Evenfall

Chapter 12 - The Family

Isa felt a strange sensation as the two of them stepped through the portal, arm in arm. It was not unlike a cool summer's breeze, wafting over her; but it was still quite unsettling. She shivered. Nikolas turned to her questioningly, but she just smiled. He smiled back.

They stepped from the portal into the view of a massive courtyard, hidden in the shadows of an alcove. Isa looked up and found that the alcove they were in was in fact more of a large window sill; but it did its job nonetheless. Though they could see the courtyard, nobody else could see them. They were hidden completely, so nobody would question their sudden appearance out of thin air.

She looked away from the stonework of the sill towards the wide-open courtyard. It was pentagonal in shape, with one side being the entrance to the massive palace that towered behind them. It had a fountain in its center, and it was around this that the carriages moved.

Dozens of beautiful, filigree-adorned carriages looped lazily around the water feature, each one waiting its turn to stop before the great oak doors to offload its passengers, before meandering away to someplace else. Isa breathed in the beauty of it all. The horses pulling the carriages seemed just as dressed up as the passengers they ferried, bridles and halters adorned with silver, gold, bronze, jewels and feathers – each one more extravagant than the last.

Torchlight illuminated the courtyard, and this light glinted off gold, silver, bronze, cobalt, ruby and any other breathtaking colour Isa could care to imagine. They all blended seamlessly into one symphony of vibrancy. Isa thought it might even contest the forest in its glory.

A tug on her arm brought her back to the present. She looked up to find Nikolas smiling coyly down at her. With a start she realized he had a mask on. She lifted the hand not trapped by Nikolas's side to her own face and found that she too was wearing a mask. She smirked at the animal depicted on Nikolas's mask.

"What?" He chuckled, cheeks reddening ever so slightly. Or maybe it was just the firelight glinting off a bronze carriage.

"The animal you wear," Isa smiled, reaching up to touch his mask. "it's my favourite."

"Is that so?" he smirked. "And what animal might that be?"

"A wolf," Isa said simply. Something dark flickered through his eyes, but it was gone before Isa could glean anything from it.

"What an interesting choice," he said. Isa thought his smile looked somewhat forced.

"What animal might I be?" She inquired, tracing her mask to try and find out for herself.

"A pig." Nikolas said simply, expressionless. Isa's eyes widened, and she immediately tugged at the mask. "Wait, wait!" Nikolas chuckled, hands closing over hers to halt her progress. "I'm only joking."

"Quite an unfunny joke, if you ask me." Isa muttered, dropping her hands so that Nikolas could reposition her mask. "What am I really?"

"A raven," he smiled, stepping back to admire his handiwork. "Quite an interesting choice on Cindy's part, I should say."

"Agreed," Isa said, puzzled. Nikolas gave her a funny smile. "What?"

"I think it's the perfect animal to represent you," he said, looking out towards the courtyard.

"How so?" Isa asked, tugging him along towards the massive oak doors.

"Well, ravens are free, are they not?" He said, falling into step.

"I suppose."

"And they live in the forest, I'm sure?"

"That is true as well," she chuckled. "I understand your meaning now. But how might you and a wolf be alike?"