Heart Over Sword

After two days of traipsing through the forest and the group's spirits were low. Evanna seemed to struggle more than the others with the new environment. When night would fall, she could not sleep, and if sleep did come, she would have nightmares. Even Nesrin could not help her with sleep. Her shoulders felt heavy with an unknown weight as they stayed drooped down. The horses, however, seemed the same; they were still agitated but showed no other signs of distress.

Nobody really spoke for those first few days; their faces looked worn with their eyes bloodshot. Cilv seemed more animal than human, but she did not go hunting, and if she acted too rashly, she would leave the group and curl up in her blanket in the tent instead of staying by the campfire. The men seemed to do better, they knew it would not last long, and on the third day, they were right. However, the feeling of dread did not completely go. They still felt tired, their eyes were still slightly bloodshot, but they had a little more energy than the previous days.

On the morning of the third day, everyone, except Evanna, was already out of their tents and eating breakfast. Nesrin stayed by her side, worry forming on her little face.

~ Evanna ~ She gently spoke through her mind link.

Evanna turned around in her blanket to face the little fairy. Nesrin noted how she looked a lot better, her bloodshot eyes gone, in fact, she seemed to have slept well, but she did not move from her position.

~ Are you okay? ~

She nodded her head back in response to the fairy. She did not know how to form the words that were on her mind, out of anyone, Nesrin may understand more. Nesrin gently smiled at her, showing that she understood what was on her mind; she flew closer to her face and gave her a little peck on her cheek, causing the princess to look at her in surprise.

"What was that for?" She queried.

"It will get easier, I promise" Nesrin replied; Evanna nodded her head at this before sitting up.

She quietly had breakfast with the others, forcing herself to eat the food that tasted like ash in her mouth. She glanced around the forest, feeling as though they were being watched. Her senses were on high alert, her ears picked up on the smallest of sounds from any nearby animals, and she swore the ground would rumble every now and then, but as she looked at the other's faces, she could see that it was just her. Maybe, it was just in her head; the forest was probably playing mind games with her like Ger said. 

Although it was morning, sunlight could hardly be seen and to make matters worse, coils of fog began to enwrap the trees, alerting the group to the atmosphere forming into one of horrific night. Although they were not fearful, it was not unseemly for fog to engulf a forest. It made them all warier about their surroundings and the potential threats that made them easy prey. 

The chill in the air never left, but the group by now adapted to the constant cold. It was only in the evening's when the temperature dropped even more that it became unbearable, but they would huddle closer to the campfires they made. Cilv adapted by using her mask; it kept her nose and bottom part of her face warm. She had a spare and gave it to Evanna, who used it more in the mornings and evenings. Constantly wearing it made her feel smothered, more so than how she felt from the trees' overbearing presence. But she was thankful for it; it helped reduced the cold by quite a lot.

The company soon packed up their things and started to make their way; the path they were taking expanded wider, making it possible for them to walk in pairs once again. Ger rode on his horse next to Evanna, he looked much better, like the others, but he kept glancing her way, his face concerned. She could not help but still feel odd; she could almost feel like the trees were breathing and talking. A cold shiver went down her spine, she moved her head to look behind her, but there was nothing there except Cilv, who rode behind them. Evanna then glanced around again before frowning.

~ It is your gift, princess ~ Nesrin's voice popped up in her head.

~ My gift? ~ Evanna looked down at the little creature, confused.

~ Oh, my apologies, princess. You call it a sense. Your sixth sense? ~

Understanding shone on her face now, her sixth sense? But they were surrounded by trees; what could she possibly sensing?

"Stop," Ger commanded; each person looked at him as they halted their horses in position. He jumped off of his horse and walked around Midknight.

"If you need a leak, be quick, Ger," Axel spoke from upfront.

"Raven, come," He ordered; she watched his retreating back and frowned before dismounting from Midknight. Nesrin flew to Axel's shoulder, leaving the pair to walk off at some distance from the others. Confused glances went between the group who were left behind.

Ger stopped once they were hidden by the entangling trees and faced Evanna. Stepping closer, so they were but a step apart.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"I am not sure," She replied genuinely. He looked at her expectantly, waiting for more of an explanation.

Evanna sighed and started pacing as she bit the inside of her mouth.

"Nesrin said it is my sixth sense."

"Your sixth sense?" He frowned, even more confused.

She bit her lip, figuring out how to explain it to him. "You know how I have always had this creepy sixth sense, like the other day, for instance, I could tell someone was watching us, and I was right, the bandits were.."

Ger nodded his head in understanding.

"Well, the forest.. I think I can sort of hear it?" She responded hesitantly while her mind was still figuring out what it meant.

"Hear it how?" He asked patiently.

"I don't know how to explain it but, I get the feeling that the forest does not like outsiders."

Ger glanced at the trees around them, their magnificent heights still astounding to him.

"What do you suppose we do?" He asked, but his question went unanswered as he looked over at the princess and saw her now clutching her head. He walked closer to her, seeing tears in her eyes, but the closer he got, the more she backed up until she hit a tree.

As soon as her hand touched the bark, her eyes went wide, and she gasped before stumbling forwards from an unseen force; Ger caught her in his outstretched arms. Blinking, she raised her head and stared back into his eyes; her own were wide with an emotion he could not place, "They are more alive than I thought, Ger," Her voice came out crazed, making him more concerned for her. Maybe, the forest was playing tricks with her? But she has always had an uncanny ability that sense things. As kids, he could never sneak up on her.

"No, I mean it. I just felt a rush of life go through my body. It was, wow. I could feel their power," She said after seeing the look on his face. She stepped out of his hands and walked back towards the trees. She understood more now, she felt as though her eyes were finally awake, and she could see everything clearly. Placing her hand on the tree, she closed her eyes.

~ We are not here to harm you or the residents of this forest. Only if we are attacked will we defend ourselves ~

Evanna spoke in her head to the tree. She never thought she would be doing that. Chuckling to herself, she could only guess what Ger was thinking right now; she looked like a crazy tree lover.  The tree's rumbled in response to her, causing the ground to shake, but then it abruptly stopped. Turning around, the pair looked at each other in surprise, and then suddenly, the fog that was around them immediately dispersed and the dull headache she had grown used to over the last few days faded.

"What did you do?" Ger asked with a smile on his face as he walked back towards her.

"I just… spoke to them?" Her own face was full of astonishment.

"You just spoke to the trees…" He nodded his head and looked at her like she was insane, then said, "Weird.. But with you, I am kind of used to it" He broke out into another grin.

"Hey!"

"You know it's true. I have had to deal with you and your weird senses for years now. This just tops them all so far!"

The pair burst out laughing, reminiscing about a few situations they found themselves in over the years as they walked back to the group who were now standing by their horses, with Axel pacing at the front.

"What happened!?" Axel barked as he made his way towards them.

"We decided to be one with nature" Ger joked; Evanna giggled by his side while the others just stared at them, not understanding their inside joke. Nesrin, of course, also giggled as she sat on Axel's shoulder.

"I knew you would work it out" She smiled at the princess.

"Well, at least the fog is gone. Does anyone else feel better? My headache is gone," Ronan spoke up from his position. The pair just grinned at each other again knowingly.