Behind the Tales

by Aurora Peppermint

  “Get your swords. Hurry. There’s some sort of wild animal out there. We need to go after it, or it’s going to find us and we’ll be dead. I know it’s early. I think we’re in a lot of danger. It can’t be more than five minutes outside of camp.” He shook Hal awake first, and then repeated the same information to Mel while his friend got ready on the other side of camp.

  “Are you sure? Usually they won’t bother you if you don’t bother them. We can’t go back to sleep?” Mel grumbled a little bit, rolling over, but not opening her eyes right away.

  “I wouldn’t have woken you if it weren’t absolutely necessary, I swear. It was growling at me through a thick bush. I’m lucky it didn’t already follow me back here and kill us all. The only chance we have, as far as I can tell, is to sneak up on it together and at least knock it unconscious. I don’t want to kill an innocent animal, certainly, but if we get attacked, it may be our only option.” Martus set his sword down so he could rewrap the bandage on his arm before they went after the animal. He didn’t want blood spurting from his wound again if they got into another life-and-death fight.

  It seemed like they were getting in far too many of those lately.

  “Are you ready? Let’s get this over with.” Mel had been taking a whetstone to her sword, but she stopped when Martus was done with his bandage. “This is a little ridiculous, you know? But if it’ll make you feel better, fine.”

  “Yes, I am. It’s….” He stopped a second to get his bearings and remember exactly which direction he’d gone in when he left the camp before. He was choosing not to respond to Mel since he knew it was a little silly. He’d rather be safe than sorry. “This way. The last time I went after it I was there within a few minutes, so be careful. It could be closer, and we don’t want to be caught unawares.”

  It made Martus very nervous that if they did just walk into the beast, he would be the first one attacked. Better him than Hal or Mel, though. He just hoped none of them got caught off guard. An animal large enough to produce the growl Martus heard was probably not the best at sneaking around, so at least they had that in their favor.

  “Wait. I hear it.” Hal reached out and gripped the back of Martus’s shirt when they neared the spot where he’d found the animal before. They all froze, and after a second, there was rustling and that low growl was back again.

  Martus swallowed dryly, his palm sweating, making him readjust his grip on the sword so it didn’t slip from his hand. The wall of brush he’d encountered before was maybe two feet ahead of them, and he crept up to it as quietly as he could. He could barely hear the other two moving behind him.

  Taking a deep breath and summoning his courage, Martus lifted a hand to spread the brush aside. Hopefully not enough that the beast would see them but so they could get a sense for where it was. Martus jumped about a foot in the air when he saw the animal—it looked thoroughly monstrous, huge paws and a head three times the size of his own. It was not how frightened he was that unsettled him. Hal was peering over his shoulder, and burst out laughing right in Martus’s ear.

  The animal had been sleeping when they crept up on it, but that was enough to wake it.

  Martus spun on Hal with wide eyes.

  “Why did you do that? We’re going to die!” Despite the severity of the situation, Hal was still practically doubled over laughing, his cheeks red and his eyes starting to water. Martus slapped him on the arm, not knowing if it was a reaction born out of fear, or shock, or if his friend had just gone mad.

  Even worse, when Mel looked through the same spot in the brush, she started laughing as hard as Hal had.

  Well, apparently Martus was just going to have to handle this himself, because they were both useless like this. Maybe it was something in the air; hopefully everyone else wasn’t just going crazy.

  When Martus squared his shoulders and raised his sword to rush forward, a hand clamped down on each of his arms and held him back. He looked over his shoulder at Hal and Mel in complete disbelief. Finally, Hal seemed to calm himself and straightened up a little. He was still giggling, which set Martus ill at ease, but at least he could speak.

  “Oh, Martus. I am sorry, I truly am. I don’t mean to laugh at you. Just… is she what you were afraid of this whole time?” Hal smiled at Martus in an almost sympathetic way, but it was undermined by the small traces of laughter still remaining in his voice.

