The Forgotten Zodiac

Aries didn't seem too bothered. She did sound sad, though. "Gabe...yes, it's mommy. I'm sorry...I'm going to be away for a lot longer, okay? I'll find you again in spring. I need you to stay at the Palace. You'll be safe with Minori. I need you to watch over Manny, and Sylas and L'arc. Be a big boy and protect them, okay?"

"But mooooom," Gabe whined, "I wanna see you now! You were so sneaky, sneaking away with everybody! Why couldn't I come? I miss yooooou!" he said, sounding like he was crying. Eve frowned slightly, looking sad, too.

"I know...I know, Gabe. But you have to be a help, okay? You can't go anywhere, I don't want you to get hurt, okay?" Aries said, a tear slipping down her own cheek. "I miss you too, but you have to stay safe, and you have to stay at the Palace...you have to. Okay?"

There was a long silence from the stone, and then suddenly, the connection broke. It came back a few seconds later, but it wasn't Gabe's voice.

"Sorry, he got upset and threw the stone across the room," Quay said. "I'll watch him, miss Aries. He'll be okay. Okay?"

"Okay. Thank you. Keep a sharp eye on him, he might try to run away. And keep the stone close, I'll call again soon." Aries sighed before pushing the stone into Arachne's basket. "Hold onto that for me, will you?" She asked quietly before burying her face in her hands. She seriously wondered if she was going about this the right way...

"Are you all right?" Byrne reached out a hand and placed it on Aries's shoulder, trying to comfort her. The boat suddenly lurched, a sign that they had set sail, but the human's grip didn't waver.

Aries didn't dare pull her face out of her hands and look up at Byrne. She was obviously crying, something she didn't do often. "I...I'm okay. Really," She laughed a little, shaking her head, though her laugh sounded more like a sob. "I just...I don't know...I get the feeling that this is going to be a very, very long winter..."

"Oh, Aries, it'll be all right," Byrne said. "I mean, you have us, and with that stone, you can talk to Gabe any time you want..." he tried to reassure. "It won't be that bad... okay?"

"Right..." Aries said quietly, but it was obvious that she wasn't quite so sure.

Aries had dried her tears by the time they were anywhere near shore. When they docked, she was quick to get everyone off the boat. She offered her thanks to the captain and watched as the boat left. She then turned to the forest, taking in a deep breath. "Let's go. We have a day's walk ahead of us. After that...we won't be going anywhere for awhile."

Eve supported Byrne, who, though he was looking better, was still having a little trouble. "Wish I had something warmer to wear," the human commented softly, though it didn't look like he was going to say more than that - he wasn't really one to complain.

"Well, to the Tree of Seasons it is," Eve said, watching as Aries helped Arachne.

"I'll do what I can about keeping warm. Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you." Aries said, crouching and pulling Arachne onto her back. She started walking, glancing over her shoulder to make sure Eve and Byrn were following. She didn't talk again until they reached the forest, and she didn't stop walking. "As I was saying, there should be other camps set up. We can pass a few and perhaps pick up extra clothing, blankets, and whatever else they'll spare. It'll be rough, though...normally forest folk prepare for months before winter. We have a week or so, judging from the nip in the air and the bare trees." Indeed, the trees had already shed their leaves, which crunched loudly underfoot as they walked.

"Will stopping at forest camps be alright? I mean... two demons and a human with you?" Eve asked, trotting along after Aries. Byrne looked very near exhausted from the walk, and Eve was practically dragging him.

"I wouldn't worry about it. If nothing else, you three can hang back a bit while I go in and speak with the people there." Aries sighed. "I don't think they'll be too flustered about a human, though. They probably already know who I normally hang out with. They don't know what Sylas looks like, either."

"So should I pretend to be Sylas?" Byrne asked, tilting his head. Openly stating that he was the son of the... former runner of the slave trade probably wouldn't go over too well.

"If anyone asks, yes. They probably won't ask, though. We just have to stay on the down low, alright?" Aries shrugged, continuing on their walk.

It was awhile before she stopped them to rest. They really were pressed for time; the leaves were already colored orange and yellow, most of them on the ground. "Alright. There's a camp not far from here. Eve, you watch over Arachne and Byrne, okay?"

"Can do," Eve answered, sitting down and letting Byrne lean against her. The human had nodded when Aries told him who he was going to be, but now looked more like he was nodding off.

Aries nodded and hurried off, not wasting any time. Arachne looked just as tired as Byrne, to be honest. Aries took a few long minutes, but she came back with a large bag. "Here we are," She puffed. "I got a tent and a few blankets, as well as a bit of food. We have two more camps to visit, too; we'll need flint to start fires, more food, and any extra winter clothing they can spare...hey, wake up, Byrne! We don't have time to sleep," She shook him by the shoulders, frowning a bit. "Come on, just two more camps..."

Byrne hissed as he woke up, trying to bite Aries's hand. He didn't recognise her for a long minute, and had relasped to thinking that he was back at the lab. When he realized what was going on, he gasped and shook his head, as if trying to clear it. "I-I'm sorry," he stammered.

"It's okay," Aries frowned, shaking hr head. "It's alright. No harm, no foul." She had been able to move her hand out of the way fast enough, but it was still a bit alarming that Byrne would do that. "Arachne," She shook the girl and helped her stand. "Come on, we have to go..."

"Uhn..." Arachne muttered unhappily, but stood as much as she could and leaned against Aries.

"Alright. Onwards, ho."

Byrne still looked a little guilty - he didn't want to hurt Aries, or any of his friends, for that matter, but now... he had trouble recognising them. He still couldn't explain why, but there was something wrong, he knew. He was doing a bit better with walking, now, and only had one arms strung over Eve's shoulder, and was able to carry his own weapon in his other hand. He looked up at Aries, his lips parted in half formed, speech, but he kept whatever he had wanted to say inside his head.

Eve spoke up a few minutes later. "Where is this Tree of Seasons? What does it look like?"