Daughter of Night

James

James's POV

I sat frozen in fear as Margaret was being dragged away by the same savages that took Lucy.

"NOOOOOO!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. I ripped my sword out of my bag and ran in the direction they took her. After running for at least two hours I slowed and sunk to my knees, my lungs and eyes burning. I held my head in my hands and wept shamelessly. Why do these things happen to me? I said my prayers before bed every night as a child. I never did terrible things. Well, nothing bad enough to hurt anybody. I wasn't going to let Margaret be taken away from me. Not without a fight. I stood up and started walking faster and faster until I broke into a run. The warm night wind rushing through my hair and the very thought of saving Margaret carried me to her. True, I didn't exactly know where she was. But I could sense it. I could feel where she was being taken as if a map had been planted in my head.

I ran until dawn and stopped by a creek to drink before continuing my journey. I cupped my hands in the cool water and splashed my face once...twice. And then I cupped my hands a third time and drank until I couldn't drink anymore. I splashed water in my hair and washed most of the dirt and sweat out. I looked up to see a small orb of light, and of course my first instinct was to swat it away from my face. It dodged my hand and flew backwards a little, now keeping its distance. I looked closer at the little insect only to find out that it wasn't an insect at all. It was a tiny glowing woman wearing a gown of leaves and flowers (that didn't leave much to the imagination), and carried a small ivy pouch and a twig. She tilted her head as she stared back at me.

"What? Never seen anything like me before?" She asked. Her black curly hair bounced in the wind. I just sat there with my mouth open shaking my head. She rolled her eyes. "Well, I am Rachel, and a fairy." She smiled and tapped my nose with her wand. Yellow dust went everywhere and I resisted the urge to sneeze.

"Yeah, kind of gathered that." I muttered and rubbed the powder off my nose. "So why are you here anyway? I'm kind of busy right now." I scooted away from the fairy and took off my shirt and started to wash it in the stream. Rachel paused for a moment then flew over to me again.

"Well that was quite rude." She landed on the stalk of a plant growing on the shore of the stream and started walking coyly, as if she knew something I didn't. "Oh well, guess I won't be helping you get Margaret back." My heart fluttered in my chest and a glimmer of hope started to peek through the dark wall I had built up.

"Wait!" I scrambled over to the fairy. "I'm sorry.....I'm sorry. Please just help me get her back." Rachel smiled as if to say "good boy".

"That's more like it. But first, you must be starved, running for hours without rest or nutrients. Here." She took out a little speck of sand from the pouch that was slung over her shoulder, rolled it around in her hands, then tossed it on the ground. In seconds the speck turned into a plate of garlic bread, a bowl of delicious looking stew, and a strawberry tartlet along with a small goblet filled nearly to the brim with what looked like ginger bear.

"God where were you when I was a hungry little boy?" I asked still marveling at the food. Rachel just smiled and gestured for me to eat. I folded my hands together and said grace before digging in. The hot stew slid down my throat and warmed me head to toe. The bread was fluffy and warm and pre-buttered. The tartlet was tangy, sweet and flaky. And whatever was in that cup (it was NOT ginger bear), gave me a boost of adrenaline and power, making me feel like I could lift anything. It was thicker and had more of a honey taste then any ginger bear I had ever tasted. As I ate, Rachel was studying a map of some sort, with certain points dotted with gold dust. After finishing my meal, I scooted closer to see what she was working on.

"Trying to find the quickest and safest route to where Margaret is being held captive." She said reading my mind and biting on the edge of her finger. "This won't be easy. We're going to have to get going soon. Are you ready?" I nodded and the map disappeared. "Good, lets go. I'm not sure how long she'll last in that place."