Today would be a trip to the forest.

Isla-Dove had made the decision when she sat on her bed above Capen's Boutique debating which she should do first – scope out part of the forest or begin work on the queen's gown. Miss Capen spontaneously decided to stay and work at the boutique that day which made the decision much easier.

Now, Isla-Dove found herself plopping her empty basket at the side of a bridge that crossed over a riverbed to the forest. She disguised the basket in some bushes before steeling herself and crossing over to the tall, dense trees that created a canopy overhead. Nature was a sanctuary where she could spill her emotions without being reprimanded for the mess. She never had to wipe her tears with a cloth because the grass would soak them up and hide the evidence. Miss Capen had no oppurtunity out there to get mad at her for a puddle of tears on the table.

Isla-Dove inhaled the scent of the earth; the fresh air that surrounded her. The city had a musty smell accompanied with the burn of coal and hint of freshly cooked food. The forest smelt much better.

Isla-Dove made her way deeper into the foliage, carefully avoiding branches that could snag her hair. Just because she was in a forest didn't mean she had to let it ruffle her beauty. She glanced left and right, searching in vain for the unicorn. She knew that her chances of randomly coming across her were almost as even as Isla-Dove's chances of not tripping over any branches that day, but she didn't know how else to find her. Enid gave her no leads on the whereabouts other than the reminder that it was currently the time of unicorn migration so she had to be somewhere in Taisu.

She hoped that the magician was searching for a wizard to break the curse if she succeeded in killing the unicorn. Too bad the guy, Riggs', brother was no longer alive.

"Isla-Dove."

Startled, Isla-Dove stumbled a few steps, heart pounding. She snapped her head to the side to find who said her name. "Marina. You scared me!"

"What are you doing out here?" Marina asked, her eyebrows scrunched in confusion. She had a hand on one of the tall trees. "I found your basket hidden at the bridge."

"I came out here for a stroll," Isla-Dove lied. "I really need the fresh air."

Marina's perplexed expression softened to concern. "Of course you do. Do you want some company?"

"Do you have any work?"

"No, I have no appointments today. Any work I do would be an emergency situation."

Isla-Dove smiled. "That's nice that you have a day to yourself."

"Yeah. I went to the shop to hang out with you while you worked but you weren't there. Instead, I had the pleasure of conversing with that witch for five whole minutes." Marina started walking, passing Isla-Dove. "You coming?"

If Marina accompanied her, she didn't know that she would be able to kill the unicorn in her presence if they happened across her. However, she hadn't seen Marina since she had scurried off after Prince Romare's unknowingly triggering tease.

"How are you doing recently?" Isla-Dove decided that time with her friend was too important to turn her away for the almost nonexistent chance of her finding the unicorn that day.

"Fine." Marina looked up at the trees as they walked. "Today feels so nice."

"Yeah," Isla-Dove agreed. She made the mistake of looking up, too, and found herself hitting the ground before she even comprehended what she tripped over. Her chin throbbed when she lifted it off of a tree stump, eyes watering.

"Are you okay?" Marina grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet. Isla-Dove blinked the tears away as her friend assessed her chin. "Ooh, it's a nasty scrape. Luckily I'm equipped."

She let go of her face to open a pouch at her waist that Isla-Dove hadn't noticed until now. She pulled out a murky brown vial and unstoppered it. Then she dipped a finger into it. Isla-Dove hissed as she gently dabbed it onto her chin, a burn that traveled across her chin to her jawline temporarily clouding her brain.

She waited a few seconds before blinking and watching Marina slip the vial back into her pouch. "What was that?"

"Relè. It assists in the healing of surface wounds. It should help speed up the process."

"Thank you. But don't think you've avoided my question."

"What question?"

As they started walking again, Isla-Dove looked at her. "How are you doing?"

"I said I'm doing fine."

"You're fine after the prince's comment a few days ago?"

Marina paused. "I had a restless night afterward, but I'm feeling better now. I'm not bothered anymore."

"That's good." Isla-Dove smiled and nudged her. "I'm just looking out for you."

"I appreciate it." She looked up at a bird that flew by overhead, chirping loudly. "It's sad that the energy isn't as strong anymore. I stopped by the forest a couple of nights ago to pick some herbs and the glow has become very weak. I remember when it was bright and made my heart warm and happy. Now it's a reminder that only one unicorn is alive. Heartbreaking."

Isla-Dove nodded, wincing at the thought of Marina's reaction if she found out what her price for freedom was. She had never kept a secret from her friend until now. If she ever held off on giving her information, it was only to reveal it later on. She called it a "surprise," not a secret.

"How far are you planning to venture today? Do you plan to make it to the ocean?"

"No, not at all. I'm too tired to walk that far right now. This is more of a relaxing walk through nature rather than an adventure."

A crack of a twig to their left cut off their conversation. They both froze. Isla-Dove held her breath, searching for the source of the noise. Could the unicorn actually be there? She didn't dare move, lest she scare whatever it was away.

She heard a whisper come from the bushes. Her hopes dropped.

"Who's there?" she demanded as she remembered what Riggs told her about being followed. "Are you following us? Show yourself!"

Her hand slipped into the cloak clasped around her neck, fingers wrapping around the hilt of a dagger that she had brought with her. She and Marina waited, staring at the bushes. Moments later, two figures popped up into view.

Lessy and Giles.

"What are you two doing out here?" Isla-Dove asked, taken aback.

They exchanged a look before Lessy answered. "Remember us telling you that we've been exploring the forest recently?"

"Oh. Yes, I do."

They both seemed suspicious as they fiddled where they stood, bouncing on their heels. Isla-Dove narrowed her eyes, confused.

"Um, hello," Marina said. "I'm Marina, Isla-Dove's friend."

