Erich was silent as he sat at the table with a mug of herbal tea between his palms. Finally, he rose, and motioned to Princess. She followed without question, as he led the way from the cottage further into the forest.
They came upon a door covered in moss. Erich swept away the growth with his gloved hands, and used his boot to knock three solid thuds upon the door.
Three thuds sounded in response, and he reached for the handle, and lifted the door.
“Go, Princess, and be careful. I cannot help you down, or catch you if you fall.”
She peered into the darkish hole, and descended a skeleton of stairs attached against the strong earthen wall. She landed on her feet at the bottom, and turned startled when she saw an old hag in a brown cloak, sitting alone at a small table. A dank, damp smell filled the air. The claustrophobic single room lit only by one candle. In the hag’s bony fingers, she shuffled a deck of playing cards.
Behind Princess, Erich stood a safe distance from her. She couldn’t explain the warm feeling emanating from her core at his nearness. It was inexplicable to her that she wanted so much to crawl into his embrace, feel his heart beating next to hers.
But he was poison to her.
His touch alone was enough to kill her.
That alone should’ve been enough to sober her feelings, but it didn’t.
The old hag crooked a finger. “Come sit, my dear, and tell me your problems.”
She looked back to Erich for approval, and he nodded.
Princess took a seat upon the stool directly across from the hag. Immediately she saw a milky cloud covering both eyes, with only a hint of blue beneath. It was apparent the hag was blind, and that saddened Princess.
“Don’t pity me, my dear, I see well enough through my fingertips.”
Princess was taken aback by the old hag’s keen perceptions.
“My six brothers have been captured, and enslaved by the evil one called Valentina. She has used her magic charms to turn them into grotesque mutant swans.”
The hag began to lay out the six cards in a single row upon the table. The faces of the cards were faded to the point they were almost unreadable. Her gnarled fingers with black fingernails stroked each card.
“Valentina is a very shrewd and cunning witch. A skilled herbalist, but not a completely proficient one—yet. Your brothers are under the spell of a concoction fuelled by hemlock.”
Hemlock, Princess had heard of the herb. It was deadly as the nightshade she poisoned Erich with. This revelation was worse than she imagined.
“But there is somewhat good news.”
She immediately perked up. “Good news?”
“As I said, Valentina is good, but she’s not that good. At the stroke of midnight on the sixth week, the spell will end, and your brothers will return to normal.”
Princess clasped her hands together. Sheer joy bubbled inside her. “They will be saved!”
“Not so fast. As we speak, Valentina plots her next move. Though you now wield powerful information she does not. She knows her spell will not last forever, yet she does not know how long it will last. Fortunately for you, I do.”
Her joy deflated. “What about my father?”
“Forget your father. Although he remains alive, he is now lost to the world.”
Princess was surprised that she felt nothing but numbness at the mention of her father’s fate.
“How are my brothers?”
The hag shook her head slowly. “They are not being treated very well, I’m afraid.”
Princess jumped up from the stool. “I must get to them, even if it is only to comfort them. Please tell me how to help!”
“You will have to infiltrate Valentina’s Swan Club. Go to the door, and seek a job. But the price…the price will be very high.”
“No!” Erich bellowed. “It’s far too perilous to be beneath her roof. Surely she will recognize Princess.”
She turned to him. “I will be fine. She will not know me.”
“Are you willing to sacrifice?” asked the hag.
She turned back. “I will do whatever I must to save my brothers. Tell me what the price will be?”
“Your innocence.”
***
Near dawn, Erich led Princess through the forest until they arrived at the gates. Behind was a large and foreboding dwelling.
Valentina’s Swan Club.
“This is where we must part, Princess.”
She looked into his handsome face in the low light of dawn, and tried to imagine what he once looked like when he was a man.
“Not forever?” she asked quickly.
“No, I will come to you soon enough. Will you be ready for me?”
Her heart fluttered beneath her breast, and the warm, vibrational hum between her thighs once again began its tune.
“I will be ready and waiting for you. Don’t be too long though. I already miss you.”
His expression pleased her. Yet she felt he was not quite finished with her at that moment.
“Now, Princess, I offer you my humble protection. But there will be one very big consequence to you.”
She swallowed hard. “I accept it without question.”
He lifted a dark brow. “Without question?”
“Absolutely.”
He stepped close, his toxic body only mere inches from hers. A heady woodsy scent emanated from him.
“Close your eyes, and open your mouth, Princess.”
Immediately, she obeyed, but full of anticipation at what may come to her. Surely, it was not his poisonous kiss!
He blew his breath into her nostrils and open mouth. It was a mixture of the deep, dark earth, fragrant moss, and something unrecognizable and other worldly. An almost faint fell upon her, but she recovered at the last second.
Then when she opened her mouth to speak—nothing. Her voice was gone. Not as much as a squeak remained. She began to panic, and touched her throat in disbelief. Had Erich poisoned her? This after she trusted him!
His eyes focused upon hers, and held her captive to him.
“Princess, listen to me! I’ve opened a channel between us. A secret, etheric cord now binds us together, and will allow me to visit you in dreams. The consequence is you will not be able to
