Awethology Light

  * * *

  As I glide over the forest ground, Beka alongside me, I feel hundreds of eyes on me. I try to ignore them and focus on not falling flat on my face. That would be something.

  “Everybody’s staring at me,” I whisper in his mind. He gently nudges me and I can hear his thoughts in my mind.

  “Nonsense. They’re just impressed by my strength and beauty. Nobody is looking at you.” His laugh is a low, deep rumbling sound. I instantly feel myself relax and smile.

  “Of course, silly me. What was I thinking?” I whisper back. He keeps pace with me as we stride through the crowd. It’s tradition for the future queen to present herself to all the trolls, so they have come from afar. There are thousands and thousands of them. I will walk through the forest — presenting myself as future queen — circling my way up to the bridge, high above the gorge. Closest to the bridge will be my own tribe. I can’t see Talib from here. I’m still too deep in the forest. There’s one turn halfway up where I should be able to see him. And on the bridge, obviously. He couldn’t see me, of course, but that didn’t matter. I would walk the bridge alone. Nobody would be there to see me. I would be able to reach out to him on the other side. I hadn’t told him that particular part. I would probably scare the living fairies out of him. I grinned. I was looking forward to that moment.

  On and on the path went, everybody bowing or curtseying as I walked by. I made an effort to smile at the little ones and give a respectful nod whenever I passed an elderly troll. I could hear Beka rumbling his approval inside my head. Apparently, I was doing well so far. Suddenly, there was a soft breeze blowing through my hair. We were getting higher. The curve would be coming up soon. Would Talib be there? The nerves, which had faded away, came back full force. I tried to control my breathing and focussed on walking. Just walking. There it was. I fought the impulse to increase my speed and managed to maintain my stride. Just a few more seconds. Beka was blocking my view, any moment now…

  And there he was. Standing perfectly still, his eyes focussed on the bridge. The bridge he couldn’t see but knew was there all the same. He looked…different. I’d never seen Talib in a black and white suit. He obviously dressed for the occasion. I thought he’d never looked more handsome. Or grown-up. I could see a glimpse of the man he would become. I felt an enormous rush of relief and gratitude. He showed up. He actually showed up. He wasn’t scared of me, after all.

  Beka sensed the shift in my emotions. Before he could slow down his pace, I crawled my fingers through his hair, communicating that everything was all right. I couldn’t tell if he’d seen Talib or if he was too focussed on me. We continued up the path, however, and as we took another turn, Talib was once again out of my line of vision. I wouldn’t see him again until I was standing in front of the bridge, but I was okay with that now. He was there, waiting for me.

  The forest was clearing as we approached the path to the gorge where the bridge waited. The boundaries of our land. Slowly, my tribe came into view. They were all smiling at me. I saw proud faces, faces filled with tears of joy, but mostly just happy faces. There were Redar and Selka, looking so proud that I thought my heart would burst with love. As I approached them, they gave me a thumbs-up, conveying the fairies would light my way. I winked at them and gave them my most loving smile. There was my father, trying very hard to keep it together. I came to a stop before him.

  “Eydis, daughter of Amund and Kelda, granddaughter of Amandus and Sunniva, are you willing to accept the position of future queen and shaman? Will you walk the bridge, building bridges for the good of all trolls? Will you protect and serve our kingdom, willingly and knowingly to the best of your ability? How do you reply?”

  His voice, magically amplified, reached out to every corner of the forest. And I could see the trolls standing closest to me, holding their breath for my answer.

  “I shall. Willingly and knowingly to the best of my ability.” He gently kissed my forehead and took my hand. As we walked forward, Beka still on my other side, Amandus came into view, looking more glorious than ever. Father placed my hand in Grandfather’s, who gave it a soft squeeze.

  “Then go forward, Daughter.” He took a deep breath and looked at me. “Take as long as you like, my child. You’ve earned it.” His words confused me and he looked a little sad, which confused me even more.

  Amandus gave my hand another squeeze and I knew it was time to go on. I smiled my most encouraging smile to Father who waved, his eyes still sad. Up the path we went, just the three of us. Grandfather, Beka and me. As we reached the final corner, we stopped.

  “Eydis, this is where I leave you. Now as I understand it, you will have little trouble seeing the bridge, so don’t worry about falling off.” He gave me a crooked smile. Leave it to Grandfather to know about my scheming to involve the fairies. Nothing escaped his eyes. Well, almost nothing, I thought a bit guiltily.

  “When you face the bridge, don’t look down. Though I have a feeling that you’ll be more inclined to focus your eyes on the other side.” I looked up, instantly startled.

  “Did you really think I didn’t know, child?” I didn’t know what I was thinking at that moment besides an increasing feeling of panic. Then I realized Amandus wasn’t shouting at me. He didn’t even look disapproving.

  “You’re not mad at me?” I asked in a tiny voice.

  “For deceiving me and your entire family, you mean? Or for breaking the rules, setting a bad example to both your siblings and the rest of your people?” He sighed. “Yes, I suppose I am, but we’ll talk about that later. This is your moment and it should be special.” I was about to say something when he continued, “If you truly care for this boy, you’ll be granted a gift.” I must have looked at him completely puzzled for he continued to explain.

  “You’ll know when you cross the bridge. Just remember your promise to your fairy tribe.”

  I’ll always come back, Lorelei. The words rushed through my head. I looked into my grandfather’s eyes.

  “I will, Grandfather. I promise I will.”

  “Then go, my child.” Like my father before him, he kissed my forehead. I looked at Beka, who shook his mighty head. This was the end of the line for him as well. It made me feel a bit sad. Like I was saying goodbye. I wrapped my hands around his neck, burying my face in his fur.

  “I love you, Beka. You know that, right?” He made my favourite rumbling sound. As I started to walk on, I looked back one more time. It was an impressive sight. Amandus and Beka side by side, the wind sweeping through both hair and fur.