Royal Disaster

Chapter 6: Creatures in the woods

Emrose

"I'm a stupid woman, I truly am a stupid woman." I've been chanting this to myself the moment I left the house and ran after Alas. The skies have darkened, but I'm not giving up. I told my family I was sleeping in early, tired from all the fuss that happened today. They seemed to believe me though. But I have to find Alas before they notice I'm gone.

"Alas?" I shouted, but what answered me were movements from the bushes. I gasped, I knew it was just some animal but the question is, what type of animal? Chills ran through my spine at my own thoughts. "Alas?" I called out again. He mustn't have gotten far. He didn't know these woods like I do.

I called out again and again, but the deeper I got into the woods, I felt more scared. I can already hear howling from afar, definitely from wolves. The movements from the bushes didn't stop me from walking, but that definitely did. I decided to turn around. "Aaalrighht, this has been a very bad idea." I said to myself. This venture would have been harder had I not dropped pebbles on my pathway. This assured me that I would walk back on the same path home.

The moonlight shined brightly, helping me on the way home. I've walked and walked but I can't nudge the feeling that the path seemed different. This is absurd. The pebbles are slowly disappearing.

There was this uneasy feeling in me and I suddenly remembered three years ago when I first asked mother to allow me to come here. "Emmy, never walk into the woods at night. There's a myth that when you do, the path home disappears and you end up being trapped in the forest forever. Unless someone ofcourse, rescues you."

I shook my head. It was a myth, right? It can't be true. I tried my best to remember which trees looked familiar, but I felt like the moon was playing tricks on me. As soon as I realized I was feeling lost, it didn't shine as brightly as it did earlier. "This can't be happening." I whispered to myself and kept going. I was scared of what creatures lived inside this forest, but I was more scared of my family finding out I'm not home sleeping. I can already imagine Elchard and father's wrath.

I snapped out of my thoughts upon hearing a loud squeak. I turned but saw nothing. It was a pretty bad idea to rush into the woods and not bring any torch. Again, Alas proved himself right. I was a stupid woman. The squeak came again and this time I looked up to see a huge crow circling me. "Are you here to help me, my friend?" He seemed to have heard me as he squeaked again. He wasn't trying to circle me anymore, instead he was flying to a certain direction. I followed him, praying he was leading me to the right way.

Not long after, I heard movements from the bushes. I ignored it and thought it might be rabbits. I looked up and noticed the crow wasn't there anymore. "Damn it. Where'd he go." I muttered. I continued to walk, but the movement from the bushes seemed to grow louder. "Alas? Is that you?" No one answered. I picked up my pace, although I didn't know where I was going. That animal seemed to follow me as the noise came closer. And closer, and closer. I broke into a run. "I am not dying here tonight!" I exclaimed to myself while running.

As I was in the middle of running away from what was about to kill me, I looked up and saw that the crow appeared again in the sky. Looking up while running wasn't really a good combination and I realized this when my face already hit the ground.

"Ow!" I tripped on big rocks and scraped my knee and my face. I didn't realize the ground was not soil anymore, but big pile of rocks. I tried standing but my knee wobbled. "Ah. Tsk" I held on to both of my knees, they were bleeding.Before I could get up the noise came again. It was coming really close now. I decided to close my eyes. Whatever it is, I don't really care anymore. This is what I get for lying to my family, for kicking an injured person out, and for being so selfish. I deserve this.

"Rose, are you okay?" At first, I can't believe what I just heard. Was I hallucinating? Was Elchard here with me? I still refused to open my eyes, thinking that the hallucination might go away. But it didn't. "Rose?" a hand was on my face now, causing me to struck my eyes open.

"Alas?" I can't contain the relief and happiness in my voice. "Oh, Alas! Thank God it's you! I thought you were an animal about to tear me into pieces!" I tried to stop myself from hugging him but I failed. I know this was inappropriate and kind of awkward, but I can't help myself. He was no knight in shining armor, but given the setting, I'd like to believe he is.

"It's alright, It's alright. Calm down now. I'm here." There was something so soothing about his words that literally made me calm down.

"Why are you here alone? Were you looking for me?" He asked once he noticed I caught my breath.

"Uh yes, I did." I regretfully said so. "What I did to you today was unforgivable. I was the reason you fell off your horse and it ran away, I was the reason you got bullied by my brother, and now I'm the reason you're here in the woods alone too."

I was surprised he just listened and didn't even try to agree with me.

"So I came here a little while after you left to bring you back and apologize. I know what I did was wrong, and I was not in my right mind when I told you to leave. I should've known the dangers in these woods and I let you walk right through it. I'm truly sorry, Alas." Without a pause, I explained why I came to find him and fought back tears as I did.

He kept quiet the whole time I was explaining myself and didn't even bother interrupting me. For a moment I thought would just straight up ignore me, but then he started talking.

"Nothing to apologize for." He smiled at me. The warmest smile he gave me so far,

"You came to find me, and that's what matters."

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