Happily Ever After......NOT!

Chapter Seven

We walked for hours, the hot summer sun beating down on us and not a hint of a cool breeze. All around us was grass fields full of wild flowers of every color, red, blue, purple, pink, yellow! It was beautiful, but with the hot sweaty weather it was hard to think of that. I grimaced in pain as a small sharp rock cut into my foot. I was starting to regret leaving my five inch heels behind, at least they gave my feet protection from all the sharp rocks, now I had nothing to protected my bare feet.
I placed my sore foot on the ground and winced as pain shot through my foot, and I felt a warm trickle of something wet on the bottom of my foot. I lifted my gown some and looked at the bottom of my foot. Warm red blood was oozing out of a wound on my left foot, the rock must have cut deeper than I thought.
I limped and tried to hide the look of pain on my face as every step I took sent a throbbing pain and it was all I could do not to cry out. "How much longer?" I asked biting down on lip as I took another step.
"It'll probably be after sundown till we get to the Wizard's cottage." My kidnapper said looking back at me, "You better keep up or it'll be tomorrow morning till we get there."
I lifted up my dirty peach gown and tried walking faster, "I'm trying, you try walking in a floor length gown, it isn't easy!" Wiping sweat off my forehead I grimaced in pain as I continued walking the feeling of wet blood on the bottom of my feet was almost unbearable and the pain was getting worse.........
Soon the Sun had gone away and the Moon had came out to play. Stars twinkled over our heads and yet we didn't stop. I stumbled blindly with my arms out in front of me to see where I was going, because even though the moon was shining it wasn't giving us much light to see by.
He looked back at me, how he could see me I had no idea, he must have cat eyes or something. He smiled seeing me walking around with my arms stretched out like a zombie. "Here." He reached out his muscular arm and offered me his hand, "Take my hand, I know these roads way more than you do, princess." He grinned.
Gratefully I took his out stretched hand and this time it was much easier to walk having him guiding me. His hand was warm and he had a strong nice grip that was comforting.
Somewhere across the fields a lonely wolf cried out his howl echoing in the quiet night sending shivers up my spine. "We...... We won't get eaten out here will we?" I asked hugging myself with my free hand as he guided us down the dirt path.
I couldn't make out his face in the darkness, but I saw his shoulders shrug slightly, "Hard to tell, but if something does come after us all I have to do is start running and whatever it is will have you for dinner."
I smacked his shoulder.
"Ow!" He said but then started laughing.
"It's not funny!" I said.
"Oh I think it is your highness!" He chuckled. I winced as my foot meet the hard dirt ground pain shooting up my leg. We walked quietly from then on with only the crickets lullaby that they sang and the croaks of bull frogs to keep us company.
About an hour later with no warning he stops walking, Startled I smacked right into his back, I grabbed his shoulder to steady myself, "What is it?" I whispered peaking around his shoulder but not seeing anything with it being so dark out.
"We're here." He pointed ahead of him into the darkness, "The Great Wizard's cottage is right down this hill."
I peered into the dark and could faintly make out the hill going down and a structure at the bottom which must be the cottage, all the windows where dark though. "What are we waiting here for then." I said moving forward to go down the hill.
He quickly reached out and grabbed my waist holding me back.
"Let me go!" I try yelling but he quickly covered my mouth before I could finish saying it.
Leaning in he whispered in my ear, "Are you blind and stupid?! It's the middle of the night!" His British accent was even thicker, "Now I'm going to let go of you, but you must whisper unless you have a death wish."
Once he leased me I stepped away, "What do you mean?" I whisper.
He gestured towards the dark cottage, "it's the middle of the night and you want to just go dancing into the Great Wizard's cottage, are you insane?! Even the Wizard needs his beauty sleep or whatever it is you princesses do at night. But if you want to have a slow painful death be my guest and go ahead into his cottage, but I'm waiting till morning. I prefer to keep my head thank you very much."
I smile, "You should be a prince, you can be so dramatic you know that." I took a step closer to going down the hill, glancing at the dark cottage I shivered and glanced back to my kidnapper who watched me waiting for my next move. For the first time that I've been with him I saw a hint of fear in those dark beautiful mysterious eyes of his. And I had to wonder, if this fearless man is scared by what this Great Wizard would do, what do I have in stored for me? "I guess one more night together won't hurt."
