Huntress in the Castle: Chapter Three (rough draft)

Three:

It is so maddeningly quiet.

I am used to five older brothers, I am not used to this. I am not used to being so alone. I am so used to cleaning, or cooking, or playing with Finn and Craig, or talking to Niall. I am used to activity and voices and laughter. I have only been here for one day, what am I supposed to do?

I leave my room, looking back and forth to make sure Nadine isn’t anywhere. And when I see she isn’t around, I sprint like a mad man. I run as fast and as I hard as I can and jump on the banister, I scream all the way down, howling laughter. I have never gone so fast in my life! I am flying! Oh God I am actually flying! There isn’t anything to stop me! I can’t stop!

I am grabbed mid flight, spun around and pulled into a wall of plush. We fall, me sitting on his wide chest. I am gasping for air and then I burst out laughing. My face buried in the wall that is his chest.

“What were you doing?” Vered roars as he sits up, nostrils flared, ears upright.

I am crying I am laughing so hard. “I was just trying to have some fun!” I gasp, rolling off the top of him and sitting on the floor. “I didn’t realize I wouldn’t be able to stop!”

His arm reaches out, smashing the banister in half. I scream, jumping back.

“Never do that again!” He screams at me. “What if I hadn’t been there to catch you?”

“I would of fallen!” I snap back at him.

His lips curl up over his teeth. “And broken you neck!” He shouts. “Then your brothers would come and cut mine off!”

My mouth hangs open guiltily, my eyes falling onto the debris that was the banister. “Well, then yes.”

His ears flick.

I twist my fingers about one another. “I am sorry. But, please understand, I am not used to not having anyone around.” I can’t make myself look at him. At least, not his eyes. “I have had five brothers all around me all my life. I am not used to entertaining myself.”  I finally look up at him, my eyes resting on his ears, slowly falling back flat against the dome of his head.

He seems to calm then. His anger too turns into guilt. He had more right to be angry than I did though. His ears flick back and forth quickly, and his tail curls around his legs.

He clears his throat. “I…I see then.”

“Could I go outside and look around?” I ask. “Could you show me around?”

He shakes his head. “No. You can’t go outside.” He says and then storms away, up the stairs.

“You can go out into the garden.”

I jump. Why is Nadine always appearing out of thin air?

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle.” Nadine says softly.

I shake my head. “I’ve never met someone so quiet as you, Nadine.” I laughed, trying to make light of it. “But the garden? I can really go there?”

Nadine nods, porcelain like hands folding across her skirt.. “I’ll show you the way.”

In all honesty, Nadine scares me more than Vered. At times, I often wonder if she is even human. Her pale skin, black eyes, and her silence. It all adds into a beautiful but eerie package. She’s like a doll almost, from what I remember of them. I was always afraid of dolls as a little girl, so Granny always made me stuffed toys in the shape of bears and cats.

“Vered isn’t used to people.” Nadine said, suddenly. “Let alone a pretty girl. So please, give him time. He must teach himself how to be around you.”

I momentarily stunned by her comment. Pretty? Me? “I understand.” I swallow, fumbling with what else to say. “And thank you.”

“I do appreciate you being kind towards him.” Nadine murmured, opening a glass door out into the garden.

I step out into the sunlight, blinking in awe. Despite the chill in the air the garden is full of flowers and life. This certainly wasn’t the overgrown jungle I had imagined before.

I turn to her. “Oh Nadine, it’s lovely.”

She smiles softly. The first time I have seen her smile at all. “Vered loves it. We try to keep it up.”

I touch a rose, feeling it’s satin soft petals. I then bend, smelling it. “These are the most beautiful roses I have ever seen!”

She smiles proudly. “Thank you, Fianna.”

I look around, up the walls that surrounded the garden and the statues boarding it. I then look back at Nadine, who is still standing in the doorway.

“Why don’t you join me.”

She shakes her head. “I have some chores to do. But please, enjoy yourself.” She says and then leaves.

