The Unicorn's Forest

Heathcliff looked up as Carl entered his office. There would only be one reason that Carl would approach Heathcliff at the moment, which meant that it would have to be good news.

"So, I take it you've figured out a solution to the problem?" Heathcliff asked, pausing from finishing writing the memo he was about to send out.

"Yes, it was actually very simple. We almost didn't think of it," Carl replied.

Heathcliff waited a moment before sighing. "So, what is the solution?" he asked, his annoyance at having to ask clear in his voice.

Carl shifted nervously. "We drop a radio transmitter that sends out a magical signal. We already checked to see if there were any radio signals in that world and didn't find any. As soon as we can find a secure gate we can send out expeditions to begin mapping the gates and the worlds so we'll have accurate information to work with," Carl explained in a rush.

Heathcliff nodded. "Have you gotten the supplies needed for any expedition yet?"

Carl clearly hesitated. "Yes and no," Carl replied. "We've started gathering some of the basics: tents, sleeping bags, first aid kits, and well, spare clothing. However, we can't be sure how long each expedition would need, so we can't be sure how much food to send with them. As it is, we already have calculated how much each approved member of each expedition would be able to carry and the amount of food they could carry after that. The calculations aren't promising. We might need to reduce the amount of expeditions until we can create a way to supply the expeditions from on the other side of the gates," Carl explained.

Heathcliff nodded thoughtfully. Those were some excellent points. However, there could be other possibilities to look at. "Have you thought of something like a handcart?" Heathcliff asked. "They might be low-tech, and probably not something that would be very efficient, but it could increase the carrying capacity of each expedition. At the same time, as soon as you find a secure gate, have the first expedition begin to create a supply depot to store supplies so we can have that established to create a better foothold on that side of the gate as well."

"Should we work with resources from this side of the gate or the other?" Carl asked.

"Probably would be best to work with both. Prepare some resources now, like lumber, and we'll see what resources are available on the other side of whatever gate we find. However, don't get too much. We can't be sure how far we'll need to transport it, so we don't want to store too much here if we'd need to transport it to say, Alaska. Right now we need to work carefully and slowly rather than like we had been doing up to now," Heathcliff answered.

"I understand. We'll work with what we can, but at the same time, are you sure the Unicorn's Forest isn't a viable option?" Carl asked.

"Unless we can secure a way to enter the forest with everything we need without drawing attention, it isn't. Aside from that, if it does become viable, you yourself and Ronald won't be able to enter it," Heathcliff replied.

"Why not?" Carl asked, clearly confused.

"Because both of you are likely considered Enemies of a Unicorn, so you would not be welcome by the unicorn in any unicorn forest," Heathcliff replied simply. "Maybe not even if you encounter a unicorn outside of their forest."

"So, it would be better for me to find a gate that I could use, right?" Carl asked.

Heathcliff nodded. "Yes. Whatever we'll be able to do once you do will be determined at that time," Heathcliff answered, his tone letting Carl know that the topic was done. So, Carl turned and left, letting Heathcliff return to working on the memo.

_

Charlie wasn't sure what she should do. She didn't feel like they were really in any danger from the herd of unicorns, but at the same time, they'd approached them likely with magic so they wouldn't be seen. Which didn't assure Charlie of their intentions. She couldn't tell how many there were exactly, but she could count at least twenty easily.

Of course, she could be overthinking things, but this was not only an unfamiliar situation, she couldn't think of a situation she'd even heard of to compare to this one.

Would they 'hear' me if I thought at them? Charlie wondered. She couldn't think of a reason why not, so she tried. Who are you? Is there something we can do for you?

Charlie would prefer to use her magic right away to communicate with them, but she certainly didn't want to fall unconscious again in addition to not knowing if it could have other effects she wasn't aware of. Especially since she had no idea how long she really would need to recover from her magic having been drained like it was.

If the unicorns could hear Charlie's thoughts as she thought at them, they didn't show it. Instead, they continued their observing, a few ducking their heads for a moment to raise it back up after a moment, chewing a mouthful of grass.

Charlie wasn't sure how long it was before everyone else became aware of the unicorns. She only knew they had when Beth moved next to her.

"Any idea of what this is about?" Beth asked Charlie quietly.

Charlie shook her head. "I tried thinking at them like I did with Petals before we had magic, but I don't know if they heard me or not," Charlie replied, just as quietly.

"Want to try first, Beth?" Tim asked Beth.

"Might as well. Probably would be better than Ralph," Beth commented.

Charlie could tell Beth was about to try to talk with the unicorns when they suddenly moved apart, letting an equine creature Charlie couldn't say what it was. It had two gold horns, both pointing forward wherever it looked, running parallel to it's face to just past and above its eyes after they curved around its head, growing out by the base of its ears, kind of like some pictures of demons Charlie had seen some artwork of. The creature's coat was jet black and almost seemed to absorb the light surrounding it. However, looking in its eyes, Charlie could tell was peaceful, just like Petals. She couldn't say how she knew. Just that she did.

–Welcome, Friends of Unicorns.– a deeply, gentle masculine voice boomed in their minds before they could react to the appearance of the creature. –How did you get to this world? I was pretty sure that I'd destroyed all the gates that led to this world.–

Charlie couldn't say how she knew, but was certain this creature knew exactly how they got there. She suspected that this creature wanted to know where the entrance to the forest was.

Charlie stood up and face the creature, fighting the urge to hide behind her friends the entire time. "Yes, we came through a unicorn's forest to get here," Charlie said.

–Would you be willing to introduce me to her?– the creature asked. The tone really surprised Charlie, and she could see it surprised her friends as well. It was as if the creature was almost shy when he asked the question.

–To who?– Beth asked. –You can see all of those who traveled through the forest in front of you.–

–I mean the unicorn.– the creature clarified. –I'd like to meet her.– The creature started to rub the ground with its right front hoof, which made Charlie wonder what other mannerisms it had that were more human than equine. It certainly seemed like the creature was rather bashful at the moment.

–Why should we ask her to come out?– Amelia challenged. –Why do you want to meet her?–

–I merely wanted to meet her.– the creature merely stated. –I can't really say the big reasons why at the moment, but her forest is connecting to my world, so I'd like to speak with her if nothing else.–

–Why can't you just go in the forest?– Ralph asked. –I mean, if you're not up to anything bad.–

–I would never!– the creature huffed, indignantly. –I haven't been invited, so it wouldn't be proper for me to intrude into her home without permission.–

Charlie had the sense that the creature wanted to say more, but wondered if he was hesitant to say all he wanted because of the unicorns around him or if it was because they themselves weren't unicorns or whatever he was.

