Mar 17, 2024 1:01:59 GMT
Post by Guinivere Marcel on Mar 17, 2024 1:01:59 GMT
[break][break]
I never had the courage of my convictions [break]
As long as danger was near
As long as danger was near
[break]
Guinivere was always aware of her surroundings, but right now she felt like every nerve in her body was standing on edge. The den that she had entered through was reek. The floor stuck to her feet. She studied her surroundings carefully. [break][break]
A single lamp hung from the ceiling. Inside were two trapped pixies, chasing each other in circles with swords of daisies. The patrons were all hooded and masked, in the greens and blues of nature, wearing the insignia of no one court. She saw nymphs in dresses of leaves that were wilting before her eyes, three tall fae in a corner, sharing a deck of cards, a hooded woman purchasing something that surely wasn’t liquor from the counter, and a ghostly man flipping a coin over and over again on the bar. The bartender seemed half-asleep, not serving drinks in glasses at all, but clay mugs that cracked and melted under the liquors. Pale green wine, fizzy blue champagne, something that looked as dark and as thick as blood. She was sure she smelled poison. [break][break]
The bar was the most curious thing of all. It was a living thing, with intertwining branches to make a solid surface, budding tiny pink blossoms that made her light-headed. She wondered if that was what was wrong with the bartender. Green glass bottles were hung from the wall behind it, seemingly at random. The substances inside were entirely unclear, but she saw a horn suspended in vinegar, slices of apple shriveling at the bottom of a jar. Mortars and pestles were strewn against the back counter, shrouded in shadows, with herbs curling in their bowls. It was as though an apothecary had decided to move into a bar haphazardly. She walked to the counter hesitantly. [break][break]
The bartender may have been languid, but he was not dim. He smirked at her and pulled out a tiny blue bottle filled to the brim with what must have been vodka. ”On the house.” he sneered. It sounded like a threat. [break][break]
Guinivere didn’t believe it for a second. She tried not to touch the bar. Even nearing it, some of the pink flowers had started to grow more rapidly, spooling across the floor towards her. Apparently they were poisonous. She accepted the open bottle and did not open it. ’Tea,” she said. ”Green.” [break][break]
His eyes widened like she had said some secret code. He moved behind the bar and pushed aside a curtain, draped over with the same flowers. The room beyond was dark. ’In,” he said, then turned back to flirt with a nymph. [break][break]
She set the bottle down on the bar cautiously. Her wrist brushed the flowers. They wrapped around her arm, making a bracelet. She sighed and tugged them off the table, but they stayed wrapped around her arm. No one was looking now. She didn’t have time to waste. She stepped behind the curtain. [break][break]
This room was an entirely different world. The floor was smooth. The walls were all wood. The room went up into darkness. [break][break]
It was small enough that she wondered if someone had hollowed out a massive oak. Three lanterns sat in niches in the wood. She was relieved to see that these were also powered by pixies. She would have been concerned if there was fire here.
[break][break]
There were two tables in the room, both round, shaped like toadstools but much more solid. One was pushed against a wall. The other was occupied. Two seats sat on either side of the round table, built of twigs. These were dead wood though, not living. Guinivere tried to hide her relief. It wasn’t hard, because it didn’t last.
[break][break]
A figure sat at the table, just as she remembered him. She had heard how slowly the fae aged. Now it seemed true. A cup of something steaming sat before him. She could see green tea by the seat before him. His posture suggested that he had been expecting her.
[break][break]
She took one step closer, than another, until she was across from him. She took a deep breath. He smelled like rain. He smelled like coffee. [break][break]
"Silas,” she said.
[break][break]
[newclass=.Lost]opacity:0;transition:all linear .5s;-webkit-transition:all linear .5s[/newclass][newclass=.Lost:hover]opacity:95%;transition:all linear .5s;-webkit-transition:all linear .5s;background-color:#7b5f8f[/newclass]