And then, one day – or rather, one night – everything changed again.
That night, Elara had felt herself jolt awake a mere few hours after having gone to bed. Unsure of what had cause her to awaken, she'd tried to sit up – only to realize that she couldn't. It was as though her consciousness existed on a plane different from her body.
She could think, and yet, her body refused to follow any of the commands her mind put forth.
Lying there in limply, the girl had squinted in the dark, trying to adjust her vision to the darkness that surrounded her. And when it did, she would've gasped out loud if not for the strange paralysis that had taken hold of her being.
Her room was… changing.
In a sort of mirage, Elara had seen the color leak away from the fresh lilies arranged around her room, until they all sat dead and withered. The view from her window had also shifted into a swirl, that kept mixing with a single shade until it became a solid block; the curtains that she usually left open were suddenly drawn shut. And that armchair…
That armchair was back by her bedside.
And there was a stranger sitting in it.
'Aah!' And with that scream, Elara had suddenly discovered that she could move again.
Jolting to sit upright in her bed, Elara had pulled her blankets to cover herself up to her chin. Peering over the fabric, she'd then bitten back another scream.
The stranger looked to be a boy of about the same age as herself, or perhaps just slightly older. In fact, he might've actually been a few years older, but his babyface and oversized clothing gave her the impression of a sweet younger brother.
Not a threat.
It was fine. She was safe. If the worst came to pass, she could fight him off until help arrived.
Besides, the boy didn't seem that threatening. He was fast asleep! But why had he suddenly appeared there? And why had her bedroom changed? And what was that dark mass, there, in the corner –
Elara had had to bite back yet another scream.
There was also a man in her room.
She couldn't see the man's face; he'd been lying on his front, upon the floor, with long, dark curls obscuring the sides of his head. Even so, the girl could tell that this tall, well-built figure could subdue and kill her within moments if it wanted to.
If he woke up.
Trembling slightly, the girl had lowered her blankets and inched to the far side of her bed. She couldn't risk screaming for help, lest she woke up these strange men. No, she'd have to skirt around their prone figures and leave her quarters before even thinking about calling anyone.
She'd alert Lana first, just so she could also leave this part of the house until help arrived. The she'd go to her father, of course. With his talent, the man could summon enough beasts to take down these people, and –
'Uh…'
Elara had frozen in place at the sound. Then, slowly, she'd turned around to –
lock eyes with the boy on the armchair.
He was awake.
The girl had opened her mouth to scream. At the same time, the boy – eyes wide – had said, 'Lady Elara? You're awake?'
…huh?
'You're awake! Does this mean that the curse has been broken?' The boy had jumped to his feet, causing Elara to startle. 'Ah, my apologies, lady… I…' Scratching his head, the boy had turned his head to look to the side, when suddenly –
'Senior brother Rin!'
And he'd gone running to the side of the man who'd been lying face-down on the ground.
'Brother! Wake up! What's… oh dear, he's hit his head. Did that happen when we fell to the curse? Did – '
'Who are you?'
'…hm?' The boy stopped trying to lift the man's body, turning to look at her instead.
'Who. Are. You?' Elara had repeated her words sharply.
'Ah, yes! My apologies. I am called Siel. I – we… This is my senior brother, Rin. He and I are both tower magicians, who'd come to Silvershade with the objective of breaking the curse upon your village.'
Elara had blinked. 'Breaking… the curse?' she'd asked dumbly.
'Yes, well. You wouldn't know this, of course, but the entirety of Silvershade had been forced into an unending slumber this past month. Some, longer than the others…' the boy – Siel – had gone back to trying to lift his senior brother off the ground. Struggling to push his arms under the man's shoulders, he'd continued, 'But since you're awake now, lady, the curse must've been successfully broken.'
Biting her lip, Elara had watched the boy struggle for a little longer, before stepping over to offer support. Together, the two of them had succeeded in lifting the man enough to place him upright on the armchair.
'Thank you, lady,' Siel had offered her a bright smile then, before stepping away and stretching. 'I suppose I should go make certain that everyone else is, indeed, awake now. Starting with the village head – ah, your father… Do you suppose he'd take kindly to a stranger awakening him halfway through nighttime? Should I, perhaps, set up an impact shield…'
Elara hadn't quite been listening to his rambles. She'd still been fixated on what he'd said earlier.
A curse? So, it hadn't been her fault after all? But…
'Lady?'
'Ah, forgive me, sir Siel. I was just wondering about the curse. How did you discover it? And how was it broken?'
'Hm?' At her words, Siel had cocked his head to one side, an almost adorably foolish look in his wide eyes. 'I… Well, I'm afraid I wouldn't know. I also fell to it, see? The credit would have to be… my senior brother's, of course! He must've done something before he also lost consciousness. I…' pausing to frown in thought, the boy had continued, 'I seem to remember him talking about going to look at… something… before I fell asleep. Oh, did you notice something amiss when you woke up earlier? You were awake before I was, weren't you, lady?'
Elara had nodded somewhat distractedly, still lost in her own whirling jumble of thoughts. 'The chair… the flowers had also changed…'
Siel had widened his already wide eyes at that. 'I – I believe that was it! Brother Rin had spoken of – of going to take a look at the flowers! The curse must've been contained in them! Surely… surely that was it!'
In… flowers?
Was that really all it had been?