Evanna gazed into Scarecrow's white pupils, all the while her body was chilled to the bone as goosebumps spread across her skin. He continued to walk away with her, a smirk crawling up his face.

"You have no idea how long I have waited for a human to turn up here. Those pesky elves have kept most away. As much as I have enjoyed your company, I really need to eat and transform. I would prefer to be a man, but I do not mind being you," His eyes travelled the length of her body before resting back on her eyes, "such beautiful skin. With your looks, it will be easy to lure a male into my trap." He winked at her.

Unbeknown to Scarecrow, Evanna was not trapped in his mind control; she knew what was going on, including the ambush on Cilv, but she only hoped the fearsome shifter could handle herself for the time being. Her sixth sense was telling her to act like Scarecrow's little puppet, she did not know how she knew, but she did. She had complete trust in herself and her strange sense, even as he spoke about eating her.

In a monotone voice, she asked, "What. What will.. happen once.. you eat me?"

He narrowed his eyes and scrutinized her, but after a full minute of staring intensely at her eyes, he was convinced by the blank look in her eyes. It took everything in her willpower to not blink or flinch at his eyes bore into hers.

"It is futile to fight my powers. But I do not mind having a bit of a chit chat. The others here are bloody boring, I tell you. Moaning and screeching about how hungry they are. I'M HUNGRY!" He bellowed as he tipped his head back, arms wide as though he were shouting to an audience. "They need to make me happy.. Without ME, they are NOTHING!" Scarecrow's face was so close to hers now; his breath whipped her stray hairs back, and again, it took everything in her not to flinch.

He laughed maniacally as he stepped back from her, wiping a hand down his face as his head snapped back forwards, his cruel smile back on his face, "There I go again, rambling. Please forgive me. You do not need to know my pettiness."

Scarecrow suddenly yanked her down to the ground by the river; she forced herself to stay rooted, although she had the urge to jump into the river and away from the crazed creature before her. He lowered himself, sitting on the back of his heels, so they were at eye level.

"Once I have eaten you, my dear," His fingers brushed down her face gently, sending another chill down her spine, "I will become you. It is that simple."

"B-b-become me?" Evanna acted as though her speech was forced.

"Shhh," His finger skimmed across her bottom lip, "It won't hurt, I promise. I will put you into a glorious dream. You were so naively kind to me, so I will repay you back that kindness. At least."

His face came closer to hers, his mouth widening, showing rows of human teeth. As he did, Evanna grabbed her jewelled dagger swiftly and stabbed him; however, he moved just as quickly, resulting in her blade sticking out of his shoulder. He grunted and pulled it out slowly while he kept his eyes blazing into hers.

"I would be really pissed about this. These are the only clothes I own, and you've ripped them. But as soon as I have your body, I'll just take your clothes." He tilted his head to the side with a wicked grin.

Evanna reached for her swords, but he grabbed her arms and kept them by her sides; his strength was triple to hers in comparison. Her eyes widened at the power and speed he held.

"I am 200 years old, darling. My patience is that of a twig. It snaps easily. Do not bother trying to escape me. The question is, though, what are you? You are not a human. If you were, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now."

Evanna gritted her teeth while she struggled in his grip. He sighed and easily threw her into a nearby tree. She crashed onto the ground with a moan.

"I asked you a question. I do not like repeating myself," Scarecrow's voice was one of boredom while he strolled towards her, who began to push herself off of the dank earth.

Scarecrow kicked her under her belly then kicked hard enough to force her onto her back with a sputter. She was not expecting him to be so strong. His kick made her taste blood. He hummed to himself as he leaned down, grabbing her hair and pulling her up against the tree,

"Sweetheart, I have been playing nice. You only need to answer me then it will all be over. Nobody has ever tricked me before, especially a child such as yourself." His eyes scrutinized her face in disgust, "Either way, this will be a trial-and-error type. I won't die if I consume you." He spoke as though he was deep in thought.

Evanna felt tears forming in her eyes at the grip he had on her hair.

He brought his face close to hers again and whispered maliciously, "What are you?"

When there was no response, he backhanded her face causing her to see stars dancing across her blurred vision and making his face more horrifying. He grabbed her by the cheeks and yanked her face to look at him again; the pressure was so hard she thought her cheekbones might break. But she kept herself from crying out in pain.

"WHAT ARE YOU!?" He screamed in her face with a monstrous screech forming at the back of his throat.

Scarecrow was so absorbed in beating an answer from Evanna that he did not notice the stillness of the forest. All at once, he was stabbed in the back of his neck. He screeched and immediately jumped into the tree.

Cilv scrambled towards Evanna, looking at their surroundings as she did so, "Come on, he won't be gone for long. The river is here, let's go."

Evanna stumbled forwards and picked up her mother's dagger before sprinting to catch up to Cilv; she grabbed her by the arm, "We can't leave yet."

"I'm not dying for anyone," Cilv replied coolly, glancing behind Evanna while they stood next to the river further down from where Scarecrow was.

"We won't. We will find the others and get out of here. The river is here. We know where it is now."