–What assurances do we have that she'll be safe out here?– Beth demanded.

–You have my word as a bicorn.– the creature said. Despite herself, Charlie found herself believing him.

"I think it might be fastest to ask Petals to come out here to meet him," Charlie whispered to Beth. Then after a moment she added, "And I get the feeling he isn't up to anything that might hurt Petals."

Beth nodded. "I feel the same," she whispered back to Charlie.

–Let us finish up here and we'll ask her if she'd be willing to come out here or if you'd be fine entering her forest. – Beth told the bicorn.

Charlie watched as the bicorn considered the proposal, then after a minute, turned and walked away towards the edge of the valley. –I accept. I will wait at the edge of the valley. Please let her know I'll be back when the sun sets.– the bicorn said as he walked away.

"What was that about?" Tim asked quietly, eying the bicorn as it left.

"What exactly is a bicorn anyway?" Wes asked.

"I'm not sure what that is about and we can ask him what a 'bicorn' is when he gets back," Beth replied.

"Should we send someone to let Petals know about what it asked us to?" Amelia asked, her eyes full of curiosity, as she kept glancing towards the bicorn.

"Has anyone finished what they were practicing?" Hannah asked.

"I still have magic left, but I think it isn't that important to actually finish what I was working on," Beth said. "I'm sure I can still work on it later if I get the chance, so I'll go let Petals know about the bicorn."

"How's dinner coming along?" Ralph asked.

"What?" Charlie asked, then her eyes widened as she realized she'd forgotten about the first set of hot dogs. "Crap."

Charlie quickly bent down over the grill and began turning the hot dogs, uneasy about the burned sides of each of the hot dogs.

Charlie turned back to Ralph. "The first batch is kinda almost done," she said as cheerfully as she could, but couldn't help but have her uneasiness of the state of the hot dogs enter into her voice.

"Don't worry about it," Ralph said, sitting on his ankles next to the grill. "I'm not too picky if my hot dogs started to become extinct."

"Extinct?" Charlie asked, against her better judgment.

"Simple, if you burn it beyond recognition then it's extinct," Ralph explained, smiling as he watched the hot dogs.

Charlie shook her head, annoyed at herself for even engaging with Ralph on that topic.

"How much longer until the hot dogs are done?" Amelia asked.

"The next batch will probably take long enough for Beth to get back," Charlie replied, never really sure how to tell with hot dogs. "But not long for the first set."

"Did you get the buns out?" Amelia asked.

Charlie shook her head. "No, you can see what I already have out," Charlie replied.

"Yeah, if I actually looked," Amelia laughed.

Charlie sighed. "I guess everyone is done working on whatever magic project you had going?"

"Near as I can tell," Amelia said.

Charlie was getting annoyed at the bicorn and unicorns that had accompanied him for distracting everyone from what they'd been doing and were now subsequently getting on her nerves as she worked on making the hot dogs. She couldn't even try to use her magic to speed them up, at least not without risking her own health and she cared about herself too much to try that. She especially didn't feel like everyone was waiting on her, especially when it was due to something entirely out of her control!

When the first set was done and put on buns, everyone but Charlie and Tim had one while Charlie put out hot dogs for the second set. Then by the time Beth returned, Charlie was just finishing the third set. Charlie then put on a fourth set, even though it was looking like everyone was having their fill of what had already been made. Even Charlie knew she'd likely be able to get what she'd want from the hot dogs.

Hannah had started setting up her keyboard when Beth had returned and had finished when Charlie started eating.

"Okay, everyone ready for some music?" Hannah asked.

"Yeah, can you play one of the CDs I brought?" Wes called out.

Hannah ignored Wes and started playing her keyboard. Charlie was impressed at Hannah's skills. What she could see of Hannah's fingers showed how they moved fluidly along the keyboard and at such a pace that Charlie had a hard time keeping up with the music, let alone tracking Hannah's fingers completely.

Charlie was watching so closely that it took her a few minutes before she realized that Wes and Ralph were snickering, Amelia was giggling, and Tim, Beth, and Hannah were smirking at her.

"What is it?" Charlie protested, starting to feel like she'd done something, like getting some mustard or ketchup on her face without realizing it.

"Hannah's not actually playing," Beth commented before starting to laugh herself.

Charlie looked back at Hannah confused. She could clearly see that Hannah was playing. What else could be happening? She looked closely at Hannah's movements and didn't see anything that would indicate that Hannah wasn't actually playing the music. Charlie looked back at Beth, still confused and not sure what she might be missing.

As Beth's laughter died down, she sighed. "Charlie, the music playing right now is the demo music every keyboard has, though not all have the same song," Beth explained.

Charlie looked back to Hannah. Maybe it was because she'd never seen Hannah do this before, but it certainly didn't look like Hannah wasn't playing the music. At least until Hannah took her hands away from the keyboard, laughing while looking at Charlie and the music kept playing.

"Sorry about that, Charlie," Hannah apologized. "I do this every so often, but I didn't expect that you'd believe that I was the one playing."

"H- how'd you know that's what I thought?" Charlie asked, her confusion short circuiting her thinking.

"It was the look in your eyes," Hannah said. "Then everyone else noticed too."

"Why'd you do that?" Charlie asked, not sure how offended she should be from being the target of the prank.

"Well, I do this from time to time," Hannah said. "Though, I don't think anyone's been so taken in by the demo music when I'm pretending to play it."

Charlie wasn't happy as she felt her face heating up from embarrassment. "So, will you be playing on your own or will you continue the demo music?" Charlie asked, not sure if she should be patient with the others or if she should look at taking a nap or something. Maybe if she did that, her magic might recover more quickly.

"Alright," Hannah replied amenably, turning off the demo music and beginning to play something completely different.

Charlie could immediately tell the difference. For one, the tempo was completely different. Looking back, Charlie thought she could tell a few places where Hannah's fingers hadn't been able to keep up with the music, but here she could tell that the notes weren't sounding without Hannah's fingers moving. It wasn't as polished as the demo music, but it wasn't as uniform either. This music had more of Hannah's personality.

When it was over, Charlie noticed the bicorn was listening from where he was across the stream as well. "It isn't exactly sunset, you know," Charlie called out to him.