I wouldn’t of minded her company, even if she does make my skin crawl sometimes. I stroll around the garden though, smell all the flowers and enjoying the sun on my skin. After a while, I find a gazebo and sit underneath it. I find myself wishing I had brought a book along with me to read. So with the boredom, combined with the warmth of the sun, I was soon asleep under the gazebo.

I had the strangest of dreams. I dreamt of a castle, another castle, far away and near the ocean. A young man, younger than me, is acting monstrously. Laughing and destroying all in his path, throwing stones at people who dare pass by him. Behind him, a woman in dark clothes watches and then disappears inside. The boy turns, I see his eyes.

I am then looking up at the castle I am in now. The gates swing open and from within I hear violent screaming, roaring, crying. The sounds of rampant, violent destruction. I hear glass shattering, and it falls like rain from above. Shards of mirror from the sky. I pick up a shard, looking deep into the reflection I see Vered, I see his eyes. He is crying, weeping angrily. There is blood on his paws, large gashes caused by shattered glass.

I look up, realizing I am now in what was once the library, torn asunder by his anger. He is crouched before the fireplace, a trail of bloody paw prints behind him. Somewhere in the distance I heard the laughter and shrieks of that despicable child, and it fades into the hushed wind.

I walk to Vered and lean over him, seeing him holding his claws out, paws bloody and sore. To see suffering always broke my heart. I had been taught by my brothers that when an animal suffers, it is the kind thing to put it out of its misery. Like when an arrow misses it’s mark, or if it’s leg is broken, it is dying slowly.

I reach out, wrapping my arms around Vered’s neck. “It’ll be ok.” I whisper. When I lift my head, I see I am no longer holding Vered, but the cloak he always wears, empty and cold. And on the floor before me, I see something laying in the glow of the fire.

I open my eyes then, looking around at the garden. A vine has grown around my arm, holding my wrist like encircled fingers. I gently peel it away and head back inside. I hope that things have called down from my attempts to liven things up. I understand that Vered was worried for my safety, for that also meant his safety from my brothers. But he had no reason to roar at me so.

If I was to live here, and if Vered were to be part of my destiny, I should try to befriend him. If only to just get used to his eyes.

I went to the library and found him laying before the fireplace. I knocked on the doorframe and he rose to sitting, turning his head towards me. His ears went back, and he cautiously stood.

“Fianna,” he said, almost whispering.

I nod, making myself smile. “May I come in?”

He comes to the door, opening it fully and extending his arm out to allow me in. I wanted to chuckle, but I kept it in check, afraid I might hurt his feelings. But I couldn’t help thinking to myself that no beast in the wild had such manners.

“Is something the matter?” He asks.

I look up at him. “I’m bored and lonely.” I explained. “I thought, perhaps, if you didn’t mind I could wander about the library and find some books to read.” I wanted him to answer quickly so I could whisk away amongst the books, escape him and his eyes.

Would I ever get used to the sight of him? I wasn’t even sure how I felt about him. I was afraid, yes, but only because I didn’t understand him. But at the same time, I felt myself drawn to him. If he was what Granny had been preparing me for that would explain all of it, but I couldn’t be sure. But she said there was an evil meant for me, and while he looked it, I couldn’t believe that Vered could be capable of evil.

“Maybe we could read together.” The words left me before I could control myself. I wanted to be polite to my host, my captor. I also so badly craved someone to talk to. I normally spent my days with Granny, or the twins, or Niall. I had so much to say and no one but my reflection to say it to here.

Vered’s ears flicked back and forth as he began to think. When his ears moved so he looked like a kitten discovering dangling yarn or a caterpillar. If only my brothers could of seen this side of him, perhaps they would have been less afraid to leave me by his side. I didn’t think Vered was all monster. There were aspects to him I found to be very sweet, like his ears and his tail. They were honest to his nature.

“I…suppose.” He finally mumbled. “If you aren’t bothered.”

My mouth slightly opened and I shook my head. “What would bother me?”

His ears stood straight up and his tail began to swish back and forth behind him. Had I just made him happy?

I smile then, genuinely smile. “Well, then,” I push a stray curl from my eyes. “I will try to find something for us to read.”

