Forged in Frost and Fire (Book 1 in the Chronicles of Kings trilogy)

Chapter Nine

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾　　☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

The snow was falling in soft little flurries the morning I was supposed to leave.

They fell down onto my cheeks and clung to my eyelashes as I moved through the trees and away from the cottage I had not only been reborn in, but the place I had called 'home' for two days. I was going to miss Gretchen, and her tea, and her endless supply of quilts. I was going to even miss her shitty spectacles that made her look like an insect. We had said goodbye at the doorstep and she made sure my sack was packed full of food to keep me going for my entire journey, if not longer. Elda had told me exactly where to go and what to expect on the journey to Hiraeth, so while I was no less afraid, I did feel a little less unprepared.

And now we were extremely close to the border that separated the magic from the unmagic. I could still feel the pulse of power from the border, that feeling of something...other, brushing against my skin and taking root deep beneath my bones. It felt less conflicting then it had when I was human. Now it felt like a caress against me, rather than a chafing.

"How are you feeling," Dimitri asked, walking up to my side. He was still chipper this morning despite the fact that I was leaving. Everyone seemed to be somber this morning except for him. Nothing seemed to put a damper on his mood. I couldn't tell if I was envious or annoyed.

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel like vomiting," I said.

"That's natural. That's how I felt my first time crossing over," he said, giving me a bright smile.

"It's not how I felt," Anastasia said, falling back so that she could be on my other side. "I was angry. I was excited to cross over the border."

"Then again, you did think you were going to be kicking fae ass and you were sorely mistaken," Elda said, looking over her shoulder at the three of us. Anastasia sighed, glaring at her adoptive-mother. Now that Anastasia had described her past to me, I could certainly see the connection between the two of them. Anastasia was a lot closer to her than she was to anyone else. The two of them laughed and joked, over the span of time we were in the cottage together, I could hear their laughter echoing around the halls. Another thing I noticed about Anastasia was that she was alright to turn her back on Elda. She didn't turn her back to anyone but the wall. I wondered what it would've been like to have such a good relationship with someone like that. To have a mother figure. I'd had a Mom once, and while I could still remember what that felt like, the memories were heavily seen through the rose-colored glasses of childhood bliss. Not to mention they were foggy. I was starting to forget my parents faces.

"I should've been kicking fae ass. I still should be. I'm more than capable," Anastasia said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Maybe Elda just doesn't want to unleash that type of fury on the world yet. Better to keep you locked up," I said, winking at Anastasia. She grinned down at me.

"So true," she purred, her tongue gliding over her teeth, sliding over the sharpened canines.

We continued to joke and laugh the entire rest of the way there. More than we had in the past couple days. I knew the three of them were trying to distract me from what I was doing. What I was walking towards. But I didn't mind it. Why would I try to stop them when we were having so much fun? I'd rather have good memories of them to hold onto as I journeyed to Hiraeth.

"We're at the edge now," Elda said, pausing by a large oak tree that soared high into the sky. It's branches were strange, curving at odd angles and in looping lines. This tree must've been the marking point that we were at the border.