–I heard music and couldn't help myself.– the bicorn said, sounding almost like he'd been caught with his hand (hoof?) in the cookie jar. –By the way, why don't you use your magic to communicate? I can tell you not only have a strong connection with your magic, you have a focus attuned to you, and you even have the scent of a unicorn stream on you. You have to have a reason.–

"Well, after talking with my friends last night in a dream conference, I kinda overdid it with that, and later when I used my magic to talk when I was awake, I fell unconscious. We then decided that it might not be good for me to use my magic for a while. Then after I drank from the stream Petals suggested I drink from, I coughed out a disgusting thing, that I assume had a connection with my magic," Charlie replied, part of her wondering just when she decided that she trusted this bicorn so thoroughly. "Petals said as much as well."

–Who is Petals?– the bicorn asked, turning his head slightly.

–Petals is the unicorn whose forest we traveled through to get here.– Tim answered.

–That's not a name I recognize.– the bicorn commented. Charlie couldn't help but wonder what he meant exactly that it wasn't a name he didn't recognize. Was there more about him than they'd realized?

–On that point, what's your name?– Beth asked, interrupting Charlie's thoughts.

–Arachii.– the bicorn simply stated. Charlie wasn't sure what to make of that name, but wasn't going to argue. Too much of this day was already spinning her world around. It couldn't turn her world upside down, since that had already occurred over time with her getting friends, magic, and learning unicorns were real.

–Exactly what is a 'bicorn' and how is it connected to unicorns?– Wes asked, giving everyone else an exasperated expression. Charlie sheepishly remembered that this was a question that had been suggested to ask him when he'd returned, though it was clear Wes was the one who most was interested in that question.

–Bicorns are the other side of the coin as unicorns.– Arachii replied. –Bicorns are the only ones known that can create permanent gates or destroy them while unicorns are the only ones who can close or open the gates. All bicorns are male and all unicorns are female.–

–Wait, are you telling me that bicorns and unicorns are essentially the same species?– Hannah chortled, her amusement clear to Charlie, and likely to the others, Charlie mused.

–Yes, we essentially are the counterparts to each other in pretty much all facets of the term.– Arachii said.

"What are you wanting from Petals?" Charlie called out, suddenly wondering if Arachii might be interested in Petals as something other than a unicorn he wasn't used to being around.

–Well, first I was hoping that I'd be able to see what she knows of any of the other unicorns that fled to their forests at the end of the war.– Arachii said.

Charlie felt a tingle of fear sliding down her back suddenly. She thought that she might need to talk with this bicorn before he spoke to Petals. She might know more than Petals about what he spoke of. She worried that Petals might not do well if confronted with knowledge that the crystal had indicated to Charlie that should be kept from her for the time being.

"She doesn't," Charlie blurted. She felt her face redden as she felt everyone's gaze center on her.

"How do you know?" Hannah ventured.

Charlie sighed. While it would be easier to explain about the crystal right now, she didn't think this was the right time. She'd be better to talk with Arachii later about that. However, she'd still need to come up with something, so she went with something that Petals had told her when they'd first talked.

"Petals told me that she hadn't known anyone else existed before her forest was attacked and left where she found us. If she remembered this 'war,' wouldn't she then be aware that there were others than just her in existence?" Charlie hoped what she said made sense enough for the others to accept. She wasn't sure it made sense to her if she focused on what she'd said.

–If that's what she'd told you, then she probably wouldn't be one who might know where others are, but it is strange.– Arachii commented.

The conversation stopped abruptly as Petals came out of her forest. –Is this who you wanted me to meet, Beth?– Petals asked.

–Yeah, this is Arachii. We don't think he'd try to hurt you or your forest, but he was wanting to meet you. When we asked why he didn't just enter your forest to talk with you, he said that he wouldn't enter your forest without your permission and that he just wanted to meet you, but wouldn't really say why.– Beth answered.

Petals turned her attention to Arachii. –What did you want me for?" Petals asked, then as soon as she'd asked that, she looked away. If Petals had a more human face, Charlie would've expected her to be blushing furiously, given the emotions she felt suddenly start to swirl in Petals' mind.

–It's been a while since I saw one of you. I wanted to see if you might know where others might be or what might have happened to any of the others.– Arachii stated calmly, as if Charlie hadn't just explained that Petals wouldn't know.

–What do you mean? It wasn't until recently that I learned there was more outside of my forest. How would I know where others might be? And also, what do you mean by 'one of you?' What are you talking about anyway? Besides, I can tell there are more unicorns just outside this valley, listening in on us.– Petals retorted. Charlie was actually a little surprised at the tirade. In fact, all of them, aside from Ralph seemed surprised. Ralph seemed more amused and entertained than anything.

Arachii sighed. –If you don't know then, you don't. If you did know what I what been hoping you knew, then you wouldn't have to ask what I meant by the other things. Since you don't know, don't worry about it. We can be a safe retreat place for you if you really want. If you also don't want us to, we won't enter your forest. It would be rude to intrude on your home if you didn't want us there.– Arachii said, sounding a little put out to Charlie, though Petals didn't seem to notice. Petals seemed to bounce back right from being annoyed to overjoyed at seeing Arachii. For what reason, Charlie couldn't tell.

–If you'd like, Arachii, you could invite the other unicorns over here and we could enjoy each other's company while we get ready for the night.– Tim suggested.

–That sounds good.– Arachii replied. –I'm sure the others would like that.–

The other unicorns didn't waste any time walking over to them, and it almost seemed to be like a party with how enthusiastic the other unicorns seemed to be with asking questions and suggesting things they could do. The small campfire was quickly stoked into a bonfire.

The evening wore on and the sky settled in for the night as stars spread across the sky. Charlie didn't recognize any of the constellations, not that she was surprised. It was a different world from hers after all.

Every so often one the other unicorns walked off to the side of the small encampment every now and then and fell asleep, standing still, which made Charlie wonder if they were becoming statues or something. At least until she saw that their tails didn't remain still, occasionally swatting at a bug or some itch. Eventually, the others went to get in their sleeping bags and they fell asleep. It wasn't until al the unicorns were done that Charlie's friends started to go to their sleeping bags, starting with Hannah. After Wes had gone to his sleeping bag, that left Charlie, Arachii, and Petals around each other. Charlie mostly stared into the flames of the fire, the supply of old driftwood nearby allowing them to keep it going strong. Though, Charlie was aware of the bicorn and unicorn conversing, she didn't hear anything.

She wasn't really surprised, but did feel a little left out. Though, she was used to not being included, so it didn't bother her much. However, as she thought about it, being included felt more awkward and she started to wonder if that might be part of why she didn't really feel like part of her group of friends. In all, not hearing Petals' and Arachii's conversation allowed her to enjoy the peace of the evening. The only sounds she had to deal with was the stream continuing to flow, Ralph's quiet snores, the rustle of a sleeping bag as one of her friends shifted in their sleep, the sounds from the fire, and the occasional quiet breeze.

