Fog had seeped into the empty space just beyond the tree line of the forest, submerging the small house. A thick cloak that even the most skilled of hunters could barely see through. William wasn’t concerned, summer was fading to fall and fog was likely to start appearing more often.

He made sure his father took another dose of medicine. These were leaves stir fried so the medicine contained within the plant was released. The plant was easily located in the backyard. After he made sure his father was comfortable he left for the town.

The long walk was silent and allowed him time to think for awhile. He had the strangest dream of a girl with long blond hair. That was all he could remember except for facing off with a monster. He tried to recall the name of the girl, but it eluded him like a child in a classroom. He knew what it was and knew how to pronounce it, but the word just couldn’t form in his mind.

He decided to let it go for the time being, something was sure to happen that will spike his memory eventually. He then glanced at the forest. The fog had filled the trees to the brim and provided a cover for whatever was lurking within it.

William reached the bridge and saw Willow was standing there waiting for him. Her face was pale and was focused on the trees behind him. He glanced at her curiously.

“Is something wrong?” She snapped out of the trance and looked at him.

“About time! I was waiting forever!” William then walked by her. “Hey wait!” She ran up beside him and smiled brightly.

“What do you want?” He asked not really wanting to know. She shuffled her feet and blushed.

“I was just wondering if I could be your apprentice?” She hopefully gazed into his eyes. He shrugged and continued on. Willow smiled taking the vague answer as a yes.

“Are your parents okay with this?” He asked her. She stopped, not having thought about that and it was clear on her face.

“Father left and mother is too far in grief to care. I have a feeling that she wished it was me instead of my brother.” William didn’t know how to respond to that. They continued to the shop and William fished out the key.

Willow began to stare at the forest again. It was like she was waiting for something to happen. Her eyes were wide and her foot tapped nervously. William looked at the direction of the forest and saw the wall of fog.

“Have you ever have a feeling that something wasn’t right?” She asked in a small voice.

William picked up on what she said. “I thought you said you weren’t afraid of the cursed and the forest.” She nodded slowly.

“I don’t... Not until-” Her voice faded and gulped.

“Not until what?” William asked, worried about her strange behavior.

“Willow!” A lady came running up to them. He finished unlocking the door and went inside, Willow followed and sat down. The lady entered catching her breath.

Her face was flushed and her hair was slightly untidy, she had ran here from her house. She waited a moment to steady her breathing. William sat her down and offered her a drink.

“Oh, no thank you,” she murmured waving away the bottle of water. She gave the little girl a stern look. “Have you been bothering him?”

Willow shook her head no and backed up a few paces. Her mother gave her a sharp look. “I... I asked to be his apprentice.” The lady did not look pleased.

“We’re going home.” She clamped the girls arm and began to drag her out. The girl started frantically calling out, struggling to break free. Her mother tried her hardest just to reach the door.

“No! NO! It’s starting today! He’s the only one truly safe! mother please!” Willow latched herself to the door frame.

“Nothing’s going to happen, Willow. Now let go!” The mother grunted. Willow started crying.

“I saw it! Ian showed me! Last night in my dream I saw what he saw! Heard what he heard!” The mother gave one last yank and Willow was pried from the door.

“That’s it! To the doctor now! I won’t tolerate this nonsense anymore.” The mother towed the girl to the castle. Willow gave a pleading look to William. He sighed and relocked the shop and followed.

Willow sat on the table. Her eyes blotchy from crying and both mother were arguing in whispers just outside. William stood off to the side watching. The girl sniffled and hiccuped as she waited. Her heartbeat was heard going a mile a minute.

He prepare a cup of tea and handed it to the girl. She gratefully took in with trembling hands. It spilled a little as it shook in her hands. He gave a steady hand and guided it to her lips. She looked at him with sullen eyes.

“You believe me, don’t you?” Her voice just as shaky as her hands. After a few more sips she began to calm down. The mothers then came back into the room. Willow’s mother snatched the cup of tea away. William’s mother stared at her incredulously.

She asked calmly, “Sweetheart was that herbal tea?” William took a step back, Willow's mother had certainly gotten under her skin. He nodded, recognizing his mother’s angry side. He rarely ever saw it, but once in awhile she would go home like that. It was always whenever it had to deal with a cursed issue, as when a noblemen’s child was cursed and the parents renounced all relation with him or her. Castle children get special ‘treatment.' No one wanted a cursed or blessed to rule. It was some forbidden taboo and they would be ‘murdered’ or ‘died of illness’ in the middle of the night.

William's mother took the tea from Willow's mother and began to alter it, adding this herb and that spice. William knew she was faking it, but it was enough to fool the lady. She buzzed behind her frantically.

“Are you sure this will cure her?” At the word ‘cure’ William’s mother flinched and dumped the last ingredient into the concoction. She stirred it and huddled next to Willow. She made her drink it all.

“Don’t mention your gift to your mother again. Don’t tell anybody, okay?” She whispered into her ear.

“What was that?” The mother asked barely hearing a word.

“I was asking if she was okay.” William’s mother snapped and abruptly stood up. “She’ll be fine now, so run along dear. Oh, and William... For your father.” She tossed another vial. He caught it and slipped it into his pocket.

They walked out together and just as they reached the gate, prince Noah and his goons appeared.

