The woods were calling me. They told me they were the refuge I was looking for, the home I couldn't find on Bieno. The woods let me pass, opened their arms to me. I went inside without thinking. And I kept running, not believing I could resist much longer.
As I ran, I tried to tear my dress and undo my corset. My legs were cramping, my feet were screaming for my mind to stop, and my brain decided to ignore them.
My breathing was getting more and more labored and my blood pressure was flying along with me, a thousand miles an hour.
Adding to all this was my bewilderment. No matter how much I visited them day by day, at night the woods were a total stranger to me.
Nevertheless, it was not hard to realize that I was in a place I had never been before.
I had run too far.
I stopped for a second to get some air. My throat was dry and my eyes were watering. I inhaled and exhaled with difficulty, the air piercing through my nose coldly.
I thought for a minute that I was safe, but quickly the sound of galloping reached me.
Against my body's wishes, I ran again.
I felt the adrenaline taking control over my body. If I stopped again, they would probably catch me.
It all happened in less than a second.
I stepped on a branch and my ankle twisted.
I fell, rolled on the ground and got wet mud all over me. I reacted as fast as I could. I got up and tried to keep running at the same pace as before, but it was impossible. Not even the adrenaline could fight the pain I was feeling, I couldn't go on.
I had to stop.
I can't stop.
I turned my head in panic.
I could see the torches that accompanied the noise of the horses.
I looked to the other side and saw a huge tree with a hole on its side. I limped towards it and hid inside. I prayed silently to the Gods, trying not to breathe.
That's why I was able to recognize another sound.
I heard a breathing, which certainly was not mine.
It was something or someone else, very close to me.
Behind me.
My heart stopped for a second. I prepared to die. I could feel the shadow slowly approaching me. I turned around just a little bit, and out of the corner of my eye I could tell from the bodily form that it was a man.
He got closer and closer.
I turned my head again, raised my chin. If I was going to die, I'd rather die with dignity.
The shadow covered my mouth with his hand and whispered a small sound to indicate that I should be silent.
I didn't understand what was happening, but for some reason I felt that he wasn't going to hurt me.
The man covered me with a cloak that he wore, he hid us both underneath it. With fear and confusion, I closed my eyes.
The horses were reaching the tree that protected me. I could hear them.
Under the cloak, without even making the necessary chest movement to breathe, I wished that we were not seen, with all my soul I wanted to live.
Hide us.
A breeze that seemed to come from my skin made some branches cover us, both me and the shadow.
'She must have gone that way, she can't be far, let's go!' Cried one of the riders.
I thanked the Gods when, after uttering those words, the men continued their gallops and went away, still trying to find me.
I exhaled with all my strength, yet I was still in danger.
The shadow took me by the arm and leaned me against his shoulder, lifted me up and led me along a path I had never trodden before. How he realized that I could not walk, I did not know. I was afraid, but I really had nothing to lose.
So, I let him take me, wherever he was leading, I followed.
We walked a long way. Darkness was slowly lifting. I could see the sky and the woods light up little by little.
It was dawn, it was time to hide or they would probably find us.
With the arrival of the sun I could observe everything around me. I was in a part of the woods that I had never seen before and it was different from what I was used to.
It was full of life, color, pure joy, living beings that were waiting for the arrival of the day. It only took me a second to realize that it was time to look into the face of whoever was carrying me.
As I suspected, the shadow was a man, a young man. His face was dirty, full of mud, just like me after a day in the woods.
His dark-brown curls seemed to glow in the sunlight. His grey eyes reflected that majestic landscape. I was caught in the moment, as if everything stopped and I could only feel that I was living, that I was alive, nothing else mattered to me.
It was then that in front of us I could see a small cabin. The young man took out an old, rusty key from his pocket, and with it he opened the door to that place.
Inside the cabin, I saw a chair, a table, a bed, a bag, a shelf full of things, and many knives, of different shapes and sizes. I was terribly frightened; would he kill me as an offering to the Gods or simply as prey to hunt animals? It was then that the young man decided to break the atmosphere of uncertainty.
'Sit down,' he said, pointing to the chair. 'I think I have some bandages over here,' and he walked over to the shelf.
I just looked at him. Still not understanding what was going on, whether it was good or bad, I took a breath to begin my interrogation. My mind was screaming for me to question him, yet something totally different came out of my mouth.
'Thank you,' my voice sounded shaky. With the same tremor in my legs, I sat down and lifted my foot. 'I thought I would die; it was a miracle that you found me.'
'A miracle? Yeah sure, your very discreet escape made it very difficult for me to find you,' he said laughing. He took some bandages from the shelf that seemed to have been used already, came closer and knelt down in front of me. When he did that, I moved my foot back.
'For the sake of your foot, stay still,' he took it and began to bandage my ankle. 'Is it too soon to ask who you are?' He looked at me exasperated with doubt. 'Or rather, why were they chasing you?'
I was not the only one trying to understand what had happened.
Mena always said that when you do not want to share certain information, it is a good idea to flip the coin and ask something instead.
'What were you doing in the woods?' I questioned him lowering my already bandaged foot.
'Me? Ha... you're good', he got up. 'I'll show you how normal people usually behave. First, you introduce yourself, then you share something else. For example, hi, my name is Russell, at your service my lady,' he said bowing. He looked ridiculous doing that, he almost made me laugh. 'Your turn.'
With my foot already bandaged, I took impulse and stood up.
'Nice to meet you Russell, I'm...,' I stopped. I didn't really know if I should tell him who I was, not until I knew his intentions.
I could tell by his smile that he knew I wouldn't tell him my name.
'You know what? That can wait. What I truly want to know is... why they were chasing you?'
'I won't tell you until you tell me why you were there, otherwise how could I trust you?' I crossed my arms waiting for an answer.
Realizing he wouldn't get very far in the conversation without sharing his side of the story, Russell decided to give in.
'I was hunting, I heard the horses, I ran, saw you running, then falling, then lying there like a scared little hare, I felt pity for you and helped you. End of story. Now your turn, why were they chasing you?' He said, crossing his arms in mockery of what I had just done. 'You have no excuse anymore.'
Although I still did not trust the young man completely, I knew I could no longer hide the truth. However, my mind was bright enough to formulate an answer that really didn't answer anything at all.
'They were chasing me because I ran away.' He laughed at my answer.
'Sure you did, all you were doing was running.'
It took me a second to think something else. 'Wait a minute, it is forbidden to be in the woods at this time of night,' I said very confidently. 'How could I believe you were hunting? You are a liar.'
'I think you're mistaken, it's during the day that we can't be in the woods,' he said, watching me in confusion.
They say it doesn't take long for ideas to appear in our minds.
My deduction was simple, I couldn't be in woods after sunset, and from what this young man said, he couldn't be after sunrise. If the prohibitions were contrary, I knew in a second, I think we both understood it.
Russell took a step back.
'You are from Bieno.'
His eyes were filled with rage, not for the person who was in front of him, but for the place, the idea that she represented. He wasn't looking at me with hate, but at the Kingdom I came from.
I felt horrible, uncomfortable, paralyzed. Not knowing what else to say, I stated the obvious.
'And you are from Crescendo...'