Charlie was about to go to her sleeping bag when Petals started walking away to her forest and soon was in her forest, without having said anything to Charlie. Charlie wasn't really that upset about it, but it did hurt a little, not that she could pinpoint why.

–You seemed like you were holding back something earlier.– Arachii commented to Charlie.

"Yeah, there's a lot that I can't say, at least to Petals about what I know about her," Charlie said without even thinking.

–Why wouldn't you be able to tell her about it? She is the one who should know.– Arachii pressed.

"It's because I promised," Charlie said, still staring into the flames. "I found a crystal in Petals' forest that unsealed my magic and helped me figure out what needed to be done to get the Heart of the Forest back, but it told me things that I wasn't to tell others, but mostly because it would be harder to keep it from Petals."

–What did it tell you?– Arachii asked.

Charlie relayed what she remembered the crystal telling her, though she was confident that she wasn't remembering everything. However, it seemed that what she did remember was enough to gain Arachii's trust. Charlie also relayed what had led to her meeting Petals as well as what happened to the crystal. She couldn't think of anything else to do, and she couldn't say why, but being around Arachii felt almost like being around Petals. Somehow that presence was comforting enough that she found herself talking more than she had planned or normally did. Almost like she'd been enchanted by Arachii in the way Emily had tried. It also had the feeling like a flood had erupted and even if Charlie really wanted to stop talking, she might not be able to. Which actually worried her a little, not that she could say exactly why.

–So, you can't tell Petals this without getting the crystal back, and it fell into that griffin canyon?– Arachii asked.

Charlie nodded, turning her gaze from the bonfire to Arachii. "Yeah, I was told that if I told her any of this that it could interfere with her getting her memories back when it's time."

–That would also explain why she has the body of a mare but the mind of a filly.– Arachii mused.

Charlie wasn't sure what to make of that statement, so she merely ignored it and moved on. "Now I have to figure out how to get back to that griffon canyon so I can get the crystal," she merely said, hoping Arachii might have a suggestion.

–Which world is the griffon canyon on?– Arachii asked.

"The one through the gate at Berthoud Pass in my world," Charlie replied, not sure how else to describe it.

–No, young one. I mean, which world is it? What name has it been given?– Arachii clarified.

"I couldn't say," Charlie replied, turning to look at the flames again. "Before that point, I didn't even really know about other worlds altogether."

–Hmmmm. Then how would you know if you're on the correct world if you do manage to get there?–

"I'll know because I used the crystal as a focus when I first had my magic unsealed."

–What?!– Arachii cried in Charlie's mind, his tone telling just how appalling he found the idea.

"The crystal said it shouldn't be a problem," Charlie defended herself, not sure if Arachii would be willing to help her in any way if she didn't convince him that she hadn't done something very wrong.

–What name did the crystal tell you had been the unicorn's name before she removed her memories? You were told that, weren't you?–

Charlie thought for a minute, then remembered when Beth had asked her pretty much the same question. "Alairna. She told me that her name was Alairna."

Arachii was silent for a while. Charlie didn't press the bicorn during that time, the only sounds were the same as before occasional sound from one of the other unicorns or Charlie's friend, the rustling of the grass in the valley, the music of the stream as it continued flowing by, Ralph's snoring, and the occasional popping of the fire. Finally, when Charlie was starting to give up on anything further from Arachii, he spoke.

–If that really is her name, then you have to get that crystal back as quickly as you can.– Arachii said, surprising Charlie with the firmness of his tone. Not only was all the hostility gone, but now it seemed like he was almost impatient for Charlie to get the crystal back.

"Do you have any suggestions?" Charlie asked. She wasn't sure what to do at the moment, other than seeing what worlds Petals' forest connects to.

–Do you remember what I'd mentioned about what bicorns are able to do versus unicorns?–

Charlie shook her head. "Not really. I caught some of it, but a lot didn't make sense to me.

–Very well. Greater bicorns can create or completely destroy gates while greater unicorns can open or close those gates. Neither can do what the other is able to do.–

"Wait, what do you mean 'greater bicorns' and 'greater unicorns?'" Charlie asked, suddenly not sure if they were on the same topic anymore.

–The unicorns that were with me are lesser unicorns. They're much the same as the greater unicorns, but for a few key differences. Greater unicorns can close or seal any and all gates and create a forest that exists outside all worlds and connects some. Greater bicorns can create a gate between any two worlds they choose. The gates will frequently open closed, or sealed, and so would require a greater unicorn to open it. For it to open unsealed, it would require me to be intimately familiar with both where I am at that moment as well as where I want to open it to. For a new greater unicorn or bicorn to be born, it can only through the normal relations between a greater male and female of the species, which would be a unicorn and bicorn. Lesser unicorns and bicorns do not like to be referred to as 'lesser.' I understand why, but at the same time, some distinction needs to be made and I don't know how else to put it.– Arachii said. –Lesser unicorns and bicorns are born when they reproduce themselves or when a greater bicorn or unicorn reproduce with either a horse, pony, or lesser bicorn or unicorn.–

Charlie thought there was a little more information than she'd really needed. For one, of course if a unicorn is the female counterpart to the male bicorn, that they'd need to get together if they were to have any young and she really didn't need to know how 'lesser' unicorns and bicorns came about.

"What can you tell me about the unicorn's forest? I understand a little, but I'm not fully sure if that's all there is or if it's only a small fragment."

–The forest is a kind of gate in itself. It can connect as few as two worlds or as many as five. If they connect two worlds, then it's more of a bridge and can only be temporary, but even three or four worlds can't be permanent, though they can last longer. The forest has to take five worlds for it to be permanent. I've known a few to try and get their forest to connect with more than five and only one survived. If their forest disappears while they're in their forest, then they're lost forever. Maybe it's possible they can still be saved somehow, but I've never heard of that happening.

–In the forest, the Heart of the Forest is at the same time part of the unicorn that created the forest and separate. It reflects the unicorn that created it, but the Heart is its own entity. If the unicorn dies, the Heart will still remain and can still function in whatever method it needs. The Heart can also act as a mediator with the ability of opening and closing gates. It can only be accessed by someone who is considered a friend by a greater unicorn. Much of this is known to us, but the reasons for it still haven't been determined. Maybe it's just the way the magic works, maybe it's something else.

