Autumn managed to grab her eighth lollipop of the day without her mother noticing. As a six-year-old, she considered it a great accomplishment. If her mother went somewhere, she went there too. She was much too young to remain at home by herself, so here she was with her mother in the marketplace.

The days were beginning to turn chilly again, which meant Autumn's mother's stall in the marketplace would flourish once again. Each year during fall, people flocked to the marketplace to stock up on goods for the winter. Some stalls in the marketplace remained open during the winter, such as Alice's stall, but many stalls closed.

Alice glanced down at her daughter struggling to peer over the stall counter.

"Do you want a chair?" she asked.

Autumn eagerly nodded in response, the purple lollipop still in her mouth. She climbed on top of the chair and peered outside. Her eyes widened at the long line of people outside of the stall. Her eyes were especially drawn to a boy standing in line with his mother. He was talking to her, grinning ear to ear as she ruffled his dark hair. They were coming closer.

"Hello there," Autumn's mother said while restocking her hats. "How are you two doing today?"

"We are doing well. A bit chilly, but that's why we are here today," the woman replied. "I happen to adore your hats and my son is need of a new one."

Autumn peered over the counter and was greeted with two large blue eyes staring back at her. Autumn eyes widened in response. The boy's eyes were so bright as they blinked back at her from the other side of the counter. She was unable to contain her smile anymore and shot him a large, toothy grin. Even the boy couldn't seem to not smile when he saw Autumn smiling at him. 

"This is Felix," his mother said.

Autumn pondered for split second before glancing at her own mother. "Can I show Felix around the marketplace?"

"Autumn, dear, I'm sure they need to be going after this," Autumn's mother began.

Felix's mother shook her head. "Oh no, we have some time. What do you say, Felix?"

  He only nodded, but that was enough for Autumn as hopped down from the chair, grabbing another lollipop as she did so. She closed the door to the stall to meet Felix at the front of the stall.

"Ready?" she asked.

Felix nodded again.

"See you soon, mom," Autumn chirped.

Felix trailed behind Autumn as she guided him through the marketplace. She turned to him, holding out the blue lollipop she grabbed. The smile was still there.

"Do you want it?" she asked.

Felix only nodded and took the lollipop. Autumn, as a six-year-old, lacked the filter she probably needed.

"I saw you talking," Autumn said. "You're not talking to me."

"I do talk," Felix said.

"That was three words," Autumn answered. "Are you shy?"

"What?"

"Mom says when people meet new people, they can be shy," Autumn said, tilting her head at Felix. "Are you shy?"

Felix nodded.

"That's okay," Autumn chirped. "Let's go see Dara."

She made it a point to link arms with him so he wouldn't get lost.

Dara was in the middle of making another batch of pastries which she sold even throughout the winter. Autumn practically considered Dara as her grandmother, and she wanted to tell Dara about her new friend. Felix's posture stiffened as Autumn knocked on the door of the stall.

"Dara?" she called out.

Dara opened the door and beamed at Autumn, who smiled back at her. Her pigtails swished back and forth as she jumped up and down.

"This is Felix!" she cheered, but her voice lowered to a whisper. "He's a little shy though."

"Oh, well there is nothing wrong with that," Dara said. "Do you two want pastries?"

Felix, who initially struggled to find his voice, was suddenly overcome with excitement when he saw the pastries. "Yes please!"

The two of them silently munched on their pastries as a light gust of wind blew by.

This was the beginning of their friendship; the two of them sharing a bag of pastries from Dara. It became a tradition of theirs to walk together to the marketplace and then spend time at each other's houses.

The day started with Autumn picking up two raspberry pastries from Dara's stall. She would walk all the way to the town where Felix lived. Then she and Felix would walk through the town while eating pastries. After all of this, the two of them would head back to Autumn's house. They were both only children, which made certain things easier.

Time went by, and Autumn turned twelve and Felix had turned thirteen. Fall rolled around, and the air was much drier than usual. Autumn's lips were chapped, and it drove her crazy. Her mother made her wear a hat, a scarf, and a sweater. As Autumn waddled out of the house grumbling, her mom's direct words were "Just because Felix caught a cold doesn't mean you're going to."

So here Autumn was, heading to Felix's house after stopping at the marketplace. Autumn hated the feeling of something lurking in the back of her mind, but she couldn't seem to shake the feeling. Something about the marketplace was off lately, and people seemed to visit much less than usual. Even Dara gave her a perplexed expression whenever she came to the marketplace.

She stopped at top of the hill, the only barrier between her and Felix's town. The hill allowed her to look out over the whole town. It made her feel important, tall. The houses below were built out of red bricks, and even the town square could be easily spotted from where Autumn stood.

After taking the moment in, she rushed down the hill and into the town. At this point, she was well-known in the town. People would always greet her on her way to Felix's house. This was one of the only places where the atmosphere didn't feel tense; until today.

People wouldn't even look Autumn in the eye, and their eyes were focused directly on the ground. It was as if everyone were hiding from something, or someone. The nagging she had earlier was returning with full force.

Felix, on the other hand, had been waiting at the window for Autumn to show up. He had already finished his schoolwork from his parents and was incredibly bored. Three taps at the door and he knew she had arrived.

