Even before I got up, I knew who it was. It was the voice that had been teasing me for weeks now, but also that had consulted me, listened to my worries, sometimes gave advice and never failed to calm me down. The owner was�
�Raghnall!�
Maybe I should give a little background about him and me.
~
I think it had been six months ago, maybe more, maybe less, that I met Raghnall. It was in the woods, beside the river, where I was washing some clothes. It had just turned spring, so the snow in the mountains had began melting. The river, which usually was a calm stream, had now transformed into a not-so-calm stream. I can�t recall what exactly happened, but one moment I was washing my brother�s shirt, and the other it was gone, pulled away by the water. I looked in the river to see if I could find the shirt, but to no avail. And that�s when I first met Raghnall.
�Missing something?�
There he was, standing a few meters downstream from me. Holding my brother�s shirt with a very smug look on his face. But the thing that I noticed right away, were his pointy ears.
Of course I had heard about Elves before. The Elders had warned me about them; they were the people that had been living in this forest for centuries now, according to the legends. The wood belonged to them and they belonged to the woods and they didn�t like anyone to interfere with that. I remembered the words of the Elders:
�Elves are the keepers of the wood. They have been living there since the beginning of times, and some of them are as old as the forest itself. They live for centuries, aging slowly, unlike humans. Nothing that happens in the forest goes unnoticed by them, seeing as they are connected to it. Although they seem like a peaceful folk, you should be careful. Most of them don�t like their privacy being invaded and may kill you or imprison you just for walking by.�
I think you can understand what went through me when I saw such a creature, standing there just a few meters away from me. His whole being seemed to radiate self-confidence and superiority. He looked like around 23 years old and had long, blonde hair to around his butt, which was pulled back in a braid. Glowing green eyes were partly hidden by his long bangs. He was wearing a green, long-sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows that showed off a strong chest, a black pair of pants, a brown, long cape and black boots. From what I could see, he wasn�t that tall; maybe 5�9�. He didn�t look very dangerous, if it wasn�t for the bow and arrows that were strapped to his back.
�Wha�what?� I think that was the only thing I could manage that say at that moment.
�The shirt. You dropped it. Be more careful next time, huh?� He threw the shirt to me and it fell before my feet. I glanced at it, then back at him. He looked at me questionably for a second, then smiled and winked. And before I knew it, I was alone once again.
And that was my first meeting with the Elf. There would be more to come.
~
The second meeting was slightly longer than the first. I think that was because I was more prepared for it, less surprised to see such a creature so close to me.
I was searching for a medicine for my younger brother that time. He had a disease that could only be cured by eating the leaves of a Mollypig; a beautiful flower with a bright blue color and that only grew at the edge of the forest. Technically, I wasn�t supposed to go there, to the forest I mean, but for cases like this there was no other option. So when I was searching for the Mollypig, I saw him again.
He was sitting in a tree, on a big branch. His back leaned against the trunk and had rested his legs on the branch. I had noticed him when I looked up, and at first I thought he hadn�t seen me, but then he said:
�Ah�so we meet again!�
I was a little surprised by this; he still remembered me? It had been quite a while since our previous meeting and although I had wanted to meet him again, I thought he had left for sure. But there he was, and he still remembered me. I decided not to let him get away so soon again.
�Why do I get the feeling that you have been following me?�
�Because I have.� And within a flash, he had jumped from the tree and was now standing right before me. He smiled and lifted my chin with his hand.
�Feisty little thing, you are.�
Immediately I backed away and touched my chin where his hand was just seconds ago. He actually looked amused at my shocked expression.
�What�who are you?� And that had been the question that had been on my mind for quite a while. The Elf bowed and looked at me with what seemed his trademark smirk.
�I thought you�d never ask! I, my fair lady, am Raghnall, the Keeper of Lacuna�s Forest.� He said with such enthusiasm like he was the king of the world.
�Keeper of��
�Right! I watch over what happens in the forest. Nothing goes unseen by me! That means I also watch�� he pricked his index finger in my stomach ��you.�
�Me?�
�Hmm.� He smiled and bended over, so that our noses were almost touching. �And I also noticed that you were looking for�this?� And from behind his back, he pulled the flower I had been looking for all day: Mollypig. He handed it to me and I must have looked pretty stunned because he let out an amused laugh.
�Thank you�� I said, not knowing what to expect next.
�No problem. But, there is one thing you can do to pay me back�� He grinned.
�What do you want me to do?� Although Raghnall seemed to have good intentions, I didn�t trust him quite yet.
�Please, would you just hold this stone for me for a moment?� He pulled a crystal-like stone from his pocket and offered it to me. Although it had first looked like crystal, it now glowed bright red. I looked at him in confusion, not sure if this was such a good idea.