Sir Isaac asked in a mocking tone, “Aw, such a cute little girl. Is she your girlfriend?"

“That would be pedophilia!” Sir Roland shouted horrified. The other two laughed.

Prince Noah glared at him with a sly smile, “The wannabe knight with his damsel in distress?” He snickered and coldly finished, “Go back to your craft and take the brat with you. If I see either of you lurking around here again, I’ll have my father banish you!” They didn’t need a second warning.

The fog didn’t lighten up when they stepped out of the castle wall, it actually seemed to have thickened since the morning.

“Those guys were jerks!” Willow cried.

“Well, that’s the royals for you.”

The town was deathly silent and seemed to be a ghost town. Nothing stirred, not even the dogs tied up outside. William unlocked the door to his shop and surveyed the area. Willow ducked passed him and entered.

He was about to close the door when he saw him. The little boy from yesterday that was taken out to the forest and left there. William knew something was wrong and carefully took a sword from the side of the door.

The boy looked around with bloodshot eyes, searching for something. The cursed never set foot in a human populated area, yet there was one standing right there.

“Stay inside,” William ordered the girl. She nodded and hide behind the counter.

“I told you so... I told you so...” She murmured. William shut the door behind him. Stepping forward the cursed child peered at him with wide and wild eyes. It twisted it’s body in an unnatural way.

William tightened his grip on the hilt of the sword. The boy suddenly appeared in front of it, the blade right between the eyes. The polished metal reflected the pentagram markings that stood dominate in his eyes.

“We won’t hurt you, brother. We won’t hurt our sister that hides behind you either.” The child spoke. His voice sounded like the metallic screech of metal rubbing against metal. William winced as the sound grated against his ears. “Are there others?”

William asked, “Others? Other what?”

The cursed tilted his head to the side. “Gifted," the child replied.

William started to reply, a scream interrupted his thoughts as Willow’s mother screamed at the site of the cursed child.

“Mistress released you into the wild yesterday...” She cried hysterically. The cursed child turned sharply.

“The human maid," he said darkly, mechanically. His eyes glowed slightly red and bared his teeth like a wild animal, growling lowly. The mother flinched, frightened of the three year old cursed. He crouched down low ready to pounce.

Willow saw the cursed child sprint for her mother and struck her down.

“MOTHER!” She screamed, running to her. William knocked the cursed child back away from them. He looked stunned as he processed that William had attacked him. He slide back wordlessly into the fog and retreated into the depths of darkness.

He stood guard as Willow helped her mother back to the medical wing in the castle. The fog began to clear and life resumed. He put the sword back to where he got it and wordlessly stared at the forest.

Half an hour later, Willow returned. “He only got her arm, so she’ll be fine in a matter of days.” She got up on the counter and sat there in front of him.

“How did you know?” William asked her.

She looked away and played with her hair. “I saw it in a dream. My brother had relayed to me information that a cursed one will scout out the town. I don’t know exactly for what. I didn’t hear the whole conversation.”

William contemplated on the information. He felt a shift in the air and it wasn’t anything natural. The cursed child said he and Willow were gifted, but what did that mean? Something is up and William didn’t like it.

Sir Roland stopped by for a moment to question them about the incident. He got up to leave when he finished the interrogation.

“We had received word that a similar occurrence had happened in a nearby town just days ago. William, I best be careful around prince Noah. You of all people knows how much he hates the cursed.” He closed the door mounted his horse and rode off to the castle.

The day ended and Willow followed William home. No one was left in her house now that her mother was in the medical wing. She didn’t want to be alone with the cursed now lurking into town.

The silence was disturbing this time as they traveled to the house. They made the silent agreement to keep a good distance between them and the trees. Several times Willow thought she heard footsteps echoing behind hers. She gripped William’s hand and kept near him.

The wind blew by rustling the leaves and snapping some of the branches. Their hearts beating fast with a anxiety reaching its climax. In the breeze there was a slight scent of smoke. Something was burning and it was relatively nearby. William searched the trees for smoke, but was startled at the fact the trees were clear of fire and the only sign of a fire was coming from his house.

His heart stopped and he sprinted to the smoldering ashes that used to be his house. He wasn’t thinking as he ran in. The putrid smell filled his nose the closer he got to the room his father was left.

He was right where William had left him. Skin charcoal black, limbs dried out and shriveled like dried fruit. He was in the same exact position he was left in. The smoke got to him before the fire, one small mercy of the world.

William’s eyes burned and coughed horribly as smoke filled his lungs. He needed to get out of there, it was no longer safe. Nowhere was safe anymore. He heard Willow scream and ran out of the ruins.

She was staring fixedly ahead at the forest. She was on the ground, shaking uncontrollably. William picked her up and looked at where she had in the forest.

Two glowing blood red eyes glared back. They stared for a moment or two before the owner of the eyes disappeared. William carried the girl home to her house. He was now the one that needed to be taken in.

He sat on the couch in the small apartment in the back of a store. He gazed ominously into the fire as it crackled in front of him. Willow had curled up and leaned against him as she slept. If only he was so lucky to be able to sleep after what he had seen. He closed his eyes and asked the three deities to give him answers. He began to drift to sleep.

“I’m sorry father...”