the Villainess they took for granted

Chapter 52: Chapter 52: The Last Day

Knowing they would probably be rescued should have improved Marian’s mood.

Instead it ruined it.

Completely.

Thoroughly.

Unreasonably.

The discovery irritated her.

A great deal.

Because she wanted to go home.

Obviously.

She wanted a bed.

A bath.

Food that wasn’t gathered from the wilderness.

A roof that wasn’t actively trying to collapse.

Normal things.

Reasonable things.

Then why did the thought of leaving feel so strange?

Marian immediately decided not to think about it.

A strategy that failed within three minutes.

The forest stretched around them as they continued walking.

The weather had improved.

Sunlight filtered through the trees.

Birdsong echoed overhead.

The entire forest appeared determined to become beautiful the moment she was finally ready to leave it.

The audacity.

Beside her, Cassian walked in silence.

Not uncomfortable silence.

That was the problem.

At some point over the past three days, silence had become easy.

Neither felt compelled to fill it.

Neither felt awkward.

The realization was deeply concerning.

Marian kicked a small stone.

The stone had done nothing wrong.

But she felt better afterward.

Slightly.

"What did the stone do to deserve that?"

Never mind.

Cassian had ruined the moment.

Marian glared.

"It was in my way."

"The stone was stationary."

"It looked judgmental."

Cassian nodded solemnly.

"A serious offense."

The traitor.

For a while they continued walking.

The conversation came and went naturally.

Without effort.

Without planning.

As though they had been doing this for years.

The thought appeared unexpectedly.

And Marian hated it immediately.

Because it felt true.

That was the problem.

The frightening thing wasn’t that spending time with Cassian had become pleasant.

The frightening thing was how quickly it had become natural.

They stopped near a stream around midday.

To rest.

To drink water.

To avoid admitting they were both tired.

Cassian sat on a fallen log.

Marian dropped onto a nearby rock.

With considerably less grace.

The forest had stolen most of her dignity.

A tragedy.

For several moments neither spoke.

Then Marian asked:

"Do you think they found Elena?"

Cassian looked toward the water.

"I hope so."

"So do I."

The answer came immediately.

Because despite everything, she meant it.

Silence followed.

Then:

"They probably did."

Marian nodded.

The same thought had crossed her mind.

The search parties had been large.

Organized.

Determined.

Someone had almost certainly found Elena by now.

Which meant—

The realization settled heavily.

Everyone else was probably safe.

Everyone else had probably gone home.

Everyone else had probably resumed their lives.

While she and Cassian remained here.

Suspended.

Somewhere between one world and another.

The thought felt strangely melancholy.

Beside her, Cassian skipped a small pebble across the water.

The stone bounced three times.

Marian narrowed her eyes.

"Show-off."

"I have no idea what you’re talking about."

"You absolutely do."

Cassian looked pleased.

Again.

Marian searched for a suitable pebble.

Found one.

Attempted the same thing.

The stone immediately sank.

Straight down.

No bounce.

Nothing.

Silence.

Then:

"A remarkable effort."

Marian threw another pebble at him.

This one reached its target.

Justice.

At last.

Later that afternoon, they found wild berries.

Or rather, Marian found wild berries.

Which was exciting.

For approximately ten seconds.

Until Cassian informed her that eating random forest berries was a terrible idea.

Marian felt this was overly negative.

"You don’t know they’re poisonous."

"No."

"Exactly."

"I also don’t know they aren’t."

Marian stared at the berries.

The berries stared back.

A tense negotiation began.

Eventually Cassian won.

The berries survived.

Marian remained unconvinced.

As the day wore on, something strange happened.

The closer they came to civilization, the quieter they became.

Not because they had nothing to say.

Because there was too much.

Too many thoughts.

Too many realizations.

Too many things neither wanted to examine.

The forest had changed something.

Both knew it.

Neither knew what to do about it.

Around sunset they found a final shelter.

Not much more than a rocky overhang beside a hillside.

Yet it would do.

One last night.

The realization arrived simultaneously.

One last night.

Tomorrow they would leave.

Tomorrow reality would return.

Tomorrow Adrian would return.

The kingdom.

The engagement.

The obligations.

Everything.

Marian busied herself gathering wood.

Because thinking seemed unwise.

Cassian appeared to have reached the same conclusion.

Neither mentioned the obvious.

Neither mentioned tomorrow.

Neither mentioned goodbye.

The omission felt loud.

The fire burned brightly after dark.

The air had become cool again.

Not as cold as the previous night.

But enough.

They sat beside the flames.

Watching sparks drift upward.

Neither speaking.

For once, even Marian couldn’t find something clever to say.

The silence wasn’t empty.

It was full.

Full of things neither knew how to express.

The crackle of the fire filled the space between them.

Somewhere in the distance an owl called.

The forest felt different tonight.

Not threatening.

Not mysterious.

Almost familiar.

Like an old friend.

The thought startled her.

Three days ago she had declared war on every tree in existence.

Now she was becoming sentimental.

The forest truly had ruined her.

Beside her, Cassian was watching the fire.

The orange light danced across his face.

Across his jaw.

Across the faint stubble that had appeared over the past few days.

A very unfair sight.

Marian looked away immediately.

Then looked back.

Then immediately looked away again.

Wonderful.

Just wonderful.

"What?"

Cassian’s voice broke the silence.

Marian nearly jumped.

"Nothing."

"Liar."

The answer came instantly.

The absolute traitor.

Marian opened her mouth.

Closed it.

Then sighed.

"You need a mirror."

Cassian blinked.

"A mirror."

"Yes."

"Why?"

Marian pointed vaguely in his direction.

"Because."

The explanation was excellent.

Cassian looked deeply unconvinced.

Which was rude.

Very rude.

For a moment he simply stared at her.

Then laughed.

Softly.

The sound wrapped itself around her chest in a way she did not appreciate.

Not at all.

The fire crackled.

The night deepened.

And for one brief, impossible moment, Marian wished the morning would never come.

The thought horrified her.

Because tomorrow she would be rescued.

Tomorrow she would go home.

Tomorrow she would return to the life she had wanted.

So why did it suddenly feel like she was about to lose something instead?

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