19

I get up from where I am and walk over to Melody. She’s sitting on a log around a fire. The fire is warm and calm. The fire continuously slowly settles down and then pops up crackling into flames over and over. I sit down in front of a log next to Melody’s legs. I lay my body down stretching across the gass, wrapping my tail and my head goes on Melody’s foot, as I twist my neck in a comfy position. She leans in to kiss my forehead. She sits up straight. I guess I’ve just been more tired than I could think. Malda and Sage are laying down on the other side of the campfire. Both laying down in front of a log like me. I slowly start to drift away from the universe but then I hear fast running from a distance. My head goes up quickly and my ears perk up in alert looking around in caution.

Melody asks me “Clare, what wrong?” I ignore her. I hear it again, fast running from the woods. I sit up and look around. I whisper to Melody,  “Wake up Malda and Sage. BE. CAREFUL.”

I get up and touch my paw to the rocks of the fire. I use my magic to put out the fire. I look around trying to hear the running again. My ears twitch at small sounds. I look hard into the forest turning my head around at some possible ways this creature could be. I hear the running again.

My head turns fast facing the way the sound came from, my ears faced forward. I hear it again. My head turns quick enough to see a silhouette of a horse galloping at top speed through the forest. Dark red sparkles glimmer in the shape of a diamond. I recognized that symbol the moment I saw it. I sprint over to the others and whisper in a harsh voice, “Everyone get your stuff right now, we’re leaving!”

Malda asks in a questioning voice “Why?”

I reply by saying “Red Diamond!” She grabs our bags and shrinks them holding them in a white diamond ring.

She tells Melody and Sage, “Brace yourselves!”