Cold Night

The journey was quiet.

Alice, pale and exhausted, quietly trailed Maxwell as he retraced their steps. The march had been a few days long. Their food and water supply exhausted. To the knight’s surprise Alice refused his suggestions to rest. Maxwell was happy to be moving, but he was worried about her health. Even She was quiet. The knight glanced to Her occasionally, seeing Her just as downcast as the witch's apprentice.

Was She that sad about Alana?

No, that didn't make sense.

Guilt stabbed him once again.

He failed.

Maxwell had been lucky with John and Abigail; he was able to recover from his initial failure. But with Alana and Alice his oversight led to a death. Had he not suggested in separating, Alana would be with them right now, and Alice would still have her youthful smile. The witch would have been able to overcome her demons, and lead Alice to a better life. He would have also gotten more information on his enemies. A weak smile formed on his lips. His mission, he needed to continue his mission.

What exactly did that mean at this point?

He was stuck. Trepidation crept into his heart. How would Abigail and John react? Would they openly accept Alice? Would they accept him?

Maxwell froze.

Were they even still alive?

The words of Oglal crept back into his mind. "I will move west and take what belongs to me."

Were Abigail and John still alive? Had he messed up again? Had some other demon or group found them? Had he lead those two to their deaths?

This was why he was better off alone. All he did was hurt people. Someone like him should never be-

His body rattled from a soft impact. Blinking, Maxwell looked over his shoulder. Alice looked up to him with tired eyes. "Sorry."

The knight took a breath. "No, it was my fault. How are you doing?"

"I'm okay." Her voice cracked.

"Are you hungry? Tired? We've been walking a long time."

Alice shook her head; eyes returning to the orange grass.

Angered at his weakness, Maxwell took a breath and scooped Alice into his arms. Despite her eyes widening in shock, she quickly rested her head on his shoulder as he placed her against his chest. "We've been walking for a long time. Just rest. I'll take it from here."

She silently wrapped her arms around his neck as he continued forward.

After rounding the corner before him, Maxwell glanced down and saw Alice's eyes closed.

"How about you?"

Maxwell's words hung in the air as She tore Her gaze from the dirt. Placing Her eyes to the blue sky above, She grabbed Her elbow.

"I don't understand why you're upset. You didn't trust Alana much."

"You're oddly perceptive today." She said with a smile, matching his stride.

Maxwell did not know how to respond. He remained silent, watching the path ahead.

She sighed and leaned forward with a smirk, peeking at his eyes. "I hate when you leave me hanging like that."

He smiled.

"There has been something on my mind, but I'd rather talk about it when we're alone."

Maxwell turned his head to Her. "We're fine now, Alice is asleep."

Slowly, She shook Her head, pain on Her face. "I need you all to myself for it. It's too serious."

He stared at Her, apprehension filling his gut. Despite the clear sky, the knight heard thunder in the distance.

...

Alice squeezed Maxwell as rain punched them and thunder cracked. His path through the darkness was rhythmically revealed by the flashes of lightning. She dashed in front of the two, leading Maxwell forward. Wind slapped the trio. With a whimper, Alice buried her face into Maxwell's neck. She held Her dress as the torrent tugged it.

A light was in the distance.

The house's form grew more and more defined through the darkness. The knight's heart quickened as he rushed towards the familiar home. He hugged Alice tightly as the screaming wind pushed his body.

This was it.

He stumbled up the creaking wooden stairs, finding relief from the downpour under the porch's roof. Alice trembled in his arms, teeth rattling. Stumbling through the mist that was his breath, he inched towards the door.

It opened.

Green eyes met him.

"H-H-Hey..." He said, finding his own teeth rattling.

"Max..." Abigail whispered. Her gaze then fell down to Alice. "Ah! She's shaking! Get her in here!"

Without hesitation Abigail dragged Maxwell and Alice inside, getting her clean clothes wet. Nostalgia hit the knight immediately. It was an odd feeling. He hadn't been gone long, nor had he been here long, yet he felt at home.

"Here, Max." Abigail called as she grabbed a towel.

He gently set the shaking girl down and Abigail embraced her with the cloth, gently rubbing her hair and face. "Come on, let's get you something dry."

