FRANCESCA
"We all knew you were different when you were born. First, you were not born the regular way and second, a light shone on your forehead like a diamond shape when you came out of your mother. You also did not have the pointy ears or paleness of an elf. This had never happened before so the elders claimed that you might be dangerous and should be killed but your parents refused. They didn't want to kill their only daughter."Zuri, your mother's friend, was not happy about this in particular and she tried to convince your mother. She even went as far as saying that you'll bring doom to Irkstone. She was a seer so she lied to your mother that she had seen into your future."But your mother could not bear to kill her child. Angry that your mother won't listen to her, Zuri left Irkstone. She was never really part of us. She was a sorceress your mother had found almost dead in the woods. You would think she would be faithful to your mother for saving her, but no, Zuri killed your mother.""Are you kidding me?" I burst out laughing. I could not control myself anymore. "This is the fantasy story I had been reading for a while now. I still have the book on my shelf."The old woman watched me as I laughed but I did not care. I kept laughing hard, finding everything funny. I could not believe that my reading of a particular book was starting to turn me into a dreamer.Regardless of how real this looked, I was sure it was another foolish dream of mine. Oh, how I would enjoy trashing that stupid book when I finally wake up. Reading that book was starting to do me more harm than good.The old woman watched me quietly with a blank expression on her face; she did not seem to be bothered that I was laughing at her. Rather, she looked amused herself and she waited till I was done laughing before she spoke,"A fantasy story? Really? And who did you say is the writer?""Someone. Duh!""Hmm." The old woman nodded. "You mean this book." She brought out a scroll and handed it over to me.I opened it and gasped when I saw that it was the same story I had read but written in a scroll."How did you get this?""Because I wrote it. I wrote it for you.""That can't be possible." I scoffed loudly."Of course, it is. Do you remember how you got it? Remember that you didn't buy it. You found it lying on your colonnade. You thought someone had dropped it there but when you could not find the owner, you took it in. But I dropped it there. I dropped it there so you can read about yourself." The old lady smiled, looking all proud."Remember the story never had an ending?" She probed and I found myself nodding in agreement.I could remember going online to search for the writer because I wanted to ask her when she was releasing the second part of the story but I had not found the book online.Back then, I had found it strange that such an interesting book had no title or author: there had been no picture, no profile, nothing about her. It had been strange.But now as I connected the dots, I felt goosebumps all over. Things were getting creepier and I felt sick to my stomach."I hope you believe me now." The old woman held my gaze.I looked away because her gaze was too intense to hold and also because I was frightened."Since you have read the entire story, I need not tell you about how the attack that claimed the lives of many elves in Irkstone started.""It was Zuri's doing. She planned it all." I muttered but the old woman shook her head."Yes, Zuri was involved but she would not have planned the attack alone. She had been helped by a werewolf pack.""But the story did not state that." I protested. I could not believe that we were arguing about a novel like it was real. It was funny. "It only said Zuri returned with many of her kind. Then she stole the princess from the palace after killing the queen. A maid went after her though, so she. . ." I trailed off, my eyes widening in shock as something dawned on me. I stared at the old lady."Are you that maid?"The book did say the maid was old and feeble with long grey hair."Yes." The old lady sighed and I gasped, feeling more goosebumps on my skin."This can't be true," I exclaimed but she ignored me."I went after Zuri but she had already cast a spell on you. She left you out in the woods to die but I picked you up. It had been difficult to break the spell but when I finally did, I sent you right into the future. It was the only way I could keep you safe. If Zuri found out that you were still alive, she would have come for you. I just had to take you to the future, but I was going to bring you back when it was time.""What are you? How do you have the power to do all this? I don't think elves have that much power.""Well, I was a different kind of elf. My father was a sorcerer. I learnt a bit of magic from him. I didn't have a reason to use it until Zuri.""So your father is just like Zuri.""No! My father was nothing like that evil woman!" The old woman growled and I flinched."I meant they were both magicians. I don't mean he's evil." I explained and she calmed down a little."I'm sorry I yelled. I just don't