“Well, then I guess it is a good thing that the bargain we made didn’t depend on you finding your way through.” Again, he laughed, and I tried to laugh too, but that truth was too raw.
Finally, we reached the canyon—the exact point at which the two mountain peaks split. To anyone looking from afar, it would appear to be one large mountain; but everyone in the area knew that they were actually two mountains pressed so close together that they seemed as one.
From there on that canyon floor, it felt as if the whole world had opened up. What was on the other side of that mountain? I had never thought this far ahead of the plan. If I made it to the pass, and I actually found my way through, what would be waiting for me on the other side? These thoughts kept coursing through my mind as we took a moment to rest in the shade and catch our breath after the climb.
“I used to come up here as a child and pretend that I was from another kingdom, and I had just discovered this valley. How beautiful it is from up here…” he said as we stared out at the view.
“You conquered this new kingdom, and would be their new king,” I said. He didn’t say anything for a moment, so I looked over at him as he stared out at the expanse. “They would be lucky to have you as their king.”
“I have no desire to be king,” he answered frankly.
“Then, to discover new kingdoms? To travel the farthest corners of the world.” This time he glanced over at me and met my eyes. I know it was risky to bring up the idea that he had spoken about at the ball. I don’t know what I was trying to accomplish by mentioning that, but I could tell by his response that it would not accomplish much at all.
“Let’s get on with this then.” And with that, he walked away.
I gulped down my nerves as he stood before me in the shade of the mountain peak. He put the dark cavern that separated the two great rocks behind him, and I put the harrowing ledge that dropped to the bottom of the mountain behind me.
We stood facing each other as if we were two in a duel. I tried to hide how much my hands shook. He stared at me, waiting.
“I’m ready, Anabelle.” His voice shook; something was not right.
I stepped up and rest my hands against his chest. Closing my eyes, I imagined the fish in the pond—those little pieces of magic that I could harness and push through my fingers into him. In my mind, the words repeated, change him back, change him back, change him back.
It felt very hollow as if the magic was fading as soon as it left my fingertips. I took another deep breath and pressed again. Change him back. Change him back!
I opened my eyes to find his animal-face inches from mine. The wolf’s hair had completely covered his skin now. He could tell right away that it was not working, and he turned his back on me and started walking away. I could see the pain in his stance. He was changing faster every moment. Time was running out.
“Are you in pain?” I asked. But he didn’t answer. He walked back to his place in front of me and waited for me to try again.
“Please try,” he asked, but his voice was almost unrecognizable now.
“I promise,” I answered.
Palms pressed against his chest again, I pushed and pushed, begging it to work, to no avail.
“I think it’s getting worse. Ana, please!” he shouted at me as he cringed from the struggle of even speaking so loudly.
“I’m sorry,” I cried. I had no answers, and everything at that moment felt helpless. I could not change him, and I would not leave him. In an instant, all of those dreams had once again been dashed.
I crouched near him as he struggled, his face contorted in anguish. I could feel him slipping. With every breath, it seemed his form changed more. I felt myself paralyzed with fear that he would change forever and that I would have no way to change him back. Tears began to pool in my eyes.
“I’m sorry, Theo,” I cried against his back. “I’m so sorry.”
Without warning, the whooshing sound of an arrow skimmed the flesh of my left shoulder. I screamed and fell back into the low stream of water that trailed from the tops of the mountain. It soaked my arms and cloak in the shallow water. Theo quickly tried to stand, but clearly could not straighten his back. He hovered his body over mine as we watched the approaching men came out of their hiding spots in the shadowy cavern. They came from every side, and the low, taunting laugh of the bounty hunter approached from behind.
“Didn’t I tell you boys this would be worth the wait?”
A chorus of questions and howls came from the men as they approached. I stared up, not fully understanding what they were reacting to, until I looked at Theo next to me. So little of the man that I knew was left, but there was enough to know that he truly was a man. It was him they were looking at. It was him that they now wanted.
They called him a monster, an abomination. These were the things they once called me. And there I sat next to the thing that I had created, the ruin I had wrought upon the world, the mess I had made.
His face was caught in panic—the look an animal made when it was in danger. He crouched on his legs, arms out as if to protect me from them.
The pack of men stalked toward us with their bows drawn and axes held ready to strike when something to the left caught my eye. It was the sun’s reflection on the water that pooled near the floor of the cavern. I studied the way it seemed to run into the cavern instead of out. That was the stream of water that fed the river below. That was the way through the two mountains. How had no one noticed that?
I felt a quick jolt of excitement. It was a risk, and if I were wrong, it would mean our immediate demise, but we could make a run for it.
“Put your hands up in surrender, witch. We have you surrounded.” I could feel the eyes of the men holding arrows drawn on me. Any moment could be my last. Then, I heard a low growl coming from Theo. Except it wasn’t just a growl. He was speaking to me.
“Run,” he said. I slowly started to raise my arms as I glanced again at the narrow pass. Did he see the passage way too? Was he thinking what I was thinking? I could feel the dirt between my boot as I turned to move. My muscles were prepared to pounce until I heard him speak again. “I’ll distract them.” My body froze beneath me.
