Chapter 5 Into the Woods

• It is beyond uncomfortable to be different, to be something
• fearful. After that episode in the basement, everyone avoided me as if I have
• some kind of a disease. Well, it's not like all of them avoided me. Sage did
• not. He'll make small talks here and there whenever he gets to visit here. It
• turns out that he lives just a few miles from here, near the market. Gideon
• also greets me but we never really got time to talk because he got things to
• do. Daniel sees me with cautiousness in his eyes.  
• Everyone's probably just busy doing much more important
• things like Ambrose in the library, searching for answers on ancient books.
• He's been inside that room for a few days now. I would offer to help but he
• clearly ordered me to not disturb him.  
• As usual, I'm inside my room. I have finished dusting off
• the antique displays on the hallway, the paintings and statues included. I've
• grown quite fond of cleaning this castle. Yesterday I finished tidying up the
• ballroom. It was huge so I had hours of cleaning it. Satisfied with the white,
• heavy curtains and dust-free tiles, I thought about what to clean up the next
• day so I came up with dusting off the displays. Gideon and Ambrose weren't
• pleased by my work but eventually, with a fair share of convincing, they let me
• do the cleaning and whatever it is I want to do.  
• I've been informed that Ambrose owns this castle. It was an
• old, abandoned castle for a good few years until Ambrose bought it and made it
• his home. Soon then Ambrose let Izaac, Daniel and Gideon live with him. You
• see, Ambrose is pretty welcoming to strangers seeing he also let me stay in his
• home.  
• Heaving a sigh, I'm contemplating whether or not to come
• down to fetch a bottle of water. The others might be there and I'm afraid
• Daniel will ignore me as usual. I do not like the behavior though. It's not
• like I want to murder them. I understand the lack of trust but it's been a
• week. If I wanted them dead, they would be dead by now.  
• In the end, I cursed underneath my breath and proceeded to
• the kitchen to fill my parched throat with cold water. I tiptoed and found out
• that the kitchen is empty which is a good thing. The room is very medieval;
• with the vaulted ceilings and squeaky, cracked windows. The interior is ancient
• but the equipment and utensils were all modern. It didn't match the whole
• ambiance. There are cooking pans, a stove, cutlery and many more.  
• I pulled the fridge open and grabbed a bottle of water. The
• mouth of the bottle met my lips as I drank like a dehydrated animal. I don't know
• why I'm so thirsty. Sometimes I get hungry so fast even when I just ate. My
• lips were always dry; my muscles are a pain in the arse as well.  
• “Can't sleep?” A sudden voice appeared out of
• nowhere.  
• A raspy cough escaped my half opened lips, water coming out
• from it. I choked and kept coughing until water dried up my throat. This is why
• I hate it when people startle me when I'm drinking or eating something. I get
• surprised easily, resulting in my jumpy behavior.  
• “It's just me.” Izaac's baritone chuckle echoed in the
• kitchen. There was no one here in the kitchen at the moment. They're probably
• in their room, sleeping by now. Or if not sleeping, doing something that God
• only knows.  
• It was his first time to approach me after a week now since
• he was always out in the woods doing whatever it is he does. Maybe he spends
• his time hunting?  
• Out of all of them, he seldom stays inside the castle. I
• would wake up in the morning to greet Sage, Gideon, Daniel and Ambrose but not
• a shadow of Izaac. He's busy. I get it but I don't see him often every night
• either.  
• A ghost smile formed on his lips, “What are you
• thinking?”  
• I gasped, “Can you also hear thoughts?”  
• He raised his brow, “You already know that much about us?” Those
• emeralds eyed me with amusement. He walked closer towards my direction and
• leaned on the nearest wooden table.  
• “It’s just Daniel. He told me that he can hear thoughts.” I
• replied shortly.  
