I had been wrong.

The deeper in I went, the thicker the thorns became. Soon I was trying to raise my knees and keep my steps high. It didn’t matter. The brambles still snagged and pulled at me. Thorns pierced straight through the fabric of my skirts. Hundreds of tiny barbs stabbed into my legs. Not an incredibly pleasant feeling in the least and I tried to ignore it. However, each time I felt another prick I wanted to hiss. It felt like every step was a battle and the hem of my dress was the prize. I could hide the scratches on my legs from Father easily. A torn dress— it would be harder to do but I did the laundry after all.

All I needed to do was keep my eyes open for claw marks and catch up to Aust. The pain would be worth it.

A thick thorn struck me in the calf and sliced across it as I moved. Blood trickled down my leg as I bit back a pained yelp. I yanked my skirt up to inspect the damage. The cut wasn’t deep but it hurt like a cat’s claws stung. I bit down on my lip as I let my skirt fall back into place. “Finding Aust and the beast will be worth it. Finding Aust and the beast will be worth it.”

I repeated the mantra over and over again as I trudged onwards.

The brambles didn’t thin out any. They just grew higher and taller. I might not have noticed when they’d gone from ankle to calf high but I definitely noticed when they reached my knees and then my waist.

Behind me, I could see the path I’d stomped down on my way over. “I really should turn around. That would be the smart thing to do.”

For nearly five minutes, I sat staring back the way I’d come. I highly doubted that even Aust and Dílis had come this way. There’d been no signs of their tracks for nearly three kilometers it felt like. Come to think of it, there hadn’t been any sign of the beast either. I couldn’t see where I was putting my feet let alone where a creature would put theirs.

Turning around really did seem like the right way to go now that I was covered in scratches. Any animal with a survivalist mind probably steered clear from these thorns. Just like I should’ve. There were different, less thorny ways to navigate this part of the forest.

Maneuvering out of this part of the forest was another matter entirely. Almost immediately, my skirts snagged on a low hanging branch. I watched thorns push through the back of the fabric and out the front. That would be fun to get out. I closed my eyes and took a breath to steel myself for the pain that would come once the thorns hit my skin after pulling my skirt free. I’d been doing it all afternoon. Then I put my foot on the bramble and pulled.

And my skirt didn’t move.

“Really?” I muttered under my breath as I took an even bigger fistful of fabric, crushing the fabric beneath my fingers. “One…”

I gave a slight pull. Just a little give in the thorns.

“Two…”

Another breath before I inevitably stabbed myself with twenty different barbs all at once.

“Three!”

I yanked. With flexed arms and locked elbows. The branch beneath my foot broke with a snap that rose over the chirps of the birds. It was no where near as loud as my startled scream as I fell backwards. Even that was relatively quiet compared to the scream that came out of my mouth as thousands of tiny barbs hit my back, legs, and arms. Then nearly immediately after, I couldn’t scream anymore because the fall had forced all the air out of my lungs.

Birds screeched and took off out of the trees high above me when I hit the ground. A light dusting of dirt, water, and dried leaves showered down over me as I lay on the ground wheezing and bleeding. This is so much fun. I tried to say the sentiment out loud but all that came out was a groan.

Oh gods! Everything hurt.

I tried to push myself up on to my elbows and felt every little thorn pull out of my skin with agonizing searing. A thin hiss escaped my lips despite the fact I was biting down on them to keep from crying out again. Hells, people had probably heard me all the way in the inner circle of town.

Little rivulets of blood started to soak through my bodice. A bunch of tiny bloodspots were going to be hard to hide from Father. Not to mention the gigantic rip in my skirt. He would kill me. I nearly laid back down in the thorn patch to let it consume and grow over me with the seasons. However, that meant subjecting myself to more pain in the brambles and that definitely didn’t sound like my idea of a good time.

I pressed my eyes shut, promising myself that when I opened them again, I would climb to my feet and find my way out of the thorns. There had to be an easier way.

My thoughts trailed away as well as my willpower to haul myself up.

But only for a moment.

Because what I saw hanging on the vines above my head gave me more incentive to pull myself up than anything else.

Tufts of silvery fur clung to the thorns, claimed by them just as my skirt had been. The same fur that Aust and I had found on the ground in the clearing. Fur that belonged to the beast! I scrambled to my feet, ignoring the pain and reaching up above my head to grab the fur.

Yes, it was definitely the same fur! The weight that had settled into my stomach started to rise.

On another branch was more fur. Then a few meters up ahead I saw even more. Some of it was the same silvery fur but there were strands of black mixed in as well. As soon as I saw the fur in the thorns, I saw the places where vines and branches had been broken as the creature had passed through the brambles. A clear trail left behind for me to follow. For whatever reason the beast had come through these brambles.

