The Lost Heir **EDITING**

Chapter Three

I awoke more tired than when I had fallen asleep four hours ago. It was early dawn, the skyline just tinged pink with the first rays of light. I felt physically and emotionally drained, the same way I felt when I had worked a particularly difficult piece of magic, yet I could see no signs of change in my surroundings. Had I just released an explosive amount of harmless energy? Or was I even fatigued from using magic at all? 

I frowned, trying to determine the source of my exhaustion. I remembered my dreams had been strange, with demonic faces slipping in and out of view, and an diabolic, monstrous laugh echoing through the dark corridors and recesses of my mind. I couldn't remember the exact features of the faces, although they seemed to be grotesque representations of the same person--a vaguely familiar person. I bit back a scream of frustration. Why couldn't I remember my dreams when I awoke?

Certain I would be unable to return to the once-welcoming embrace of sleep, I stretched, standing. Dressing quickly, I folded my sleeping clothes and tucked them in the back corner of the closet. I was clothed once more in leggings, this time a dark brown, a blue shirt, and light leather jacket. It was scandalous for a girl to wear pants, of course, but I had always been rebellious. Besides, I simply didn't have time for the bother that came with long skirts and their ridiculous volume--not to mention the many layers and tedious procedure of putting them all on. No, leggings were far simpler, and far more practical for an active child like myself.

Yanking down the sheet from the window and unleashing a torrent of rosy light, I quickly made the bed,  quietly returning the chair to it's original position by the desk. Unlocking the door, I moved silently through the house, urging the door to remain silent and magically muffling it's squawks of protest. Sprinting through the golden fields, silent as a shadow, I hurled toward the Hawk's Eye, desperate for some peaceful solitude in the fresh morning air before Arthur and Aunt Jared awoke. True, I could have just stayed home and enjoyed it, but there was something about the Hawk's Eye that drew me to it...I wished I could be there all the time, watching and observing the small things that we missed in our day-to-day lives.

Of course, I wasn't certain anyone but me could see the beauty I saw. Bright, dazzling beings zipped to and fro at the speed of light, a soft, tinkling musical sound following them wherever they went. Small animals crawled into the shade of my small mountain for a mid-afternoon rest, thought I had never seen animals such as these. Large, gilded owls with the faces of humans, small lizards with leathery, black wings and fiery breath, small, deer-like creatures with razor sharp teeth and an affection for spiders, among other things. At night, I had once observed a large, furry little creature that resembled a tarantula with a long tail. It seemed quite hyper, hopping to and fro beneath the large rock I perched on. I had half a mind to go try and catch it, but when it bit a stray bird and the bird dropped dead at once, I decided against it. I had decided some time ago that the creatures I saw were of a magical origin, but I couldn't be sure whether they were invisible to the average human's eye, or if anyone could see them. 

The sun was now far above the horizon, steadily climbing toward it's zenith. I stood, preparing to go, when I heard the familiar crunch of gravel behind me. Arthur scrambled up the slope, using the trail we had raced down the previous day. I smiled to myself, remembering his undignified tumble down the steep grade.

"Merlin, come on. Mom wants us to go on a hunt--we need to start stocking up for winter."

I nodded, leading the way once more down the winding path. It was late summer, the time when the deer were most abundant in the nearby mountains. They became far more scarce in the fall, when other hunters began stocking up themselves.  "Right now?" I asked, thinking about my bow, arrows, and knife at home. 

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Obviously not. She's making provisions now. Come on--and please, walk with me."

I groaned. "Arthur, it will take about a half an hour to walk home."