Thirty minutes later as the fire crackled and popped sending smoke into the cool night air. I grimaced as I finally got a good look on how bad my feet were. Besides being caked with mud they were cover with dried blood, I couldn't see how deep the wounds were, but by the throbbing pain I knew it had to be bad.
My kidnapper came from the woods carrying a load of wood on his broad muscular shoulders. I quickly threw my gown over my injured feet, not wanting him to know. But it was too late he saw, he placed his load of wood on the ground and knelt down beside me, "Let me see."
I pretended at act confused like I knew nothing what he was talking about, "See what?" He gave me a look like I know you're hiding something from me. I rolled my eyes and stuck my bare feet out towards him.
His firm dry hands gently and carefully lifted my ankles up one at a time and took a good look at my feet. "How long have they been like this??" He asked still inspecting one of my feet.
I shrugged, "I just stepped on a stone is all and it must have cut deeper than I thought."
"And why didn't you tell me?? We should have stopped and took care of these sooner!"
I lowered my eyes, "I didn't want to slow us down." I tucked a strain of hair behind my ear, looking back up into his dark brown eyes I said, "So will I be okay Doctor?" I teased trying to smile even though my feet were killing me.
He grabbed his burlap sack that he had placed beside the fire, "You're be okay, but I'm not going to lie this is going to sting." He pulled out a bottle and poured the liquid on my foot.
I gasped in pain and reaching out I grabbed his arm and squeezed it tightly, tears stun the edge of my eyes as the liquid left a stinging burning feeling in my foot, "What the hell is that?!" Still holding onto him for dear life.
"Rum." He took a big swish of it and handed to me.
I shoved it away and tried not to gag. With the rum still dripping off my foot he took the edge of his black cotton shirt and wiped away all the mud and dry blood, "Rum helps clear the skin and hopefully will help it not get infected."
I gripped his shirt tighter with my hands and bite my lip, "Just it over with."
"Next foot," he placed the clean foot down and picked up my left foot, "Ready?" He asked holding the rum bottle.
I closed my eyes, and held on for dear life, "Ahhhhhh!!!!" I screamed as the burning rum was poured onto my raw flesh, for a moment I saw black spots in my vision and I thought I was going to pass out from the pain.
Again he used his shirt to wipe away the mud and dry blood that was caked to my feet. Then he looked at the wounds, "Well..... They're really raw and there's a deep cut on your right one that's at least six inches long." He put his rum back into his burlap sack pulled out a small container of something and some cloth. "I'm going to wrap your feet up to keep them from getting infected." Opening the container he dipped his fingers into something oily but thick, then he started rubbing it into the bottom of my feet.
I watched him as he gently rubbed the stuff into the soles of my feet, "Do I even want to know what that is that you're rubbing into my feet?"
He placed the lid on the container then started wrapping my feet in the clean white cloth. He grinned up at me firelight dancing on his face making his dark eyes light up like I didn't know was even possible for such dark eyes, "Probably not."
We stared into each other's eyes my heart froze and time seemed to stand still with his eyes looking into mine, I broke the moment though by looking away towards the darkness.
"There done, now your other foot, and just so you know it's oil from a mermaid's tail."
My eyes widened, "What on earth would oil from a mermaid's tail do?!"
"Supposedly it's supposed to heal any wounds in the blink of an eye."
I glanced down at my wound and blinked my eyes, "Hmmmm well it's certainly still there." I joked giving him a small smile.
"Of course it's still there silly!" He gently pushed my shoulder some grinning obviously getting my joke.
My smile faded as I glanced toward the dark cottage, "What do you think the Wizard is going to do to me?"
" 'Great Wizard' " he corrected me, "Never call him just Wizard he hates it, and I told you I don't ask him questions and he doesn't ask me questions. It's plainly just business." He finished wrapping up my injured feet. And then found a good spot to lay down on the other side of the nice hot fire. "Goodnight Princess."