  “You mean the gigantic animal that’s probably about to pounce on us and kill us? Yes, that’s what I was afraid of! I don’t know why I even try to save the two of you!” Martus threw his hands in the air, sighing heavily. They had a death wish; that was it. They just didn’t care if it was some wild animal that killed them.

  “Look.” Rather than trying to reason with him, it seemed Mel was taking a “show, don’t tell” approach. She stepped through the thick bushes, pulling Martus along behind her despite his struggles. When the beast saw them, it did not, as Martus had predicted, attack on sight. It growled again, though, and that was enough to send Martus running, had Mel not had such a tight hold on his arm. “She isn’t going to hurt us.”

  Then Mel did something that Martus was sure would mean her untimely death.

  She stepped forward, leaned down beside the animal, and pried its mouth open so its teeth were exposed.

  “I don’t understand.” When she didn’t lose a hand, it was clear to Martus they weren’t in any immediate danger. Why the animal wasn’t attacking them, however, was still a total mystery to him.

  “Look at her teeth. She doesn’t eat people with those. Plants, and probably lots of them, but not people. You didn’t have anything to be afraid of.” Mel grinned up at Martus, taking her hand out of the creature’s mouth to pat it on the head. There was that growl again, although it seemed much less intimidating now that Martus knew she probably wasn’t going to kill him.

  “She doesn’t even have claws.” Hal pointed down to the animal’s huge paws, and Martus saw that, indeed, there was nothing on her sharp enough to make her a hunter.

  “I grew up in the city, you know! I just, I’m not some kind of animal expert. I thought we were in danger.” As his embarrassment grew, warmth crept up Martus’s face, and he crossed his arms. Why hadn’t he checked to see whether the animal even wanted to attack anyone before he’d woken them up? “Let’s just go. We’re all up now thanks to me being an idiot.”

  “Aw, Martus, it’s okay. You were trying to defend our camp, we understand.” Hal threw his arm over Martus’s shoulder and pulled the other boy against his side, although he was still laughing at the mix-up.

  “We should all get some breakfast. We’re close to finding my brother, but we certainly aren’t out of the woods just yet, if you’ll pardon the pun.” Mel grinned over her shoulder at Martus and Hal, straightening up after she left the animal with one last pat on the head. “They’re not just going to have him out in the open, even when we get into town. It’s going to be another long day.”

  “I’m starving after that, anyway.” Hal laughed at him again, and Martus huffed, taking an indignant tone. “What? I very nearly had a heart attack when I heard that thing trampling around and growling so close to the camp. You three were all asleep. No one was out here helping calm me down! It’s exhausting.” Martus’s heart had only just now returned to its normal speed, now it had been confirmed without a doubt that they weren’t in any danger.

  He was still hesitant, but after a moment he went over to the animal and scratched it behind the ears. When it purred, he even gave a small smile.

  “What kind of animal is this anyway? It looks terribly dangerous, but obviously it would have eaten us by now if it wanted to.” If Martus had spent the time to look around the bush, he expected he would have been able to figure out that the animal didn’t mean him any harm. She had a very calm, almost lazy, expression on her face, and there wasn’t the predatory glint in her eyes that some animals seemed to naturally have.

  In fact, she was rather beautiful. With a long, almos
t elegant neck that was completely covered in reddish-orange fur; she almost looked like a house cat. Actually, Martus would hazard a guess she was less deadly than most of the house cats he’d met. She had squat little legs and a big, round belly. If children liked this type of animal, it was probably because they reminded the little ones of the toys they slept with at night.

  “She’s a gasspatto. They’re house animals in the South. People keep them around to guard their babies while they work out in the field. Especially the females. See the tufts over her ears? That’s how you can tell she’s a girl.” Mel gestured to the animal’s ears as she spoke. Then she smiled and stroked her head again. “I had to go South for some trading a few years ago, and they were all around. They’re not aggressive animals, really, but with the females, when they’re around their own binos or human children, they get incredibly defensive. I was staying with a family, and the first time I walked into their house I was as terrified as you were. They make wonderful pets, though. They can never quite be fully tamed, but if you feed them and take good care of them, even if they get away they’ll know your house is safe to return to. They’re very intelligent, and they live a long time. Most children in the South had theirs for their whole lives, from the time they were born.”

