3 Traitor (3)

Suddenly a commotion could be heard outside of the small cottage. The spirits looked panicked.

"They are here to take you away. I can hear them. They think you were the reason the dragon came." said Drop, its liquid face contorted into fear and panic.

"They want you hauled away in hopes that the village will be able to recover without further issues." said Spark, looking angry.

"What will you do Miss Caeli?" came Crag's voice, cool and steady like the earth he draws power from.

Caeli looked around the house, what did she have here to keep her from leaving? Maybe it was for the best she left. Perhaps then she could search for a tribe of witches to live among. Free from the social etiquette and expectation of getting married and having children. Free to love nature and learn from the magical races without reprimand or question. Just an ordinary woman living life in what was, to so many, strange. Now that she thought of it, her connection with the forest had been one of the few things that seemed natural to Caeli and the only thing she acknowledged as being not ordinary about herself.

"I suppose I'll leave."

"And go where?!" drop cried.

"I am not entirely sure yet. Maybe find a coven of witches to join? Or wizards? Maybe live alone and among the creatures of the world? I guess I can't really say yet. All I know is that it likely isn't safe for me to stay and it will never be safe for you three. Although the villagers believe your kind are evil and avoid contact with magical things, they retain harmful knowledge that could kill you three. I won't allow it and I certainly refuse to be the reason for it."

Drop began to sob while spark angrily flitted back and forth through the air in front of her. Crag floated silently staring at Caeli. Was that sympathy mixed with respect she saw in Crag? She could not be sure. Creatures of magic were harder to read than humans.

"I want to thank you again for protecting my home and also for being such close friends to me over these years. Ever since I was a child you all have been there for me and have done so much to make our lives in this home more comfortable and safe. I cannot express how much that means to me. I only hope that you all will find happy places to settle, and people that appreciate you and the things you do for a household as much as I did." Caeli held back her tears and gritted her teeth. Drop had already cried enough for the rest of them.

Drop threw itself at Caeli and wrapped around her, in what could only be described as a hug from a spirit without arms or substance. Drop's translucent blue body quivered with her sobs. Caeli reflexively lifted a hand to comfort Drop and slowly dropped it realizing that the spirit could not be touched. She looked wide-eyed and unsure of what to do. Spark and Crag seemed to laugh. One sounding like crackling and hissing fire on a cold night and the other sounding like small rocks rolling down a hill.

Caeli smiled and then it was gone. Was she to lose the only home she has ever known and her friends all in one day?

"I hope our paths cross again one day my friends." another slight bow and Caeli turned to face the door and confront the villagers.

As Caeli stepped out into the open she was greeted with the sight of what looked to be every surviving villager outside of her home. Some carried axes, others simply had their arms crossed with angry expressions on their faces.

Caeli held her breath and attempted to make her face as calm as possible.

"You must leave." said a voice in the crowd. A general response of affirmation rippled through the crowd.

"Not just leave! She must be taken to the city and left there without a way to come back! What if she were to leave and come back? I lost my son today!" screamed a woman.

Caeli could hardly blame them for their hurt, no matter how poorly aimed it was. Children had died today, parents and grandparents badly injured or worse. Some of these people may even struggle to eat for some time. Nobody in this village befriended spirits like Caeli did. They wouldn't have as much help as she has had over the years.

"I say we sacrifice her to that evil dragon, if he wants her he can have her!" shouted a man.

To the dragon? Why would a powerful dragon care about someone like her? And further more, what would that achieve? If they believed him evil why give him what he wants?

Caeli came to the conclusion that the villagers were confusing the attack as not only her fault but her wish. She suddenly feared for her life.

"That is enough." came the booming voice of Adair. He made his way through the crowd and people reluctantly parted the way for him. "How can you all say that? She is just as much a part of the community as anyone else here. Caeli did not ask for this."

Adair had always been a cheerful man although he had always taken his duty seriously in regards to the village. Caeli could see on his face that he was unsure of what he said. Although he had always been kind to her, she knew that he found her strange just like the others. She could see the struggle written on his face, a handsome face, despite his solemness. Appease and protect the village or allow her to stay there.

"There is no need to worry, I will be leaving. I have never wanted to cause trouble for any of you, despite what you all may have assumed in the past." she added the last part with just a touch of disdain. The audience reacted as though boiling water was thrown on them.

"See? Already she is cursing us!" shrieked a woman in the crowd.

Caeli hardly heard the last few words of her sentence as she had already turned on her heel to enter the cottage again. It was time to leave and she would need some things.

The spirits of her old home had already left, she could feel it once she entered the cottages walls. There had been a sense of power, magic, and nature in the very bricks and air that resided inside the space. No longer. Caeli felt as though someone had harshly plucked a string inside of her heart.

Caeli took to packing immediately. She entered her old room, which had been protected from some of the destruction.

