A Touch Of Fire

Chapter Seven

We run on until we reach a cliff. I glance nervously over the edge of the cliff and was shocked to find that the drop seems to be never-ending. It stretches onwards into a pit of darkness.

"What now?" I ask as we stand facing the edge of the cliff.

"Watch and you'll see," he says before letting go of my hand and then holding it straight out in front of him.

As he waves his hand in the air in front of him I can see something appearing in the distance. The forest starts to go blurry and brown smudges start to appear in places. Right before my eyes a small tree house materialises with a rope bridge that leads from the cliff to the house. I'm beginning to like this magician.

"I’ve got to keep myself save from the poachers, don't want them getting my magic." He shoots me a wink then we head for the bridge.

A smile spreads across my lips as I follow him to the tree house. It’s only small, but it looks as though Dylan built it himself and that a lot of effort had gone into making this one magnificent house for one person to live in.

When I enter the tree house it was nothing I expected. I thought there would be lots of potions everywhere and the place would be dark and mysterious; a place where a magician could get on with all his magic. I was completely wrong. The tree house is alive with colour, no potions in sight and all the furniture looks handmade. The best part is that on the outside the tree house looks tiny, but on the inside it is so much bigger.

As I walk around the house I notice Dylan is in a room which looks like a study, packing some books and leaves and other weird looking things. The study has lots of different books and each shelf had what types of books are on it at the top. The words are carved neatly into the wood. Where Dylan's bag is laying on the desk there is lots of paper with notes and open books. This is the room where he keeps all his ingredients, notes, spells and potions.

"Do you have any weapons?" I ask as he carries on packing.

"I don't need weapons, because I have magic,” he answers, which makes me feel a bit stupid for asking the question.

"You don't mind me joining your quest, do you?" he asks. I lean against the wall.

"No, I don't mind. I didn't expect to come across Shadow Knights on my journey, but I was wrong. I'm glad I have an extra pair of hands now though." I smile to the floor at what I said as I wait for Dylan to finish packing.

"Done," he announces and heads for the door, but pauses in the door way.

"Shouldn't we rest before we head off? You have already been walking today and you just fought off Shadow Knights! Aren’t you tired?" The question surprised me because I didn't realise how worn out I was.

"I didn't notice until now. Is it fine if we stay here?" I ask.

"Sure, I have a few blankets and pillows for us to sleep on the floor," he smiles at me and walks out the room.

Dylan moves his old wooden furniture to the sides of the living room, but out of the way of his bookcases and desk. He places two blankets on the floor in the middle of the room, puts two pillows out for us both and then two blankets out. I insist that he can sleep in his own bed, but he says it wouldn’t be polite to leave the guest alone in a stranger’s house sleeping on the floor.

We have something to eat and drink then settled down for the night. We agreed that it was too late for us to go off into the woods in the dark, cold night. I fell to a dreamless sleep in the warmth of Dylan's home. His only home. Which felt like it was full of memories, emotions and hard work.

I wake up feeling refreshed, having had a peaceful sleep with no stupid dreams. I sit up on the blankets to find Dylan facing away from me crouching over. He was completely silent. I think something might be wrong with him or that he was the wrong person to trust, but as I get closer my thoughts fade. He is holding a note in one hand and a small bracelet in the other. As soon has he sees me, he shoves the letter and the bracelet in his pocket. I don’t want to seem too nosey, so I don’t ask him about it.

Dylan makes breakfast with food that he had grown himself. I have a quick wash in his tin bath and then get dressed. Dylan has changed into a tunic and trousers. I follow him out of the house.

"So, where are we heading?" Dylan questions.

Oh, I haven’t told him where we have to go! How stupid of me!

"We are going to the other woodlands across the river where we will find a cave. We have to enter the cave to find the weapon," I answer.

"I think I might know where that is so I will lead the way, if you don't mind?" he asks me for permission.

"Sure, I don't really know the way," I reply, glad that I have someone to guide me there.

There is a peaceful silence as Dylan and I walk through the woods to retrieve the special weapon. This would be a good time to ask him how a magician got to that village.

"Dylan?" I break the silence.

"Yes," he replies.

"Can I ask you a few questions?" I ask.

"Sure, only if I can ask you some afterwards."

"That seems fair," I pause. This guy in front of me is strange.

"So how did a magician like you get here in these woods?" is my first question.

"I guess you've heard about the killing of magicians. Well, my mother and father were attacked and they died fighting to protect me and my sister. We got away and went to these woods to see if we could hide, that's when we found the village." Dylan stopped talking.

This guy is very mysterious. "What happened to your sister?" I ask my next question.

"My sister hasn't got her powers yet so she lives with a normal family, but when she has her powers she will live with me and I will teach her how to control them. Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"I don't have any, but I do have two friends that feel like a brother and sister too me.”

Adeline and Oliver would have finished their breakfast by now and be off on their jobs around the castle. I wish I could see my friends again.

"Couldn't your mother have another child?" he asked in curiosity.

"My mother died in childbirth," my voice goes quiet, but I should have expected a question like that to come up. I don’t like to talk about my mother because I never knew her. I always wish I did, but when my father was alive he didn't talk about her.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he replies sounding sad.

"It's ok. I didn't really know her. My father also died when I was ten, he got shot when were in the woods one day. I don't have any other family, so I live and work in the castle." I brush my hands against a passing tree.

I do love this forest, but it also triggers bad memories for me. It makes me think of that horrible day where everything was so peaceful and all you could hear were the birds chirping and the animals running around. Then everything went deadly quiet. That was the worst day of my life and it killed me inside to see my father die in front of me.

Dylan and I talk for a little while longer, finding out about one another as we trek through the forest towards the other woodland. I also try to teach Dylan how to use a bow and arrow. I was going to teach him how to use a sword as well, but we are on tight schedule. Dylan can’t shoot straight so I think he will be better at sword fighting than archery.

Later we reach the edge of the first woodland where the rushing river flows. We walk down the river a bit to find some way across because the river is too fast to swim through. Dylan finds some rocks across the river like stepping stones, but they look too dangerous to use. We walk down some more but there is no other way to cross. The thing that scares me the most is the fact I don’t know how to swim.