A Keepsake

One time, in one of my stops at the border of Redwood, Erebus had been lying on the grass as usual, gazing at the night sky and waiting for me to finish preparing my customary cup of tea when a sudden idea passed my mind.

I rummaged through my bag and took two cups out, instead of just the one for me, and then I filled both with the tea from the pot that had been over the fire before I walked up to him.

It was something I had never done before, and my gesture took him by surprise since he wasn't expecting it. Before he could react, I had already put his cup on the grass and pushed it across the shadow threshold marked on the grass, stepping quickly back and away from it.

He sat up slowly and watched the cup in surprise, eyes flickering from the cup to me in stunned silence.

"I just realized how rude it is of me that I've never offered you some tea, during all the time I've been coming here. I hope you can forgive my lack of manners." I explained with an embarrassed shrug. "You don't have to drink it if you don't like it. I just thought you might want to try it."

He reached out tentatively, picked up the cup, and then took a small sip. He savored it for a moment and then gave a tiny nod, to signal that he appreciated it, and we both carried on as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

We talked for a while and when it was time for me to leave, I put the fire out, packed my things and when I was heading to my wagon, he whistled to get my attention. As I turned to see what he wanted, he gently tossed the cup of tea back to me. I smiled when I saw that he had drunk it all.

I didn't think much of it and pushed this interaction to the back of my mind. It was just a curious thing that happened between us this one time, there was no need to dwell on it.

But the next time I stopped by to see him, I found him already at the border waiting for me, and a small bundle placed on the dead dry log where I used to sit by the fire. He gestured for me to take the rustic bundle made of wool and I picked it up with the same hesitant caution he had when he first took the cup of tea.

I found an interesting assortment of ripe berries inside the bundle, with a small bouquet of Red Drop flowers on top. I took a curious peek at him, trying to decipher what was his intention with this.

"I too have lacked manners." He told me with a quiet smile. "You don't have to eat it if you don't want to. But if you wish to try it, I think the berries would go nicely with your tea."

He was not lying, they certainly did. It was the most exquisite berries I had eaten in my whole life, they all had such a rich fresh flavor! They might have had some sort of magic in them as well because I didn't go hungry for the rest of the night after eating them.

After I was done eating the surprising treat he had brought to me, I tucked the Red Drops safely in my pocket, thinking about how excited the village healer was going to be when she saw those flowers in my hands.

Following that night, I would often find a bundle waiting for me near the bonfire with something delicious to eat inside, and I would always offer him a cup of tea in return, despite my beverages not being even close in taste as his food was.

I stopped by our meeting spot a few days later, eager to share with him a new flavorful herb I had found for our tea, but I didn't find him there. I waited for a long time, but he never showed up.

It was the first time he had missed one of our talks by the fire.

It had never occurred to me that this could happen, that he would not come. I was at a loss.

After much waiting, I gave up. It was with a sinking feeling in my heart that I decided to leave but as I was about to turn around, I spotted a small bundle laying on the grass, reflecting the moonlight with a strange silvery glint.

At first, I thought it was just another bundle full of treats that Erebus had gathered for me, but it wasn't placed near the bonfire as it usually did. It was set near the spot where Erebus often lay down.

I glanced around, looking for some clue about what this could be. Was this a new trick that he had created for me? Some sort of bait, perhaps? I thought we were over this trickster business, he had agreed to stop playing silly games on me a long time ago…

The strange silver bundle was very close to the forest's limit, I would have to step over to his side in order to retrieve it. It'd be only a couple of steps, but still…

After a few minutes of hesitant consideration, I decided to risk it. I tried to be as fast as I could as I jumped on the silvery thing and grabbed it quickly before running back to safety with my heart beating loudly inside my chest.

The bundle was wrapped with a delicate frail fabric, nothing like the rustic wool he used to leave his berry assortments on. This one looked like it was made of some exquisite silk, a type of fabric that was rare to come across, made of intrinsic weaved fine thread that you'd only see in the most ostentatious palaces.

The pristine white fabric had glittering specks of silver weaved into its threads, like little beads of starlight that had been stitched up inside soft clouds.

It was embedded with an intoxicating perfume, a scent that reminded me of Red Drop flowers mixed with sandalwood and the faint smell of morning dew on fresh green grass.

I opened the bundle, trying to be as careful as possible. It clearly had something very special inside. I watched in awe a strange-looking bracelet made of entwined black vines with an old parchment placed next to it.