"Goodnight Kidnapper." I laid on my back and watched the smoke curl up and drift into the star lit sky and dreaded what waited for me tomorrow.
~
"Rise and shine Sleeping Beauty!" He said gently shaking my shoulder.
I moaned and batted his hand away.
He grinned, "Do I need to kiss you awake?"
I sat straight up and pushed him so he fell over onto him rump, "A frog won't even kiss you even if it meant she could be human again!"
He laughed, "Ouch! You know I hope you don't talk that way to all your suitors, because they probably couldn't handle all that fire you have inside you."
I thought back to all my suitors that were all scared away from me somehow, was that why they never stayed because of all the fire I had inside me? Or was it something else keeping me from finding my happily ever after?
"Well.... We better get going, the Great Wizard isn't a patient man." He helped me to my feet and grabbing his burlap sack we started walking down the grassy hill towards the wooden cottage.
The cottage looked kinda cute in the daylight, a rose vine climbed up the one side of the cottage and was filled with beautiful red roses in full bloom. Two fern bushes lined either side of the wooden door, and a glass window pane was on the right side of the cottage. A dirt path went from the door, and then took off turning and twisting it's way as far as the eye could see.
I turned back to look at him, "Is it okay if I knock on the door? You do you want to have the honors?"
He gestured his hands out for me, "Be my guest."
Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves I grabbed the silver door knocker with my shaking hand and knocked. I stepped back and smoothed my worn out gown as best I could and flipped my hair back. I heard my kidnapper chuckle beside me and he leaned in close and whispered, "You know I don't think the Great Wizard cares what you look like."
Before I could respond a voice from inside said, "The door's unlocked dearies." I wrapped my arms protectively around me and looked at my kidnapper.
He smiled down at me, "You're not chickening out now are you?" He moved ahead of me and turned the handle.
I shook my head, "Never." I said trying to say it like I had confidence when deep down inside my legs were telling me to bolt this instant while I could. Swallowing my fears I took a deep breath and stepped inside.
It took my eyes awhile to adjust to the dim lighting. The windows were board up and other than a small chandelier hanging from the center of the one room cottage the room was poorly lit and the cottage smelled musty and old. Wooden shelves lined the walls and tables an bookcases littered the floor with odds, and ends, knick knacks from dusty old books, to old medal keys, potion bottles, rusty horse shoes, a hook, to even an old wedding gown this Great Wizard had everything. There wasn't a single spot on a shelf, table or bookcase that wasn't holding something. The center of the room where the small chandelier hung was bare of furniture except for a green battered rug on the wooden tiled floor. This is where the Great Wizard stood his hands clasped together like he couldn't wait for what was about to happen.
The Great Wizard was a lot different than I expect, I thought he'd be an old lean man in his eighties with completely white hair and long beard, and I thought he'd be wearing a blue robe and wizard hat covered with golden stars and waving a magic wand as he said some chants.
Instead the Great Wizard wasn't that old, maybe in his late fifties with brown greasy curly hair that fell to his shoulders he wore no wizard hat, and instead of a blue robe with golden stars all over it he wore a red robe with golden designs sewn into it. He had dark eyes, almost entirely black.
I shivered it seemed like he could see right through me.
When the Great Wizard spoke I could see his mouth full of rotting teeth, "Cold dearie?"
I shook my head not sure what to say.
He made a high pitch giggle and moved to my kidnapper, "She doesn't talk much does she!"
My kidnapper rolled his eyes, "Quiet the opposite, I couldn't get her to shut up this whole journey."
"You're not the easiest person traveling either, in fact you're a pain the rear." I said crossing my arms.
The Great Wizard laughed, clapping his hands together, "She sure does have fire in her! But you delivered her safe and sound and as promised I never go back on my deals." With a flick of his wrist a small brown leather sack appeared in his right hand, his claw like finger nails gripped the sack, and with his left hand he reached into the empty sack. Suddenly a dull light started glowing from the sack and the sound of coins falling on top of each other could be faintly heard. He removed his hand from the now full sack.
My mouth formed an 'O' "Whoa!" I couldn't believe it! I've seen magicians preform tricks at balls and parties but none of them ever did magic like this!