"What if it disappears again?" Cilv asked, desperation clear in her voice. This was the first time Evanna saw a slither of fear in the woman's eyes.

"It won't. I can tell," Evanna held Cilv's stare, conveying her confidence in her words.

With a single nod from Cilv, they began to run along the river. Evanna's heart was pounding out of her chest as her muscles stayed tense and alert; there was a constant coldness vibrating along her spine. She did not know how many there were, but the faceless seemed to be crawling all over the forest.

As they continued along the river, suddenly, Ronan appeared across from them, as though a fog was pulled back from their eyes, revealing him as he leant up against a tree. They raced forwards, shocked at the scene before them.

**

Ronan's hands were holding Evanna's face gently as they passionately kissed; he pulled his lips away from hers and immediately started to leave light kisses from her cheek down her neck and to her collarbone. Her breathing was heavy as though she could not get enough of him. He was elated that Evanna wanted him too, with his thoughts were clouded by lust.

He pulled away from her, taking in her breath-taking features. As he did so, his brows began to furrow; blood splattered across his face as two swords sliced through her neck and body, stopping just before his own.

With his eyes wide, he looked behind her to see Evanna holding the swords stabbed into the back of the Evanna he was just kissing. Confusion began to muddle into his brain when suddenly, her charade fell, dissolving her features into a disgusting creature that was screeching as it collapsed to the ground. Ronan looked to and from the beast and this Evanna.

"Ronan.." Evanna softly spoke, approaching him slowly.

"What was," He gagged. Was he just kissing that thing!?

"What was I doing!?"

"Are you okay?" Evanna eyed him with a look of concern.

When he didn't answer and looked at her blankly, she replied, "You were just standing there. It was holding you by its tail, and its face was close to yours. It was glowing.."

"We need to get going. There's no telling how many of those things there are. Especially with Scarecrow still about," Cilv urged.

"Scarecrow?" Ronan looked at them questioningly, but Evanna grabbed him by the arm, urging him forwards.

While they jogged, Ronan glanced at Evanna's determined face; he blushed for the first time since he was a child as their eyes met. He looked away as the scenes of him kissing her were now planted in his mind, and it was not even real; he wished then and there, a hole would swallow him up. Evanna frowned at her friend's obvious discomfort, but her attention went back to the task at hand. They needed to find Ger and Axel.

She guessed that they were nearby. It seemed the forest was enchanted with a spell that hid and mirrored parts of the trees, including the river that separated the two parts of the woods. She was both fascinated and terrified by it.

A man's yell echoed through the forest, alerting them and urging them in the direction it came from. Fear gripped Evanna's heart; she begged in her mind that they were not too late; she knew that voice far too well. It was Ger.

Spurred on by the echo of Ger's cry, Evanna increased her footing. Her heart was racing and clenching tightly in her chest; she never thought she would have to worry about Ger. Even knowing they were going on this quest, she presumed he would always be okay. He was a monster slayer; he couldn't possibly be taken down easily.

As her thoughts raced with all the possibilities of Ger's situation, her legs took her at speeds she never knew she could go until she abruptly stopped. Her back felt as though ice was stabbing her in multiple places, but it decreased the further she went away. Ronan and Cilv sprinted past, then halted their steps and looked at her with confusion on their faces. Ronan opened his mouth to speak, but Cilv grabbed his arm to stop him. He looked at her then back at the princess.

Evanna took a few steps backwards in the direction they came from, then turned and walked away from the riverside.

"Raven, stop. What if we get lost again? We just found the river," Cilv exclaimed as she stayed rooted to the spot.

"We won't, they are very close," Evanna said confidently. Before Cilv could argue, Evanna scrambled off with Ronan close behind her. Cilv huffed and followed suit. This was against every fibre of her being, to go in the opposite direction of escape.

Evanna slowed down near a tree and almost gasped when she saw how many creatures surrounding Ger and Axel. There were multiple of them fighting each other and voices whispering in the air about the humans being theirs. Evanna's eyes found Axel and saw him sitting on the ground playing with mud, his eyes vacant with a goofy grin on his face. Ger constantly fought and took down monsters single handily, but she could see the sweat covering his face and the near hopelessness in his tired eyes.

She gritted her teeth at the sight and turned to speak to Cilv and Ronan, "This is how it will go down. Those things are fighting over their food, which gives us enough time to get the pair out of there. Cilv, I want you to distract them, run as fast as you can. Me and Roach-"

"You want me to be bait?" Cilv said incredulously.

"Yes. You are the fastest runner here," Evanna's annoyance clearly showed in her voice, "me and Roach will fight the remaining off. We will meet you at the other side of the river."

At Evanna's order, Cilv's face lit up. That meant the princess gave her permission to leave them and save herself. With a single nod from Evanna, Cilv took off at a sprint towards the monsters. Within seconds they all chased after her. Once she was out of sight, Evanna and Ronan crept forwards, their eyes surveying their surroundings. There was only three left, one near Axel and the other two fending off Ger.

She liked the odds she saw now; she only hoped that Scarecrow had lost them.