"Mom, dad!" Felix called. "Autumn's here!"

His parents glanced over from the sofa.

"Felix, we're right here, dear," his mother said, laughing. "No need to shout."

Felix's ears turned red as he opened the front door. Autumn stood there, bag of pastries in hand with a large grin on her face.

"There she is! Good to see you, Autumn. Felix has been waiting for you all morning," Felix's mother, Beatrice said.

"Mom," Felix warned.

"Has he?" Autumn asked, eyebrows raised.

"Yes, all morning. Rushed through his schoolwork too," Felix's father, Matthew replied, taking off his glasses and setting his book down.

"Dad!" Felix coughed.

"Okay, okay, we'll stop," Beatrice said. "So, Autumn dear, how are you doing?"

There was that nagging feeling again.

"I'm doing well. Thank you for asking," she replied, lying right through her teeth. She peered at Felix. "Ready to go?"

Felix nodded, following Autumn to the door. Before leaving, Felix turned to Autumn.

"Would you mind giving me a second? I almost forgot something."

"Oh, okay. I'll be waiting outside," Autumn answered, closing the door behind her.

    Felix kept his hand on the doorknob and glanced at his parents. "Hey, um, don't tell anyone, I love you guys. See you tonight."

"Secret's safe with us," Felix's father said.

"We love you too," his mother said. "We'll see you later. Make sure to wear your sweater."

Autumn flinched when Felix shut the door. He frowned.

"What's wrong?"

Autumn's eyes flicked to Felix. "Nothing's wrong."

"Oh, come on Autumn. You even lied to my parents. I could tell," Felix argued, pointing a finger.

They walked side by side in the gravel, Autumn staring down at her shoes like the rest of the townspeople.

"Things have been getting worse," she finally said, holding out the bag of pastries to Felix.

"You went to the marketplace again?" Felix asked, still taking a pastry from the bag. "This needs to be the last time. I mean—not forever, but for now."

"I can't just stop going. The Bluebird Marketplace is all I've ever known. It's hard to just stop going. Especially when Dara is still there."

"Dara told us to stop coming. Remember? The last time both of us went there. She said it wasn't safe anymore," Felix replied, but he noticed Autumn's expression. "Autumn, it's going to be okay. We just need to stay safe for now, you know?"

"I guess," Autumn replied, eyes tearful.

Felix stopped eating the pastry. "How about we go see the horses?"

Autumn nodded and followed behind Felix through the town square. She was carefully a couple of pastry crumbs off of Felix's face.

  Less children seemed to be out than usual. No kids played tag in the grass, and no laughter filled the air. But Autumn still tried to feel at peace. She tried not to be afraid. Nothing was working. Her head was buzzing with thoughts.

"Autumn," Felix started as they reached the pasture. "I know I just said all of that crap about staying out of the marketplace, but the Red Cloaks can't completely occupy your mind."

Autumn snorted. "How can it not occupy my mind? The fear has already reached your town. The fear has already reached the marketplace."

"People are being extra careful. Doesn't mean they're afraid," Felix insisted.

"Well, I am," Autumn whispered, her voice barely audible. Felix didn't catch it. "Do you see the horses anywhere?"

They both climbed over the fence. Before Felix could answer, a hand grabbed his shoulder. Both he and Autumn spun around, startled. A burly man was standing there, hand still on Felix's shoulder. Felix wriggled away and backed into Autumn.

"You are trespassin' on private property," he huffed.

"Sorry sir," Felix began. "My friend here especially likes horses and it always cheers her up to come see them."

Autumn nodded, peeking from behind Felix's back.

"It's okay, kid. But I oughta warn ya. I'm not the best when it comes to sight. Might've thought you were a Red Cloak from afar" the man replied.

Felix and Autumn's eyes widened.

"B-But there haven't been Red Cloaks spotted here," Felix said.

"There have been now," the man said gruffly. He took a glance at Autumn. "You're not going to find any horses here."

"But why?" Autumn questioned, steadying herself by placing a hand on Felix's shoulder.

"Woke up like any normal day. Went to check on the horses. Those Red Cloaks killed my horses," the man snarled.

"I'm sorry about your horses, sir," Felix said, feeling sick.

"It's outrageous, but it's not like their deaths are your fault. Just be careful, both of you, you hear me?"

Autumn and Felix nodded, taking leave of the now empty pasture. They began heading toward Autumn's house.

"I told you," Autumn said. "No one's safe anymore."

"I'm sorry," Felix said. "I know that didn't help."

"But Felix, we're children. I'm twelve and you're thirteen. Even if we're too old to be kidnapped, it seems like the Red Cloaks don't even care about that anymore! They're encroaching on everything you and I deemed safe."

Felix winced. "Let's—just go to your house. It's the safest place we know of."

Autumn hesitated for a moment, but she eventually agreed. They climbed the hill and made their way through the forest. Around three-fourths of the way there, Autumn suddenly stopped mid-stride. Felix shot her a puzzled glance.

"Why'd you stop?"

"The birds,' Autumn whispered, gazing up at the trees. "They're not chirping."