like to be associated with someone like Zuri.""I understand," I told her and it was quiet for a while.Then I asked,"Nothing much was said about you in the story. Why didn't you include yourself in the storyline?""That's because I'm not the centre of the story. The centre of the story is you, Mila. I was just a maid that served faithfully at the palace."I didn't state too that Zuri allied with werewolves because I was not sure then but now I am. Zuri had the backing of an alpha. You see why the story is incomplete?""Yes," I replied and she smiled again."But which alpha did Zuri team up with?""I do not know. This is what you have to figure out. All I know is that Zuri came with a pack of werewolves. You must find what pack they belonged to. You must find them!" She grabbed my shoulders and shook them hard."But how am I supposed to find them when the attack happened several years ago?" I blurted out in frustration. Was this not ridiculous?"Of course, you can. Maybe you should begin by hunting Zuri down. You must find everyone involved in that attack. Irkstone had laid in ruins for too long. Your father will come back to his senses when he sees you. He lost his mind after the attack. The demise of his wife and daughter hit him badly. Irkstone is not what it used to be anymore, Mila.""Are you saying King Dale doesn't know about my existence?""Yes. I couldn't tell him. It was too dangerous to do so. But now that you are here, he will get better. You are the only one who can revive Irkstone. You are the only one that can bring your father back to his senses."Her gray eyes were twinkling with a new light but I did not share in her enthusiasm. This was just too much to bear."But I can't believe this." I breathed, feeling so lightheaded. I couldn't believe I was seeing and speaking to a novel character. I couldn't believe I was a novel character myself."I need some time to ponder on these things," I said to her and she nodded in understanding."Yes. I know it's too much to handle. You can take as much time as you want but remember, Irkstone is counting on you." She touched my cheek affectionately and then walked away into some other room.I stared at her retreating figure, feeling more confused than I had ever been.RIOI had been running since with no definite destination on my mind. All through, the path had been lonely and as I moved further away, I could sense from within that I was wandering farther away from home. This was scary because I had never had any reason to leave my packland: it was where I had been born and where I had grown up, but I guess things were changing now. I was embarking on a journey of the unknown, a journey in which I did not know what to expect: if I would survive or not.It was a known fact that an alpha should not be out alone, wandering about in the woods with no company but I did not think I had the right to be accompanied by warriors anymore. For all I knew, I had lost that right. I had flouted all the rules my father had taught me: An alpha's duty was to protect his pack. An alpha was never one to run in the face of danger. An alpha was not one to be left vulnerable in the hands of others. But I was not that alpha anymore.Currently thinking about my father
FRANCESCA It has been three days since I found myself stuck in this new world with no way out. Three days yet I was just as confused and heartbroken as the first day. Nothing seemed to make sense: not the ragged dressing, not the buildings, not even the food. That morning, Madam Creese — the old lady had told me to call her that — had made me some pancakes which looked different from what I was used to. They were more like crepes or tortillas, unlike what was made in the future. According to Madam Creese, I was over five hundred years behind time. Living here would require a lot of getting used to and the truth was that I was tired even before I could explore this new world. I wanted to return to my old life. I wanted to live in my house, sit on my bed, read my novels, and go for a walk. I wanted to be able to visit my mother's gravestone anytime I wanted to. I wanted to see my friends again. As I stood by the river, I found myself wondering what my friends were thinking about
FRANCESCA I was right. There was someone behind the tree. It was a man and he was walking slowly towards me, his green eyes fixed on me. I stared right back at him, surprised to see a human being in the woods. Since I found myself here, I had not come in contact with any human except Madam Creese so it was quite shocking yet pleasing to see someone else. I watched him, my eyes taking in his appearance as he approached me slowly. He was dressed in rags just as I was — I guess he was dressed worst. His tunic was ripped by the side and the brown breeches he wore were torn. From his dirty and bruised feet, I could tell he had been walking a lot. Was he a wanderer? Did he even have a roof over his head? I pulled my eyes from his feet back to his face and my heart skipped a bit at the beauty that was now standing a few feet away from me. He had full brows and long lashes. His nose was long and pointed and his full lips were a sensuous sight: they were a light shade of pink; the cup