I set off down the path, following the broken branches and tufts of hair a bit wildly. Going as fast as I could manage without falling again. It was probably the easiest path available. I came bursting through the vines and thorns, loosing my balance and tripping face first into a narrow dirt trail.

Well, I’d found the end of the trail. If there had been a much easier path through the woods, why had the creature chosen what had to be the literal worst choice possible?

I scanned over the brambles. No answer came to me and a quiet fell back over the trees as the birds settled back down.

Hands wrapped around my arms and yanked me to my feet. “Behind me!” Aust said, throwing me back and stepping in front of me. An arrow nocked in his bow and his bowstring pulled taught as he aimed into the thicket I’d just stumbled out of.

I fell right back to the ground and a pair of hooves I could only assume belonged to Dílis stepped over me defensively. For a moment, none of us moved. There was only the sound of the wind moving through the leaves and the occasional chitters of animals.

“What’s going on? What’s happening?” I whispered from the ground.

Aust lowered his bow, arrow still at the ready though, and looked down at me with an arched eyebrow. “I take it that nothing is chasing you then…” he said.

“What? Why did you think that?”

With a groan and a head shake, Aust slid the arrow back into the quiver at his back. “You come scrabbling out of a patch of brambles with traces of an unknown beast littered around it and screaming bloody murder. Try and guess what I thought was happening?”

Protective stance. Readied arrow. A mysterious beast wandering around the forest. He’d probably thought I’d waltz down it’s waiting gullet— just like he’d predicted.

“Oh…” I mumbled. Dílis stepped over me gingerly so I could sit up. Heat and shame flooded into my cheeks. “Sorry.”

I looked down at the ground, curling my fingers around dried leaves and dirt. Aust sighed again. Two fingers slipped under my chin and brought my face up to look at him. He’d crouched next to me, setting his bow on the ground. His head twisted to the side as he looked me over. “You fell in the thorns didn’t you?”

“Is it that obvious?”

“Your face is covered with scratches. Hold still.”

Aust mumbled a few words under his breath that I didn’t understand and his fingers glowed a dull green. As he brushed them over my cheeks and forehead, the stinging pain I’d felt dulled. “That should do it,” he told me, pulling his hand away.

I watched the glow fade. My eyes went wide and my hand flew to my face. Half the scratches had closed up and scabbed over. The other half had disappeared entirely. “How did… what did you… what was that?” I tripped over my words as I stared at him.

A small laugh came out of him. “A bit of healing magic is all. I’m no magician for sure but I can handle the functional bits.”

“Handy isn’t it,” I murmured as I touched my face again.

“Very but only for mild scrapes and scratches,” he said. “Now, please refresh my memory. What did I tell you about coming out here?”

The edge in his voice made a lump suddenly appear in my throat. I swallowed and fought the urge to look at the ground.

If you want to be a ranger then you’d best start acting like you belong here.

I forced myself to keep my gaze on Aust. “Give me a chance! I followed a trail of clues here. I remembered where the path lead even though the tracks were practically nonexistent. I’d make a good ranger if you’d train me… please.”

“I told you…” he started but I cut him off.

“I remember what you said but I can help! I want to help.”

“I am not having this conversation right now,” Aust muttered under his breath. He stood and held out his hand to me. I ignored it completely and got to my feet myself. It didn’t seem to phase Aust. Instead he only continued, “I’m taking you home. This is no place for you to be.”

“But—“

“Not discussing it little one. You can either follow me or have me drag you home. Your choice.”

I folded my arms over my chest and stood my ground. Contrary to what Aust had told me he did not, in fact, try to drag me anywhere. He waited.

“Elves are renowned for their patience.”

“I’m renowned for my stubbornness.”

His lips quirked upwards. Like he was almost trying to hide a laugh. “That is quickly becoming quite clear.”

“I want to learn and I swear to you that I will, regardless of whether or not you train me.”

Aust opened his mouth like he was about to say something but then he shut it again like he’d thought better of it. He sighed. “I admire your determination but this is not the time nor place to learn my trade.”

“What’s that supposed to me?”

Aust shook his head. “I can’t tell you that.”

I tilted my head to the side, surprised. “Why not?”

“I just can’t. Now come along so I can take you home. I doubt you’ll be able to find your way back today either.”

Aust held his hand out to me again.

“What about the beast?” I pointed back to the thicket. “It’s fur was all over the thorns in there.”

“Yes, I’m aware. However, if it were anywhere nearby before, it’s probably gone now. With all that screaming of yours.”

Heat flooded my cheeks. “I didn’t mean to… I’m sorry…”

A hand settled over my shoulder. “The trail runs cold not much farther from here. I think the creature was long gone before you came anywhere near here. Now come. Let’s get back to town.”

I held my ground. Aust raised an eyebrow. “I’ll answer a few more questions for you about my trade.”

“That’s a bribe.”

Aust smiled. Fully smiled this time. He knew exactly what he was doing. “One that you’re inclined to take.”