"That's not even the best part." My kidnapper whispered to me.
The Great Wizard handed my kidnapper the small brown sack, "200 shekels as promised."
My kidnapper looked down at the sack in his hand then he looked up at me.
I felt a knot tightening in my stomach, what was going to happen to me?
The Great Wizard seemed to sense my fear and came over to me, "Now let's see what we've got here." He placed his nasty hands with their fingers that might as well be claws on both of my cheeks turning my head from side to side. I bite down on my lip to keep from pulling away. He then took my hand in his and patted it, "It's an honor to meet you, Princess Amaya."
I pulled my hand away, "Why did you want me here? Why do you have me kidnapped? What do you want with me?"
"So many questions and not enough to time!" He stepped back, "I wanted you because you're cursed." He spread his arms out like it was just a good thing to be told you're cursed.
My stomach seemed to drop to the floor, I clutched my stomach. "What do you mean cursed! Cursed with what? When did this happen?!" I yelled my kidnapper seemed to be shocked hearing I was curse as well from the disbelief look on his face.
"Who on bloody earth would curse her!" He proclaimed.
The Great Wizard held his boney hands up, "Slow down dearies, I can only answer one thing at a time! You were cursed with the curse of unhappiness away before you were born dearie, haven't you wondered why bad things always happen? You can't even keep a suitor around to court you! Not to mention your mother dying by your hand and your father throwing you in prison to find out you're not really their daughter at all." The Great Wizard grinned from ear to ear his rotting smile was disgusting but that was far from my mind.
The curse of unhappiness why? Is this why my birth mother gave me up? Because she didn't want to be near someone who could never be truely happy? It made perfect sense everything that's ever happened to me always had something going wrong that I couldn't be happy. Even hearing this news that I was curse made me feel sad, I felt weak and helpless. The room started spinning.
"Whoa whoa, easy" my kidnapper's strong arms went around me protectively as he kept me from falling to the floor.
I held onto his arms that were around me, unable to speak without feeling like I was going to throw up.
He turned to the Great Wizard, "So someone wanted her to always be unhappy? Why?"
"It appears that way, but always is such a forever thing, all curses can be broken." The Great Wizard said.
"So how can I break it?" I asked from my kidnapper's arms.
"It's quite simple dearie, you're have to find true happiness! And only your mother could tell you why you're cursed, which could be helpful in breaking it."
Finding my legs, I stood blushing a little realizing that my kidnapper had held me in his arms. I stepped shyly away and frowned at the wizard my mother is dead."
"Of course, I see and know everything. I also know that your birth mother isn't dead!"
My eyes widened, "And you'll know where to find her!" I couldn't believe my good luck! I went from knowing I was cursed to having hope that my birth mother could tell me everything!
The Great Wizard seemed to realize my kidnapper was still in the room, "And what are you still doing here?" He demanded, "You have your payment, now be gone!"
My kidnapper turned to go then turned back, "What are you going to do with her?"
The Great Wizard's eyes seemed to spark with an interest as he said, "Could it be you actually care for her?"
"No!" My kidnapper was quick to reply.
"Ah that's right because of YOUR curse." The wizard exclaimed happily.
My kidnapper quickly changed the subject, "I was just curious." He said with a shrug.
"Well like they always say 'Curiosity killed the cat.'" He said with a wave of his hand, "Now go before I turn you into a cat to chase after my mice." He held his fingers threatening towards my kidnapper.
I looked at my kidnapper and with my eyes I pleaded for him not to leave me here with this crazy wizard. My heart sank with fear as I watched him turn and leave the small cottage. To contain my fear and to try not to show my fear I turned my attention to all the odds and ends, and goodies the wizard had in his cottage.
A red potion with a heart symbol on the bottle stood next to a bottle with a llama figure symbol, books about potions and spells were on another shelf, glass slippers laid in front of a mirror.
The Great Wizard smiled as he watched me look around the cottage, "Like it?" He asked.
I turned to him and with a fake smile I said, "You know for someone with such a marvelous name as the Great Wizard you'll think he'll live in a magnificent castle by an ocean; not a ruin down little cottage in the middle of the woods."
