After we stepped off the car I followed Sawn in silence. There were so many thoughts torturing me, this sudden change of plans simply put me off that I was now worried. I did not wish to lie to him and it wasn't as if I wanted to do something bad but I knew that he wouldn't let me kill the murderer on my own nor let me ask the questions I wanted. That's why I decided to take my own path. He could hate me if he wanted to, I told myself.
We left the road, jumping skillfully one after the other into the forest once more. The ground felt welcoming and soft, the smell of the trees and grass reminded me of home. I would always feel more at home in such a place rather than in the burning hot concrete or the endless gray of the city.
Sawn was walking in front of me, his expression a mystery as his steps broke branches, his hands feeling the tree trunks searching for something. The more I looked at him, the more I realized I did not wish to deceive him, I did not wish to be hated by him and guilt overtook me once more, a sting in my chest as I realized he probably meant a lot more to me than I wanted to admit.
"This is it." I heard him say and he stopped, pointing at a huge tree with a little grin.
"And this is?" I asked, raising my eyebrow.
"This is the portal." he explained and I looked at it. It seemed like any other old tree. His trunk was wide, its color a washed-out brown while his leaves were star-shaped in many different shades of green.
"It looks just like a tree." I said, not convinced that this would be the magical entryway to the Fae kingdom and he scoffed. Sawn took a step forward, his palm touching right in the middle of the tree and he leaned closer, closing his eyes and whispering to it. "You're talking to the tree?" I asked a bit confused but he did not answer. Actually, he didn't have to. I soon got my answer from the tree itself. Well, not the actual tree but what the tree did, if that makes any sense at all.
The earth started shaking subtly, the long branches dancing in a frenzy before the wide tree trunk split into two, revealing a narrow, tear-shaped hole. It could definitely fit a human there, a short one but it could fit. "I see." I continued and he gave me an ironic smile.
"So, step in." he told me, his arm pointing to the entrance of the tree. I took a step forward, my head tilted to the side as I examined this…portal.
"There might be bugs in there." I said.
"There are no bugs, just go in."
"What if a spider lands on my head? Also, there is no light. Do you happen to have a flashlight?"
"Just go in." Sawn said and I heard him sigh.
This resulted in me rolling my eyes. He couldn't see it though, my back was turned to him. I was very sorry that I was not inspired enough to step inside the trunk of a huge old tree that is probably filled with worms and spiders, in the absolute darkness heading to god knows where.
"Okay okay just give a sec…"
"In you go." Sawn told me and I felt his palm on my back pushing me inside the hole. For a second I thought of screaming just to make it dramatic and annoy him but I did not have the time to. The moment I stepped inside the tree I found myself outside, not a single moment was I in the dark with the bugs.
I was instantly hit by the warm sun, its rays caressing my skin softly. Placing my palm above my eyes I took in the whole place. It was beautiful, magical, and all of the pretty adjectives someone can think of. The trees were this vibrant green, while the songs of the birds chirping created such beautiful melodies. I could see flowers here and there, so many different colors and shapes I had never seen before while I was sure I could hear a little stream just a bit further away.
"Move please." Sawn's voice took me out of my fairytale and I looked at him dissatisfied. It was such a beautiful moment and he ruined it. "I know, it's enticing," he added and I nodded, still no words in me to describe how I saw this place.
"So now what are we doing?" I asked Sawn and he pointed somewhere. My eyes followed his instructions and landed on an actual castle. It was amazing. Just at the end of the forest, you could see the place where the Fae queen lived. Its walls seemed to be made of diamonds, and stained glass windows spread light everywhere as the sun could hit them. I was excited, and couldn't stop thinking about going there, seeing it up close until Sawn and I heard the sound of footsteps.
We looked at each other for a second troubled as to what we should. I decided to mimic him and do nothing. Was it a bad idea? I was not so sure since I had never found myself in another magical realm before. I was not very aware of the rules and laws here and I definitely did not want to make a mistake that would cause me my head.
Soon three men appear. My first Fae, I told myself as I scanned them from head to toe. They were all tall, lean with fair skin and pointy ears. One of them had oak brown hair while the other two were blond, the color of hay. Their hair was long and caught in a strict low ponytail. They wore silver armor, chest plates carved by designs of vines and leaves, while they had silver cuffs on their forearms. Sandals on their feet that tied around their cuffs and loose pairs of white linen pants that matched the blouses they wore underneath the silver plate. For a second I thought of them as warrior surfers and I almost chuckled.
"Who are you and what are you doing here?" the brown-haired Fae asked us and that was the moment I noticed they were armed. Each one of them was holding a silver spear, its end sharp and deadly.
"We are shapeshifters, werewolves. We seek an audience with the queen." Sawn announced and my eyes widened.
The queen? I thought we were just going to go to some magical little Fae and ask them to do some mambo jambo on the cloth. What business did we have with the queen? I was not dressed appropriately to meet a queen!
All of the elves looked at us, their eyes scanning us carefully. They are probably thinking the same thing as me, I realized, knowing very well that both Sawn and I look like shit.
"Why do you wish to meet our queen?" the blond asked.
"We have a favor to ask of her."
"Our queen does not grand favors to shapeshifters," he said, pronouncing the word as if it were a swear. Oh well, I sense some kind of supernatural racism here and I am not very fond of it. "Turn around and leave or else you will be facing the consequences."
"We are not here to make trouble, we just want an audience with the queen and we will leave." The Fae did not answer him, he simply pointed his spear at him, making Sawn take a step back and raise his arms.
"I don't think this will be necessary." I told them, Sawn looking at me with a worried expression. "Your people have a treaty with us and that treaty involves the offering of shelter in times of need. We do not wish for an audience but we do wish for shelter since we are being hunted down by some kind of creature. So now lead us to your queen or face the consequences. We failed to mention we are with the council and we will send word no matter what happens." I said, hoping I looked confident enough. When the Fae sighed and pulled back his weapon I knew I had won. Victorious I smiled politely. "Shall we?"
"Follow us." he said, the three of them walking in front of us.
"How did you know that?" Sawn whispered in my ear and I scoffed.
"I went to school obviously." I answered.