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“No one knows you have come?” she asked, surprised.
“I fear if they did, they would not have let me,” I confessed.
“You, of course, speak of your Vampire,” she guessed, making me grin before telling her,
“Yes, who is now my husband.” At this her eyes grew wide, before a dreamy sigh escaped her.
“Husband! Congratulations, I am so happy for you, for anyone could see that you loved each other very much.” I couldn’t help but smile at her childlike innocence, wishing more than anything the same type of love would find her also.
“Thank you.”
“I cannot say I am surprised that he would not have allowed you to come, as I fear this place does not hold great memories for either of you,” she reminded me, making me repress a shiver at the memory.
“You are the very best memory I have of this place and despite what happened, nothing will ever change that, Vena,” I said, making her beam at me.
“Gosh, but I don’t know what to say to that.”
“As long as it isn’t piss pots, then I will take it.” At this we both burst out laughing before we heard someone clearing their throat in the background. This was when Vena moved to one side and allowed me to see who I assumed to be the Oracle of light.
“She looks quite different since when she first arrived,”Vena added this as a whisper at my back, a whisper I had no doubt the woman in front of me now could still hear. Of course, I had never met her before as Lucius had purposely kept me away. But he had told me of her and also, the state she had been in when she first arrived. Which was no doubt why Vena had thought to mention it, as clearly the wild forest woman Lucius had described was no more.
No, now she looked more like some Grecian goddess only tarnished by old age. A woman who looked to be in her late seventies, with stark white hair twisted back from her face in plaits that had been entwined with pale vines. Her dress was pure white, with a forest green cloak around her shoulders that looked as if it had been made with moss, meaning clearly some wild elements had remained. A headdress of white thorns and small antlers had been entwined together with tiny thin, red roots and a single clear crystal was decorating its centre.
“I have been healed by the grace of our great Goddess Fjörgyn of the Earth,” the woman said, bowing her head as if giving her respect to the name.
“But despite being known as the Oracle of Light, the Goddess has bestowed upon me to become once more, you can know me as Elswyth.” At this I nodded my head, and replied,
“It is nice to meet you, I am Amelia…”
“Yes, I know who you are, stone bringer.”
“Stone bringer?” I asked, making her ignore this and usher me over to a seating area as I could see she was relying heavily on a stick of twisted root. One that was so white it looked as if it had been bathed in bleach.
“Come, sit, sit, for I may be healed but these old bones won’t last forever, and even less should I be made to stand for too long. But of course, I knew you would come, for you still have answers you seek… yes?”
“I do,” I replied at the same time taking her arm and helping her sit back into her chair, making her pat my hand and say,
“Kind girl, yes, yes, you have heart and courage enough for it.”
“For what?” I asked but before answering me, she looked to my friend.
“Vena, be a sweet girl and fetch me some of that sweet leaf tea, would you?” Vena nodded before bowing and then coming to me to take my hands,
“I will be back, it takes some time to brew, but I will hurry, for despite wishing daily that you could stay longer, I know you most likely won't be able to,” she said, and my heart broke for her, wishing our friendship was an easier one, as I couldn’t even say when the next time would be that I would see her. But as for right now, I squeezed her hand and told her,
“I will stay for as long as I can.” She smiled at this, looking pleased before nodding her head and leaving us alone.
“I wanted to thank you for what you did for me,” I said taking my seat opposite her, but at this she raised a brow and told me,
“I believe my thanks will soon be equal, for your journey is not over yet, but you know this, or you would not have followed my call.” I had guessed as much that she was behind the whispered words and music I had followed.
“I've been having dreams,” I told her.
“Dreams of a lost kingdom, one filled with nothing more than the bones of the dead and trapped souls you are now charged with setting free,” she said not having to guess.
“Yes, at first they called to me, and I would wake feeling helpless.”
“But then the dreams changed,” she said as if knowing all of this, making me wonder if it would be rude to just ask her skip to the end, as I was kind of on a time limit here. She must have guessed where my thoughts were.
