctuary caused her to feel weak and small. No different than rabbit hiding in its burrow hoping that the danger would pass it by.
Nimby whispered in Ealga's ear breaking the brittle silence. Ealga's thoughts scattered from being startled making her body go rigid, "It is gone! Gone gone gone! Whew! But we cannot stay, no. Let's hurry, Hat Seeker. Before it comes back."
Ealga whimpered and shook her head not wanting to move any more than she absolutely had to.
"Come on! We can't stay. We can't! Hat Seaker is too brave to stay here and be eaten." Nimby pulled away from Ealga's sleeve hovering close as her wings made a light rattling buzz sound.
Her face still buried on her knees Ealga peeked from the corner of her eye at her companion. Nimby appeared to be standing on solid ground in midair again with her hands on her hips, chest out, and with a defiant expression. It was somewhat comical really. Ealga's lips curled at the corners ever so slightly as mirth dulled the edge of fear by the smallest margin.
"Are…" Ealga swallowed realizing her throat was bone dry, "Are you sure it's gone?"
"Yes. The nasty thing is gone. I would know!" The faery pointed to her head, "I know things like this."
"What was it?" Ealga shifted feeling her legs and back beginning to ache in earnest now.
"A wolf. Obviously." Nimby adopted a pretentious scholarly tone as she spoke her reply.
"Wolf?" Ealga couldn't believe any normal creature made sounds like this one had. Wolves were just larger dogs when she thought about it. At least that's what she imagined them to be when her father would tell her stories about them. "It didn't sound like a wolf to me." Ealga was sure it was something more than just that. The growl the creature had made was deeply unnatural to her. Dread crept into her mind again making her throat dry out even further.
"What am I going to do?" Ealga asked, her voice cracked as her bottom lip quivered.
The trial was meant to test her understanding of magic. A way of knowing whether or not she even deserved to use it. If she didn't have magic then she would have no reason to be in this dark and scary forest chased by some wolf monster.
All at once, being normal felt like it was a marvelous thing. Worse, magic seemed like a ridiculous idea all together. Being home by the fire, dozing in her father's arms, or helping her mother with daily chores were starkly more appealing than ever before. Downright lovely in fact. It was too late now though. She knew that she'd be unable to go back home without serious risk of embarrassment. More so, the wolf monster out there would probably find her again anyway. It had been hours since she'd left home making the journey back even less likely to succeed.
Nimby leaned forward to push her face in close where Ealga could see the Fey's girlish pretty countenance in detail, "Hat Seeker? You're frightened, aren't you?" Nimby scratched her head, "I know! I can warn you whenever it comes back. That way you can hide like this again. It's a perfect plan." The sprite's light grew brighter in the wake of this triumphant idea.
"What if I can't hide fast enough?" Ealga's voice shook harder.
"Don't worry! If you can't find a way to hide, you'll think of something. You are Hat Seeker! Seeker of hats, caps, coifs, and hoods! You are legend!" Nimby seemed to be energetically escalating as her voice got uncomfortably louder.
Ealga lifted her head from her knees feeling helpless. She sniffed while pondering Nimby's comments. Despite the profound testament of her faery friend she did not feel capable of much of anything right now. She was only a child. What could any child do against a wolf monster?
Ealga dropped her head back in mild frustration. Her hands fell to her waste where the fingertips of her right hand brushed against something cold and metal. The pommel of her father's dagger. She'd nearly forgotten she had it. It was still tucked into her dress from when she'd picked it up before. The hilt of the blade gave her a sense of comfort as she closed her hand around it. Her father had known that this would be dangerous. In her mind, she could still hear how angry he'd started to become as he debated with her mother as she had listened from inside her bed chambers. He'd defied her mother's wishes by leaving it for Ealga to find.
A burning feeling started in her chest. It felt a little like anger, but was more than that. In the wake of this new emotion the fear all but vaporized.
"Yes, I suppose I will think of something." Ealga heard something in her own voice that was surprising. This new sensation bubbling out with her words. Going home right now wasn't an option. Beating this trial meant she could go home eventually. See her father again. Do daily chores with her mother. Learn magic. Become a witch.
Giving up meant she would just let the forest win. Let the wolf monster win. In some way that would mean she would give up on her life. That left an appalling taste in her mouth. It was clear to her now in that moment that she couldn't allow herself to fall short. Even with the danger.
No matter what, she had to make it to her grandmother's cottage. Even if the trial proved that she wasn't meant to have magic she could at least see her family again. It was too much to bear thinking about her parents mourning over her if she never came back home. Especially if she'd just sat under a tree as a terrified lump to be killed and eaten.
Her grip tightened on the daggers handle as she felt her defiance growing.
"You're right," Ealga the trembling vanishing from her words, "I will find a way." With a small amount of strain, she sat up properly. Her body was complaining quite loudly now urging her to stand and move to relieve the tension in her muscles. "We'll just have to be really careful. Warn me if you see the wolf coming and we'll hide. Alright?"
Nimby giggled delightedly. "YES! Of course! Come come come! To grandmother's we go!" She threw a fist into the air yipping with excitement.
"Shh! Not so loud. The wolf monster could hear you!" Ealga reprimanded.
"Sorry!" Nimby's light dimmed with embarrassment then brightened with eagerness flitting quickly between moods, "Let's go, Hat Seeker! I'm getting bored of just sitting here."
Ealga blew out an exasperated breath then stood up slowly. As she rose the cloak draped around her shoulders with top flowing down to cover her head forming into the hood. It was almost as if the fabric were alive and reacted to her intent as before. It was definitely magic. Older magic. A spark of raw childlike wonder sputtered to life as she watched the cloth shift itself into proper position.
Magic was still quite wondrous. With some luck she'd have the chance to learn everything she could about it.
The air of the forest was now bitterly frigid. There was no telling exactly how long she'd stayed hidden as she was, but it seemed like the night had gotten darker too. Yet, the moon hadn't shifted in the sky whatsoever. What little moonlight penetrated the canopy of trees almost appeared to be crystalline beams of ice against obsidian shadows. There was something menacing about this forest.
Ealga now understood why her mother told her to stay on the road. If she lost the path, she could be truly lost. This wasn't the forest she knew. It was some other dangerous place between worlds. And the wolf monster was still lurking somewhere out of sight. The road was the only way to be sure she'd get to where she was going.
Feeling for the dagger again Ealga nodded to herself noting that it was still within easy reach. She took up the lantern, adjusted her satchel of apples, and walked to the road thankful she'd not gone too far off the path in order to hide. Nimby swirled around her in a dizzying streaking ribbon of light showing her excitement to be on the move again. Keeping her eyes focused ahead Ealga adjusted the light of the lantern pushing the shadows away. She stepped back onto the road determined to reach its end.