Vered opened and shut his mouth and I turned back to him. His eyes darted back and forth, trying to find something in his mind to say. “I…well.”

I tilt my head towards him. “Yes?”

“I…I have a book…I think you might…enjoy.”

I nod. “That’s fine.”

He moves on all fours, going back to the makeshift bed before the fireplace. He sits on his haunches and goes through the books stacked all around him. As he searches, I sit down beside him on a cushion, folding my legs up beside me. His tail stills for a moment and then slowly began to sway back and forth. I so wanted to ask him if having a tail was useful or a hindrance. I at least could use it to tell what his mood was.

He then turned, handing me a rather large tome bound in leather. He then lay down beside me as I opened it up. I didn’t recognize the language. I couldn’t read this book. I felt myself blush with embarrassment as I looked harder and harder at the pages.

“Is something the matter?”

I glance over at Vered then back at the book. “I can’t…I don’t know this…” I swallowed then cleared my throat. “I don’t know this language.”

Vered took the book gingerly from my hand. “I’m sorry.”

I twist my fingers about. “It’s ok. You didn’t know.”

I look up at him as he sits upright, resting the book in his lap. “It’s a book of old fairy tales. My mother used to read it to me when…when I was little.”

His mother. This made me wonder, was he born normal? Did something change him into this beast?

“It is hard to imagine you little.” I chuckled. I then grasped my hand over my mouth. Oh no.

He then laughed, much to my surprise. “Yes I…I understand that.”

“I’m sorry.” I mumbled. “I’ve just never seen anything quite like you. It’s still quite stunning.”

He nods his head slowly and looks down into the book.

“I think you’re quite amazing.”

He looks at me, ears back, tail slightly raised and still. He couldn’t believe me. He couldn’t understand why I would say such a thing.

I look up at him, meeting those devastating eyes.

“You really think that? You…you’re not afraid?”

I shrug and look into the fire. “I have always been in awe of animals. Especially big animals like bears and great elk. The stories of griffins and dragons always held my attention the most. I just couldn’t imagine such massive creatures, frightening but so beautiful.”

There was a low rumble from his throat, like thunder behind the mountains. It was soft and comforting. A purr? I smile at this noise and look up at him.

“You are…different, Fianna.” He says. “But…in a good way.”

I pull my knees up to my chest. “You too.”

I began to realize there was a sort of magic to the castle. There were fresh flowers by my bed every morning. If I was ever slightly hungry or thirsty, whatever I needed would appear somewhere near me. There was always something new for me to wear, whether it be a dress to wear to supper, or something comfortable. Not to mention Nadine and how she appeared silently. And the garden too, no matter how cold the winds became it remained as if it were summer. And while I was growing more curious by the day, I didn’t think it would be my place to ask Nadine or Vered about it. At least not yet.

In the beginning, I usually awoke to find my breakfast beside my bed. I would eat and then go over to the closet to find an outfit laid out for me. But one morning, fed up with the lonely sound of hearing myself chew, I got out of bed and pushed the trolley with my breakfast down the hall and to the library.

Vered was still asleep, curled up in a ball before a dying fire. His breakfast trolley was before the mantle, trays still covered. I walk in, setting my trolley aside and I squatted down on the floor beside Vered. His cape covered him and his eyes were shut tight, face scrunched up and wrinkled.

I stood back up, feeling the cold come creeping up achy in the room. I went to the fireplace and started throwing in logs. Soon the fire was roaring and the room was warm again. I gathered my breakfast and sat before the fire. Vered may not of been awake, but at least I wasn’t alone.

“Fianna?” I heard his low voice grumble behind me.

I turned, orange wedge between my lips. “Good morning, Vered.” I say.

He shakes his head, racking his claws through his disheveled mane. “What are you doing here?”

“I am tired of eating by myself.” I answer, setting my plate on the floor and turning to face him. “I didn’t wake you did I?”

He shakes his head, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “Uh…no. Uhm…” He walks on all fours, sluggishly to his trolley. “I just didn’t think that…that you liked eating with me.” He took the tray off the top of the trolley and sat it on the floor beside me.