"Thank you." Maxwell breathed as he sat against the wall, exhaustion finally catching up to him.

"Don't get too comfortable there! You're next! You'll catch cold like that!"

Maxwell shook his head. "It's okay, just worry about Alice."

Abigail gave him a stern look, but quickly returned to Alice. With a smile Maxwell's eyes drifted to the room to his right, John's room. How was the boy now? Where was he now? Asleep? It had to be late.

The door flung open and a shivering John stumbled in. "We need to figure out this bathroom situation Abby..." His statement drifted into the air as his eyes fell on Maxwell. The two stared at each other in silence.

"Hey-"

"Are you-"

The two boys stopped, waiting politely for the other to finish their statement.

"A-A-Are you okay? You're shaking." John said.

Maxwell smirked. "I-I-I could say the same. I'm fine, been through worse." But as his adrenaline drained the cold began making itself known. Water and cold air leaked through the cracks of his armor, shaking his limbs. His body ached. Moving his fingers became tiresome. John wasted no time. He slammed the door shut and began throwing wood into the oven in attempts to further warm the home.

With a groan the knight rose and moved closer to the fire. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it." He said as he pushed the wood further into the oven. A smile formed on his lips. "I'm glad I cut more wood."

Maxwell chuckled, his body shaking with his laughs. “M-M-Me too."

Fatigue slithered over him as the flame’s warmth caressed his body. The knight's eyes grew heavy. Before he knew it, he was asleep.

...

The girl, Alice, was silent, not that Abigail could blame her. Bags hung under her purple eyes and she shook uncontrollably as Abigail dried her. The towel ran over her forehead and she flinched, crying out in pain. Abigail jumped, eyes widening as she saw blood.

"Ah! I'm so sorry!" She stammered, throwing the towel aside and gently lifting the girl's white hair. A long cut was revealed to Abigail. The wound was probably a few days old, and it had begun healing. Pain squeezed Abigail’s heart as its depth was made known to her. The cut would never fully heal; it would leave a scar. What could have caused this? Who could have done this? What kind of thing could harm a child? What had Maxwell been through? Her hands began to shake as the possibilities entered Abigail’s mind. She shook her head, burying her anxieties.

"Give me a moment." Abigail said as she shot to her feet. Wasting no time, she returned with a bandage and spare shirt. She gently wrapped Alice's head in the white cloth, bitting her lip as the girl flinched. "I'm sorry, but hang with me. I want to get it secure.” Once she finished, Abigail grabbed her shirt and dressed the girl.

"It's big on you, like a blanket. I bet that's nice right now. That is my favorite shirt!"

Alice nodded.

"Are you hungry? Thirsty?"

She shook her head and whispered. "I'm sorry."

Abigail furrowed her brow in confusion. "What do you have to apologize for?"

"I lost the basket you gave Max."

Abigail blinked in surprise. "Don't worry about that! Especially right now!"

The child flinched and Abigail bit her lip, cursing herself for being too loud. "Sorry. I'm not mad, just surprised. Honestly, you saying something like that made me think of a certain someone."

A small smile formed on Alice’s lips and Abigail felt at ease. “You’re Alice, right? At least that’s what I thought I heard Maxwell say.”

“Y-Yes. I’m A-Alice.”

"That's a beautiful name! It fits you! I'm Abigail."

"Abigail..." Alice murmured, finally meeting Abigail’s eyes. The child raised her hand, running her finger over her palm.

"What're you doing?"

A bittersweet smile formed on Alice's face. An emotion that was beyond her years. "Someone important taught me this. I won't forget your name now."

Abigail smiled as she watched Alice mouth her name and spell it with her index finger. "I've never been that good with names. You’ll have to teach me that sometime."

Alice nodded. “It’s super easy.” Then her eyes grew curious. "Where's Max?"

"Let's go check on him." Abigail said as she lead Alice by the hand. Warmth comfortably embraced the two as they left Abigail's room. John sat before the oven, Maxwell on the floor beside it, against the wall.

"John, this is Alice, Max's friend."

"Nice to meet you."

"You too." Alice murmured. Her hand remained firm in Abigail's as she looked to Maxwell.

"Max?" She said, louder than Abigail had heard her all night.

The knight was still.

