"Cheshire! Load those crates onto the cart" yelled the Captain of the Active Merchants.
"Yes sir!" a rugged-looking man responded hoarsely.
It was time for Blossom to leave. Her two sacks were already nestled in between the merchant's cargo and in the morning she had been hugged like there was no tomorrow. Although everything was there; ready and prepared, she wasn't ready to go yet—Nicholas was still missing.
She wanted to stall more. She wanted to get more time. But what would she tell them? That she was waiting for her talking mouse? She couldn't and in any way, she didn't think he would be too happy about his existence being revealed.
She sighed.
They were almost done packing. She had to leave even if it meant doing so without Nicholas.
"Missy! It's done" It was time for her to go. She turned to look at Hilda who was waving at her with a calm wrinkly smile.
She waved back and trudged along towards the cart. She hauled herself inside and sat close to her sacks. As she waited, she tried her best to ignore the ever-increasing pace of her heart thumping and drumming in her ears. Her stomach felt like it was doing somersaults and her palms had become too sweaty to grip something firmly.
Soon, everyone was ready and settled for departure.
She could hear her heart roaring as she watched the village disappear from view.
She fiddled with her necklace made from the broken ring that hung intricately on her neck.. The previous day she had asked Hilda for a way to fix it but Hilda told her there wasn't. Instead, she made a necklace of it by using a chain that had been lying around. She didn't know if it still could connect them though. She didn't know if he was still alive or not. She didn't know if she had made the right decision to leave without him. She didn't know if she could survive in the capital with her barely sufficient knowledge of the world. There were too many things she didn't know, it made her feel anxious.
She could no longer see the village and towering over her were trees that wound up in the sky veiling the ground from the sun. She stroked a piece of the broken ring as she stared at the leafage.
Suddenly, she sprang to her feet, snatched up her sacks and launched herself off the cart. The merchants let out surprised yelps behind her. With her sacks in hand, she scrambled towards the village while being careful to evade underlying branches and protruding stumps. She felt her legs grow soft with every sprint; she gulped in the air crazily like a beggar starved for water. Her heart was hammering against her chest as though eager to jump out.
The village was still hidden by the thick canopy. The cart had moved quite some distance and her destination was still a ways off.
She encouraged herself and dashed on…
"Lasse, I thought you had gone. What are you still doing here?"
Huffing and gasping for air, collapsed and worn out on the ground was Blossom.
"Water.." She croaked out, her throat parched.
Hilda ran to fetch her a cup of water which Blossom gulped in one go. Hilda helped Blossom inside her house and helped her cool off.
Blossom watched Hilda work as she contemplated what to tell Hilda. The only reason she came back was because of Nicholas.
On the cart, she had she decided to wait for him.
In any case between the two of them, he was the only one who knew how to get her home. Though he was practically useless in his current form, he was more knowledgeable than her about this new world.
'And he is a friend…'
What should she tell Hilda?
That she lost her talking mouse? No, it was best to leave the talking part. She decided to tell the twisted truth.
"Are you done thinking about what lie to tell me?" Hilda asked suddenly, startling Blossom.
"Eeh!?"
"You can't fool me, lasse."
"I…I"
Hilda walked over, handed her orange juice and sat next to her.
"I am old you know so I have picked up certain things. I could tell you were not yet ready to leave"
"Its because—"
"If you are going to say sentimental rubbish, save it. Though you have been here for a few weeks, l know you were stalling for time"
"You were or are waiting for something. Or someone?" She slumped her shoulders; Hilda had hit the nail right on the coffin.
"Sorry…" Blossom muttered.
"Why the hell are you saying sorry to me? Those merchants are the ones you should apologize to."
Blossom looked up in confusion.
"You know how dangerous being out and about during the Act is and you still requested for them to wait when it could have seriously jeopardized them. You are lucky the Captain was kind enough to agree"
"And look, here you are with a changed mind. It makes everything seem like a waste, doesn't it?"
"I….I…was wrong" she stuttered.
Hilda let out a sigh.
"Lasse, trust the adults around you. You don't have to tell me the whole truth" Hilda stroked her back.
"Like the twisted truth"
"Yes"
Blossom proceeded to tell her that she was waiting for her pet mouse that she had been separated from and that she only came back fearing he would get lost.
"Are you sure he will return?"
"He will come back," she said firmly.
Hilda smiled, got up and helped her unpack. Since Blossom had quit her job, she pondered on whether or not she could assume her previous post but immediately dismissed the idea.
'I don't want to give him false hope' The business was just a means to an end for her; her commitment to it was over. Either way, after losing that confident friend of hers, she would probably lead that poor man's business to ruin.
She decided to just help around the house. She helped Hilda with chores and occasionally helped in the infirmary. She picked up a few more First Aid skills and a week passed just like that.
It was Monday afternoon. The sky was packed to the brim with dark, ominous clouds. A strong gale which threatened to rip out all plant life right from its roots, blew over the land. Constant howls and screeches could be heard from the distance with the occasional booms.
A thick and purple mist rolled in from all corners of the world, encompassing everything it came across. With one whiff of the mysterious purple mist, animals' eyes were dyed red and plants uprooted themselves and wanderedShadows woke up with wicked grins and began their slaughter of careless hosts who dared to venture out during the Act.
The stench of blood wafted into the air as carcasses filled the ground with every death.
The Act had begun.