She changed into traveling clothes, a pair of leather trousers, a linen blouse beneath a leather vest, and put her leather boots back on. Into the bag she had initially grabbed from the house in the fires, she added flint, a loaf of bread, a few apples, some dried meats, and a canister of water.

Caeli then stood in front of the small, old, smudged mirror that she had in her room. One of the few things her relatives had purchased for her to help her "maintain her appearance".

She looked at herself closely as it would likely be the last time she could do so.

Ordinary.

Long chestnut hair was one of the few attributes she didn't mind about herself. Otherwise her features seemed incredibly plain. She had tan skin, as did most of the people in her village, brown eyes, and thick eyebrows. Aside from a few freckles on her nose and cheeks, there wasn't much to note other than her sharp nose and jawline. She recalled when her aunt had even described her looks as masculine. Caeli couldn't imagine why her aunt had thought that seeing as Caeli was much shorter than most of the men in the village, and although she had a strong body, it was more voluptuous than the average woman's'. Perhaps it was just her face her aunt referred to?

Caeli pulled her hair back into a braid and secured it with a leather strip. She put on her mothers cloak and placed the bag on her shoulder. With a deep breath she walked to the door of her small cottage.

Before walking outside she turned once more to look at the walls and space of the home she had always known and only ever known.

And just like that, she left.

Caeli made her way to the edge of the village where many of the farm animals had gathered searching for food. Most of which were grazing and making their way back into the town. Caeli spotted a bay gelding that had found a particularly good looking patch of clover. The horse still had a halter on from the previous owner and likely had it on when he was released to escape the fire.

She approached the horse slowly and reached out a hand. He sniffed it in greeting and allowed her to touch the star shaped blaze on his forehead.

"What do you think? Would you enjoy leaving with me? Or staying here?" she whispered to him.

The horse huffed gently and flicked his tail at her. To Caeli who had been trained by the magic folk, she took that as approval to leave.

Caeli walked off and found a barn not far from the gelding. The entire top half of the building had burned but the wood below had been wet and only smoldered. She riffled through the rubble and finally found a length of rope. It would have to do.

She returned to the gelding and gently threaded the rope through the loops in the halter. She mounted the horse and turned him towards the forest. Towards the city of Flumen. She figured it was the best place to go as she wasn't sure where she was headed. Perhaps she could find some answers there.

"Caeli! Wait!" Demetri was shouting behind her.

She turned to see him jogging up to the horse with something in his hands. His thin hair bouncing wildly around his head, his spectacles tilting precariously off of his face before he secured them. Behind him was Adair coming towards her but much more slowly. His strong jaw clenched and his dark brows knitted together with concern.

"Demetri, I want to thank you for your kindness over the years and the love of books you have nurtured in me. If not for you, I am not sure I would have had nearly as many enjoyable moments in my life." She smiled sadly down at the old man and tried to remember his face. Kind and wrinkled from his good natured spirit, she would certainly miss him.

As he approached the horse he pushed the old spectacles on his face up his nose to keep them from falling off. He was slightly panting and gently unwrapping something from the cloth he carried in his hands.

"I want you to have this. As my last gift to you. Wouldn't do much good around here except collect dust and I am sure it would come in handy on your journey, wherever you may go." He reached up to her handing her the book.

The title was, "The Old World Almanac and Guide", written in gold letters. The book was fairly thick and the pages thin as a butterfly's wing. It was indeed covered in dust.

"No one in this town cares about the Old World or its ways. If anything they would use the information in that book to harm the creatures of nature. It would be safer and of better use in your hands. The book has information on the magical things of this world, and also on some of its plants and animals. Perhaps you could find it useful, or at the very least, entertaining." He smiled sadly.

Caeli gently took the book from his hands. In just a moment she relived the days of hiding in Demetri's library, tucked away reading diligently. Asking Demetri for one book after another, her appetite insatiable for more information, for more stories.

Demetri had never judged her for her love of the Fae or the woods. He had never shirked away from her all knowing eyes, eyes that could perceive someone's true intentions with enough focus.

And in all the times she had looked, she had never seen a malicious thought in the man. Only kindness and empathy.

"Thank you Demetri, I will always remember you. Always." She smiled broadly at him as she knew deep in her heart, she meant it. She would always remember the days spent in his book store helping him organize his books and clean the shelves. She would remember the times he gave her a safe space to read and be unbothered.

"You are a good person Caeli. You are different than the others but that doesn't make you bad. Never forget that and always trust yourself. You have an intuition I've never seen before and the strength and courage of ten men. May the gods bless you and keep you safe." He said with a shaking voice.

Caeli reached down and squeezed his hand. She nodded her head once at the man and glanced at Adair. He continued to stand at a distance.

His dark short hair fluttered in the winds that had come with all the burning architecture, his broad shoulders drooped slightly as their eyes met.

She supposed he feared retribution by the villagers. She nodded once at him also and turned back towards the forest.

And so she left.