–In the end, that unknown is what ultimately sparked the war that ended with the greater unicorns fleeing to their forests and closing all the gates. Some felt that if greater unicorns didn't submit to them, then they would become the new caretakers of the gates. They felt that if they couldn't control the gates then no one should be able to control them. I'm still not sure if that was all of their rationale or if there were other reasons that they didn't share. I can only say what our side had learned.–

Charlie took a few minutes to process all that Arachii had just said. She doubted she'd remember all of it, but didn't want to say anything to that effect. It felt like the bicorn had needed someone to talk to and Charlie had made him comfortable enough for him to just unload on her like that. Kind of like how she was when she was talking more than she typically did. Of course, she also couldn't think of what else to say in response at first. However, a thought occurred to her that allowed her to ignore most of the bicorn's lecture.

"Can a forest be closed? I mean, like a gate," Charlie asked.

–Not in the same way. A seal can be placed over the entrance, but that doesn't mean it's closed. The seal will never be permanent, eventually it will fade away. As I said, a gate that's sealed is that it's closed. When a gate is closed, you can't tell it's there unless you can sense the gate's magic or were already aware of its presence. However, the longer it's closed, the harder it is to sense. Before you opened all of the gates, some of them hadn't been open in millennia.–

"How do you create a gate? And is there something that would allow someone else to act as a mediator to create a gate, just like the heart of the forest for opening or closing the gates?"

–No, there isn't. Again, I have no idea why, just that it is.–

"What does it take to create a gate?"

–Either I would need to know what location in mind to open the gate to or someone to provide that information. As long as there's a clear image of where it would open, then I'd be able to open it. If it isn't a clear picture, it may not work or open to somewhere else altogether, and not necessarily a safe location. Even if through luck it's a safe location, it could be days and days from where you'd want it to be open to and while it's usually where it's supposed to open to when everything works perfectly, it's sometimes still be close to where it was supposed to open to. And by close, I mean within a day's ride.–

"Would you be willing to open a gate to the griffon canyon? It would help get Petals her memories back." Charlie wasn't sure if she should ask about what he meant by 'a day's ride.' She assumed it was a unit of measurement that he used and it might not be easily translated to her if she asked him to explain it.

Arachii sighed. –Normally I'd be happy to do that, but given its in a griffon canyon, I'd have to decline. If it was to get a Heart of the Forest, then I'd be willing to risk it, but we're not. Griffins look at bicorns and unicorns as potential meals. While they may not have noticed you where you were, they tend to be more aware of what's happening on the ground. If I opened a gate and you went through to get the crystal, the griffons could take a look to what's on the other side of the gate before you finish what you need to do where I could destroy the gate. Which means that they'd see there's potential meals over here, as far as they're concerned, and that's assuming it isn't high in the air or on a canyon ledge. So, I'm afraid I can't help you with that.–

Charlie nodded, not really that surprised. "It's okay. I didn't really think about that," Charlie replied, not sure what else to say. Then, another idea came to mind, or at least the beginning of an idea. "Would you be able to open a gate anywhere else? Like, somewhere on my world?"

–I assume you have a location in mind?– Arachii asked.

"I think so, the guy who had one of his people take the Heart of the Forest from Petals' forest agreed to help me, but he's a distance from where I live and so it would be difficult to get his help. Also, he was thinking of seeking permission from Petals to send some of his people through her forest to explore other worlds. He was also the one who wanted me to open the gate when I opened all of them," Charlie answered, not sure if Arachii would accept given the danger Petals' forest had been put in because of Heathcliff's people.

Arachii didn't reply immediately. Charlie didn't rush him, given she didn't think that it would go in her favor if she tried to push the issue.

Finally Arachii seemed to have made a decision. –Alright. I'll create a gate for you, provided Petals has no objections, in the morning when she returns. You can then go to this Heathcliff and let him know my terms. If he has anyone pass through this world, they need to abide by my laws and not bother any unicorn or bicorn. They also will need to not bring trouble here if they can help it. Furthermore, no Enemy of a Unicorn may enter here either.– Arachii stated flatly.

Charlie was more surprised that he'd agreed to it than the conditions he listed. "Thanks," Charlie said. "I was more worried about getting help with supplies for me and my friends to seek the crystal. It would be hard to keep things like that from our parents otherwise."

–Why would you want to keep things like this from them?–

Charlie sighed. "Well, it's partly not to make them worry, partly because where we're from, magic isn't considered real. Even unicorns are myth and I haven't heard anything about bicorns. That idea is being challenged since a centaur appeared publicly through a gate near where I lived, but since it was that one time, there's speculation that it wasn't real or something."

–How would you explain to your parents about an absence for a period that would be necessary to find and retrieve the crystal? It's not going to be a quick search.–

"We're still working out some of the details," Charlie defended, but realized that she hadn't even considered that point. How long would they be gone for?

–That would be a good detail to figure out if you're not going to tell your parents about all of this.–

"One reason we haven't considered things like that is because all of this is still so new to us," Charlie commented, starting to feel tired. "It's only been a few months since we learned about unicorns being real. Magic is still something we're figuring out how to work. Maybe it's because of that, that we're still unsure of how to go about things like that." A sudden thought occurred to Charlie.

"Could you tell me where the gates connect to? It seemed that Heathcliff's people thought the gate in Berthoud Pass thought it would go somewhere other than the griffon canyon."

–Do you mean for me to travel with you and tell you where the gates on each world connect to? Or are you just asking in general?– Arachii asked, looking off into the distance. Whether he was looking at anything in particular in the dark or just into the distance, Charlie couldn't say.

Charlie thought about the questions for a minute before answering. "I guess I'd like you to accompany us so we'd know what world each gate would connect to and we could avoid ones that would take us to somewhere inhospitable, like in the middle of a tundra or something.

–Sorry, but from what little you've told me about the gates suggests that while they were closed, there was a gate shift.–

"Wait, what's a gate shift?" Charlie interrupted.

Arachii looked back at Charlie. –A gate shift is when the gates shift where they lead. Open gates will only shift with other open gates while closed gates will only shift with closed gates. It's a very rare occurrence that only happens every few millennia. There is no way to tell which gates will shift with which gates. Since the gates were all closed, it's clear that a shift occurred, so there is no way for anyone, including me to know where any gate will lead without going through them personally. The only thing that wouldn't shift would be the entrances to a unicorn's forest, and even then those can change if the unicorn releases an anchor to her forest. The anchor will automatically latch onto a new world, with no way of knowing which or where in that world with the exception of if she removes all the anchors at once or if her forest fades around her and she's either lost forever or falls into one of the worlds that her forest connected to.–

"Thanks anyway," Charlie said, standing up. "I just wish there was a way to get this to go so I can get the crystal back fast and fix things so everything can go back to as normal as it had been."

