The Bastard Princess

37.

-HER-

I walked, ignoring the way my feet were aching. I didn't stop until the signs of civilization were glaring at me through the gaps between the woods.

I was far away from the fire. I didn't know where I was but I wanted to be out of the woods sooner. I was already very much terrified by what I had seen in the fire. It was going to keep me awake for nights.

A starry night sky looked down on me as I struggled to walk further. I was tired, worn out. I had lost count of all the hours I had been walking. Maybe, it was days? Weeks? Months? I couldn't tell.

All I could remember and think of was what I had seen in the woods. The fire, the rain and his glaring red eyes. They flashed in front of my eyes every now and then. No matter in which direction I looked, my mind would tell me that he was there, behind the trees, behind the bushes, under the water, everywhere.

My peace had already been robbed a long time ago and now, my sanity threatened to abandon me too. I had to constantly remind myself that I was doing this to live... but live for what? The reason was absent but I had convinced myself that it was there, somewhere in the civilization that was now in front of me.

It invited me like an oasis would to a man stuck in the desert. All I knew was that I didn't want to be alone. My mind was starting to lose touch with reality and now and then I'd start hallucinating about the fire and his red eyes. I needed someone to remind me that they weren't there, someone to draw the stark like between my hallucination and reality.

I needed help.

A torturous groan slipped past my lips before I was claimed by gravity. The ground didn't embrace me with the warmth and softness that I craved for. My hair was tugged almost painfully as the distance between the ends and the roots in my head increased.

It had grown longer ever since I had graced Zaeries with my presence. Now, it was long, dirty and heavy. I had been dragging its weight through the woods. I wanted to get rid of it.

I whimpered in pain when I tried to get up but gravity made me embrace the ground with a painful impact. Tears streamed out of my eyes. After sweat, it was the only moisture my body was capable of creating. My mouth was dry and my body was aching.

The rough and cold ground was starting to grow more and more comfortable as darkness surrounded me. With each breath I took, my senses seemed more and more compelled to abandon me.

As the cold night air entered the woods, it brought several voices with it. I instantly picked up the sound of footsteps and dogs barking. The sound of metal rubbing against leather. Soon, the rustiness of blood grew overpowering in the air.

I knew they were some hunters who went into the woods at night to check the traps. My vision was starting to blur out but when a pair of leather boots stepped in front of me, I knew I was right.

"Who is she?" A deep voice spoke above me. As I slowly slipped into unconsciousness, I heard another pair of boots step behind me.

"I don't know but look at her hair..." It was another voice. I heard it tense before it added, "It's so red," The former voice agreed. I didn't have any energy left to react to them. At this point, I was ready to accept whatever they had in store for me.

"Is she alive?" Asked the former voice before I felt some nudge my neck. It was enough to push me into the darkness lingering on my eyelids.

~

"Where was she found?" A voice asked in a whisper.

"My husband found her at the edge of the woods," Answered another in the same hushed tone. I groaned as light danced on my eyelids.

"Look! Her pupils are moving. She is going to wake up soon," The former voice spoke, this time louder. I decided to stay still before opening my eyes. Blinding light threatened to blind me as soon as I opened my eyes but I shut them instantly.

I felt someone move beside me and the sound of curtains followed. The light was soon gone. I slowly opened my eyes. My vision took some moments to focus but when it did, I was met with two unfamiliar faces looking down at me.

One belonged to an old woman while the other belonged to a much younger one.

"Hello," It was the old woman. My green eyes found her warm brown ones. I took this moment to notice her features. Wrinkles decorated most of her face and most of her hair had already turned grey. She looked humble, motherly.

"How are you feeling?" She asked. When her question was left unanswered by me, she asked further, "Can you sit up?" I took a deep breath before I tried to sit up. My body cooperated without any painful protest.

"I am fine," I told her and she nodded. I noticed that I was wearing fresh linen clothes and my hair was cut down to my waist.

"That's great. What's your name, maiden?" The old woman inquired further. Her brown eyes lingered on me without making me feel uncomfortable.

"Arsinoe," I spoke softly. She smiled at me before she asked further, "Where did you come from?" I searched my brain for the answer before I spoke carefully, "I... I lived deep in the woods. There was a fire there and my house was burned," I broke off into tears.

"Aw, Arsinoe. It's fine," The old woman rubbed my back as she placed my head on her shoulder. Calmness instantly washed over me as she added, "Do you want to go back into the woods?"

"No!" I shrieked. The terror was evident in my voice.

"Ah yes, my husband talked about the forest fire. It lasted almost a couple of weeks and it was horrible. I wonder how did she manage to survive it," The other woman spoke. I noticed how her eyes were trained on my red hair for most of the time.

"Let's not talk about that. She seems very terrified about it," The old woman cooed above my head. I let out a whimper at her words and hugged her. She hugged me back to calm me down.

"It's okay, Arsinoe. You can live with me if you want. I help the priestesses at Aphrodite's temple here," The old woman told me. She sounded very considerate and compassionate. I almost felt bad knowing that I'd be keeping a lot of things from her but I nodded anyway.

"Did you live alone in the woods?" She asked me and I nodded. A chill ran down my spine when I was reminded of his gleaming red eyes again but I pushed his thoughts out of my head.

"Would you like to go back anytime soon?" The old woman asked next. I noticed how her eyes grew pensive she had asked me the question.

"No,"

"Are you sure? Don't you have anyone out there?" The tone witch which she had asked the last question made me a bit suspicious about her but I decided to ignore the feeling for now.

"No,"

"Okay, I'll take you to the temple. You can work and stay there. I hope the priestesses would love an extra pair of helping hands,"

...

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