I walked forward, almost floating. My bare feet hardly seemed to touch the moss-covered ground. I brushed past the curtain of velvety white petals. The fragrance of the sempretine flowers faded into the quiet darkness of the canopy. This was my refuge. Here, everything faded away. I sank down onto the ground, back against the twisting, vine-covered trunk of the tree. My eyes were closed, but I was far from asleep. My senses were sharpened. I was aware of every muscle in my body, every miniscule sound. A rustle in the undergrowth outside, a slight rise in the temperature. Nothing escaped me. Anywhere else it would have been imperceptible to me. Deep inside of the trunk, the tree pulsed gently. A faint golden light emanated from the center. It didn’t penetrate the soft darkness, but I could feel the light. It caressed me, lifted me above everyone else. It cloaked me completely. I was safe.

Safe, safe, safe, safe. Something laughed mockingly. I shook my head, trying to wipe the voice away. The laugh grew deeper, changing into a deep cackle. My heart pumped hard as my eyes flew open and I sprang up from the ground, rushing out of the cave of flowers and leaves. Run, run, run. The voice chortled, then was abruptly cut off as I fled away from the tree.

I ran until my legs burned. My eyes were shut tightly against whatever or whoever was out there. As if that could protect me. It was an idiotic notion. I slowed down, unable to continue. My chest heaved as I panted, bent over, hands on my knees. I tried to catch my breath, to calm down. Nausea filled my being and I retched several times before bile filled my throat and spilled to the ground. Despite the pool of sick at my feet. I wanted to keep moving. Get as far away from the sempretine as I could. Instead I collapsed. My hair was splayed out around my face, a tangled mess. I licked my dry lips, slowly opening my eyes. Above me, the sky was a dull gray.

I managed to rise to my feet. I glanced around, nervously, eyes darting this way and that. Behind me, I could still see the sempretine tree. I shuddered in memory of the voice. And that laugh. I had never heard anything like it, never been more afraid in my life. It couldn’t have been my imagination. I had heard it clear enough. Must be some kind of Middle Noct. Something evil. Truly evil. Nothing First would interrupt a sempretine. But another thought crossed my mind. Could it be Last Noct? I let out a small, involuntary gasp. Nobody knew what Last Noct did. What form it took, anything except that there was a sliver of it nestled inside each sempretine. I had hoped that it was good, despite its unpredictability. I tried not to think about this. It was for older, wiser people to contemplate. I had been taught better. As I caught my breath I began to move again, this time towards the stone path. My bare feet sank into the pillowy ground, and the short walk seemed to stretch on forever.

When fallen leaves and moss transitioned into smooth cobblestones, my feet relaxed into a more familiar position. I sped up, careful to maintain a steady pace. Despite my controlled movements, my mind raced. I needed to talk to Grandmama and Grandmother about this. They would know. They had much wisdom to share. I pictured Grandmama’s kind words and warm embraces. Soon it would all be better. They could protect me. I could hear her voice echoing in my head. We will always protect you. Your sempretine will always protect you. Only one of those seemed to be true.

I focused on the walk. The thrum of my feet against the path, the distant trickle of a brook, the rustle of the wind through the treetops. The surrounding forest was a source of solace. It always had been. Especially today, it was a contrast from the meadow that the sempretine was in.

I followed the twisting path until I saw the great stone mansion that my grandparents resided in. Where I lived with my parents was much further away. It was quite the journey to my sempretine. I looked up at it, not yet used to its majesty. Ivy twined up the walls, somehow adding to the grandeur. Our humble cottage was a far cry from this place. It was four stories high, and in front of it there was an intricate iron gate. It was tightly bolted. Not wanting to alert everybody of my unusually early return by ringing the massive bell by the gate to summon a footman, I ducked between the trees and the fence searching for the gap that I knew was there. I squeezed through the bent metal bars into the courtyard. In the center, a marble wolf spewed sparkling blue water. My bare feet slapped against the carved tiles.

There was something off about today-and it wasn’t just The Happening, as I had come to refer to it in my mind. That was part of it, though. It had come before that. I hadn’t known what that feeling was. It was a flutter in my mind, a twist in my stomach, a twinge in my heart. It hadn’t worried me, at the time. I had pushed it aside, carelessly in my excitement to get to my sempretine. Now that felt like a mistake. I didn’t want to use the front door, either.

I walked around the house to the servant’s door and rapped sharply. A young voice resonated from the inside. It was Ethan, one of the pages, who had been hired recently.

“Just a minute!” I waited impatiently, wanting to discuss this with my grandparents more than ever. I heard his footsteps, and then the door swung open. “Hello!” He smiled widely and stepped back to let me enter. His blond hair was a tousled mop on his head, and his green eyes glinted mischievously. He wasn’t formal with me like the other servants, unless my grandparents were around. I brushed past him rudely, now desperate to talk to them. I nearly broke into a run, but still felt the urge not to draw attention to myself. I kept replaying that moment in my head, frightening myself over and over again. Usually I loved being outdoors, but today I felt relief at being indoors. The thick stone walls sheltered me, rather than enclosing me as I usually felt they did. I slowed down, that wild desperation dwindling quickly.

Ethan called after me. “Quinn.” He said with a kind of familiarity that surprised me. We barely knew each other. “Wait.”

I turned slowly. “Y-yes.”

The smile had faded from his face. “Are you alright?”

I hesitated. No, I thought. I allowed myself to release a long sigh, straight from my heart. But I couldn’t confide in him. “I’m just tired.”