“What?” I whispered back. We were running out of time. The men advanced so close now that an escape was becoming impossible.
“Go!” he growled again.
“But if I leave…” I whispered back.
“Now!” he answered as he pounced on the nearest man. I watched as he swiped a heavy clawed hand against the man’s face and blood spilled across the bubbling brook. My body filled with adrenaline and I made quick to move. My mind did not think; I only ran. Arrows flew by as I dropped down off the ledge into the cavern, following the water’s line and into the small space where the men could not see. Quickly, I was moving along the rocks and into the ravine of the mountains. In a second, I was completely hidden within the mountains and what I saw before seemed almost impossible. The pass was completely hidden to the outside world. It was a narrow ravine that carved along the side of the rocks, through the darkness, I could see the hint of daylight on the other side.
I had found the pass.
I turned to find Theo, a look of excitement on my face. But I was met with the sounds of a struggle. Men were shouting, and it sounded as if an animal was howling.
My hands shook with fear. I could run. I could be free within moments. I was nearly free already. But they would likely keep Theo alive to take him back to their village to claim a reward for capturing such an abomination. And if he struggled too much, they would take him back dead.
He did that for me. My knees buckled under my weight. He sacrificed himself for me, knowing that without me, he would never be returned to himself again. And worse, they would likely kill him.
I turned back to the subtle light at the end of the cavern’s pass. Freedom.
But if I ran, and I let him die…what would I become?
I was no better than Theo with the dagger h
iding behind the helmet. I was no better than the bounty hunter desperate to kill something more powerful than he.
I could run for the rest of my life, but I would never be able to escape what I had become.
I turned back to the sound of the fighting—toward my certain death—and I ran.
The Edge
I PEERED UP from the lower ledge of the ravine and saw that Theo had been tied by the feet on his back, still putting up a fight against the men. They used clubs and whips to attempt to subdue him, but he managed to dodge most of their blows. I noticed the bodies of at least three men on the ground, two deathly still and one moaning in pain. That left three to try and capture the half-man, half-animal in another rope that they intended for his arms and neck. They were still well-armed.
I hid myself again to consider my next move. One thing was clear: I could not overpower them without magic. But there weren’t many charms that I knew were strong enough to defeat seven strong men, no matter how many of them were unconscious. I could try to change their form, but I could not change seven men at once.
I couldn’t even change Theo back just a few moments ago. And if I had, this whole thing would not have happened. Still, it was my only hope in helping him now. An idea began to blossom when I was interrupted by a sudden thought—
Seven men. There were seven men. I counted them again. One was missing.
And no sooner than I noticed it did a cold, gloved hand reach around my neck and pull me away from the ledge. He was so strong and brutal that he did not hold back because I was a woman. He slammed my back up against the rock, and I whimpered. I could feel him pulling me toward something, away from the darkness of the ravine pass. I could sense the ledge and fatal drop-off ahead. I fought and squirmed to free myself of his hold.
“I don’t need your head anymore, witch. I have something far better. So, I’m afraid that you won’t be traveling back to our village with us, but you will be traveling,” he laughed.
He dragged my body effortlessly to the edge of the cavern ledge. My death was just moments away. This was it. Moments ago, I tasted freedom, now I would die a meaningless death at the hands of a monster.
I had to make one last fight, so I dug deep within. I pulled at something primal and instinctive. I reached for the magic with the desperation only found when death was so near. And as soon as I harnessed that feeling, it became easy to manipulate it. I sobbed and cried as he pushed me toward the nothingness. I yanked free that inane magic and I collided it with the one thing that I wanted most when facing the hunter—and those like him. Confidence.
It coursed through my veins like fire. I was stronger, braver, and more determined. The toes of my boots froze peeking over the edge, and I pressed back against the hunter. And thinking about all of those before him who had ever cast me away for who I was, and tried to make me feel inferior because I was different, I shoved back the bounty hunter until he nearly fell. The shock was written on his face.
“Witch,” he snarled.
“You don’t scare me anymore,” I answered.
This answer only angered him more. He took off in a run toward me, leading with his shoulder as if he meant to take both of us off the cliff.
The impact was electrifying as our bodies collided and I struggled to keep my boots from sliding toward the edge. A sharp, hot pain pulsed my gut, but I kept my strength. He gritted his teeth in my face, and even though he meant to take us both over the edge, he seemed pleased, as if he had already won.
We were in a stalemate, neither of us moving in one direction or the other as we both pressed against each other to no avail. I could feel my strength waning. Just around the corner, I could hear the beast howling and men clamoring. The hunter pushed harder and my boots inched backward.
I could not die. Not yet.
In one swift motion, my last attempt at salvation, I turned my body allowing the brute of a man to be overcome by his own momentum. Just as he realized that he was falling, we locked eyes. I felt a moment’s remorse because I realized that this man’s drive was never about me, and it was just as tragic. He hated me because he feared me, and in that battle, he would never win.