  As they started making their way back toward the camp, the gasspatto followed them lethargically for a few feet before flopping back down on the ground and closing her eyes. Martus couldn’t help glancing over his shoulder at her. If he ever lived in the South, he wouldn’t mind having one for himself to look after Elsaben. She would love it too, he was sure. If she could be protected, and have an adorable companion for life, Martus would be thrilled.

  “Do you travel a lot? With your smith’s shop being in town, I assumed you would mostly stay there.” Martus was very curious about Mel. Geraldine hadn’t really gone into the details of why her daughter didn’t still live at their family home or why, indeed, Mel had to work at all, considering the amount of money her parents obviously had. He didn’t want to come out and ask her, however, since she was just starting to warm up to him, and he didn’t want to accidentally prod into something too personal.

  “I used to. When I first left Mum and Dad’s house, I didn’t even want to be in town. I didn’t want to be around my parents or my brother at all. I just wanted some independence from them, I s’pose. So when someone was asked to travel, I took it upon myself to be the one who went wherever I was needed.” Mel shrugged, averting her eyes from Martus to run her fingers through her hair. It was still rather messy since none of them had taken time to get dressed or primped up before they ventured into the forest. She seemed rather annoyed with the knots in it.

  “I always wanted to travel. You and Hal are so much more worldly than me. I feel very uncultured.” Martus huffed dramatically, grinning when Hal laughed a little. Still, he cast a sidelong glance at Mel. She smiled, but she didn’t seem quite as amused as Hal. Perhaps Martus was just thinking too much about it.

  They quickly arrived back at the camp and set about getting packed and eating some breakfast as they did so. Elsaben slept until they had to wake her.

  Luckily, she was a child who could sleep absolutely anywhere, and by the time they’d gotten out of the woods and back on the road, Elsaben was fast asleep.

  They spent the majority of the daylight hours riding. It was unusually hot, so they stopped every time they saw water to give the horses a chance to drink. The last thing they needed was for the horses to get exhausted and need to stop again to recover before their group reached the mountain Bayasonne was at the bottom of. Mel knew more about animals than either Martus or Hal, so she could tell when they were starting to get tired or needed to stop for a drink again. It ended up being a lot more often than Martus would have assumed.

  Still, that afternoon, they made it to the town at the base of the mountain where Fitzy apparently came on all his trips. As they rode in they saw an old wooden sign labeled Bayasonne, population 125. It was about a fifth of the size of Altonswood and even smaller than Chetsville, but hopefully that would make their job easier. There was only one store in the whole town, one pub, and one inn that Martus hoped would also serve food.

  They could split up and each only have to go to one building to find out where Fitzy was. Before they started looking, they took their horses to the small barn behind the inn and went inside to get a room. It wasn’t even as nice as the inn they’d stayed at in the previous town, which wasn’t a shining star itself. However, it didn’t seem dangerous, if only because the town was so desolate. Besides, it was the only option they had. The closer they got to the base of the mountain, the colder it got. There would be no camping out tonight.

  “I think someone should stay with El while the other two go around to ask about Fitzy. I don’t really want her staying in this room by herself.” The three were in a sort of huddle by the door to Martus and Hal’s room while Elsaben was by the bed unpacking her books. Martus would admit he was concerned about her. He didn’t feel as safe leaving her in a place where every other room seemed empty. If something happened, no one would be there to know about it.

  “That sounds like a good idea. This isn’t… the most professional business, as far as I can tell.” Hal grimaced a little as he looked around the room. Him not liking the inn was a big deal to Martus because this was coming from someone who had lived in a cave for quite a while.