I had the occasional lunch with him, and every night we sat in the dining room and had dinner. Although I wouldn’t say that he actually ate around me. He picked and played with his food, but rarely did I see him eat a whole meal in front of me.

“I have five brothers.” I simply state. “I am used to seeing messy eaters. If that‘s what bothers you.”

He scoffs, a deep rasp sound in his throat. “I am not good company in the morning.” He poured his tea and drank the cup in one gulp.

“I just need the company.” I answer him. “I’ve told you before, I am not used to being alone, and you’re all I have now.”

He looks at me, then avoids me and looks into the fire. “Did you stoke the fire back?” He removes the covers from the tray, revealing his breakfast.

I nod. “It was rather chilly when I came in.” I looked over at him. “But with your fur, I doubt you feel the cold.”

“Only sometimes.” He gingerly plucks at his food and places it daintily in his mouth. It looks so awkward, so uncomfortable.

“Stop that.” I laugh, shaking my head.

He turns his head snappishly to me. “Stop what?”

I motion to his plate and hands. “The way you’re eating! Don’t try to be polite around me, eat like you normally do.”

His brow furrows down at me. “I am eating like I normally do.”

I scoff back at him. “I highly doubt that.”

He growls at me, eyes narrow slits.

I reach down, grabbing blindly at my plate and grab a fistful of whatever I can reach and I shove it into my mouth. Crumbs and bits fall everywhere, down my chin and chest and all over onto the floor. I then chew, loudly and with my mouth wide open. I then wash it down with tea, loudly gulping. I smack my lips and then slam the empty teacup onto the tray.

“That is how you eat!” I announce with a scowl.

He stares at me, eyes widened. His mouth opens and he begins to laugh, a huge grin cutting across his face.

My scowl melts away and I smile, laughing with him. I begin wiping egg and jam and crumbs from my face.

He holds up a napkin and I press my face into it.

“Nadine has told me she doesn’t like to watch me eat.” Vered confesses. “So, I didn’t think you would either.”

I shrug my shoulders. “I think you’ve learned by now I can be pretty forgiving. I can look passed most things.”

Vered smiles at me, ears back and down. He lowers his head towards his tray and begins eating. Head low, and claws feeding into his mouth. I go back to eating as well, plucking things up with my fingers, save for the porridge which I drink like soup.

“If I weren’t the only one here in the palace, would you still be coming to me for company?” Vered asked suddenly.

I look down at him, swallowing a mouthful of almonds. “I don’t know.” I lick my lips. “I would like to say yes. I do like you now.”

He lowers his eyes and his tail swishes back and forth despite himself.

“I have always been surrounded by people. So, being alone…it scares me a bit. I don’t know what to do or how to act. In all honesty Vered…I would cling to the company of anyone who would be willing to give it.” I begin to feel tears in my eyes. I really don’t want him to see me cry, but it is becoming painful to hold back, the loneliness and the homesick.

I feel his paw at the top of my head, and then his claws run through my hair. “I will give it.” He says gently. “All you need.” I look at him, tears rolling down my cheeks. His eyes send me over the edge. Damn those eyes. “Just know you’re not alone, Fianna.” He reaches up tentatively, cupping my arm in his paw. “I will try my hardest to make this place your home.”

I nod, my bottom lip quivering. “Thank you, Vered.” I reach out, taking his recoiling paw in my hands and holding it tight.

His eyes look pained. “You thank me?” He seems unsure. “Even though I am holding you here?”

I shake my head. “Forget that. It’s fine.” I sniffle and Vered hands me another napkin. “Vered…” My voice cuts off when his gaze meets mine again.

“Yes?”

I hiccup. “I want to be here. Really…I do.”

He smiles then, ears back, and his tail begins to wag. “If you say so.”

I wipe my face dry. “Could you…” I hiccup again. “Could you read me another story from that book?”

He places our trays on one of the trolleys. “I would love to.”

I chuckle, for some reason my tears won’t stop. I had truly scared myself. Thinking about being left all alone, being ignored by both Nadine and Vered, and no hope of seeing my family again. It was truly too much for my heart to take. It was the first real cry I had had since I watched Finn and Craig being taken away.