�It won�t bite, or do anything to hurt you. Please, just hold it for a moment. It�s very important for me!� The Elf pleaded.
�Okay�� I hesitantly agreed. I picked up the stone from his hands, and much to my surprise, it began to glow and soft blue color. And for some reason, I felt all warm inside; everything was tingling. This seemed to be enough for Raghnall, because he quickly took the stone back from my hands. He smiled and me and there was a mysterious look in his eyes.
�Thank you, Shaylee, that was all. Now, please, I have one more request.�
�What is it?� I questioned.
�Tell me�tell me everything about you!�
~
And so it was done. I told him everything about me. I told him about my long time crush on Nolen, about how I worried over my sick younger brother, about how I sometimes found the life in the village choking me, the everyday business seemed like a restraint to me. Sometimes Raghnall talked back, offering me some advice. But most of the times he was silent, just listening to what I told him, taking in this new information. I don�t know about the other Elves, but he certainly wasn�t what the Elders described Elves were supposed to be. He didn�t really seem to mind my company, and I had never seen him shoot one of the arrows he always carried with him.
So there we arrive at the day I confessed and ran.
~
�Raghnall!�
�Yes, who else did you expect?� With some difficulty I got up and wiped the dirt off my face. I checked out my body, but nothing seemed to be wrong with it. When I looked up, Raghnall was standing right before me, uncomfortably close and with a smirk on his face. I stepped back, feeling very self-conscious that moment. Why did he always give me the feeling I was so small and vulnerable?
�So?� He said. I looked at him questionably.
�What?� I asked while dusting off my clothes.
�So, what were you doing there, running though the forest like an idiot?� He cocked his head slightly.
�Aren�t you supposed to see and know everything? I recall you saying that to me, Mister Know-It-All.�
�Feh, do you think I pay attention to everything� all of the time? Now come on, tell me, what were you doing there?�
�Nothing�� I cast my eyes downward, embarrassed about the whole situation all of a sudden. Raghnall didn�t care about that though, because he lifted my chin with his hand, forcing me to look up.
�No. Tell me.�
And so I told him, about the confession, about the silence and the laughter, and the mocking tone his voice had when he told me to try again later. And Raghnall just listened to it, and when I had to cry he did nothing, which made me feel very stupid and silly, so I stopped, and then looked at him. I blinked when I saw the weird expression on his face. He almost looked confused and I wondered what part of my story was so weird that it had confused him. Then he spoke.
�So�he rejected you because you are too young?� Now it was my turn to be confused. Raghnall saw this and explained himself further. �He is only 10 years older than you, am I right?�
�He thinks I�m just a child!� I exclaimed.
�But�10 years shouldn�t be a reason for him to do this. What can be done in 10 years?� I blinked at that statement.
�10 years! 10 years is a lot in a human life!� And just after I said that, Raghnall slapped himself in his face.
�Ach! How could I forget�?� He mumbled to himself. �A human life��
�Excuse me?� I didn�t see where he was going with this.
He turned to me again and smiled just a bit. �I forgot about the difference between humans and Elves. You see, Elves live much longer than you humans. They age slower. 10 years means nothing to me, but to your kind, I guess, it means a lot��
�Live longer? Then, exactly how old are you?� I asked, getting curious now.
�1410 years.� Raghnall stated.
�Fourteen hundred and��
�Ten.� He said, like he was discussing the weather. I staggered backwards a bit.
�By the Gods! You never told me that!�
�You never asked.� He answered, looking very amused and smug. I started to suspect that he liked scaring me. I looked at him in disbelieve. He changed the subject. �But anyway, what are you going to do now? Going back there?�
I shook my head. �I can�t! Everybody would laugh at me and I could never look at Nolen again. No, I�m not going back there!�
�So, what are you going to do then?� And that just left me stunned. I hadn�t thought of what to do next yet and felt very silly and childish. I looked up when Raghnall scraped his throat.
�Listen�I have a plan.� He said, suddenly sounding very serious.
�What?�
�Leave. We can leave together.�
�Together?� I asked, surprised.
�Together!� He smiled at me in a weird way. �There is something I want to do and you seem like the perfect sidekick.� He offered me his hand, and I stared at it, not sure of what to do.
�Sidekick? What are you talking about? What do you want to do?� All of this seemed very unreal to me, and a part of me just wanted to go back to the village. I decided to stay, though, even if just to listen to what Raghnall had to say.
�I�m not telling, but trust me on this, you�ll like it. It�s much better than that boring village you live in. Didn�t you say you imagine living there like a restraint?�
And he had me there.
And to this day I still do not know what possessed me to do what I did next. I put my hand in his, and said:
�Okay.�
And there it was, my pact with the Devil.
