#pluvia

Studying the area around him and committing it to memory, Adam started his hike down the mountain. Descending was an easy feat as it was entirely covered in shade thanks to the trees, but he could already feel it would ache on the return upfill. Climbing a mountain every day would strengthen him in ways he wasn’t sure he was prepared for, though he was eager for it all the same. Apfel already proved vastly different from Pluvia with its hills and mountain as most of Pluvia was flat with only curves to the roads and infinite puddles that could drown a person with their depths should any fool decide to jump in them.

While he didn’t mind the hills, rocks, and tree roots, Adam was unsure if he would get accustomed to the heat. The longer he remained in the sun he felt as though he were melting from the inside out and his steps grew heavier. Coming to a river, he stopped to take a moment to rest in the shade. He stood at the edge where the river fell over the lip of the mountain into a waterfall, he saw the wide-open farm fields of waving grains and grasses basking in the sun, eager to grow and eventually be harvested.

Captivated by the beauty of the land, he felt a yearning and craving for his own piece of earth in this world. Though he was unfamiliar with the lifestyle of farming, he would grasp it by the horns if it meant a peaceful life of solitude. The temptation was so great, it was almost enough to lure him into the false security that he could live freely here, however, his master’s words rang loudly in his mind.

“He’ll kill everything around him before he has a chance to live a life.”

His gaze fell to his glove covered hands. Without the gloves they were hands that could kill with a simple touch. How could he own a plot of earth if he’d only poison it? Shaking his head to free such frivolous thoughts from his head, Adam scowled down at his reflection. He looked human enough with his black hair and eyes black as coal that he could exist on the outskirts of this realm, but he’d never properly exist in it or with its people. Pointed ears, pale sallow skin, and a poisonous air that clung to him like a perfume would kill a thousand people within a mile radius of him if the wind blew the wrong way.

How could he have a life of freedom or peace when he was created to choke the life from everything around him?

Scoffing at the idea, the hairs on the back of his neck prickled as he felt eyes watching him. His hand touched the hilt of his sword as he turned in time to see a black bear nosing its way through the underbrush. Big black eyes stared at him, its nose twitching as it sniffed and stretched its neck out in his direction and Adam sucked in a breath. Until now all the woodland creatures stayed away from him, but the black bear stared at him and took a half-step closer to him and made him take a step back.

“Stay back.” He swallowed hard and watched the animal pause as it listened. “Don't come any closer, I don't want to hurt you. If you keep breathing the air around me, I will. Please run away.”

Though he was suited up tightly to keep the poisonous musk contained, it could still leak out. The animal didn’t deserve to die, especially on his first day in a new realm. He held the bear’s gaze, willing it to flee from him when the wind blew gently, and its nose stopped twitching and it chuffed at him almost mockingly. Adam’s heart nearly stopped as the bear stood on its hind legs. His hand reached for his sword again, preparing for an attack when it suddenly began to shrink, bones breaking, joints popping, and the most painful bellow escaping the beast as the bear turned into a man. Adam blinked as before him was no longer a bear, but a man, covered in scars in the bushes.

“Well, aren’tcha a softie?” The man groused with a shake of his head. Adam was thankful he stayed in the bushes to hide his lower half. “And you’re supposed to be the one to make a change. What was the Mirror thinking?”

“What the hell?” The mention of the Mirror snapped Adam back to reality and he let his hand relax on the hilt of his sword. “Who’re you?”

“A werebear, a friend, but my name’s Frederick.” The man declared and crossed his arms over his scar covered chest, his green eyes looking disapprovingly over Adam. Adam’s mind reeled at the revelation that this was the old butler he knew from Pluvia. His mind reeled faster as he realized Frederick was a werebear, he hadn’t mentioned that in their meeting.  However, as Adam tried to spot the differences between the young and old butler, he noticed Frederick didn’t have hole in his chest.

 “And you’re Adam,” Frederick pointed at him.

“How do you - !” Adam’s jaw suddenly tightened, and his chest contracted as the bindings from Mr. V’s contract quite literally sealed his mouth shut. Quickly wracking his brain to think of a different way to respond, the young Frederick snorted.

“Sometimes I forget that he can’t tell a lie. He wasn’t kidding when he said you wouldn’t be able to say much about yourself.” Frederick squinted and sniffed the air. “You don’t look particularly powerful or abnormal like a chimera would, but you certainly smell it.”

“What are you doing here?” Adam gritted out as he worked his jaw to work.

“I’m here to take you to the castle, of course.” Frederick scoffed like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “You’re supposed to check out Apfel without meine Roese finding out. The Mirror’s clued me in on things, so you don’t get in trouble with your superiors wherever you’re from. I know why you’re here.”