"Maxwell?" Abigail said, unable to hide the worry in her voice. Thousands of thoughts again raced through her head as she stared at the blood covered knight.

"He's asleep." John yawned. "I already had my freakout over it."

Wasting no time Abigail marched to his side and placed her ear over his helmet. Alice, tightening her grip, mimicked her.

The two gave a sigh of relieve as his soft breaths became audible. Abigail rose, happily shaking her head. "That dummy."

Alice released her grip and sat beside the knight, leaning against the wall. Abigail raced to her room for a spare blanket and put it over the sleeping warrior. "Going to have to fight him tooth and nail to get out of that. It needs to be cleaned.”

She couldn’t remove her eyes from the blood. “Alice… Was he bleeding? How hurt is he?”

“He’s not bleeding. I was able to take care of that. He’s just sore.”

Abigail looked to the child in shock. “You were able to dress his wounds?”

Alice’s mouth hung open and her face grew red. “I-uh… I know a little bit. He wasn’t hurt bad.”

Abigail bit her lip, curiosity running rampant.

"I didn't get to ask him what happened. He was out as soon as he hit the floor." John said.

Taking a breath, Abigail forced herself to calm down. Maxwell had protected the child, so she had no reason to suspect her of anything. Sitting beside her brother, Abigail hugged her legs. "It looks like he fought hard." Her eyes fell to Alice. She had a lot of questions, but now was not the time. Despite her concern, another emotion swirled in her: relief. He had come back. Abigail could not help but smile as her eyes returned to the sleeping knight.

“Its getting pretty hot. I’ll let it die out now.” John said.

"How are you feeling?" Abigail asked.

"Much better. Still a little out of it, but it's not bad."

She smiled at their fortune. Not long ago all seemed hopeless, but now her brother was healthy, and the man who saved them was back.

“Did Max save you from a dream walker?”

Wide eyed, Abigail looked to Alice as John replied with a smile. “Y-Yeah… I guess he told you?”

Alice nodded. “He said they were scary, so he didn’t tell me much.”

“It sure was scary.” John said as he scratched his neck.

Alice hugged her legs, eyes glued to the wooden floor. “So, you guys know scary things too…”

They sat in silence. The siblings glanced at each other, having an internal back and forth on whether or not they should question Alice. Abigail eventually won, and her brother decided to leave it be until tomorrow. Soon after, he rose and wished them a good night.

Abigail bit her lip, wondering what she should say. Her thoughts were halted when Alice buried her eyes and began sobbing. Abigail slid next to her. "What's wrong?" She gently asked.

Alice shook her head, rubbing her eyes against her arms. Slowly, Abigail wrapped the child in her arms. "It's okay. It's okay. You're okay." She gently rubbed Alice's head, running her fingers through her white hair. "I don't know what happened, and I don't need to. Any friend of Maxwell's is a friend of ours. You're both okay now. Just rest.”

Alice quietly sobbed in Abigail's embrace as she soothed her. Within a few minutes her tears dried. 

"How about we call it a night?” Abigail gently asked.

Alice nodded, gently leaving Abigail's arms and moving beside Maxwell.

"Oh!" Abigail whispered, grabbing Alice's hand. She gave Abigail a surprised look. "No, you get a bed! I can't let you sleep like that!"

Alice's eyes shifted to Maxwell and Abigail puffed her cheeks. "I'll get him to rest properly tomorrow. He's comfortable right now. I’m not thrilled about it either.”

Despite her red eyes, Alice gave her a smile and Abigail lead her to bed. She gently set Alice on its cushion and tucked her in. Abigail’s heart lightened as she saw the stress leave Alice’s eyes. "My bed is really comfortable, you sleep here okay? I'll be-"

Alice squeezed her hand. "I don't want to be alone." Tears forming in her eyes again.

Abigail smiled. "I'll stay in here with you, then.”

Alice scooted away from the bed’s edge. “Can you sleep on this side? I don’t want to be by the door.”

“Of course.” Abigail said gently as she pulled the sheets over her. Her eyes widened as Alice quickly crawled into her arms.

"Rest well, okay?" Abigail whispered as she rubbed Alice’s head.

Alice nodded. "Max said you were really nice. I'm glad he met you."

She fell into sleep as Abigail was left with a burning face.