Chapter Four

My head was killing me. A deep throbbing hammered behind my eyes.

What the hell just happened? The cold, hard ground pressed into my back, leaching all heat from my body. I didn't care, though. All I could think of were those glowing eyes. 

Something poked my cheek. Carefully opening my eyes, I winced at how bright the sun was. Wait, the sun? I slowly sat up and looked around. I wasn't in the clearing anymore, but I wasn't far from it either. I was sitting on the ground just inside the tree line, near where I had left Mint. The sun hung low but was shining brightly. Fresh snow had fallen, covering the meadow in a blanket of white where it had once been suspiciously cleared. 

I felt something poke me again, this time on my side. Looking to the side, I saw Mint and the other nymphs sitting beside me. Mint gingerly held out a colorful handful of bright berries. I couldn't help but laugh, startling her in the process. The nymphs were genuinely worried about me. I took a berry from her, popping it into my mouth. The sweet juice washed over my tongue. It was just what I needed, though; I've had a bitter taste in my mouth since I opened my eyes. 

"Thank you," I said. "All of you." 

The nymphs were likely the only ones who had worried about me. The thought was sobering and invited an unshakable hollowness to creep in.

Movement caught my eye. At the edge of the group was a nymph I hadn't seen before, fidgeting like she was nervous. 

"Hello there," I said, cautiously reaching out my hand. What's your name?" I didn't expect an answer. None of the nymphs can speak the language of humans—at least if they can, they've never done so. The newcomer avoided eye contact but pushed a flower into my outstretched hand before she pulled away. 

I examined the flower carefully, my stomach lurching as I took in its features. It was the flower from last night—a Passionflower. The realization started sinking in. She must have seen everything last night. 

Hell, she may have been the cause of that mist. Nymphs were known to randomly interfere in the lives of humans, stupid enough to wander into the forest, mainly for the sake of mischief or to protect themselves. I quickly dismissed that line of thinking, though. If she did cause it, she may have saved my life. Smiling, I turned back at her. "Thank you. I appreciate this very much." Then, a new thought sparked in my mind. "Are there any more outcroppings of this, other than at that cave?"

Her eyes lit up, and she vigorously nodded. Standing, she reached for my hand. Well, that was easy. With how hard it was said to be to grow, I wasn't expecting there to be more. I let her lead me back to the meadow. I felt sick thinking of last night. That was honestly a close call. Thinking back on it, that dragon could have very easily eaten me or simply burned me to a crisp and left it at that. I wondered why it didn't.

Passion, as I'd chosen to call her, walked out into the clearing. Instead of heading to the right toward the cave, though, she headed to the left. She led me up to the base of the cliff and pointed upward. 

"Up there?" I asked. She nodded. Looking up, I could just barely see a ledge, maybe fifty feet up. Swaying in the breeze, half buried in the fresh snow, was a small patch of purple flowers. I could barely see them; they were so far out of reach. I stifled a sigh and looked back down at the little nymph. "Thank you for showing me where they are. I may have to get them at another time, though." She looked a bit disappointed, but there was no helping it. They were so high up, and I knew I couldn't climb that high. 

Turning, I started heading back to the forest. I shouldn't linger much longer. The cold had long seeped into my skin, making my fingers numb. It wouldn't do to die by freezing to death after avoiding death by dragon, now would it? It'd make the whole endeavor seem a bit pointless.

As I reached the trees, the nymphs could tell that I was getting ready to leave. Pine was holding up my basket, which has since been filled with winter-loving herbs and plants. I thanked them all and started my trek back home. 

***

By the time I reached my simple cabin, I was stumbling from the exhaustion of the journey. Then I saw something that stopped me in my tracks. Someone had painted vulgarities onto the side of my house. It was likely to be the same children who had thrown the rock through my window. The hollowness in my chest spread, its cracks wrapping tightly around my heart. With a sigh, I walked up the short stairs and stepped inside. It was just as cold in here as it was outside. I quickly patched up the window with a spare plank of wood and got to work on starting a fire. 

As the flames roared to life in the hearth, I sat in front of the embers as they grew and spread to warm up, lost in thought. The events of the past day were just too much to process. A dragon? A fucking dragon?? They were supposed to have gone extinct a long time ago after the last one died during the war that split the continent. If they even existed back then, that is. People tend to exaggerate things. A powerful, skilled human quickly became a legendary creature woven into tales to make the masses feel better about themselves. 

I couldn't deny what I saw, but I couldn't find a logical explanation for it either. And where it lived was inconvenient as hell. I ran my hands through my hair, pulling lightly with frustration. Passionflower, the one thing that possibly could have helped me stand the world, grew right before a dragon's lair. I eyes the few buds that Passion had given me. I'd have to make use of that for now, and I simply hoped that I would come across some in town. I scoffed at the thought. Yeah right. Nowhere in town would have that flower for something I could afford. I shook off the notion and stood, walking away from the hearth. 

Putting my hands to work, I attempted to distract myself from the useless thoughts. Unpacking my gathering basket, I bundled and hung all of the herbs up to dry, especially the two passionflowers. I needed to be very careful with those. I didn't want to waste a single petal.

I carefully plucked a single petal from one of the buds. Walking over to the small coal stove in what can only barely be called a kitchen, I stoked another flame to life and put the kettle on to boil. There was no better time than the present to test its efficacy. 

Once I poured out the water onto the petal and let it steep, I took a careful sip. The warmth spread through my body. A pleased sigh escaped my lips. It was quite a soothing feeling. It was just what I needed right now after being nearly frozen, scared to death, and on the verge of being eaten by a dragon. Huh. It really was quite an eventful evening. 

I hoped I would never experience such an eventful night again. After finishing the tea, I eased out of my damp clothes, slid on a simple but warm robe, and lay on my bed. Before long, I fell into the deepest sleep I've had in a very, very long time.