To any outsider, the bracelet might have looked like a cheap trinket made of old intertwined dry twigs, but to me, it was priceless. It was a gift from Erebus.

The bracelet hummed softly when I picked it up to inspect it, vibrating ever so subtly under my fingers as if in warning. It was cold to the touch and emanated an ominous dark aura.

I picked up the small parchment and unrolled it. There was something scribbled in spidery letters with dark red ink, which read:

'Take me with you.'

I smiled and slid the bracelet on my wrist. It hung loose there, weighing less than a feather. It had a smooth surface in its interior, as if it was treated with some sort of natural varnish, or maybe some type of wax.

I extended my arm to admire it. I felt like a King wearing the most precious jewelry.

Afraid of breaking it or even losing it, since it was dangling too loosely on my wrist, I decided to wrap the bracelet back in the fabric and tuck it safely in my bag before I continued with my journey.

I quickly returned home after I was done delivering things in Chalkbarrel. On the way back, Erebus was still not showing up at our meeting spot. So I headed home with his bracelet still in my bag and with worry weighing over my chest.

I continued to worry as I got ready for bed late that night.

What if the bracelet had been a parting gift and Erebus had no plans to ever return to see me again? Would he leave like that, without saying goodbye? Could this bracelet be his way of saying goodbye?

I tossed and turned in bed for a long time but I couldn't sleep, no matter how hard I tried. I couldn't stop thinking about the bracelet and all the possible meanings behind it, so I got up to look at it some more

Maybe if I searched more carefully, I'd find something… a small hidden detail, perhaps some markings or inscription, a secret message engraved that could give me a clue about the story behind that bracelet.

I took the silk bundle from the nightstand and sat back on the bed, before taking the bracelet out. Then I lit a candle by the bedside table and stared at the bracelet for a while, troubled by thoughts of Erebus and his mysterious absence.

Something at the back of my mind pushed forward this idea that I should try the bracelet again… Without giving it much thought, I slid the bracelet back onto my wrist.

The dark in the room seemed to grow thicker, stretching and reaching out to me. The vines in the bracelet started to slither around my wrist, tightening themselves in a constricting motion until there was no space left between the vines and my skin. The smooth thorns on the vines had turned sharp somehow, feeling rough and prickly all of a sudden.

I tried to pull the bracelet off, but it was too tight now, it wouldn't slip past my hand. The vines continued constricting around my wrist like a hungry snake, getting tighter and tighter, while the scratchy thorns moved to the inside of the bracelet, growing painfully sharper.

I hissed at the piercing thorns digging into my skin. Then I began to panic when I saw drops of my blood dripping from the bracelet, but the panic was quickly washed away by a wave of dizziness and disorientation.

The room twirled and spun madly around me, the edges of my sight blurring and softening with hazy silvery light. The scent of Red Drops took over, thick and suffocating, but I didn't care about what could be happening to me anymore… A sense of calm euphoria pulsed and throbbed inside my body, and the world suddenly seemed to be lifted up to the clouds… I was floating in a dream of silvery twinkling lights and wild red flowers swirling all around me.

I think I drifted into sleep after that, cradled by that warmth and pleasing sensation… I remember feeling a familiar presence in the room then… I stirred in bed, moving to my side, groggy and drunk with sleep. My limbs felt heavy like lead, just like my eyelids that wouldn't open… I wasn't exactly asleep, but not quite awake either.

I was so tired and the bed felt so warm and soft… I just wanted to sink deeper into the mattress and go to sleep. I think I was dreaming… or maybe I was dreaming that I was sleeping because things didn't feel quite real. There was this strange numb paralysis taking over my body and my senses… And then the mattress dipped and I felt the heat of a body close to mine, as if someone had just laid beside me.

The scent of Red Drops took over my senses again, and I felt an arm wrapping around my chest, pulling me closer until my back was flush against his chest. I didn't turn to see who it was. I knew it was him.

I didn't dare to try to move or pry my eyes open and risk waking up from this dream. He embraced me gently and ever so lightly, nuzzling his face against the back of my neck… His touch felt so ethereal as if I was being held by a frail visage, a faraway whisper of him.

I let out a deep sigh and relaxed against his ghostly presence, while the sound of leaves rustled in my ears, along with the wind sweeping over the canopies and brushing low against the grass, blowing Red Drop petals in the air. I was laying in the dark of the woods, under the trees of Redwood, with Erebus holding me in his arms.

He had returned to me. At last.

Even if it was only in my dreams.