There was still that hard, unforgiving glint in Tasnia’s eyes. Finally, she gave a stiff nod.
“Very well. I will gather the rest of the Elders. We will do what we can to protect our village from more of this…dark magic. For now, I think it best we end the night and return to our homes.”
There were grumbles from the other guests, but most of them already slipped away and returned to their homes. Yirrie held tight to Snow as Elator came to her other side. He eyed Ardan who still held the dagger in his hand.
“You can put that away now,” Elator said, his voice soft.
Ardan, as if realizing he still held it, sheathed the weapon into its holder attached to his belt, which was concealed by his tunic. Snow met his gaze and gave him a nod of gratitude. He reciprocated her silent appreciation with a small but genuine smile. It made her stomach flutter.
“You saved her?” Elator asked.
“I did,” he said.
“How?” Snow demanded. “All the others were frozen in time.”
“I was, too, for a moment. But I focused on your vines.” He reached a hand out. The tip of his finger brushed down the delicate petals of one of the flowers on her shoulder. “The flowers were shriveling. I realized something was terribly wrong.”
She glanced down at the flowers that were, indeed, shriveled all along the vines she had conjured. Their petals were puckered into nothing more than dried up wrinkles.
“How did you break free?” Snow wanted to know.
He shook his head. “I don’t know. Only that I was compelled to reach for my dagger. I did the only thing I knew to do. I slashed through the black mist. That’s when it released you and disappeared.”
Yirrie released Snow long enough to wrap Ardan in a fierce, tight hug. “Thank you, Ardan.”
When she released him and stepped back, he gave Snow a weak smile, as though he was not sure what to make of Yirrie’s sudden affection.
Valda made an appearance then, taking her brother by the hand. “We’re going, Ardan.”
As she tugged him away, she flashed Snow a look of displeasure, as though she were unhappy he was speaking to her now. Snow ignored her, though, and kept her attention on Ardan whose focus never left hers as he walked away. A delightful fluttering danced within her chest as her heart skipped a beat.
She immediately squelched that feeling. While Ardan’s attention was lovely, she knew the Elders would never allow their courtship.
“I think we should be going, too,” Elator said. “The Elders are using their power to protect the village.”
Yirrie nodded. She returned to Snow’s side, putting an arm around her shoulders as they walked back to their home. She glanced down and noticed the tear in her skirt.
“Oh, Snow. Your gown…”
“It can be repaired, my wife,” Elator said, sounding weary.
Snow glanced at him as he rubbed a hand down his face and sighed. She almost laughed. So Elator found his wife just as exhausting as Snow did on some occasions.
“Yes, of course. I’ll have Zaliya repair it.”
And that was the last they spoke on the short walk back home.
That night, Snow laid in her bed curled on her side peering through the window. Moonlight slashed through the trees, sending blue-white beams to the ground. There was something mystical about it. Something that seemed to call to her.
Unable to sleep, she pushed off the bed covers and rose, placing her bare feet on the plush rug. She perched on the edge of her bed, plotting. She should not be thinking about slipping out into the night, especially after what happened that evening at the festival.
And yet, she could not stop thinking about Annilen. The forest sprite had not responded to any of her calls. She needed to know her friend was all right.
She slipped out of bed and, rather than dressing, pulled on a dressing gown over her nightdress. At the window, she pushed it open and paused, taking in the verdant scents of the evening as they wafted to her. Inhaling, she closed her eyes. As the wind fluttered by, she smelled the nightingale flower blooming somewhere nearby, damp leaves from a recent rain, and the woodsy scent of trees.
Perching on the window ledge, she swung her legs out and, after taking one more deep breath, she hopped out of her window. Her feet landed on the cool grass and then she headed around the end of the house toward the edge of the forest. She needed to find Annilen.
She took her time as she made her way along the path, her feet silent as she placed slow, methodical steps. The path she had come to know as well as anything.