  “Before any of us go out, I was thinking that perhaps, Mel, you’d like to draw up a sketch or two of your brother. If you can, and it won’t take too long. Your drawings truly look like the people they’re supposed to be, and I think it could help to have a picture when we ask people if they’ve seen him.” There had been a few drawings of Fitzy that were just sold in shops back in town that Martus had brought along, but he didn’t think they would be as accurate as Mel’s drawings. They all made him out to have long flowing hair and an incredibly strong jawline and more muscles than any man could have possibly carried on his body. It made sense; they were made by admirers of their hero. He just wanted something that actually looked enough like Fitzy for people to recognize.

  “I….” For a moment, Martus was sure Mel would say no, and if she did he wouldn’t push the issue, but after a few seconds, she reluctantly nodded. “I can do that. If it’ll help find my brother, it’s the least I can do.”

  She sat down on the other bed and started getting her paper and pencils out of her bag, while Hal headed for the door. Martus caught his elbow before he could actually walk out.

  “Where are you going?” He raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t that he was trying to be nosy; he was just concerned for Hal. “You should stay. Spend some time with me and Elsaben. We can both help her with her magick. You know I’m not smart enough to do it on my own.”

  “I have my own things to work on, Martus.” Although he had been joking, Hal didn’t laugh at Martus’s words. From her position on the bed, Mel looked up at them, raising both eyebrows. She didn’t say anything, but it wasn’t hard for Martus to feel her eyes on them. “I’ll have plenty of time to spend with Elsaben once we get home, and I’ll help her plenty with her magick, I promise.”

  Gently, Hal tugged his arm away from Martus, and Martus frowned over at him. It was a stark contrast between that morning when they’d been joking around in the forest. Martus wasn’t sure what had changed, but he certainly didn’t like it. He let Hal slip out the door without bothering him further, but a moment later, he glanced back at Mel and Elsaben.

  “I’m going to get some food downstairs. Do you mind staying with El for a few minutes? I’ll get you both something as well, if you’d like.”

  Mel didn’t know exactly what Hal was doing with his magick, and as far as Martus was concerned, she didn’t need to. He certainly hadn’t been very accepting when he learned Hal was a dragon, and he didn’t want to risk turning her into their enemy.

  “I’m not really hungry, but I don’t mind staying with your sister. Like I said, I’m an older
sibling, so I’m used to it.” Mel looked up from her drawing again with a soft smile. She glanced over at Elsaben, who was still so consumed in her book that she didn’t even realize they were talking about her. Maybe Mel was able to guess that Martus wasn’t really just going to get food, because she raised an eyebrow and fixed him with an almost judgmental look. “Just be careful there. Getting your food.”

  “I am in your debt. I’ll be back soon.” Hopefully Martus would leave the inn and see Hal doing well with the control magick. However, he doubted that would be the case.

  Still, he started down the stairs with the most optimistic outlook he could manage.

  Martus believed in Hal; he would get over his transformation eventually. He worked hard, and that was a good thing, but it got a little worrisome when he started to push himself to the brink of illness for it.

  Martus wasn’t an expert, and he would readily admit Hal knew much more about magick in general and especially this spell. But he had to guess it would work better if he gave himself some more time to rest in between attempts.

  Just as Martus stepped out the door of the inn, he saw Hal disappearing into the woods. He would have felt strange leaving the inn just a few minutes after they arrived, but there wasn’t a soul in sight. Not just in the inn either. It almost seemed like the whole town was deserted. Why Fitzy chose this as his place to stop on all his trips was beyond Martus. He never would have come here by choice.

  Shaking his head, Martus shifted his coat and followed Hal into the woods. He tried to stay mostly hidden. Hal would be angry, or at least annoyed, if he found out Martus was following him. An argument wasn’t what he was after.

  Hal was going into the woods slowly, cautiously, and he stopped every dozen feet or so to look around and then continued walking. Martus knew what he was going to do once he finally stopped, he just didn’t understand why he was looking around the forest so much. What was he trying to find?