ᴛʜᴇ ʜɪᴅᴅᴇɴ ᴍᴀɢᴇ 一 ɢᴇʀᴀʟᴛ ᴏꜰ ʀɪᴠɪᴀ

𝕀. 𝕒𝕟 𝕦𝕟𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖𝕝𝕪 𝕚𝕟𝕥𝕣𝕠𝕕𝕦𝕔𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟

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ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴏɴᴇ

ᴀɴ ᴜɴʟɪᴋᴇʟʏ ɪɴᴛʀᴏᴅᴜᴄᴛɪᴏɴ

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       Silence.

       That was all that could be heard. The large trees remained still as the small cicadas refused to make a sound in the not-so-hot weather. The sun shone brightly during mid-day, its light finding its way through the thick forest. For most, it would have been quite calming in such a beautiful, lust forest with nothing but the world surrounding them. However for Eleanora Sarnorin, it was too much. She wanted noise, she needed noise.

       The sudden snap of a twig caught her attention, whipping her head around towards the direction of the sound. In the distance, she spotted a red-tailed fox gazing at the grass. Eleanora carefully, and silently, took one of the many bows from her pack, positioning it onto her arrow. Breathing out heavily, she drew the arrow back, her delicate fingers brushing against her smooth cheeks. Eleanora's eyes never wavered on the prey as she waited for the perfect moment to shoot her shot.

       That fox will last the little children 3 days time if portioned out wisely. I could also sell some parts to gain coins for them as well. Eleanora wondered, softly smiling at the thought of the youthful siblings finally having something to eat. Her heart began to thump rapidly against her chest, the sound booming into her ears as she let the arrow go. Just before the arrow could hit the cunning fox right at its head, the animal dashed away, the arrow slightly grazing its ears but not injuring the animal. However what caught the attention of the red-tailed fox was not the whoosh of the arrow, but the mighty horse and it's owner behind Eleanora.

       She hadn't noticed right away, as she was too focused on her target, but soon felt the broad presence behind her. With absolutely no clue as to what, or who, it could be, Eleanora decided the best course of action was a sneak attack. Before she turned around to face the creature, Eleanora grabbed a hold of an arrow and flung it straight at them with no aim whatsoever. The "creature" caught the arrow in lightning speed, just before the sharp end could touch his forehead. Eleanora let out a heavy gasp as neither of them moved. The "creature" was nowhere near any of the monsters Eleanora's mother spoke of in the stories she told her as a child. The white-haired man dropped his arm and inspected the arrow. Shaking herself out of shock, Eleanora fisted her hands after realizing the man had lost her meal ticket.

       "Do you have any idea how long I've waited for a decent prey?" Eleanora questioned the strange man, raising from her kneeled position behind the bush. She stepped out into the light, now standing in front of said man and his chestnut coloured horse. The man did not respond, continuing to twirl the arrow between his large fingers.

       "Magic." Was his only response, his medallion sensing it on the arrow. Too caught up in her own anger, Eleanora did not hear his whispered response.

       "That fox could have kept someone alive for at least a few more days, but you felt the need to come behind me right at that moment?" The stranger finally looked up towards the young woman, his golden eyes burning into hers, an almost bored expression on his face.

       "Hmmm." Eleanora softly scoffed at his, well, lack of response.

       "Are you not going to apologize for letting me lose my fox?" The brave woman exhastrated greatly, just wanting to hear any form of words from the muscular man.

       "There are plenty of animals to hunt in this forest." His deep voice grumbled. It was so deep, Eleanora could hardly make out what was said.

       "Unbelievable." Eleanora rolled her eyes as she grabbed her bow and arrows, truly not having the energy to deal with this man's bullshit and insensitivity. The young woman slowly shook her head and walked away towards her horse, knowing that a bird would only serve the children for a day, but it was just enough time for Eleanora to go hunting again tomorrow. Eleanora hadn't taken two steps before the same white-haired man on his horse blocked her path.

       A childish whine escaped her pink-tinted lips as she threw her head back in annoyance. She swung her arms around before crossing them over her leather-clothed chest. The woman reminded the well-built man of a pouting child. "Please go away. Have I not made it obvious that you are a complete arsehole? You know what, men like you are the sole reas-" Before Eleanora could continue on with her rant, the stranger held out his hand, a smaller eagle dangling upside down. Her eyes widened, not entirely sure what to do. He extended his arms out even further, motioning for her to take the animal. Hesitantly, Eleanora approached the man and carefully took the bird from his grasp into her own. She examined it before a beautiful and bright grin spread across her face. "Is this for me?" Eleanora curiously asked, her eyes still trained on the bird.

       "Where is the nearest town?" He quizzed her, ignoring Eleanora's previous question.

       "Wait but this is your meal, no?" Eleanora looked up at him once more, now feeling slightly guilty for her last statement. "I cannot take this from you knowing this was something you were saving for later. I don't have anything to offer you as of right now. I'm sure there are plenty of birds here for me to take. I also want to apologize for what I said about you, because here you are giving me thi-"

       "Just have the bird for fuck's sake." The man suddenly snapped out, annoyed by the talkative girl. He could care less about what she said about him. Eleanora shied away in slight embarrassment at his words, not really expecting that sort of reaction from him. The horse whined, signaling his owner to be kinder to the woman. He lowly hymned before taking a different approach. "You can have the bird if you tell me where the nearest town is." Eleanora curiously returned her gaze back on him; his tone now being much more delicate and soft. "Nothing is needed in return. Just point me towards Kattegat." The young woman firmly nodded at his words before walking around the beautiful horse and continuing on her path.

       "I'm headed there myself. Let me just grab my horse and we can enter town together." Eleanora suggested, hearing his deep grumble of approval without having to turn around. Just a few minutes up ahead was a calm cream-coloured horse who patiently waited for his owner to return. After spotting the woman, the horse lifted its neck to face her. "Harold!" She excitedly greeted, jogging over to her companion. "Sorry I was gone for so long." She cooed, stroking his smooth white mane. She carefully untied the rope that was wrapped around a thick tree in order to ensure Harold wouldn't run off, as it is quite common with the playful horse. Carefully tucking the bird away into another one of her bags, Eleanora easily lifted herself up onto her saddle. Giving the strange man yet another smile, she clicked her tongue and held onto the lead rope."Alrighty then. Shall we?"

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