Tender - A Disney-esque Adventure for Adults

Chapter 8

“You make a good point,” I said.  With the sun now rolling high in the sky, we were more exposed than ever.  It was only a matter of time before the guards found us, and then there would be no choices left to me.  Nodding my head in resolution, I said, “Alright.  Let us go see the Conjurer.”

“When will you humans with your tiny brains realise that I am always right, 100% of the time?” said Marquess, allowing me to alight her back and trotting us up the cliff side.  “It’s just like the time I tried to explain to Barnaby that the stars are actually the reflection of my brilliance…”

We climbed higher, winding through the rough scrub on the wild edges of the kingdom.  I kept my eyes on the cottage, searching for movement, but it lay silent, dark despite the sunshine that now poured over the entire area.

Marquess clopped up to the front gate, and I demounted again, feeling very small before the imposing stone building.  She looked across to where a small stable hugged the side of the cottage.  The doors were slightly parted, and fresh water and grains lay inside – along with a shining Golden Delicious apple.  “I shall await you here, my princess,” she said, trotting off.  “If you need me, just cry out, but I believe we will be safe here.”

A wicked breeze swept over me and I shivered.  “What makes you think that?”

“Call it horse-sense.”  She disappeared inside the stable, safe and happy, while I turned to the rickety gate.  The wood and wire contraption looked as though it might disintegrate beneath my fingers, or perhaps give me the cartoon equivalent of tetanus, but instead it slid open easily. 

I picked my way along the overgrown path, squeaking as I became entangled in a strong spider web.  Bushing myself off and hoping Shelob wasn’t roosting nearby, I stepped up to the imposing wooden door.  Carved in the centre was the same symbol Barnaby had drawn for me in the dirt; the looping letters seemed to cry out to me, but I couldn’t hear what they were trying to say.

My hand lifted, shaking, and I knocked solidly.  What do I say to the guy? I though belatedly.  Hello, I hear you’re a few hundred years old, and might hate the Regent enough to help me?  So, I’m not actually from around here, and I seem to have fallen in love with a guy whose insane MILF wants my ass on a plate?

Nobody answered, but the door itself swung wide on its own, revealing a long corridor.  The dark flagstones were only illuminated by a single flickering torch on the wall, and the oily, damp scent was about as appealing as a sewer grate.  “Hello?” I called to the darkened door at the far end, but still, no reply.

Come on, Misty!  I tried to hustle myself along.  This isn’t scary.  Taking the subway home alone at one am when the only company in the entire carriage was a gang of white thug teenagers, now that’s scary.  This is just a hall.

Almost convinced by my own logic, I stepped forward, keeping one palm pressed to the slimy wall.  I could have sworn I heard dramatic music start to rise in the air around me as I crept forward, breathing hard. 

When I reached about halfway, the door behind me slammed, and I jumped as if I’d been electrified.  Every hair on my body crackled upright with tension and my breathing grew ragged.  Now, I was trapped; the entrance door didn’t have a handle.  All I could do was keep moving forward.

Finally, my hands pressed flat against the interior door, engraved with the same ruin.  As I stared at the swirling design, it shifted, magically sliding and slipping as the letters rearranged themselves into a word.  Davin.

“Davin?” I said, shaking my head, the name from my old life rising up like a long-buried memory.  The office…  Kendrick…  The accident…  Shaking and unsure what was real anymore, I twisted the handle and entered the next room.