All the Wrong Reasons

Surprised Shrieks

Shaking off the thought, she sneaked up behind Peirce. She was almost in touching distance, when he turned and yelled out. Cassandra shrieked and jumped back. The problem was the hole that she jumped into. Her body kept moving back until she was sprawled out on the ground.

Laughter boomed from above her and tiny giggles emitted out of Cooper from beside her. She reveled in the sound coming out of the two males, but her bum throbbed from the impact she received because of the earlier surprise. She looked down at her ankle and noted the odd angle that it was bent in. Letting out a sigh, she glared up at them. Their laughter stopped, but the amusement was still on their faces.

Peirce shook with suppressed laughter. "Might you need a hand up?"

"What I might need is to bathe," she said while wrinkling her nose in disgust.

Eyes scanned her. "You do look a tad dirty."

"A tad dirty?" she mumbled under her breath. Her hair was brown instead of blonde, and she was pretty sure the mud she landed in hadn't been mud. Reaching her arm up, she grabbed onto Peirce's hand as he lifted her from the ground. Pain shot up her leg, but she didn't let it show on her face. Today had been a long one. Her whole body ached. Her hand still pulsed from earlier, and now she was sure her ankle had been sprained.

"Can you point me in the direction of the bath house?"

Peirce gave her a smile. "There is a river that you can bathe in. The cold water can be refreshing during the summer."

Keeping the dismay of her face, she squeaked out, "A river? What if there are leeches?"

"Leeches? You are afraid of leeches?  Of all the things," he said under his breath. "Well, when you get out, I will gladly search your for leeches," he finished with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

"No, thank you. Now, you will watch Cooper for me? I shall be back shortly."

With that, she turned on her heel leaving a sputtering Peirce behind her. A smile crossed her face. Peirce was just too much fun. She limped up the stairs until she reached her quarters. Opening the door, she went towards her trunks. All of her clothing was still packed up. She lifted the large black top and quickly pulled out everything she would need. She didn't really care if it was some of her unflattering clothing. Who did she have to impress?

Going back down the stairs, she had to keep the tears from flowing out of her eyes. The ankle hurt more than she thought it would. She wouldn't show the pain though. As soon as she got back from her bath, she would rub some salve onto her ankle to keep the swelling down and the pain to a minimum.

She pulled open the double doors; on the other side were Peirce and Cooper. They were smiling and laughing at each other. It seemed the two of them got along great together. A pang of sadness went through her. How she wished Colin would have instantly connected to the boy like Peirce and her had.

"I'm off towards the river! Please, be on your best behavior!" she called out.

They glanced in her direction and simultaneously nodded before turning their attention back to each other. Should she feel slighted that neither of them paid much attention to her? She didn't though. All she felt was warmth. Cooper had found another friend.

She kept her steps even as she walked away, but as soon as she was far enough away, she slowed and let the limp become more pronounced. She just hoped that this river wasn't too far away for she wasn't sure she could make it much further. The cold water would not only help cool her body, it would also help lessen the throbbing in her ankle.

The flowing, clear water came in to sight, and she let out a happy squeal. It was a sound she would never let others hear, but out here alone, she could do anything. Her usual embarrassing antics couldn't be seen by anyone other than the animals that ran in the woods.

Stripping off her clothing, she began laying them on various branches. Even if they were already dirty, she didn't want them to get worse. Cassandra was the one that would have to clean them, and if she could keep a little dirt off of her clothing, then she would. Her clean clothing sat on top of a giant grey rock. The thing looked big enough to stretch her whole body out on. She registered the fact into her mind; one day she might come out her with a book to relax. Glancing at her surroundings, she tried to find other things that might be important, but none came to mind.

Taking in a deep breath, she quit stalling. She would have to get into the water eventually. Standing naked on the shore was not one of her wisest ideas. She let out the breath she was holding in and stepped in. The water was cool and felt great on her skin. Just a few more steps and she could immerse herself into the cold depths.

She let the water flow over her body in order to get used to the temperature. As soon as she was comfortable, she ran the soap over her body. Dunking under the water, she wet her hair. Lifting her head out of the water, she kept her eyes closed as she rubbed the soap into her long curly hair. When it was lathered up the best she could get it, she went back under to rinse it out. Breaking the surface, she finally opened her eyes and let out a startled scream.

Colin stared at the bag a while longer before making his decision. Reaching down, he grabbed the strap and flung it over his shoulder. If his wife really wanted him to know what was in it, then she would show him. It couldn't be that bad, he told himself. Sure, the bag had him curious, but he was no longer a lad. He could control himself.

The walk back to his manor was a long and boring one. Now, he wished he would have just left the damned bag under the tree where he first spotted it. Maybe if he did, he would be chasing Cassie right now.

Whistling, he began to think. Peirce should be off by now, and Cassie would be forced to focus on him some. Sure, the lad might take up some of her time, but Colin would still be near her for days without Peirce's interference.

Even if she didn't realize it, the chit used Peirce whenever she could to get away from Colin. At first, it had bruised his ego, but then he just determined that she was afraid. Afraid of what? He had no clue, but why else would she run from him at every chance? If she was worried about her wedding night, there wouldn't be one. Colin very much liked himself breathing, and he knew that if he did anything she didn't agree too, her father would happily make Cassie a widow.

His manor came into view; he had to stop himself from running towards it. Who knew if something in the dreaded bag would break? Getting closer to the manor, he realized that his friend hadn't left yet. He and the lad were sitting on the ground drawing in the dirt. They both had smiles on their faces. Colin's heart went out to Peirce. How hard was it for Peirce to sit next to the young boy without remembering his past? His footsteps must have alerted the two that he was near, because their heads both snapped towards him. Peirce flashed him a smile and the boy looked at him quizzically.

"Where were you off at?" Peirce asked him.

Colin motioned to the bag. "She left it behind."

His friend nodded. "And you were worried she forgot it?"

"Yes," Colin flushed. "Now, where is she?"

"She headed towards the river, talking about needing to bathe."

"And you didn't show her the way?" Colin asked in disbelief.

"I pointed her in the right direction," his friend said in defense.

Colin opened his mouth to chastise Peirce more, when a piercing shriek echoed through the woods. Colin didn't even stop to think as he ran towards the sound. Cassie was in those woods, and he had a feeling that the scream belonged to her. 

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Thanks everyone for reading :) I just wanted to let you know that I really do read every comment even if I don't reply to all of them, lol. And they really do mean a lot to me.  

There is a song on the side that locknkey and Princesslove1238 suggested for the story. They thought it would fit well and I agree :) 

***Edited by Twilight_moon***

***Title by SheleneColon and me***