"I'm sure it's because of the season. Most of them have probably left by now—"

"It's fall, Felix. It's the middle of fall. And they were chirping when we first began walking in the woods," Autumn replied.

When she didn't receive a response from Felix, she glanced over, finding him frozen with his eyes wide. He appeared to be looking in one particular spot.

"What is it?" Autumn asked, following Felix's line of sight.

"Do you see them?" he murmured.

"See who?"

It only took Autumn a moment before she saw them too. They were being followed by at least ten people. They were dressed in red and watching them from the shadows of the trees.

"It's them," Autumn squeaked, gripping Felix's arm. "What do we do?"

"Keeping walking," Felix whispered, slowly turning around. "Act like we didn't seem them."

   Autumn followed in suit and they continued, both still shaken. Acting as if they never saw a large group of Red Cloaks stalking them was a challenging feat to pull off. Autumn pulled off her hat and scarf.

"Felix, does it feel hot to you?" she asked.

"A bit," he admitted. He paused. "Do you smell that?"

Autumn did. It was the smell of smoke. It started off subtle, but it increasingly became worse and worked its way to Autumn's nose. It burned her nostrils and she coughed.

"It's—getting worse," she sputtered.

"Do you hear that noise?" Felix asked.

"Hear...what?" Autumn coughed, but then she stopped. She did hear it. She heard an odd crackling sound, something someone would only hear if there was a...if there was a...

Fire.

Autumn whipped around and let out a horrified shriek when the rising flames began dancing closer to them. The people from earlier also began to emerge from their hiding spots, torches in hand. They continued setting things on fire.

"Run!" Felix yelled. "Run, run, run, run, run!"

Both of them took off through the trees. Every time they glanced back, the fire seemed to be there, as if it was chasing them. They were getting closer to Autumn's house.

Autumn held on tight to Felix's hand as they avoided fallen branches. The fire had surrounded them, but they managed to slip around the embers.

Felix and Autumn jumped back when another branch fell. It was when one of the old trees began to topple that Felix knew he had to decide.

If he pulled Autumn back, then they'd both be trapped in the fire and with the Red Cloaks. But he knew what he had to do.

He shoved Autumn forward, just as the large tree came crashing down between them. Autumn tumbled down the slope, only a mile from her house.

And oddly enough, the fire stopped spreading to where Autumn landed.

Autumn landed flat on her back, and gasped when the breath was knocked out of her.

Felix, on the other hand, couldn't even shout for Autumn before a hand covered his mouth. His eyes went wide with horror when he saw the Red Cloaks standing above him.

"Pick him up," one of them hissed. The shortest one at the front motioned to the figures behind them.

One of the taller ones yanked Felix up from the ground. Felix wriggled, trying to break free, and even attempted to bite his captor, but he wasn't able to.

"Stay still," the figure snapped. "Don't want to have to kill you now."

Felix stiffened and stopped struggling.

"Want to tell us where your friend is?"

Felix wouldn't budge. Fire still spiraled around the cloaked monsters.

"Forget about it. We got this one," one of them huffed.

"But the boss said—"

"I said, forget about it!" the tallest one shouted, keeping a tight grip on Felix. "Let's move on."

Tears began to bunch up at the edge of Felix's eyes. He didn't want to die. Not like this. He would never see Autumn again. He would never see his family again.

Autumn struggled to find air, the burning sensation finally leaving her lungs. She was littered with scrapes and smudged from the fire. But she didn't care about that.

She had to find Felix.

As soon as she caught her breath, she clambered back up the slope, the fire reduced to small embers. She wiped blood from her lip, a result of busting it when she fell down the ledge.

"Felix!" she yelled.

No answer came.

She weakly glanced around, still on her stomach. Autumn was about to call out for him again, but then she noticed something on the ground.

It was Felix's sweater.

Hands shaking, she lifted the navy colored sweater from the ashy ground. She knew. They must have taken him. She had lost her only friend, and all she had left was his sweater.

It was her fault.

It was her fault.

She pulled the sweater close to her chest and sobbed, the tears staining the fabric. She gripped the sweater, shedding tears until they couldn't be shed anymore.

What would she tell his parents?
What would she tell her own parents?

How could she tell his parents?

How could she tell her own?

She rubbed at her eyes, wiping the tears away, but they continued to roll down her face.

Until a light jingling startled her, making her hiccup. Eyes wet, she swiveled to where the noise was coming from, suddenly staring face-to-face with a fairy. Autumn knew they existed, but she had never seen a fairy before. They never hung around humans.

The fairy appeared to be teary-eyed as well, her hair a mess, her face was smeared with soot and ash, and a tiny, broken tiara in her hand. She blinked up at Autumn, hair a dreary pink shade.

"Hello there," Autumn sniffed, still cradling Felix's sweater in her arms. "I have never seen your kind before."

"I-I am the last," the fairy answered tearfully, wings drooping.

"What's your name?"

The fairy glanced at Autumn, a little smile appearing on her face.

"My name...is Blaise."

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Note: So, that was Chapter Twelve. I don't have much to say, but thank you for reading the story so far.

-IML