The Enchanted Woods: book 1

Chapter 8

Chapter VIII

**Alice**

"NO!!" I scream. "Sapphire!! No! NOOO!!!" Tears slide down my cheeks and onto her now pale face. Austin is behind me, trying to pull me away. "NO! Stop! Sapphire... SAPPHIRE! Please! Wake up! Wake up... Please... please..." Blood seeps through the gash in her thigh and her breathing comes out heavy and slow. I can tell that whatever feeling she had left in her was focused on the wound and all its searing pain. Her breaths come out slower, and slower, until she draws in one, final deep shaking breath, and exhales heavily, ending her life. "No..."

I collapse onto her motionless body and cry my heart out. She smelled faintly of cologne and dirt... Jason... He will pay for this.

Within me I feel rage, mixed with sorrow. Sapphire...

"Alice... She's... she's gone..." Austin says to me with symapthy in his voice.

"No... no! She can't be! This is my fault!"

"How!?"

"I promised her that I would not let anything--anyone--hurt her ever again... I failed her..." I whispers through the wall of my pain.

"Oh. But we have to go, soon, before Jason comes back."

"No! We can't leave her behind! There has to be something-- some spell! -- that we can use to bring her back!"

"Alice I wish we could do that but that isn't how all this works. There may be one solitary way, but it is nearly impossible in our advanced time." He clearly and calmly tells me.

I hug the lifeless body tight, hoping I would never ever have to let go. I opened my bleary eyes and looked at Sapphire. She looked so beautiful right now, even though her soul had left her body. I raised a quivering hand and pushed her eyelids up to look at her deep blue eyes. But all I saw was... well nothing. Just light gray eyes. I missed her soft smile and chilling eyes. Snow began to softly drift down from the heavens, slowly and precisely leaving a cold frost amongst Sapphire's hair. A chilling breeze swept through, sending chills down my back and rustling the dead branches on the trees, leaving the eerie affect that... someone was watching...

I look up and glance around, making sure everything was safe... for Sapphire. She may be... gone now. But I made a promise to her and I will not let that promise blow away with the breeze.

**Austin**

I stand completely stiff, watching Alice cry over Sapphire. My mind is still bleary. What just happened?

Sapphire is dead...

That is all I can tell.

Then memories flood back into my mind, filling me with remorse. I begin to stagger a little bit as my mind zones out and focuses on the sorrowful memories. I walk over an steady myself against a tree, remembering all that happened those few but seemingly distant years back.

I remember being a scared lone feline back then, wobbling through the woods, alone, horrified. Then I heard gentle noises and rustling in the pile of autumn leaves. I crossed over and pushed a branch out of the way and saw a small... civilization... of other felines. I made my way through, seeking some sort of acceses. I hid from people's glances and stares, but one little girl kept her eyes perfectly positioned upon me. I looked up and into her deep sparkling eyes as she approached me. "Who are you?" she asked me. I told her, "Austin, and yourself." She looked back into my dark eyes, "Sapphire." I glanced behind her and saw her black and white striped tail flick back and forth slowly. She was so young, at least 10 or 11. "Do you... have family?" I asked her softly. Tears filled her eyes, and she shook her head. "I will take care of you." I told her firmly. She seemed so kind, so welcoming. Without her I wouldn't have been here now. Time passed throughout the civilization generously. We enjoyed our time together. People noticed us and welcomed us within their community, sending us warm smiles and their kind generosity. One day, I was sitting with Sapphire and a few of our new-found friends. Then rustling came from out of the woodlands. One of the kids got to his feet and approached the woods slowly. Silenced flowed through all of us. Then something came out of the woods and pounced on top of the boy. I grabbed Sapphire's arm, not wanting her to witness anymore of the wicked violence that was about to happen "RUN!" I screamed. Everyone scrambled to their feet as more figures exploded from the trees. Everyone else (except the one boy who got attacked) made it to their homes safely. Me and Sapphire were able to hide for a while as the war progressed. Outside our door we would hear the occasional snarl, growl, or hiss. But I feared many things. Mainly Sapphire's safety. One day, I took Sapphire and we left together. We left everything behind except a few scraps of food. We were able to live in the woods together peacefully, but we had hoped that soon we would be able to return to our village. Our home. Sapphire was so scared; she just wanted to return to the place we had come to know. I wanted so desperately to keep Sapphire safe. But that was so hard when we were being surrounded by the constant dangers of the forest. One night, I left. I knew that Sapphire could take care of herself. I just wanted to go back, and help get our home back. I went into combat with everyone else. So many of my friends had been killed through our struggles. And one day, during our fight, I got turned from feline to wolf. I feared returning to Sapphire. I feared that I would freak out and kill her. So I guess she took care of herself.