FAIRTRAVELER,
YOU ARE NOW LEAVINGMOSSWOOD.
My heart deflated. Oh, how I wanted to go home.
Then, my chest went hollow, the faint humming of magic silent. We walked farther into the woods and I searched for it, reaching as far as possible. Maybe if I caught the magic leaving, I could hold on hard enough that it would stay. Eldrene had saidyour magic, and surely, I could not have fooled a Goddess.
I crouched down right where budding dandelions lay. It should be easy to get them to bloom in full. Even with how difficult my magic sometimes behaved, dandelions always had steady success.
So I tried.
Just like Rosie told me to.
But nothing happened.
Because nothing was there.
The flat plains finally ended, and a steep hill gave way to a quiet village below. The town was tiny, even smaller than Moss. But the quaint cottages packed together and chimneys that reached to the sky looked a little like home. Smoke rose into the air like gnarled fingers, and an acrid scent filled the air—like burnt sage.
“Welcome to Wormwood, princess.”
“What an unfortunate name,” I said, looking down at the village.
“Ah, but the drink is good.”
Of course. That must be the smell and what all of those bushes we passed were. Wormwood bushes. Moss stuck to its ale and mead, but a few of the rich folk had brought back verte tonic made of wormwood. The drink had caused the folk to act awry at the local taverns and Moss eventually banished the drink altogether.
“What if the Prince’s monsters are drawn here?” I asked Hesper before she set off down the hill. The worry had niggled in my brain the entire day. The Prince’s minions following two people was one thing; those same minions having access to an entire innocent town was another.
“They avoid light of any kind. As long as there is a candle flickering, they are bound to the shadows, where they can do little but stalk their prey. Margast was the only exception. He had power before Thanadyn even existed, so he’s not confined to the Prince’s weakness or strength. His hounds, however,are only as strong as the Prince himself. As long as he remains at bay, they will, too. For now.”
Before we entered the town, Warty and Edge swooped down, both angrily chirping and squawking at the day’s events. I handled Warty; Hesper did the same with Edge. In the end, we all agreed they would perch up in a chimney for the evening.
“I’ll alert you should I notice any untoward guests,” Edge said before he flew off with Warty in tow.
The first two inns were plumb full, the innkeepers reported. Though, I didn’t think that was true. Wormwood seemed to be a town that mistrusted visitors until further notice, and being two travelers soaked through and weary from our perilous day, our looks didn’t help our case.
Neither of us had eaten all day, and the food in my pack could have best been described as rubbish now. After hearing my stomach give an embarrassing grumble, Hesper directed us to a tavern. We headed into a squat, all-wooden building called Wymble’s Grubbs. An unappetizing name for a quite cozy place.
The ceilings hung low. Hesper had to crouch slightly to avoid bonking her head on the wooden beams. Several tables were arranged haphazardly in the small space. I desperately wanted to sit down and kept my eyes peeled for any open spots. In the far back corner was a vacant booth. I ran for it. Several heads turned as they watched a harried, wet stranger bolt for a dusty table. I didn’t care.
I watched Hesper go up to the barkeep, a buxom beauty. I couldn’t see what Hesper said to her, but based on the barkeep’s flirtatious smile and batting eyes, I could only assume Hesper sought more creative ways to get warm tonight.
I lost my raging appetite immediately. We had a quest to worry over; adistractioncould cost us precious time.
Hesper came over, two foaming ales in her hand. She sat down beside me, merriment playing on her face.
“Drink up!” She pushed a glass to me.
“I don’t drink,” I said, pushing the ale back toward her. This simply wasn’t true, not even a little.
“You’ll need to drink more than water after today.” She pushed the mug back toward me. I left it untouched, staring into the distance with my arms crossed.
“What’s gotten into you, princess?” she said between deep swigs of ale.
“You vex me, that’s what.”
“You’ll get over it. Ez! Over here!” Hesper motioned to the barkeep. Ez? Did they already have nicknames for each other? Bile rose in my throat.
