Darkness Dies with the Sunrise

Chapter 8

- Marigold -

Marigold awoke to the singing of birds and early morning sunlight streaming in through her window. She sat up and stretched. She couldn't remember the last time she had slept that well. She told herself it was simply the exhaustion of all her adventures thus far. But a quiet voice inside her said it was because she truly felt safe in this house Pan built her, that she could really trust him. He had spoken so softly and smiled so genuinely. She let her hair down, picking through the tousled curls with her fingers. Visions of her several peaceful walks with him came to her mind. Images of him intently looking over her cut, and then him doing the same for Miles. Her mind also went back to the two bonfires and the way he had joked with and listened to each boy who talked to him. She stopped preening her hair as memories of how frightening he could be bled through the others. She remembered how much he seemed to revel in the chaos at the arena, how pleased he seemed at those three boys' terror, like he relished in the mere threat of violence. She shook her head and kept fixing her hair. He must have been acting. Leaders have certain expectations placed on them, specific appearances to keep. Besides, Marigold hadn't seen any pirates around anyway. Sure he had said they stole that chest of clothes from some pirates, but other than that, there wasn't any other evidence. Whatever had happened must have been long ago.

She tied her hair back. Even with a different style, a few of those pesky pieces still fell around her face, but she was used to it. She laced up her boots and climbed down. The notches along the tree trunk were perfectly placed to make for easy climbing, a fact Marigold was incredibly grateful for. A homey affection for the island had begun to sprout in her during her short time there, but she still lacked many of the skills necessary for island living. She was determined to learn, though. She had learned some about preparing fish the day before, surely she could learn to help actually catch some one day and could help hunt and gather in the forest too. She followed the marigold path back to the fork in the road. The flowers were perfectly placed to bathe in the scattered rays of sunlight. Looking around she felt sure she could navigate along the path. She was certain she knew which branch in the path could take her to the lagoon for bathing and which one would take her back to Camp. She followed the marigolds toward the latter.

She entered Camp just as boys were lining up for breakfast. She noticed that several boys appeared to be missing. By her estimations, at least a third were gone. And there was no sign of Pan, though she did spot Felix brooding over his breakfast off in the northwestern corner of Camp. She didn't see Miles or Slightly or Brooks. The boys who were at Camp were all quietly eating their breakfast. A few worked on small tasks around camp in silence. Marigold saw Kane sitting off by the medical crates, nibbling on some toast and rummaging through one of them. She quickly grabbed her breakfast portion and walked over to him.

"Good morning!" She said more brightly than she felt. The mysterious absence of all of those boys and the sober demeanor of those present made her uneasy.

"Mornin'" Kane responded, pulling the toast from his mouth. But he didn't turn to face her, remaining consumed in his work.

"Um, where is everyone?" Marigold asked, all pretenses of cheer gone.

"Oh." He said. "They're out scouting." He took a bite of toast and pulled a book out of the crate he was going through.

"Scouting? Scouting what?" Marigold caught a glimpse of the cover. It was clearly some sort of medical book.

"For pirates." Kane flipped through a few pages before tossing it back into the crate and moving on to the crate next to it. He flashed her a small, reassuring smile. "They'll probably be back soon though." He added finishing his toast and searching the crate with renewed focus.

"Oh. Well, thanks." She said, turning to find a spot to eat her breakfast. She decided to sit on the small rock by the firepit that she had before. For pirates. Kane had said they were scouting for pirates. Maybe it was just a precaution. But maybe altercations with pirates hadn't been so long ago. Maybe they were still a threat. Marigold tried to put her mind on other things by focusing on her breakfast. But as she ate, she felt like she was being watched. She looked around and saw Felix staring at her. He had a smirk on his face that warped the scar on his cheek. His smirk wasn't confident and amused like Pan's. It wasn't like everything was a game. Felix's expression gave the impression that he knew something she didn't, like it was some secret lesson he couldn't wait to teach her. It gave her chills.