Children of Night and Snow

6. A Stranger's Kindness

It took hours before I was close enough to the Winterlands to make out a light from a nearby settlement. I kept checking for the sun to come up but it was nowhere in sight, reminding me that here, days were supposedly short compared to long and dark nights. That sometimes, the sun doesn't come out at all. It stopped snowing, and the sky was now full of stars. It was hard not to be at awe of them even in my state. Silently I prayed that somewhere underneath them, there was a place waiting for me. Somewhere I could build a home for myself. A second chance. Because right now, that single thought was all I had left to get me through the night.

Sun did rise in the end. Just as I reached the settlement I was walking towards for the past many hours. But all I could see was a massive wall made of wood and stone, one that was impossible to climb even if I could climb, which I really couldn't. And above the wall, a tall imposing tower with a single fire burning on the top like a beacon in the near constant darkness. As I was sneaking around, looking for a way in, I wondered what the beings living within these walls were like. Our towns and cities down south didn't use defensive walls like these. We didn't need them. Did this mean that I was in a hostile territory? Surely not. These are my ancestral lands. I'm sure this is a wolven territory. And they wouldn't turn away their own kin, would they?

I got my answer sooner than expected as I finally reached the gates which were firmly shut. A huge sign that read "No outsiders allowed!" hung just above along with, much to my utter horror, three skeletons. I should have turned away and ran. Not sure where, or how considering my lack of strength and energy, but it was still the smartest thing to do. Yet, that was not what I did. After nearly dying to cross the Wastes, this settlement being the guiding light for the last hours of my journey, I couldn't just let it go. I had to get in somehow. As if on a cue, a carriage pulled up to the gates, carrying what looked like various cargo and I saw my chance.

"State your business," the guard spoke to the driver, his tone sharp like the wind around us.

"I got supplies for the Dragon Inn," the driver replied casually while I hid behind a pile of snow. Two guards walked over to check the back of the carriage. When they were satisfied with what they saw and turned to go back, I took my chance and jumped inside. I landed with a loud thump and was grateful to all the Gods that the carriage began moving then and the noises drowned my own clumsiness. Still, I could swear my heart was still all the way until the carriage rolled to a stop and I knew I had to move before anyone saw me, especially the man who was now walking towards the rear of the carriage, intending to unload its cargo.

With adrenalin being the only remaining driving force in my veins, I pushed myself off the carriage floor and jumped out, ignoring the searing pain in my legs as I stumbled for the nearest shadow, praying nobody noticed me. I was in agony now. My body ready to give up at any moment. I had to find shelter. Any shelter where I could get at least some sleep without the cold taking my life away. But my strength was leaving me at a rapid pace, my mind and body shutting down on me refusing to wait any longer. I made it inside the city, great. But what now? I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer. This was it. I could only hope that maybe the lack of icy wind which the walls kept out of the city would be enough for me to not freeze to death. That nobody would find me here, in this corner, hidden behind what seemed to be a dumpster. That I would wake up again.

...

"Hey, girl, wake up!" someone was shaking me violently, disturbing the darkness that has claimed my mind and body. I blinked in surprise and confusion at a woman kneeling in front of me.

"Why are ya sleeping on the street like this? In all those fancy clothes? Ya gonna get mugged like this. Go home," the woman spoke to me but I couldn't process her words. Home. The cabin on the edge of the woods, with a perfect view of the lake, a pool in the backyard and my cozy room on the second floor. Yes, I have to go home. Except I couldn't. Because my home was no longer there. I was somewhere else now. Too far away. I felt tears in my eyes as I woke up properly to reality. The woman just watched me with curious eyes.

"I don't have a home," I whispered so quietly, it was probably impossible to hear. Like I was afraid to say that out loud. Like keeping it to myself would make it any less real. "Please don't tell anyone I'm here," I begged. The woman sighed. I was praying she'd listen and leave me be.

"Come," she said instead much to my surprise, walking away into the dark alley as I scrambled to my feet, doing my best not to cry out in pain as I followed. But I was too slow. When I got to the end of the street, facing the dead end, she was already gone. For a second I wondered if she was just an illusion, a desperate attempt of my delirious mind to find a way out of this mess as I stood there in the snow, in the flickering light of a dying street lamp.

"Why are you just standing there?! Come! And close the lid behind you, would ya?" the woman's voice echoed from underneath me. I looked down all confused when I saw a small hole in the ground. A relief that I didn't dream my rescuer washed over me as I climbed down the ladder, using all my remaining strength to close the lid as I was asked.

"Let's go," she said as she carried on further into the tunnels and I mindlessly followed. The air here was awfully similar to the one in my cell back at home, only it was much colder down here. Still, compared to the freezing temperatures outside, this was the warmest I've been in three days, so oddly, right now whatever this was, was the greatest blessing.

As we walked further and further down the maze of narrow tunnel corridors, I noticed we weren't alone in this place. In fact on our way, we've passed by multiple people including one entire family. Everyone was tucked away in their small closed off corners. Majority had a fire lit in a dumpster like thing. Some had blankets or something that somewhat resembled sleeping bags. They spared me a few curious glances but the moment I returned them, everyone looked away as they carried on in their silence. I was so occupied with the strange sight, that I nearly knocked my new companion over when she suddenly stopped right in front of me.

"Sorry," I whispered shamefully under her condescending gaze. Whatever her thoughts were, she didn't voice them. And I was too scared of being forced to return back into the freezing cold above ground, that I didn't say anything else either. After what seemed like forever, she turned away once again, this time climbing into one of those closed off dead end corners. I could only assume it was hers. If you could even own anything like this down here. I tried to follow, but my body had absolutely no fuel left. I was too weak to even make a simple jump. I tried to hold on and shift my weight up, but my arms just wouldn't support me any longer. Before I knew it, I was falling down. Except I didn't. As I opened my eyes, bracing for impact, I saw my savior holding my arm. Again, she said nothing as she pulled up inside.

"Sleep now. The fire and your body heat should dry off your clothes. We'll speak tomorrow. Just get some rest and don't make a sound," she said before I could say anything. Then she climbed under a torn blanket, her back towards me and we haven't spoken another word. Realizing I didn't want to irritate her further by making more noise later on, I crawled as close the fire she had set as I possibly could, my frozen bones welcoming the heat. I laid there on the ground, the backpack Olivia gave me a makeshift pillow. The wind was howling in the distant tunnels surrounding us, a haunting song I've grown accustomed to over the past few days. And in this unlikely company of a mysterious stranger, a cracking fire and merciless wind trapped beneath a city I didn't know, all I could think of was my home. How much I've missed it. How much I've missed the people in it. And how I will never get to see them again.

***

Hello reader, if you're reading and enjoying this story, please consider leaving a comment or a vote. Thank you!