He knit his thick brows together, glancing over my dirty clothes. “You sure? You can tell me if something’s wrong.”

“I’m just tired.” I repeated, a bit testily.

“Okay.” He said, but his usually jovial expression remained grim.

I pressed my lips together tightly and continued on my way, up the short staircase into the kitchen. I could feel his eyes boring into my back. He wasn’t convinced. Despite my irritation at the slight delay, I couldn’t blame him. I wouldn’t have believed myself.

I entered the open kitchen. Unlike the rest of the house, with its elaborate woodwork and ornate furniture, the kitchen featured simple whitewashed walls. It was absolutely empty. Maybe Grandmama had given them the day off. That was probably it. She was kind, soft hearted, so unlike Grandmother, who was cold and hard. But then why wasn’t Ethan gone? And why hadn’t he told me? I was sure that there was a reasonable explanation for it all. Maybe he just had something to finish up. Or maybe he just wanted to relax alone in servant’s quarters, which were almost never empty. I thought back to how the kitchen had been at this time yesterday.

Servants bustled about, preparing for lunch. Some sweated over hot griddles, while others rushed about carrying teetering trays stuffed with steaming food.

A single juicy slab of mushroom sizzled in a frying pan, along with chopped up onions. They must have forgotten to clean up that one thing. Odd. But then again, this whole day was. There was no fire under it, but the pan was hot. It filled the room with a mouthwatering scent. Curiously, I wasn’t hungry in the least even though I hadn’t eaten since the night before. You weren’t supposed to eat before going to your sempretine.

After the long trek, the delicious food should have aroused some kind of desire in me, but even the thought of it nauseated me slightly. I knew that I was being silly, but the sight of the empty kitchen sent shivers down my spine.

I turned back, closing the door behind me with a soft thud. That burst of adrenaline had faded, leaving me worn out. I was so moody today. My whole mindset seemed to change at the snap of some invisible being’s fingers. I didn’t even want to talk to Grandmama and Grandmother anymore. I didn’t know what I wanted to do next anymore. The lapse in careful planning was reassuring. It made me think of my parents. My grandparents, however loving, had rigid schedules. I didn’t think that they even knew how to go with the flow. They wouldn’t miss me for a while. I wasn’t usually back until nighttime. I would take it one moment at a time.

I slowly, gently placed each foot on the steps, descending back down into the cool darkness of the servants’ quarters. I reached the bottom and once again felt like I was floating. I felt light, airy. Safe. I floated away on a dark cloud, surrounded sweet, sweet darkness. Someone let out a high pitched giggle. It was an otherworldly sound, but familiar all the same. Where had I heard it before? My mind whirled, struggling to concentrate on any thought, let alone one so specific. Then it came to me. The creature I had heard inside my sempretine. But I wasn’t frightened. No, no, no. Why had I ever been frightened? It was all so clear now. I was proud now, honored. As I should have been from the beginning, of course. They had come for me. For me, of all people. They had chosen me. I would come with them, follow them anywhere, do whatever They asked of me. I should never have doubted them.

Quinn. Quinn, Quinn, Quinn. Quinn! That voice was incessant, calling me out of my dream. I fought to stay there, safe. Safe with them. But the disembodied voice became a body, shaking me gently, first. Then harder. It was Ethan. What was wrong with him? What had he done? All of a sudden, I shuddered violently. He looked me in the eyes, deeply, the previous liveliness still gone from his face. “I knew you weren’t alright.”

I smiled at him, brightly. “Got you!”

He looked at me strangely. “That was a prank?”

“Yes.”

“It wasn’t funny. I thought something was wrong with you!”

“Oh. Sorry.” I could be a pretty good liar when the situation called for it.

He frowned at me. “Don’t do that again.”

“Okay.” I walked out the door, not giving him any time to develop further suspicions. I would go around the front. And I would talk to my grandparents. What a waste of time that had been. I walked around the building to the main entrance. I raised the heavy knocker, then let it fall, sending noise echoing through the halls of the mansion.

There was no answer. I tried again, then waited for several minutes. Silence. Then a faint cry. Almost like the mewling of a kitten, but it was human. I could tell. This wasn’t right. Usually a servant or a grandparent would answer within ten seconds. Panic swelled in my chest, but I tamped it down. Now was the time for action. I could panic later. Just as I had been taught. I tried the doorknob, expecting it to be locked. It was. I knew, just knew that it was time to take drastic measures. I scanned my surroundings quickly, and my eyes fell on a large rock that lay nearby. I picked it up and hefted it in my hand for a moment, ready to do what needed to be done when I heard footsteps behind me. I whirled, ready to use the rock for another purpose, but it was only Ethan. He ran up to me.

“I forgot to tell you that your Grandmama gave the servants the day off.”

“Then what are you doing here?”

“I just wanted to be alone. It’s usually so crowded in there.”

“Oh.” Exactly as I had thought.

“Why were you going through the servant’s quarters?”

I shrugged. He let the matter be, luckily. I didn’t know what to do now. I couldn’t throw the rock through the window with him around. I still had the feeling that I shouldn’t tell him what was going on. I needed to get rid of him. We stood quietly for a few minutes, and he showed no signs of leaving. The rock was still in my hand, I dropped it, hoping that he hadn’t noticed. His gaze followed it, but he didn’t otherwise acknowledge that he had seen it.

He walked closer. “Truthfully, I killed them all.”

Another wave of strange calm came over me. “Why would you tell me this?”

“I dislike lies. And I would not want you to go to the trouble of conducting a search for them.”

"Okay, then."