With my ears full of my own deafening screams, I plunged into icy water. It engulfed me, rushing down my throat, swallowing me whole in its awful, crushing dark.
2Fairies Can’t Hurt You, They’re Not Real
Gold.
Glowing. Dancing lights.
So pretty.
Why was it moving like that?
I blinked, and the golden, glimmering light turned into sun-stained ripples of crystal-clear water, lapping against my pounding head.
I blinked again, and a wide, shallow pool swam into view, edged by lush, grassy banks and dense trees. The sun hung low in the cloudless sky, beaming through the leaves and branches of the trees, dappling the shaded ground. Judging by the rich quality of the light, it was golden hour, daylight’s last act before easing into the finale of sunset.
Where was I? What had happened?
An involuntary groan rumbled in my throat as I struggled into a sitting position, sending cold water sloshing around me. It was impossible to say which part of my body hurt the most, but my head was a strong contender. I pressed my shivering hand to my skull but flinched away at the stinging the touch invoked. I blinked in dull surprise at my tattered hands. My palms were cut and sliced, with thin flaps of skin dangling from the wounds in places. As for my nails… my stomach churned threateningly at the sight of the cracks, the blood. I looked away hurriedly, but now I’d seen, the pain intensified tenfold. My whole body began to tremble.
Oh, right. I was cold.
My senses seemed to be coming back, at least, even if they were delayed. A bone-rattling shudder drove me to my feet with another splash. Something heavy dragged at my shoulders, almost unbalancing me, and water streamed freely from the drenched backpack. My aching legs trembled under my weight like I was a newborn lamb. Blood streaked down my shins and calves, wafting away in the gentle ebb of the river. Countless tiny cuts and grazes were smattered over my shins and thighs, but the majority of the blood came from my skinned knee, which throbbed horribly the moment I noticed it. What on earth had happened to me?
Limping and shivering, I waded to the bank and clambered onto the dense bed of grass. I only managed a few steps before my legs gave an almighty wobble, and I sank back down onto my bottom amongst the cool, green blades, panting at my pathetic efforts.
Where am I?
With a slightly clearer head, I took in my surroundings again. At my back, a serene woodland was filled with the musical chirps of unseen birds. Large mushrooms sprouted on the tree trunks, and colourful wildflowers perfumed the air with their sweet fragrance. Before me, my shallow pool stretched into a wide river. The water rushed past at a pace that had me shivering again. I was lucky to have made it into the pool, otherwise I would undoubtedly have drowned. On the far side of the river, more trees loomed, and beyond them, snowcapped mountains rose stark against a clear sky. Everything was too bright, too colourful. I gingerly lifted a hand to the back of my head, and sure enough, my stinging fingers probed at an impressive bump beneath my sodden hair.
No wonder I couldn’t remember how I’d ended up here.
I eased the backpack from my shoulders, dumping it beside me in the thick bed of grass.
“Think, Aliza,” I whispered to myself, cajoling my waterlogged brain into action.
I’d been camping, I remembered that much. Abby had been there. I remembered her red hair. But then what? There was a dark, blank space between there and here. Maybe my campsite was nearby? Maybe Abby was?
“Abby?” I called, my voice raw in my throat.
Tiny birds burst into the air from the nearby trees, their startled shrieks piercing the air, but otherwise, there was no response. What was I missing?
I screwed my eyes shut, blocking out the light that bore into my aching eyeballs. A torch. A beam of light. Stinging eyes.
The cave! We’d gone for a hike. We’d explored the caves. I’d been separated.
My relieved laugh was quickly strangled as I opened my eyes and swept them over my surroundings. Where was the cave? There was no sign of rocky protrusions this side of the river, and the trees on the far side obscured my view. Not that I fancied my chances of making it across the rushing torrent anyway. Screwing my face up, I tried to bully my brain into remembering the mention of such a huge river in the vicinity of our camp. I certainly hadn’t glimpsed one during our morning hike, and I didn’t remember passing this pretty little woodland either. My stomach dropped as the mountains snagged my gaze. I didn’t remember those at all, and I was fairly certain I would have noticed such a hulking, great mountain range. Come to think of it, I didn’t even think there were any mountains that big in England. How far had the river swept me?
Panic prickled over my skin. How was anyone going to find me? I checked my watch, only to find the second hand resolutely unmoving. Great. Wincing and hissing, I fumbled with my backpack, and after an infuriatingly long time, I managed to unzip it and tip the contents over the grass. There was my phone, thank God. I snatched it up, ignoring the fresh sting of my fingers, but the screen stayed dark. Despair clogged my throat, making it difficult to draw a breath. I had no clue where I was, no way to contact anyone and no idea what to do next.
If you get lost, stay where you are. Don’t wander off. I’ll come to you.
Mum’s wise words sounded in my ear, as though she was right beside me. As a kid, I’d been terrified of getting lost in the shops. It had never happened, but would Mum’s advice be the same now? This was no supermarket. Should I stay put, waiting for my rescue party to find me? I stared over my shoulder at the woods once more. They looked serene, pretty enough that I’d have snapped a picture if my phone had been working, but if I went into those trees, I’d probably never find my way out. And I’d be harder to find. Maybe they’d send a helicopter out, and if they did, I had every intention of being seen. Mum was right. I’d be better off staying on the riverbank.