Adam’s brow drew together as his hand fell nonchalantly on his sword. “And you’re just . . . accepting all of this?”

“Look, we don’t have a lot of time to actually discuss what I do and don’t accept about this whole situation.” Frederick sighed and gave him a stern look. “I’m a desperate man who’s reached the end of his rope trying to save his mate, and you’re my last hope. So as of this point, yeah, I’ll accept anything I must if it means things will finally change.”

Adam had a thousand questions, but the primary one was how did the Mirror, who was absent from Pluvia, know about all of this? It was all too convenient which meant the Mirror was plotting something. He rubbed a hand to his chest as he felt an unsettling ache.

“While I’m sure you’ve got as many questions as I do, we can hash that out later,” Frederick rolled his shoulders and neck. “You need to get on my back.”

“What?” Adam looked at him incredulously as Frederick got on his hands and knees.

“We’ve got to get back to the castle before Roese finishes up with the peasants.” He growled out in a deeper voice. “Ask questions later.”

Adam hardly had a chance to argue before Frederick transformed back into a bear, all the same sickening noises of his body physically breaking itself to expand and rearrange itself. Frederick the black bear moved out of the bushes huffing and giving Adam an expectant look as he dipped his shoulder down as an invitation to climb on. Against his better judgement he did so, and the moment he was settled, Frederick took off down the mountain.

Riding bareback on a werebear when he was running as fast as his stubby legs could take him was not a ride Adam would recommend. He nearly lost his head by the low hanging branch path Frederick took and was flung unceremoniously from his back when they got close enough to the castle. With his catlike reflexes Adam landed on his feet but quickly fell as he averted his eyes as Frederick shifted back into a human, still naked.

“Come on now lad, we’ve got the same bits.” Frederick chortled as he pulled on a rope that looked connected to a trap in the trees. A bag attached to the other end of the rope plopped down and Frederick procured clothing and took his time dressing.

“I have no desire to see your bits.” Adam huffed and crossed his arms and kept his back to him.

“It’s a shame, they’re quite good bits.” There was the snap of his pants as he buttoned them closed. “I’m at least decent, you can look at me again.”

Not wanting to risk seeing Frederick’s hairy bear bits again, he kept his eyes forward and found the white stone walls a welcome sight by comparison. There was a long drawbridge where merchants crossed the bridge with their wagons full of goods and knights checked their papers at the entrance to the kingdom. Papers shuffled and Adam felt a trickle of sweat drip down his back as he realized he didn’t have any papers to allow him into the kingdom.

“What’s wrong?” Frederick grunted as he pulled his shirt over his head and sauntered over beside Adam. Standing side by side, Frederick stood taller than Adam and was almost as big as a bear.

Adam tipped his chin in the direction of the bridge. “What are those knights looking for?”

“Licenses, permissions and invitation for entry, that sort of thing.” Frederick shrugged and looked him over. “You don’t have to worry about any of that.”

“What?”

Frederick pulled something from his back pocket and handed it to Adam. A bear encompassing an apple was imprinted on the wax seal of the envelope. “This is all the permission you’ll need to get in and out of Apfel. It’s Roese’s seal.”

Adam stared at the envelope then looked at Frederick incredulously. “Why are you doing this?”

“I told you,” He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ve gotten desperate, and the Mirror’s said you’re what we need. So, I’ll do what I need to help you because it will help me in turn later.”

“And you blindly believe him?” Adam searched his face for any hint of lies.

“I can’t say I care much for the silver bastard, but he’s the only shot I’ve got at getting meine Roese back.” Frederick cast him a serious look, his brows drawn low and determination in his eyes. “If killing every last person in this kingdom was enough to free her from her curse, I’d have done it by now. However, what she’s planning on doing isn’t something I can just let her do. Not after what the Mirror’s shown me.”

Curiosity got the better of Adam and he spoke without thinking. “What has he shown you?”

“Her, me, our future.” He said rather clipped and growing pricklier by the second. “I know that if she goes through with this plan, there’s no turning back for her.”

A curtain of tension was cast over them and before Adam could ask what her plan was, bells tolled in the distance and drew Frederick’s focus elsewhere. “Come, we mustn’t dawdle.” He turned on his heel and marched towards the bridge. “She’s always quick to find me once she’s spoken to the peasants.”

