Elana giggles as she runs over, curtsying extravagantly. “Princess Andrina.”
She dances around in circles with an imaginary partner, humming to herself, “My sister, a princess.” She stops mid-spin, and her dress swings against her legs. Her eyes widen enthusiastically. “Wait… what does that make me?”
“A pain in my arse, I think,” I jest.
Elana elbows me as she passes, continuing her waltz.
Wyatt teases, pointing at Elana, “Off with her head.”
I roll my eyes, looking to Myles for support, but instead, he stands to attention, saluting me.
“Glad you guys are having fun with my… predicament.” They all throw their arms around me, squeezing me tight. “I can’t breathe. Get off.” Pushing them away, I shake my head at their pestering.
The necklace is still clutched in my hands. What do I do with this? It was a present from Dad, despite its purpose. Could the witch remove the spell? If I found her again, I would ask. Instinctively, I clasp the necklace around my neck.
“So, what now?” Wyatt asks.
I look into the faces of my family, the folk closest to my heart. What happens now? Do I pretend everything is normal and forget everything I have learned? Do I leave? No. I can’t abandon them. But then I need to learn more about my family, whathappened to them, and why they were attacked. Do I become who I was born to be, a princess?
From the darkness of the woods appears a bright light, a fire floating in our direction. Strange voices ring through the woods, growing louder with each breath. Two men search the woods, scanning the ground and trees. My necklace weighs me down, slicing at my skin, a warning, telling me to run.
In a frantic motion, my feet move before I register what’s happening.
I extinguish the candles inside the cottage and hide in the darkness. Wyatt, Myles, and Elana follow me inside, making more noise than I would like. I hush them, pulling them to the ground.
“Ouch!” Elana whispers, “Why are we on the floor in the dark? Do you know how filthy this floor is?”
“One, we’re hiding from the men in the forest, and two, isn’t it your job to clean the floor?”
She pouts at me whilst huffing, knowing I’m right.
Myles leans into me, whispering, “What men?”
“You didn’t see them?They carried torches, and there was a glowing object guiding them. I can’t explain it. My necklace… warned me?” It has been heavier than usual since the witch first messed with it at the festival.
Did she take away part of her spells? I don’t know. All I know, is there were two men in the woods in the middle of the night, heading this way.
Wyatt crawls to the window and looks out. “I don’t see anything, let me go round back for a better look.”
He opens the door and creeps out into the night. I mutter to Elana to tell Mum to be still and quiet until we know what’s going on.
Minutes that feel like hours pass as we sit in complete silence. No one dares make a sound. The ticking of the clock echoesaround the room, booming in my head, and I flinch with each tick.
The door squeaks open and Wyatt slides along the floor beside Myles and me.
“You’re right, there’s torchlight in the woods, looks like it’s heading this way. How did you—? You know what, I don’t need to know.” Just like Wyatt, he goes with the flow no matter what.
Myles reaches for the letter from Dad, holding it out. “Didn’t you say they would hunt you if you used magic? That’s what your dad wrote, isn’t it?”
I take the letter from him, unable to read it in the dark, but I don’t have to. I memorised every word.“Yeah, it said someone would hunt me. But how did they know where to find me?”
Swallowing hard, I wrack my brain for a way out. We can’t stay here. Not now.
Elana and Mum slip into the room. “It’s darker than a witch’s heart in here.”Mum gasps.
“We need to leave.”
“Leave?” Mum asks, “Why would we do that?”