–No matter how long this takes, I don't think things will ever be as normal as they had been for you, considering what you've had occur since then. Even if it takes until you're what you would consider old, you won't end up any farther from being your 'normal' as you are right now.–

"Maybe, but I'd like to keep things from getting farther from there as possible. That's all," Charlie said, yawning. "Goodnight, Arachii."

–Good night, young one.–

Charlie was surprised at how tired she was suddenly. Maybe it was a side effect from having overused her magic, but she wasn't sure. Maybe Arachii used magic on her to make her tired. She just knew that she suddenly needed to sleep.

_

"So, you think we should prepare for going in search of the crystal ourselves?" Amelia asked, sitting around the campfire in the morning after they'd finished breakfast.

"Well, only if any of you guys want to accompany me and yes, I do think that any of us who go should start getting ready in more ways than just getting supplies for the trip together," Charlie replied.

"So, like getting used to walking and stuff?" Ralph asked.

"Why walking?" Hannah asked.

"Well, we're not sure how far the gates are in-between each other and unless there's some other condition we don't yet know about, we'll likely be walking," Beth said.

"But, why walking?" Hannah reiterated. "I mean, why not get an ATV or bikes?"

"How much fuel would we need for an ATV for all of us?" Wes asked. "Not to mention maintenance on them, like if one gets a flat tire or if it needs an oil change."

"How long will this take again?" Amelia asked.

"We really don't know," Charlie said. "It could be a few weeks or years. I can't really say how long it would take, especially with how there's not way to know what each world might be like or how many we'll have to travel to in order to find the world that the crystal is on."

"How bad could they be?" Ralph asked, almost flippantly.

"A gate could take us to the crater of a volcano," Tim offered. "Another option is if it takes us to a mountain like Mount Everest. Then there's if it puts us in the middle of a desert, like the Sahara or the Arctic. I think it's kind of exciting not knowing where the gates will take us."

"I'll pass on the deserts," Ralph said.

"We might not have an option if it comes to that," Charlie said, not sure if she'd really push them to go for it if that was the case.

"Only one way to find out," Tim replied. "We can worry about any what ifs once we're on the road."

"Actually, if we encounter others, we might need to defend ourselves, so I could ask my dad if he'd give us some basic self-defense training," Amelia offered.

"I like that idea," Beth said, wrapping her arm around Amelia, much like she'd do to Charlie on occasion. "Could be useful even in our world."

"How about we start a hiking club once school starts?" Wes suggested.

"Why?" Charlie asked, not sure she was going to like the response.

"Simple. Hiking is a common hobby for people, it'll give us an excuse to get used to walking around, we might even be able to tie in some self-defense as well as first aid training, and we can try to get some hiking trips funded by the school," Wes replied. "Like maybe climbing a fourteener or something."

"I doubt we'd be able to get the school to fund any hiking trips," Amelia said. "But, if there's enough of other students who want to join, then we might be able to get something like that set up with everyone's parents or something."

"You know, that's quite well thought out Wes," Hannah said. "I mean, aside from the school funding hiking trips. I'm with Amelia on that one."

"Who should be the president of the club?" Tim asked.

"How about Charlie? It's her crystal that we'll be looking for," Ralph suggested.

"Maybe, but I'd rather be the president of the club," Beth said before Charlie could object herself. "Besides, I get the feeling Charlie wouldn't do so well with the administrative side of the position. Or a few of the other responsibilities that come with the position."

"Will you be able to do that and be on the school newspaper staff?" Tim asked.

Beth shook her head. "I've gotten tired of what I see in the media about journalists. So often I see them get things wrong and it's never admitted or corrected even when they begin reporting about what turned out to be true, so I've lost interest in being a journalist. Maybe I'll do better trying a different field altogether," Beth replied.

"How do you know that?" Ralph asked, sounding unsure if he should be asking or not.

"I keep notes of what I see on the news reports so I could remember what was said and how," Beth replied casually. "But regardless, what else will we need?"

Charlie began to lose interest in the conversation as they began discussing the fine details. She carefully left the group and walked over to the stream where she began splashing water on her face and rubbing it gently.

While she didn't feel tired like she had when she had gone to sleep, she still felt almost worn out now. Part of her wondered if it was her body taking note of how much she'd used her magic and was reacting accordingly. She suspected that she could use her magic now without risking any serious consequences, but thought it might not be a good idea at this time.

As she finished washing her face with just water, Charlie cupped her hands in the water and began to drink from the stream. The water was clear and it didn't seem like there was anything that would be problematic with drinking from it. As Charlie was finishing her third drink, she heard Petals come out of her forest.

–Are you ready to try another world through my forest?– Petals asked Charlie.

Charlie turned to face Petals and began walking over to her. "Not yet. We might take a few days or more before trying another world. We've realized a few things we should put together before we try again," Charlie said, putting her hand on Petals' cheek, "but there is something I was wondering if you could do for me with Arachii."

–Sure, what is it?– Petals asked.

Charlie turned to look for Arachii. After a few minutes, she finally found him calmly eating the grass on the other side of their small camp.

"Arachii, would this be a good time to create the gate to my world?" she called out to him.

"Wait, why do we need a gate to our world?" Ralph called out. "Isn't Petals' forest good enough?" It looked to Charlie like she had interrupted where they were in their discussion.

"It would be if I didn't need a gate to somewhere else that's a little distant to where we live," Charlie replied.

"Where is this place going to be and why didn't you say anything earlier?" Beth asked.

Charlie suddenly wished she'd tried using her magic to talk to Arachii instead of calling out to him. "It'll be Heathcliff's place and I wasn't sure how to bring it up," Charlie said, unsure how her reason would be taken.

–Yes, now would be good for me.– Arachii said, chewing a last bite of grass.

"Why Heathcliff's?" Tim asked.

"I thought he'd be willing to help us put together some supplies for our travels in other worlds. For one, what if we lose a tent or sleeping bag? How would we explain that to our parents when we get back?" Charlie answered.

"Yeah, if he supplies us with some gear, then we won't have to deal with our own gear," Hannah said thoughtfully. "And maybe his will be a higher quality than we can get."

"Fine, but I don't trust him anyway," Ralph commented, sounding more annoyed than Charlie had expected.

Not that it mattered to her. "Where would be a good place to open the gate?" she asked Arachii.

–Lets do it on the other side of the stream.– Arachii said, starting to cross the stream.

