Hallowed

There couldn’t be anything worse than the silence that filled while we were waiting out the storm. Chris and Abby sulked in separate corners the entire time, barely eating anything. Helen saw to trying to get both of them to smile, nothing worked. Jimmy had his buried in his book as always. As for Ulrich, well, he just slept. A lot.

At least I think he was sleeping. He was laid out on our bedroll nearly every minute, eyes closed and breathing slow. If he wasn’t sleeping, he was meditating, which seemed odd.

“Ulrich?” I whispered to my supposedly asleep boyfriend as I gently slid my nails across his bare chest, still unsure of how he puts up with the cold.

“Yes, dear,” he mumbled. So he was awake.

“Where are we going to go?”

Ulrich sighed, “I don’t know. I just know we’re leaving. We have to.”

“I understand, but we need a plan,” I replied. I didn’t think Ulrich was the type to wander aimlessly, but that seemed to be all that he was thinking of doing.

“I suppose I should ask Eldon for a map before we go,” Ulrich mumbled. He didn’t sound like he was looking forward to that.

I laid my head on his chest and closed my eyes, “I’ll do it if you don’t want to.”

Ulrich didn’t say anything else. His breathing stayed the same slow steady pace as before, but this time, I really think he did fall asleep.

******

Over the next day or two, I lost track, the silence was dominant again. Nobody did anything, but on the last day of the storm, everyone started to pack. We knew it was the last day thanks to Ulrich, who had started loading his gear first.

Packing went surprisingly fast. I mean, we didn’t have much to begin with, but it went faster than I thought it would. We decided in silence that we wouldn’t take more than we could carry. I looked at Ulrich to see just how much was going to carry. He was stronger than of all us combined after all. As I expected, he took most of the weight. Loading one massive bag with a large amount of food, water sacks, and spare fur, he set it next to a smaller bag of his personal items, whatever those were.

I didn’t have that big of a bag. I barely had a backpack. I only owned three dresses after all. We still had our clothes from our time, which we mixed with our Norse clothes every so often, but they didn’t take much room.

When the last bag was tied shut, everyone lied down and shut their eyes. I was the only one not to. I was going to be sure to get to the village and back before everyone even knew I was gone, but I needed to wait for sunrise first.

Watching the fur curtains covering the cave mouth, I spotted the first sign of light and stood up. As quietly as possible, I pulled a fur cloak over my shoulders and snuck outside.

The walk to Heim was painstakingly long. It seemed to take three times as long as normal. I might have just been trying to deny the fact that I was going there to ask for a map so we knew which way to leave, but I’m not sure. Either way, I kept walking.

Eventually I made it. Hesitating at the tree line, I looked to the huts, unable to bring myself to keep moving.

“You don’t have to seek me out, my lady,” Eldon’s voice broke into the silence of the morning, scaring me half to death. Slowing my racing heart, I looked to the direction of Eldon’s voice and saw the old man standing near a tree. His eyes were sad, like he knew we were leaving. “I’ve been waiting on one of you since the storm passed,” he explained.

“I…” I faltered. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want to lie to Eldon.

“It’s okay, child. I know why you are here,” he admitted. “Here, you will need this,” he spoke again as he handed a small pouch hanging from his side.

I looked inside and found a map, two small money purses, and a small gold ring. “Thank you, Eldon,” I finally managed, “For everything.”

“Of course, my lady. That ring,” he started explaining. I looked to the ring and saw a snake design etched around the band. The head of the snake seemed to be swallowing the tail. “Show it to the dock master in the trading village on the other side of the island. He is a friend and will give you passage to the mainland.”

I took out the ring and slid it onto my finger, “What is this snake? Is it some sort of symbol to a family?” I was beginning to think Eldon was some type of royalty or something. He seemed like he could be.

“No, my lady. It is Jormungandur, the Mid-Gard serpent. When are you leaving?” he asked.

“When they wake up,” I admitted. “What we leave behind will be waiting in the cave for you.”

“Can you promise me something?”

“Anything.”

“Be safe,” Eldon said with a weak smile, “And one day, come back to see us.”

I smiled and hugged the old man. “It’s a promise, my lord,” I said to Eldon, returning the favor of honor he had always given us.

Smiling for the first time in a week, I turned from Eldon and started back to the cave. I didn’t make it back. On the way there, I found everyone waiting in the clearing of woods we trained in. Chris was staring at the tree he’d been carving up with his sword. I was surprised it was still standing. Abby was making sure her circle of death had all its life back. Jimmy was by the creek, kicking his pile of rocks into the water one by one. Helen was standing near Ulrich, who was leaned up against a tree.

“You’re all awake?” I asked them.

Chris looked over his shoulder and replied, “You’re not very sneaky, Cass.” The first thing he has said in a week and it was a joke. Glad to see some things never change.

“Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Helen replied. Abby and Jimmy rejoined everyone when they saw me coming.

“Are we ready?” I asked them all.

Everyone traded glances and let Ulrich answer. “No.”

Nevertheless, we started our journey through the woods. I took my bag from Ulrich and laced my fingers in his. Noticing Eldon’s gift, he turned to me and smiled, “Nice ring.”

I smiled back. Things could be worse, I guess.