FRANCESCA Madam Creese did not say anything to me until we got to the cottage. She had simply held me by the wrist and pulled me along as we walked back to the cottage. She was only an old woman but sometimes, her strength amazed me. The walk back to the cottage had been quite long. I had not realized that I had walked farther from the cottage until now. I had simply followed my feet where it led me — and it had led me to the river. Now I knew why Madam Creese was mad at me. She had clearly told me to stay within the confines of the cottage for my safety but I had gone ahead and flouted that rule. "I'm sorry," I said the moment we got into the cottage. "For what?" Madam Creese stared blankly at me, her grey eyes lacking any emotion. I was taken aback by this and I stared back at her, confused. "For what, Mila?" She probed and my brows furrowed. Back there, she had called me Francesca but here she was calling me Mila. I could not understand this old lady. "For leaving the cotta
FRANCESCA Her words were making me teary and I blinked multiple times to stop the tears from falling. "I know you yearn for a companion. I understand that but you must understand that you can't trust anyone, especially not people you find in the forest. Many times, those people are fugitives. Rogues, who had left their lands after committing a crime." "I guess that is how they would see us too because we are not different from them." I found myself saying. Madam Creese frowned at that."What do you mean?" "We are also living in the forests like criminals. I bet Rio must think we are fugitives like you believe he is. But we are not. Why don't you give him the benefit of the doubt? What if he is not any of the things you are accusing him of?" I could not explain why I was suddenly defending a stranger I had just met a moment ago but I did not like that Madam Creese was writing him off before she got to know him. I agree that he could be dangerous but what if he was not? Would I ju
I scoffed loudly as I watched the elf girl walk away with her grumpy grandmother. It was funny how the old woman thought I was interested in her daughter. Though she had not said a word to insinuate that, I could tell from the nasty glares she had thrown my way that she wanted me to be as far away from Francesca as possible. I could not help but find this really hilarious as I watched the two of them leave. Though Francesca kept looking behind her shoulder to catch my gaze, the grumpy old woman was keen on pulling her violently as though she wanted to detach the poor girl's arm from her body. I scoffed again as I stared at their retreating figures. I wished I could tell the old lady not to worry about me because I had no intention of being around her daughter. Of course, Francesca was very pretty — if I was being honest with myself, I had enjoyed the little conversation we had had — She was quite intriguing too. Perhaps, this was one reason I did not want to be anywhere near her. S
FRANCESCA"Your eyes on your target! Now shoot!" Madam Creese shouted and I did as she had taught me but just like the first ten times, the arrow fell to the ground before my feet rather than go hit the bottle.I groaned in frustration and set the bow apart. We had been doing this all evening yet it felt like I was not born to shoot an arrow; I just could not get it no matter how much Madam Creese tried. This was proving to be too difficult and I was already exhausted.Sweat trickled down the side of my face and I wiped it off with the back of my palms. My fingers hurt from pulling the bow's drawstring many times and my back was beginning to ache. I heard Madam Creese sigh deeply beside me and I bowed my head, fixing my gaze on the ground. She had been really patient with me that evening and I felt bad to let her down.We were standing in front of the cottage and Madam Creese was trying to teach me how to shoot an arrow. She had placed a bottle some distance away and was asking me to
FRANCESCAOf course, I knew what she was suspicious about. Ever since the incident with Rio, she had become more and more suspicious about my movement. She never wanted me to step out of the house anymore. I was sure she thought I was staying back to execute a plan I had under my sleeves.But where could I possibly go? I didn't know my way around here. I didn't know anyone. I had not even seen Rio in days. I had returned to the river, hoping to find him, but he was not there. He was nowhere to be found. Thinking about Rio made my heart feel heavy; It was like he had betrayed me somehow. I could not explain how but I felt betrayed nonetheless. I mean, he should have come looking for me — or had Madam Creese scared him that much to make him stay away completely? Now, I knew for a fact that I was only bothered simply because I didn't have any friends. I was sure I would not care about him if I had other friends. However, I had been greatly annoyed by his absence. Not knowing who to c