Following in step beside him, they marched across the bridge and with a flash of their seals, were easily allowed past with no questioning. Adam carefully tucked the sealed envelope away in his pocket and followed Frederick past the quaint cottages of vibrant colors lined the walls and streets with unsuspecting civilians walking about freely with no sense of fear or trouble brewing about as the guards implied. Vendors sat at their stalls throughout the square displaying their wares, women shopped with woven baskets over their arms, young girls picked flowers and braided them into crowns, and young boys ran around playing their games. Hardly a place that appeared there to be trouble.

“You’re a lot quieter than the Mirror is.” Frederick noted as he kept his bottle green eyes forward.

“We’re not of the same cloth.” Adam scowled and Frederick barked a laugh.

“So, you say, but your mannerisms are more similar than you think.”

Adam grimaced and Frederick only laughed harder. “I think I might end up liking you.”

“I’m not here to be liked.” Adam grunted and Frederick seemed to sober at that. “You say I’m to change things, but what is her plan that needs changing?”

“Not very patient.” Frederick scoffed and cut his eyes at him. “Though given your circumstance, I can see why.” Pausing in their walk, Frederick tugged them into a small courtyard off to the side and kept walking. “Go with me to the castle and I can explain with the Mirror as witness, so you’ll know I’m not lying.”

“Bold of you to assume that I trust that thing.” Adam stopped in his tracks and his tail tightened around his leg. “You’ve no idea what that thing has encouraged her to do to me.”

“Mayhaps now,” Frederick half shrugged and cocked a brow at him, “but you came with me nonetheless.”

“Because I know I can trust you.” Adam looked him in the eye and his mouth immediately clamped shut as Mr. V’s binding contract shut his mouth again.

“Bold of you to assume you can trust me then.” Frederick said darkly with a dangerous look in his eye.

“I know I can trust you.” Adam cleared his throat and wiggled his tongue free. “You’ve made your intentions known to me since the start. The Mirror has not.”

“You’re just like her. . .” Frederick noted thoughtfully with a tilt of his head. “Perhaps not all is lost after all. . .”

“What do you – ”

“I’ll explain more later.” Frederick’s eyes darted around them. “There’s too many witnesses that could give us away and try to take me out of Roese’s favor.”

Adam glanced over his shoulder to see what he meant, but so no noticeable character that they could be concerned about. Not waiting for his rebuttle, Frederick walked forward and with little else to do, Adam followed him.

Unlike the rest of the kingdom washed in the rays of the sun, there was a shadow cast over the castle. While it stood tall and proud, it didn’t feel welcoming with its pointed gates and gray stones. Even the trees that waved in the wind seemed to warn him from coming closer as his escort took him inside. Adam felt the chilling tingling of dark magic littered all over the castle. The shadow was overcast indoors as well and left the feeling of eyes watching him with each step he took.

“What’s happened here?” Adam’s nose burned at the rotten stench of dark magic.

“More than should have.” Frederick sighed remorsefully as he led him down a series of hallways. “Which is why I sought you out the moment I felt you enter Apfel.”

“You felt it?” Adam stopped in his tracks and felt dread fill him. If Frederick felt him enter the realm, then so would Roese.

“Any who has an affinity for magic and nature thereof can,” Frederick nodded and stood before him. “It doesn’t mean they’ll know what it is, but they will have felt it.”

“Then she will know I’m here.” His tail squeezed his leg so tightly he feared it would burst like a grape.

“Not necessarily.” Frederick smirked rather smugly. “Let’s just say she was a little preoccupied the moment you entered.”

A waggle of his eyebrows was all Adam needed to know just how Roese preoccupied, and he grimaced, earning a champion smile from Frederick.

“Seeing as you have no problem telling me things I don’t wish to know,” Adam scowled and relaxed his tail. “How about telling me something I do wish to know.”

Frederick stiffened and a dark look passed over his face before he shut his eyes and dipped his head down. “You just can’t wait, can you?”

“I’ve followed you this far, and if you don’t tell me now, I’ll leave and not return.” His tail tightened around his leg in determination as he set Frederick with a hard glare and earned a terrible scowl in return. Regardless of his mission if this man didn’t inform him of what he was getting into, he was no longer interested in earning whatever freedom Mr. V had to offer. He’d suffered a lifetime of torture from the dreaded vampire Queen Roese, and he would not do it a second time.

“I must be out of my mind.” Frederick relented with a sigh and pulled him closer to the wall. “Let’s just say that Roese might have taken things a little too literally in the ingredients and has raised a fawn for slaughter.”

Adam’s brows furrowed. “What do you mean?”

Frederick opened his mouth to speak, but quickly closed it and abruptly turned at the sound of heels clicking against the stone floors.

“Frederick,” Adam froze as he recognized her voice at once even if it was sickeningly sweet. “Why are you lurking in the shadows?”

Author's Note:

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