• It's been days since I last talked to Izaac so we don't
• really have a close relationship. We're not friends. We just see each other on
• the same roof and that's it. Unlike with Gideon and Sage, we have occasional
• chitchats and lots of jokes.  
• A fleck of emotion went past those green orbs but it faded
• within a blink. Is it just the darkness inside this cellar or his eyes are
• really pretty up close? It wasn't really dark but only a few streaks of
• moonlight passed through the window.  
• He slowly nodded, his head lowered. His eyes were looking at
• the floor as if there's something interesting down there. For a moment we broke
• eye contact. It was dead silence after that. We just stood there.  
• My lips parted at the sight of dried blood on the edge of
• his shirt.  
• “What happened?” I asked in a low voice.  
• Izaac turned to me and noticed I was staring at his shirt.
• Instead of giving me answers like a normal person would do, of course he would
• ignore me and ask another question instead.  
• “If you're not sleeping, come with me for a walk. There's
• something I want to show you.” He eyed me, waiting patiently.  
• “I won't come unless you answer my question.” I'm surprised
• that it came out stern and demanding.  
• “Alright then.” He turned his back at me and started exiting
• the kitchen.  
• “Wait!” He stopped on his tracks and turned his body towards
• me.  
• “Where are you going?”  
• Izaac frowned. “Out.”  
• I wanted to go with him and see what he'll show me but I
• also wanted answers. God, I really hate him.  
• “Fine. I'll go.” I cannot with my curiosity. The curiosity
• really kills the cat.  
• He smiled, "Alright. Let's go."  
• “I really hate you.” I mumble  
• “I know. Everyone does apparently.” He answered in full
• honesty that made me bark with laughter.  
• We head out into the darkness of the woods. The moon is now
• covered with gray clouds. Dead trees were looking scary in the dim light. It's
• a surprise that it didn't rain for the past two days. The ground isn't muddy as
• it is when the weather is gloomy.  
• “Is it safe to roam around the forest at this time of the
• night?” I think it's already midnight. Is it not dangerous knowing the incident
• from the other night?  
• “No. Absolutely not. It's this time where the forest is the
• most dangerous.”  
• “Then why the hell did you take me here?” I hissed, sending
• deathly glares at him.  
• “Just keep quiet and we'll be fine.” He chuckled  
• I'm scared something would pop out of nowhere and pounce at
• us. If I'm alone here, I would be peeing myself in fear. I'm glad I have Izaac
• here and I won't be dying alone if my imagination ever happened. Kidding aside,
• I gripped on Izaac's shirt as we walked. He can be annoyed for all he wants but
• I'm not letting go of his shirt.  
• He stopped walking so I also stopped.  
• “Feyre,” My name rolled off his mouth so smoothly. Emerald
• eyes glared at me intently.  
• I raised my brow, clueless. Are we in danger?  
• “Stop pulling my shirt.”  
• I let go of his shirt, “Can we just go back?”  
• “We can't go back now and we're almost there. Here,” Izaac
• put my arm around his. He continues moving forward, unaware of how
• uncomfortable I was.  
• My lips pressed, unable to think of something to say. The
• edge of his lips rose at my sudden silence. It was just a friendly
• gesture.  
• “So what happened to your shirt?” I asked, trying to sound
• normal even when my heart is racing so darn fast.  
• Izaac didn't bother to look at me because his eyes were
• fixed on the trail before us, checking the area for any movement or noises. Now
• he really looked like a predator right there.  
• “It wasn't my blood, if that's what you're asking.” He
• dismissed the topic so quickly.  
• He doesn't like talking or joking around so much, does he?
• I'm starting to think he took me here in the middle of nowhere to murder me.
• Just thinking about it, it's not impossible. He can snap my neck in a second
• and nobody would witness it. There are so many motives I could think of right
• now.  
• “Are you going to murder me here?” I joked, trying not to
• sound nervous.  
• “No. I'm here to test a theory.” Those green eyes darkened
• and fear came back pumping through me.