I turned away from the ledge and toward the fight. I was renewed and entirely confident that I could do what needed to be done. I took off in a leap toward Theo when a burning sensation pulsed through my gut.
I pressed my hand against the pain and found my robes soaked with blood. The hunter must have had a dagger in his hand when we collided.
I fell to my knees in the mountain stream. I heard men laughing, but all sounds and sights became fuzzy. Then, Theo roared again, and I felt renewed.
I had one last task and thought it would require every last ounce of energy and magic in my body, I was determined to finish what I had started.
Taking a deep breath, I stood. Shaking off the pain, I rounded the corner, climbed out of the ravine and marched toward Theo’s writhing body on the ground. I kept my eyes locked on his face, and out of the corner of my eye, I could see the men load their arrows ready to strike, but they did not let them fly. They did not move at all.
Something ethereal took over as I moved, as if I was no longer in control. I had never felt my magic become so powerful in all my life. Theo and I were untouchable. My eyes never left his stare. I could see his mouth moving, as if he were calling to me, telling me to run, begging me to save myself, but I did not listen. I knelt by his side and touched his face.
“Ana, use your magic. Save yourself. I know you can.” Theo whispered to me with his strangled, animal-like voice. He pleaded so desperately for me to save myself, but that thought wasn’t even on my mind. It would have been a waste to try. I ignored his requests and I reached out to him.
Touching his face felt like freedom in itself. I could hear him pleading still, but I had only one mission on my mind. I held his face in my hands as my tears spilled over my cheeks, and even though my focus was fading, I could still feel that magic within, so I held it in my hands as I stroked his face.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you who I was. I should have trusted you. I’m sorry I cursed you, and I’m sorry that I could not do this earlier.” My voice was nothing more than a whisper, but I pressed through the urge to lie down and let go. “You are not unlovable, Theo. I love you.”
I pressed my face against his and let my body against him, and I could feel him struggle against his ties. No matter how hard I tried, I could not peel my lids back open. I heard my name from his lips as I drifted off to sleep, and I felt the warm skin of his hands in my hair. Then, I was back in the ravine, and I was falling toward that subtle sunlight of freedom on the other side.
The Dream
I DREAMT THAT my magic was a river and it ran over me, like a breeze in the sails of a ship. It was cool and constant, pushing me farther and farther away. I did not swim against it or fight it, but I let it carry me. And it carried me forever, in a never-ending current.
Then, I heard Theo’s voice. I searched for it, but it faded away.
It called again and again, each time closer. So I started to swim against waves that pulled me away. It felt impossible, but I fought harder and harder, each time gaining a little ground. He urged me to fight and begged me to try harder, so I did. And just when I reached the shore, I opened my eyes.
The first thing I saw were his crystal blue eyes. He stared down at me, the bright blue sky behind him, with a look of desperation and relief on his face.
“Anabelle?” he whispered.
It felt as if I had been sleeping for a lifetime. Everything came rushing back: the curse, the hunters, the dagger, the mountain pass. I sat up quickly and looked around.
“They’re gone,” he answered my question without my having to ask it. “You reversed the curse, but it seems they never knew who I truly was. One look at me, and they fled. We’re safe now.”
I turned to him. “The curse.”
He held my hand in his. I looked down at his hand, his familiar hand withou
t claws or wolf’s fur. I squeezed and looked up into his eyes. We stared into each other’s eyes, without speaking but knowing that there was an apology there—from both of us. We both had so much regret, but we were both ready to let it go.
With the next breath, we both wrapped each other up in a hasty embrace. I wrapped my arms around his neck and felt so much gratitude. He was back to himself. I was alive. And soon, I would be free.
It felt like forever before we let each other go.
“I thought you were dead,” he said, finally.
“I think I was, but something brought me back.” I felt where the wound was. It was still sore and healing. I thought back to that miraculous moment when my magic took over. I realized what it was that gave me such control. I looked up at Theo’s face. “Theo, I meant what I said. Before we have to say goodbye, I want you to know that it’s true, and it may mean nothing to you, but I do love you.”
He answered my confession with a kiss. I tried to savor the touch of his lips and the smell of his skin, but it ended too quickly. And I felt a knot in my throat at the nearing moment when we would have to say goodbye.
My freedom no longer seemed so exhilarating. We stood and gathered our things, as well as the ropes and weapons left by the hunters. Then, we stood at the mouth of the cave, and I waited for his goodbye. But it never came.
Instead, he took my hand in his and stepped through the ravine with me.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Doing what I should have done before. I’m going with you.”
Tears filled my eyes as I stared at his smile, the soft, round smile with the dimples that pierced his cheeks, and I squeezed his hand tighter. Then, together we stepped into the darkness and walked toward our freedom.
About the Author
Jessica Bucher is long-time lover of stories about young love and stubborn characters. This might explain why she was swept off her feet by a soldier who stole her away to travel the world. Thirteen years later, they have three children and more stamps in their passports than they can count. Seeing the world has inspired many stories and novels, including her debut novel, The Hereafter. She is a Creative Writing graduate, freelance editor, and Disney addict.
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