“Don’t cry anymore.” I was stunned by the touch of his paw again. He gently wiped away my tears, and seeming to realize what he had done, he pulled away instantly.

I stare up at him, unsure of what to do or saw. His touch was so warm, so gentle. I wasn‘t expecting it. I wasn‘t expecting my heart to skip a beat. “I’m fine…really.” I finally sputter out.

He seems to draw into himself, pulling into a ball. “I’m sorry.”

I wipe away the fresh tears and look over at him. “It isn’t you. It’s me.” I blow my nose into the napkin and sniffle. “I’m just homesick is all.” I stand up and try to smile at him. “I’ll go change. Freshen up.” I sniffle again. “Have a story ready when I get back, alright?”

He nods slowly, still pulled into a ball. “Yes.”

I go back to my room, comb out my hair and change, taking my time. My mind is racing almost as fast as my heart. When Vered touched me, I felt something. Something deep inside myself, something raw, something truly there. It was the first time he had touched me so, the first time we hadn’t been completely afraid.

I returned to the library, Vered had cleaned up. He had made up the pallet before the fire and there was a fresh pot of tea waiting for me as well. I sat down beside Vered, who was still engulfed in the book, flipping through pages and moving his lips silently.

It was then, looking at his mane, that wild burst of fur, that I got an itch. I stood up and went back to my room and grabbed my brush. When I returned Vered was trying not to look curious at my actions as I returned. I stood behind him, standing on my tiptoes, I began running the comb through his fur.

He shivered. “What are you doing?”

“When is the last time you brushed this mess?” I chuckled. “You can read to me, and I’ll fix this.”

“Fianna, really-” He tried to argue.

“I want to.” I urged softly. In all honesty, I couldn’t face him. I didn’t want to have to look into his eyes or have them look at me right now. I was still too fragile.

He cleared his throat and shakily returned to the book. Slowly, he began to read to me as I combed out his mane. Sometimes if I hit a knot or tugged at his scalp his voice would hitch, his ears would leap up, tail twitch. But finally, I managed to tame the mess and I combed it all back, smooth and silky, tying the excess off with a ribbon.

“How does that feel?” I ask.

He swallows. “Much…better.” He says hesitantly.

I smile and sit back down beside him again. “It looks better too.” I inadvertently meet his gaze. “I can…I can see your face better.”

Thankfully, he looks away. “Thank you, Fianna.”

I nod to the book. “Go ahead, finish.”

I pull my knees up to my chest, staring blankly into the fire. I realize that I want to be around Vered, I want to be beside him. As crazy as it all seems, I am pulled towards him. I am the moon, circling the sun.

With a hesitant hand I reach out, putting it on Vered’s knee and I slowly lean in, pressing into Vered’s side. He is frozen, and he begins reading faster. I rest my head against his arm and try to remember to breathe. I am resting against a monster, a beast, but I am only afraid of myself.

After a moment Vered returns to reading normally, and his tail coils up around me. But I am sure, like me, his heart is racing.

Those become our mornings from that point on. We eat our breakfast, and then he’ll read to me as I tame his mane. We were learning each other, getting used to one another. I saw what Nadine had told me before, Vered had no clue how to act around anyone, least of all himself.

He watched me a lot, studying me, like I did when I hunted game. By watching, her learned where I liked to go, what I liked to do. He discovered I liked sitting in sunshine, so her created a nook for me under one of the large windows by the fireplace. He noticed I liked stories about adventures and great journeys, so that’s what he read to me.

I too, was beginning to understand him. The subtle language his body had that spoke more than he did. The way his ears and tail moved, they would tell me when he was sad, happy, angry, even though he wouldn’t give it away. He barely spoke, and if he did he thought long and hard on it. His words were chosen carefully, spoken with the fragility of glass.

He had a tendency to get frustrated easily and give up when he didn’t succeed the first try. Like the day he tried to peel an apple for me, he couldn’t get the skin off without taking chunks from the apple and so he threw it into the fire. Another day, as he taught me how to read, he shut the book we were reading, flustered that he couldn’t quite get his words out right.