Charlie stooped down to remove her shoes and socks, before starting to cross the stream as well. While the water was cold, it actually felt a little refreshing to her. Soon she could hear Petals following her as well as her friends.

As they got to the other side, Charlie continued walking over to where Arachii was heading. It seemed to Charlie that he'd already decided where to open the gate. Charlie stopped suddenly as she saw a ball of grey magical energy begin to form between Arachii's horns, where he stopped moving.

–Focus on where you want the gate to open. Let it encompass all of your thoughts and entire being. Once it's stable, I'll ask Petals to open it and you can walk through to make sure that it's where you wanted it. If it isn't where you wanted or close enough, I'll be willing to try once more, but after that you'll have to figure out another option.– Arachii told Charlie, as the ball of energy grew.

Then as the ball got so big that it was almost touching Arachii's horns, Charlie saw that Arachii pushed his horns forward, where it seemed like they disappeared in mid-air. Charlie focused on the basement in Heathcliff's mansion where he had shown her that he was storing supplies for expeditions into gates. While she had only seen it once, it felt like it had been burned into her memory, maybe for just this moment.

The horns had disappeared to the point where the ball of energy was, at which point the ball seemed to spread and flatten, almost in an instant, and then Arachii stepped back and turned to Charlie.

–If there is any doubt as to where this gate might open to, now is the time to try again. If you are confident you did as I asked, then we can try and see how close this gate opens to where you wanted it to.– Arachii told Charlie.

"Let's open it," she said in general.

Arachii stepped away from where the energy had disappeared and Petals walked over to it and aimed her horn to where Arachii's horns had disappeared. Petals' horn did the same as she moved it forward to the same location. A moment later she moved back.

–I think it's open.– she said, her tone uncertain. –I mean, I haven't done this before, so I can't be sure, but I think I did it.–

"That should be good enough, Petals," Beth said, causing Charlie to jump. She'd forgotten her friends had followed them across the stream.

"Let's see where Charlie wanted it to go to," Ralph said, picking Charlie up by taking her left arm over his shoulders.

"Should be interesting to see," Tim said, lifting Charlie up using the same method as Ralph, only with Charlie's right arm.

"Wait, I can go through on my own," Charlie protested, struggling to free her arms. However, with her feet off the ground, she couldn't find any leverage for even a real token struggle. She could only move around, an inch or two off the ground.

While she was certain they could hear her, they didn't act like it. Or maybe they'd anticipated her objections and were flatly ignoring them. They merely carried her through the gate. It wasn't that she didn't trust the gate wouldn't open to where she wanted to, she merely had wanted to go through at her own pace and under her own power, so she couldn't help but flinch as she was carried through.

When they passed through, she was momentarily surprised at how dark it was. It wasn't until she considered how much light the sun on the Arachii's world gave in the valley that she accepted they had to be in the basement. It wasn't surprising that lights wouldn't be kept on all the time given there was no reason for anyone to suspect that anyone would enter through this manner.

"Where are we?" Ralph asked, letting Charlie's arm go without warning.

"Don't know, but it sure is dark," Tim said, dropping her other arm at the same time.

She couldn't help but let out a cry as she fell the inch or two she'd been held above the ground. She also wasn't happy that she couldn't catch her balance enough to avoid falling backwards.

When she landed, her head was outside the gate, while the rest of her was in the basement the gate led to. It was an interesting experience to say the least, to have the warmth of sunlight on her face while the rest of her was lying on a cold concrete floor. Fortunately, her head hadn't actually struck the ground, so she wasn't going to have a lump to deal with, but she was looking up at Beth, who almost had stepped on Charlie, having followed Charlie's example and removed her socks and shoes.

"What're you doing?" Beth asked.

"Not my fault," Charlie protested. "Ralph and Tim dropped me without even saying anything and I couldn't catch my balance."

"Not surprised," Amelia said, blatantly ignoring the glare Charlie directed her way for the amusement she didn't bother trying to hide at the whole situation. Though, Charlie did notice Hannah and Wes were both just as entertained at the situation.

Charlie shook her head as she stood up, her head moving back through the gate. Back to the darkness of the basement.

"Charlie, where does this lead?" Charlie heard Ralph ask as her head re-entered the basement.

"It's a basement," Charlie said, not caring to elaborate past that.

"Oh, that's explains everything," Ralph said, sarcasm dripping off his words.

"Don't care," Charlie merely said, beginning to stand up, hearing the others enter behind her as she did so.

"Wow, it's really dark in here," Amelia said as she entered.

"Is there a light switch?" Hannah asked.

"I'll get it," Amelia said. A moment later, glowing orbs a light emerged from Amelia's hands.

It wasn't a strong light, but in the dark, with no other light sources, it was enough for them to see their surroundings, almost like a candle lights a room in the dark, despite it being a weak light source. Aside from themselves, there wasn't much to cast any shadows either. There were a few sleeping bags and tents, but otherwise, it was an empty room.

"What's with this room?" Hannah asked, looking around.

"This is where Heathcliff is storing supplies for expeditions through gates," Charlie said.

"Why would you want to have the gate lead here?" Ralph asked. "Wasn't Heathcliff the one who sent people to take the Heart of the Forest from Petals?"

"He did, but I also made an agreement with him for help in getting the crystal back," Charlie replied, not caring to really defend herself. After all, she didn't feel that she should need to defend herself. "He'll have his people map the worlds and where the gates are, as well as try to find where the world that the crystal is on is."

"Makes sense," Beth commented. "I mean, I get the sense that doing that will take at least a few generations, at least. Not to mention we have no idea how many worlds there are altogether. We know of at least five. Assuming Petals' forest isn't connected to multiple points on the same world, at least."

"Wait, why would Petals' forest need to be connected to five worlds again?" Ralph asked.

"We went over this already," Tim said. "It's connected to five worlds. I can't remember if there's a reason, but we know that it connects to five. Our world and Arachii's world are the only two we've looked at so far. Who knows, maybe one of the others will be right next to the griffon canyon that the crystal fell in, but let's be honest. That kind of a coincidence would be stretching our luck, probably too far, if that was the case."

"Should we maybe, I don't know, get out of this basement?" Amelia asked. "I'm not sure how much these lights are draining my magic, but I'd like to finish up here anyway so we can go home."

"Probably a good idea," Wes chimed in, sounding more impatient than Charlie had seen him. "There's the door over there, let's go take a look." Wes hurried over to the door to try and open it.

"Is Wes okay?" Charlie whispered to Beth.