Right. Marina had never met the twins before, though Isla-Dove knew that she had heard about them; the infamous siblings who evaded the knights to live life on the streets.

"I'm Giles, and this is Lessy. We're kind of Isla-D's friends."

Kind of. They got along well, but they were in a position of whether they could trust the other or not. Lessy had just tried to pickpocket Isla-Dove recently, and she was certain that they were unsure if they could trust her to not turn them in.

"You like to explore the forest?" Marina asked. Nobody moved from their spots. The twins remained standing amidst the bushes, bodies tense. They were definitely hiding something. Isla-Dove wasn't sure that she wanted to get involved in whatever it was though. They were hiding it for a reason.

Lessy nodded. "It's more adventurous than the city, plus the creatures out here are more likable than humans."

"Even the deadly ones?"

"They're more likable than deadly humans."

Marina chuckled, nodding her head.

"What are you doing out here?" Lessy asked Isla-Dove. "We've never seen you in the forest before."

"I needed a quick change in scenery," she answered. She couldn't really accuse the twins of hiding something when she just lied too. Now that she remembered that they hung out in the forest, she'd be more on guard the next time she searched for the unicorn. She doubted that what the twins were doing was as bad as what she had been asked to do.

"And I'm out here to accompany her," Marina added.

"Aren't you the well-known physician?" Lessy asked. "You're friends with Isla-Dove?"

Isla-Dove frowned at Lessy. The girl smiled sheepishly as Marina laughed. "I ran away from home when I was sixteen, and that's when Isla-Dove and I met. We've been friends for four years. I became well-known after curing the queen's illness two years ago."

"So if you had been popular before you met Isla-Dove, would you have not befriended her?"

"Lessy," Giles said, smacking her shoulder.

"It's a genuine question!" She smacked him back.

"I don't know how things would have played out that way," Marina answered honestly.

Isla-Dove nodded in agreement. It was true. She didn't know how things would've played out either. But that wasn't the fate that happened, so there was no need to dwell on it.

"Well, you're very beautiful," Lessy told her.

"So are you."

Isla-Dove pursed her lips. What about herself? Did they not think she was beautiful?

She quickly scolded herself. Don't be so selfish and vain, Isla-Dove.

"Lessy and I should be going now." Giles grabbed his sister's arm to tow her away. "Nice meeting you, Marina, and thanks again for the coins, Isla-Dove."

Marina turned to Isla-Dove as the siblings ran off into the forest. "You gave them coins? How much? I could have done that for you."

"Not much. Miss Capen said it was hers anyway, so it's not like I gave my own coins away."

"Isla-Dove," Marina said, exasperated. "Okay. Miss Capen can go to hell while we go back to the city and I buy you supper. She'll steal coins that I give you, but she can't stop me from spending my coins on things that'll end up in your stomach."

Isla-Dove smiled. "A meal sounds amazing."

"Let's go then." Marina started off back in the direction of the city. Isla-Dove followed after her, her stomach rumbling at the thought of food. "We should honestly do this more often. You should start coming over to my place for supper."

"Miss Capen has a curfew for me."

"Then come before the curfew."

"She works me nearly all day. And if I'm at the shop for the day, there's no way I can sneak out."

"Stop making this difficult," Marina complained. "You're only fueling my desire to behead that monster. If you can't make it to me, I'll come to you. I'll bring a basket and rope, throw the rope up to you through your window, and you can lift the food up to your room."

"But if she smells-"

"Stop talking."

Isla-Dove pursed her lips, close to laughing at her friend's growing frustration. It wasn't a humorous circumstance – and if it continued for the next six years, Isla-Dove felt that there would be longterm, physical consequences – but sometimes Marina's frustration was comical.

"I'm done watching you become skin and bone. We're putting more flesh between those layers."

"I love you," Isla-Dove said.

Marina stopped to turn and hug her. They squeezed each other tight. "I love you too. I'm going to help you as best as I can for these next six years, starting with getting you proportionate meals."

Isla-Dove didn't reply to that. She felt a surge of guilt spiral through her body. It made her shiver. Marina let go of her to hold her at arms length and smile encouragingly. It almost made Isla-Dove laugh because Marina was about half a head shorter than her. "Let's go get some good food."

Isla-Dove walked in silence with her all the way back to the bridge. She retrieved her hidden basket and followed her friend through the streets. The longer she went with the burden of killing the unicorn for freedom, the more guilty she became. Why didn't Enid do it himself and give her another task?

"Do you want something sweet or savory?" Marina asked.

"Savory," she absently replied.

Now that she thought about it, why was nobody searching for the last unicorn to retrieve and keep safe at a sanctuary? Why did nobody do that when there were six unicorns less than one hundred days ago? They should have been retrieved and kept somewhere secure until more unicorns were bred. This last one would be around for millions more years if left alone, but once she passed away of old age, there would still be no unicorns left.

Killing her now would just speed up the inevitable fate the world would eventually have of extinct unicorns, and in the process, begin saving millions of lives right now, according to Enid's plans.

Now you're trying to justify killing her, Isla-Dove thought to herself. She let out an audible sigh, shaking her head. Right now she would ease her aching stomach with food. Later, she could think more about the decision she must make. Enid did not give her a deadline, so she had time to think about it more. Right now, she bounced back and forth between decisions.

Hopefully she would be able to make a solid choice before the unicorn migration was over.

🦄🗡🦄🗡🦄

We are six chapters into the book!! I hope the interest/intrigue is still there. The book is a slow paced one for the most part, but as we progress further into it, it does start picking up on the action and drama. I promise! Right now, it's mostly character introduction and relationship development. :D

I have an exam coming up this weekend-next week that I'm studying hard for. It's been exhausting. I'm excited for the quarter to end in June. 😂