My stomach gave a loud, overlong rumble and another sense awakened. Starvation. How many hours had passed since breakfast? The packed lunch I’d been looking forward to had seen better days. The cardboard packaging of my wrap was pulpy and misshapen. In fact, everything was drenched. I rifled through my possessions, hoping to find something useful, or edible. The bottle of water I’d saved for the walk back to camp was dented in places, but still in one piece, and though the wrapper of my cereal bar was faded and wet, it was still sealed. As I had no idea how long my rescuers would take to reach me, I allowed myself only a single sip of water, but I scarfed the cereal bar down in a few bites. If I was lucky, it’d help with the trembling of my limbs. If I wasn’t lucky, it’d at least see me through until my water-logged wrap dried out. I’d never normally consider eating such a battered, soggy thing, but until I was found and wrapped in a thermal blanket, I wasn’t going to pass it up. My chances of successfully foraging food that wouldn’t kill me the moment it passed my lips were almost non-existent, and I needed to eat something.
When I’d finished my pathetic meal, I tried my phone again. Still nothing. Sighing, I turned my attention to the sky. I had no clue what time it was, but the sun was sinking lower and lower. Soon, it’d disappear behind the mountains. Did a night out in the open await me? Would anyone even look for me after dark, or would the search be called off until morning? I shivered again. My sodden clothes clung to my chilled skin. There wouldn’t be time to dry them before nightfall, especially the denim shorts. Memories of how cold I’d been the previous night assaulted me. I’d been freezing even with pyjamas and a sleeping bag. How on earth was I supposed to survive the night in wet shorts and a hoodie? Tears sprang to my eyes. This couldn’t be real, could it? I was just a normal girl, with a normal life. I couldn’t be lost. I couldn’t be in danger. Those were the sort of things that happened to girls on the news, not me. Hiking accidents happened to adrenaline junkies who tried climbing mountains during a storm, not girls who went for a walk in the country with their friends.
Sniffing, I wiped my tears on my forearms, carefully avoiding my grazes. Though they stung, they were superficial, and the river had cleaned them as thoroughly as anything could out in the wild. With any luck, I’d avoid infection, though I grimaced at the thought of what microscopic nasties lurked on the cave floor. Still, it was nothing a course of antibiotics wouldn’t fix, and I had bigger things to worry about right now than an infection that was still days away.
Crying was pointless. Sitting around would do no good at all. I tugged my sodden boots and socks off, flexing my poor wrinkled toes, before easing to my feet, giving my legs time to adjust to my weight. My knee stung like a bitch, but I clenched my teeth and rode the wave of pain until it eased a little. I limped to the nearest tree. Its lowest branches were within reach if I stretched my arms above my head. Wincing at the aches of my body, I struggled out of my hoody and draped it over the branch, then proceeded to unbutton my shorts and peel them from my hips, before hanging them beside the top. I had enough sense to know that wearing them would rob me of whatever body heat I managed to produce, and I needed all the help I could get. With any luck, they’d be dry by morning. Assuming I didn’t freeze to death overnight.
I was contemplating removing my shirt when something caught my eye in the shade cast by the trees. A flicker of colour. Light. I frowned, staring between the trunks. Nothing in particular stood out. Maybe I’d glimpsed a ray of fading sunlight catching the petal of a wildflower. I glanced at the sky. Dark indigo gave way to gorgeous streaks of candy floss pink and burning orange, blazing over the dark silhouette of the mountain range. My breath caught in my throat. I’d seen plenty of stunning sunsets, but this topped them all. I’d never seen colours like that before. If only my phone was working, though, photos never did the sky justice, but with a good filter…
What was I thinking? This wasn’t the time to be worrying about aesthetic. I had real problems. Like keeping warm. I looked around, hoping to find some sticks. I’d never lit a fire before in my life, apart from the gas fire in the living room back home, and I wasn’t even sure I knew how, but it was either that or freeze. I’d stick near the riverbank, and gather up whatever I could find. Nothing else could possibly go wrong. I gave a humourless bark of laughter, and from the shade of the woods, something laughed back.
My entire body froze, primed to run, as my ears strained. I had to have imagined the tiny, high-pitched chirp of amusement. I was alone. My mind was playing tricks on me, no doubt thanks to the enormous bump on the back of my head. Even so, my gaze roved between the trunks.
Colour caught my eye again, and I did a double take.
There, on a small shrub. A faint, winking blue light. Was it some sort of insect? I’d never come across one that glowed blue before, but then, I didn’t pretend to be an expert on creepy crawlies. Intrigued, I edged closer. Another light popped into life; a yellowy-green glow nestled between the leaves. Faint chittering sounds drifted to my ears as I grew close, and heedless of my injured knee, I crouched low, peering amongst the branches.
A fairy stared back at me.
I laughed again, this time more of a howl than a bark. How absolutely typical. Of all the hallucinations I could have chosen, it had to be a fucking fairy. I was going to kill Isobel when I got out of this mess. But beneath the delirious irony of it all, a tiny part of me remembered to be concerned. I definitely shouldn’t be hallucinating. That was bad. Maybe I wasn’t in the woods at all. Maybe this whole scene was some beautiful coping mechanism dreamt up by my brain to shield me from the fact that I was actually lying broken and alone at the bottom of an underground ravine.
My laughter stopped abruptly.
The blue fairy cocked her head at me. The gesture reminded me so much of a dog that a smile found its way to my lips. I leaned closer. My imaginary friend was no bigger than a common caterpillar, but apart from the blue glow and the shimmering, iridescent wings, she looked like a perfectly formed, if tiny, human. And she was clearly as interested in me as I was in her. She strolled along the thin branch with all the grace of a catwalk model, and then, with a hum of sparkling wings, rose into the air, hovering at the end of my nose. Even though I knew she boded ill for my sanity, I couldn’t help but smile. The fairy smiled back.
