Diamond in the Rough

In the Belly of the Beast Part 8

(Ivory)

The fear in his stormy blue eyes drove me after him.  I pulled my daggers out, and parted the Wall.  I disappeared, and reappeared behind the redcap, decapitating his head.  Arden fell to the ground, but I yanked him up.  

"We need to leave now," I pushed him to the house.  "Let's get whatever you need."

Arden bolted up the stairs and I followed.  He burst into his room where drawings lay everywhere.  One on the floor caught my eye.  It was me.  

"You drew this from last night?" I asked him as he stuffed, mostly art supplies, into his backpack.

He glanced at what was in my hand, "Yeah."  

I have never seen myself in a drawing or picture before.  He caught my features perfectly.  My face was strong with my long, blonde/brown hair blowing in the wind.  

"You can keep it if you like," he caught me staring at it, waiting at the door for me.

"Thanks," I hesitantly spoke as I shoved it into my own bag.  I led the way when something crashed downstairs.  I stopped, my pale hand whacked into his muscular chest.  I glanced up to him, and put a finger to my lips.  He nodded, and gestured to his room.  I narrowed my eyes, but he waved for me to follow.   I rolled my grey eyes, but followed him anyway.  He opened his window and began to climb out.  I seized his jacket, hissing, "What are you doing?"

"Climbing out the window," he pointed out the obvious.

"Well, no way, genius, I couldn't figure that out," I growled, yanking him back in.  I climbed down first, my daggers out when I land on the grass.  I surveyed the green lawn before I waved him down, and he quickly descended.  "Follow me."

I took off into the dark woods beside his house.  Suddenly, he grabbed my jacket, which was over my uniform shirt because in was stinking cold in Indiana where he lived, and yanked me to a stop.  "What?" I hissed, eyes annoyed.

"Creek," he pointed down where it dropped off.

I grabbed Arden, and pulled him roughly to the the ground.  He cursed, and a hand went to his side.  I looked at him with suspicion, but he didn't meet my gaze.   A redcap, dressed in Remmi's colors, grey and white, snuck by, quiet as a ghost.  I leapt up, wrapped an arm around his neck, and slit his throat.

"Come on," I drag Arden to his feet with him groaning.  

"I think I'm going to throw up," his face was grey.

"Then stop staring at it.  This way," I dropped into the creek bed.  He followed me, grunting when he landed as I spoke to myself,  "The Forever is slowly fading into the Remmi, which means if we go through the Wall at the wrong place..."

"We are behind enemy lines," he finished.  

"Yes," I looked into his stormy dark blue eyes as I waved him on.  I crouched as we ran through the creek bed.  I had to find a good place to part the Wall.  I climbed out and turned to help Arden, but he was already next to me.  I focused, and stuck my hand through the Wall.  With my other hand, I gripped Arden's strong damp hand, wet from the creek water.  I stepped into the Fairy world with him at my side.  I waited for him to collapse, but he didn't.  He just looked around the grey world.

"Shoot!" I stomped my foot angrily.  "We are supposed to be in Forever!"

"This is the Remmi?" he asked, hand on his side.

"Yeah, and from the looks of it," I paced in front of him, thinking.  "We are in the heart of it."