I often found it silly how gingerly we circled around one another. We so wanted to reach out to each other, hold the other, and let go of the fear. But we continued to dance and circle around one another, our fear telling us we would hurt the other.

One morning, I walked into the library to find Vered still very much asleep, shirtless, and sprawled upon his pallet of blankets and cushions as if he had fallen there. His cape was tangled up around his waist and all along his legs, trapping his tail in a tight bind. He lay sort of twisted, his leg down, chest up and arms out on either side. One arm up parallel to his head, the other straight out and onto the cool floor.

I knelt beside him, untangling his cape and freeing his tail. I rested my hand against his massive chest. A great wall of short, thick fur. Pressing my palm against him, I felt the stiff muscle underneath.  Spreading my fingers I pressed my palm down, feeling his chest rise with his breathing, his strong heartbeat suddenly quicken at my touch.

I then leaned over his face, brushing the fur away from his mouth and nose. My hand lingered against his cheek, pressing gently against the short, velvet like fur. I realized then he meant so much more to me than I ever thought. He was a world completely unknown and unwanted to me, and now, he was my whole world. I knelt down, kissing him, just against soft, flat space between his forehead and the bridge of his nose. He was warm and smelled of roses and earth.

His eyes opened slowly, finally realizing my presence. “Oh…Fianna…what time is it?”

I smiled, slightly relieved he hadn’t felt my kiss. “Breakfast.” I chuckle, moving aside so he could sit up. “You were quite the sight when I came in. You did not look comfortable at all.”

He shook his head, wild fur splaying out. “I guess not. My back is killing me.” He growled, rubbing his mid back and arching, his chest sticking out. I wanted to press my head against his chest, listening to his breathing, hear his heartbeat. But that was just curiosity, and that thought frightened me a bit.

“You seemed to be sleeping like a rock, though.” I laugh, moving over towards our breakfast trolley and pouring us tea.

“I was up late.” Vered answered, standing. He must of finally realized her was topless because he wrapped his cape around his shoulders to cover himself.

“Oh?” I asked, handing him his cup.

He smiled, our fingers touching each other. “After you went to bed I went out into the woods.”

I look up expectantly at him and he smiled knowingly, pleased in my expression.

He then pulled out a piece of wood, already roughly carved and about three inches thick and four feet long.

I removed myself from the breakfast trolley and bent down beside it. “Is that yew?” I asked, running my hand over it.

“I read it was the best for making a bow.”

I stood erect, looking into his eyes. “A bow?” I gasp.

“You told me once you always had to borrow one from your brothers. You couldn’t afford the money for a new slab of yew to make one yourself.”

I bite down hard on my bottom lip and my fingers are once again tangled together. Then, as I finally figure out how to untangle them, I wrap my arms around Vered, hugging him tight.

“Oh, thank you so much!” I cry, pressing into him.

His whole body stiffened up, as his paws came to rest on my shoulders. Then, very gently, he petted my hair. “I just…I wanted to do something.”

It was our first embrace, and as I released him I realized I didn’t want to let go at all. I wanted to continue holding him tightly in my arms. “You don’t have to do a thing for me, Vered.”

His fingers lingered in my hair for a moment. “Please, just indulge me. It’ll settle my mind.” He then motioned to our breakfast when he saw I was going to inspect the wood. “Go and eat. Our food is getting cold.”

He reaches over my head as I approach the tray, lifting it up and revealing the breakfast Nadine has made for us. I reach for a bowl of mixed fruits.

“So, you know how to make bows?” I ask, watching him lift the entire tray and set it before the fire, where we sit and eat our meals every morning.

“No.” He answers, a nervous chuckle. “But I have been reading up on it. I have been practicing some carving as well.” He looks at me, “do you?” He sits on the floor, his tail curling around me.

I shrug. “The bows we have at home were handed down from our father and his brothers. But Finn and Craig used to make toy ones.”

“Then it will be a learning experience for us both.”

I smile up at him, then take my seat at his side.