"He probably saw a spider," Beth whispered back. "He doesn't do spiders."

Charlie nodded and started walking towards the door. It opened just fine as Wes walked out of it, right into someone who was carrying four more sleeping bags.

Wes and whoever it was both fell to the ground, amid a few curses and yelling. When Charlie got over to them, she was a little surprised to see that Wes had collided with Nick.

"Owww, where the hell did you come from?" Nick yelled, clearly upset.

"Sorry," Wes said. "I just had to get out of there."

Nick picked the sleeping bags up and looked at Wes. "Wait, who are you? I've never seen you around here before. Did Heathcliff bring in some new kids without letting the rest of us know?"

"Not exactly, Nick," Charlie said, wishing it was at least Carl or Ronald instead of Nick.

"Charlie?" Nick asked, stopping cold in gathering the last sleeping bag. "How did you get here? I thought you lived too far away from here to just swing by. Especially this early in the morning."

"I found a short cut," Charlie hedged. "We need to speak with Heathcliff anyway, so would you be willing to show us where he is?"

Nick sighed heavily. "Fine, just let me put these with the other sleeping bags in there. I still have to bring a few more before I'll be done with this latest trip."

"Would you like any help?" Tim offered.

"Sure, would make it go faster," Nick said. "Though, I should probably take Charlie to Heathcliff, and those who want to go with her, first."

"No problem, would let me take a look around a little," Tim said.

Nick set the sleeping bags down with the others in the room in a pile, rather than in any organized manner. "Okay, follow me," Nick said as he turned and started walking away briskly.

Everyone had to move quickly or Nick would likely leave them behind. Charlie wasn't too surprised at Nick's attitude. Not only had she shown a lack of interest in his advances, but she'd also shown him up with her magic, among other things. Not to mention that they hadn't encountered each other much after the events at Berthoud pass and things hadn't been left on a positive note after that anyway. Not that Charlie really cared. It really was his problem in the first place. Especially since most of those things happened because of how he approached and handled the entire situation.

When he directed them to Heathcliff's office He then turned to head towards the front of the building and Tim followed. Ralph seemed hesitant to not join Tim, but in the end decided to let Tim go with Nick alone.

Charlie knocked on Heathcliff's office door. "What is it?" she heard Heathcliff call through the door.

"Just had something I wanted to talk to you about," Charlie replied, wondering if he was meeting with anyone at the moment.

Sure enough, there were sounds of chairs moving as people hurried to get to the door. When it did open, Charlie could see Carl, Heathcliff, and Shirley. While she wasn't surprised to see Carl, she was a little surprised to see Shirley.

"What are you doing here?" Heathcliff asked, his tone one of surprise and wonder than any anger.

"I found a way for you to access Petals' forest easier than by the entrance by where I live," Charlie said, waiting calmly for Heathcliff to ask them to enter.

"And who are these?" Carl asked, examining Charlie's friends around her.

"My friends," Charlie merely replied. "We were camping on another world that Petals' forest connected to that had a bicorn that was willing to open a gate to here." Charlie knew she was leaving out a ton of details, but was trying to push Heathcliff into letting them sit down so they could talk.

"Gates can't be created," Carl scoffed.

"How do you know?" Charlie asked. "I mean, if you don't believe me, we can show you the gate and have it removed if you really don't like it."

"Hold on," Heathcliff said, clearly trying to be diplomatic. "I'm sure we can figure this out." He then proceeded to invite Charlie and her friends into his office.

Now came the part of explaining and seeing what help her friends might let him know that they'd need when it was time for them to begin their own expedition to retrieve the crystal.

_

"So, that's what you learned about gates, huh?" Heathcliff asked, after Charlie had relayed all that she'd learned from Arachii the night before. Partway through, Tim and Nick had joined them, and quietly found a seat in the crowded office. Charlie could tell that some her friends weren't happy with what she was currently explaining, which she understood was that she hadn't told them when she'd learned of it first but wasn't sure when she would have a real chance to let them know otherwise. Around breakfast could have been a time, but they spent that discussing other things and even then, there wouldn't have been enough time to discuss everything that Charlie would have needed to explain. Not to mention that it didn't feel like a time to mention it nor did it cross her mind at the time.

"Yeah, Arachii answered any question I had about them," Charlie replied.

"So, you're saying that this 'Arachii' won't allow anyone who is considered an 'Enemy of a Unicorn' enter? And what are the laws that he mentioned?" Carl asked, his tone telling Charlie just how seriously he was taking her explanation, which she assumed that he wouldn't have the time of day for this if Heathcliff wasn't in charge.

"I guess you'd have to ask him." She replied.

"We probably should do that anyway," Heathcliff said before Carl could come back with another response.

"What help will you offer us for our own trip across worlds?" Beth asked, her tone telling Charlie she wanted a different topic to discuss and that she was bored with talking about the gates.

"I can help supply with some basics as well as any mapping my people are able to do before you start on your trek. Also, I believe I have a couple spells that can help you return to when you leave and have no visible signs of how long you were gone," Heathcliff replied calmly.

"I assume all of you have your magic unsealed," Shirley commented.

"Yeah, Charlie unsealed our magic with Petals' help," Wes replied. "We've been experimenting with it since then, but being careful not to push ourselves too far with it."

"We might like to pick your brains on what you've figured out if none of you mind," Shirley said. "Charlie has already shown us just how inept we've been with our own magic."

Charlie wasn't sure that statement was entirely true, but couldn't think of how to explain it. However, something in her mind found the statement concerning somehow. She couldn't explain it, it just felt like she shouldn't let her guard down around them. It also seemed odd given how she'd told her friends that she'd be more open with them, but at the same time she didn't want to alienate Heathcliff and his people by casting doubt on what they were saying. Then there's how she had all but assured her friends that Heathcliff's people were trustworthy and she couldn't figure out how to explain the contradiction with her suspicions of them. It was starting to feel like her emotions were getting in the way of what she'd assured her friends about. Which started to cause a sense of panic start to rise in her.

–Calm down, Charlie.– Beth said, using her magic while the conversation continued without them. –We can talk about it later, and no matter what's bothering you, I promise I won't criticize you about it.–

She looked towards Beth and saw Beth looking at her with a concerned expression on her face. She nodded at Beth and Beth nodded in return. Somehow that was enough to dispel the feeling of panic. Even though there was still plenty to make her uneasy, she was really starting to feel like things were going to go smoothly. She was really starting to feel good about her chances of getting the crystal back. The only problem that bothered her now was the idea of how long it would take, but she was still confident that it wouldn't be that much longer.