The Great Wizard laughed with glee, "Well if it's a palace you want, a palace is were we'll be!" With no further instructions with a wave of his hands and a snap of his fingers we vanished from the one room cottage and appeared in a glorious ballroom.
The marble floor was so polished you could see your own reflection in it, the high grand ceiling was carved beautifully with angels, lions, and other animals. Velvet red curtains hung on either side of the huge window that stretched from floor to ceiling and overlooked a beautiful ocean.
Not only was the surrounding different but also my torn worn gown was replaced by a light blue lighter than the sky velvet gown with jewels covering the low neckline. My messy hair that hasn't been brushed in days was smooth and up in a beautiful styled bun. I looked at the wizard to see how he changed, but the wizard was the same. Long red robe and greasy long hair.
Laughing I twirled around my gown flowing out around me.
The Great Wizard looked at me with amusement, "How's this?"
"Much better, but with all your magic why live in a simple cottage when you could live here? It's beautiful!"
"Because I don't want to live where everyone will assume I'll live."
I finally stopped twirling, "What... What are you going to do to me??" I asked slowly.
He clapped his hands together, "Glad you asked, it's not what I'm going to do to you, but what you're going to do for me!"
I frowned confused, "What?"
"Come, come." He beckoned me to come closer so I did then with a flick of his wrist a circle image like that of a magic ball appeared hovering above his palm. The ball zoomed in to show a beautiful pink diamond charmed on a silver delicate chain."
"Beautiful" I murmured gazing at it.
"It's mine!" The Great Wizard said proudly then the image zoomed out to show a women who looked like a queen holding the necklace. "The Queen of Agog has it, I need you to get it back for me."
"Did she steal it from you?"
The Great Wizard shook his head, "It's not important how she got it, I just need it back, and you're going to get it for me."
"If you need it so bad you could whisk yourself there right now and get it yourself couldn't you?"
The Great Wizard placed his hand on his chin, "I could, but I don't want to." He pointed at me, "I want you to get it, I'm willing to wait as long as it takes, and of course I never let people do stuff for me for free. I'll make a deal with you, you get the necklace and I'll give you whatever you want."
Quickly I said, "Can you take the curse away?"
He laughed, "That's not how it works dearie, only YOU can break the curse. No Wizard can just take it away for you."
I bite my lip disappointed, but then remembered the Great Wizard said in the cottage that my birth mother knows why I was cursed, maybe if I found her she'll be able to give me a clue to how to break it! "I'll like to meet my birth mother."
"Perfect! You get the necklace and in return you can meet your mother! It's a deal!" He held his hand out and we shook, "Now you're journey begins! But you can't travel in a gown, how uncomfortable they are!" With a wave of his hand purple fog went all around me.
When the fog disappeared in place of the light blue gown was brown leather pants with matching boots, a white cotton shirt with a red leather jacket. My blond hair was braided down my back in a fishbone braid, and a burlap leather bag hung on my shoulders. I smiled, "You have great taste in clothing."
"That's what they tell me, now go you're journey awaits you!"
"What, I don't even know what direction to go, I've never been to Agog or even out of my own kingdom for that matter."
"So I'll point you in the right direction!" Before I could say anything else he flicked his fingers and suddenly I was on a dirt path at the edge of a forest. I glanced behind me but couldn't see the Great Wizard's cottage. When I turned back around a red flashing arrow pointed forward down the twisting path and then the arrow vanished. I grinned, "Very funny." Gripping my sack close to me I started walking. I sure hope this path takes me straight to Agog I thought to myself, it'll be a disaster if I got lost.
~
Back in the magical castle the Great Wizard flicked his wrist again and appeared back in his cottage. It didn't take him long to realize he need one more thing, with a turn of his wrist Hayden appeared in front of him.
Hayden sighed and rolled his eyes, "You know if you wanted me you could have just said so instead of whisking me here. I did want you wanted I brought her to you what more do you want from me?"
"Stop blabbering and I'll tell you. I sent your beautiful girl on a mission to retrieved something important for me."
"Not my girl, but please continue." Hayden said.
"I have a deal for you." The Great Wizard said.