Memories in the Moonlight

Chapter 12

The world around Harlow was dark and musty, the smell of mildew hanging high in the air. It was silent aside from a muffled sob that sounded every so often. Her eyes fluttered open, trying to figure out where she was. There was no light to see by, though Harlow could make out a long hallway as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. She was in a dungeon, probably deep underneath the King's castle.

Shifting her body into a sitting position, Harlow could feel her muscles screaming at her. Her entire body felt like it had been tossed from the highest tower in the castle and left to splatter on the ground. She released a groan, lifting her hand to try and rub her face. A metallic clinking sound filled the space as she moved, and her arm felt heavier than normal. Chains, they had chained her up along with putting her behind bars.

The sobbing down the hallway continued, and Harlow sat completely still to listen. The noise sounded like it was coming from a broken down Fae, probably Female. "Hello?" Harlow called out, surprised at how raspy and raw her voice sounded. She swelled deeply, realizing how dry her throat was.

The dungeon lapsed into silence, the sobs coming to an abrupt end. It was completely silent for a moment, the only noise coming from a far away drip of water. Harlow lifted her palm, willing a flame to come to life in her palm. A few small sparks escaped, but fizzled out almost immediately. She groaned again as the pit in her stomach wrenched, completely out of power.

Fuck.

"H-hello?" A small voice spoke, echoing off the stone walls down to Harlow. A sniffing sound followed the words, as if whoever spoke couldn't stop their crying.

Harlow's ears perked up and she shuffled forwards, grabbing a hold of the bars in front of her. A sharp burning sensation shot through her palms, and she ripped them back with a hiss. The bars must have been enchanted by a Witch to hurt a Fae. It shocked Harlow that King Hollis would ever work with a Witch to do that; he despised them almost as much as he hated the Wolves. Every so often Harlow wished she had received some of her mother's power, and this was definitely one of those times.

She leaned close to the bars again, careful not to let the metal brush her skin. "I'm here, who are you?" Harlow spoke softly, hearing her voice reverberate down the hallway.

A shuffling of chains sounded as the other prisoner moved in their cell. "My name is Amara." The small voice continued. A small sob followed the words. It sounded like a child, but who in their right mind would lock a child in a dungeon?

"Hi Amara, I'm Harlow." She replied softly, not wanting to upset the little one more. Her brows knitted together as she tried to piece the situation. What in the world could this child have done to end up in this place? Harlow herself had been a major nuisance as a child, and no one had even threatened a dungeon to her.

The little one was silent for a while, no noise from her cell reaching back to Harlow's. Her hands were throbbing from the cell bars, and she pressed them hard into her thighs to try and dull the pain. If she could just get a bit of energy into her system, Harlow could cast some fire for light, or maybe even melt the enchantment off the bars.

"Harlow..." The small voice mumbled, the sound barely perceptible. "Like the fire lady?" The question was asked without any sort of shame or fear lacing the words like Harlow normally heard. It just came as a normal question from a curious child.

Harlow chuckled lowly to herself, adjusting her legs to sit crossed on the hard stone floor. "Yeah, I'm the fire lady." She replied, worried that the kid was going to start screaming for help at any moment.

More silence came, and the lack of noise was almost deafening. Anywhere you went in the realm, there was always some sort of noise. Whether it be talking, howling, or just the sound of the wind rustling through some bushes. It was quite disturbing not to have any sound whatsoever.