Page 69 of Demure
“Serwil. It’s a fruit that grows here in the forest.”
“Wow, it is delicious.”
“I know.” He smirked before biting into his ownserwil. “But don’t fall too much in love with them because I only brought two. It’s just bread after this.”
Sierra flashed her eyes at Aodhan. “Scared I’m going to want theserwilmore than you?”
“I would be, if they weren’t so limited.” He smirked. “They’re a treat, even here in Sidhe.”
Sierra was too busy stuffing her face to answer. By the time she was done, her fingers were covered with a light green liquid, and she saw no choice but to lick them clean.
Aodhan groaned at the sight. “Are you trying to kill me? Doing that when I have to keep my hands to myself for the foreseeable future?”
Sierra laughed. “It’s not my fault you packed a messy fruit. Maybe keep that in mind when you’re packing lunches in the future.” Sierra looked down out of habit to check if there were any crumbs on her shirt, and when she did, she noticed a small furry face looking at her from the bush.
The animal was brown, or mostly brown, and covered in fur. It looked like an American badger, but at the same time, Sierra had never seen one in real life, so she couldn’t be sure. Trying to alert Aodhan without scaring the animal, she discreetly dug her elbow into his side.
“What—” he started, before turning his head to see the small animal observing them from the brush. “Ah, you’ve attracted a badger, I see. They’re carnivorous, but lucky for you only to small animals.”
“Should I be afraid?” Sierra asked, keeping her eyes trained on the badger.
“Yes and no. Yes, because I haven’t seen one look at a human like that, ever, but no, because I promise he won’t be eating you. He’s intrigued.”
True to what Aodhan said, the badger ventured further out of the bush, sniffing around the base of the boulder they were seated on. In between sniffs, he would glance up at Sierra, obviously hoping for some sort of handout.
“He likes you,” Aodhan surmised before digging in the pack. “But I don’t have anything on hand that he would like to eat.”
Sierra nodded, tramping down the urge to hold her hand out to the badger. This wasn’t a house cat or dog; it was just as likely to bite her finger as it was to let her pet him. “I’m sorry,” Sierra apologized in a low voice to the badger. “I want to pet you, but I don’t think you would like that.”
As if it understood her, the badger nudged the bottom of her shoe. Sierra looked to Aodhan for advice to find him staring at the badger with his mouth agape. “I have never seen a badger do that.”
Sierra looked back at the badger, giving it a smile. “Maybe next time we meet, I’ll have something for you, buddy.”
The badger, as if he understood her, turned, and scurried off into the bush.
“Well, that was…interesting,” Aodhan said, once the badger was out of sight. “Once you are finished, we should probably start moving again.”
Sierra looked down at her empty hands. “I’m finished, I suppose. You’re sure you aren’t hiding anotherserwil?”
Aodhan stood, pulling the backpack up on his shoulders and holding out a hand to help her down off the rock.
Then they were off again, passing through the trees, and over rocks and tree roots. Sierra had no idea how Aodhan knew where they were going, it all just looked like forest to her. Every bend they came around looked like the last, and it wasn’t as if they were following any path.
They were moving at a pace that was a bit too fast to be comfortable, so they couldn’t talk. Plus, Sierra figured they still had to be careful to stay off the radar of any creatures, or people, who might be inhabiting the wood.
Soon, the sunlight began to fade, and Sierra found herself tripping from time to time. She gripped Aodhan’s arm tighter, but if he noticed the fading light or her steadily increasing clumsiness, he didn’t mention it.
At some point, it became pitch black, and she was trippingevery other step. “Aodhan,” she hissed, trying to be quiet but knowing she couldn’t go much further.
“I know,” he whispered back. “I’m just trying to find us somewhere slightly safe to spend the night.”
Sierra didn’t like the sound of that, but she knew that they didn’t really have a choice. Safe places to sleep in this forest were probably few and far between.
Just when she thought she couldn’t go another step, Aodhan stopped, pulling her close to him so he could whisper in her ear. “This tree trunk is hollow, but an animal could be living in it, so I need to look inside alone. Stand right here, keep your hand on the tree trunk, and don’t move a muscle.”
Sierra nodded, feeling strangely empty and cold when his warmth left her back. Suddenly, everything in the forest became scarier. The darkness felt like it had teeth of its own, and the rustling of the leaves intensified. The pace of her breathing increased, and she placed the hand that wasn’t on the tree trunk on her stomach in an attempt to slow it.
Aodhan couldn’t have been gone long when he once again touched her elbow and began to direct her around the tree, but Sierra felt all her breath whoosh out of her in relief.
