Souls

'I know you can't come back'

"So how does it feel? Is it painful? Why am I asking this, I know it's painful" The small frail creature that wore an owl mask spoke. He was sitting next to the tree, his friends grave. He continued to talk to it like it could hear him.

" I know you were in pain as you died. I know we couldn't help you. You were very sick from endless pain. I can't begin to describe it even though I didn't go through it. I'm sorry you couldn't say goodbye."

Other trees surrounded them, very much also burials. A graveyard of trees. A graveyard of old spirits that died of the exact same thing.

The same illness.

The illness caused by endless pain, that spreads among the body. They never figured out a name for it, but the flowers that would grow from the place wherever it hurt and then spread as the pain grew. A parasite that would feed off of the pain and blood of the victim until it consumes them, to a tree.

" I'm sorry this happened to you of all people. You really didn't deserve it."
The owl child got up and moved closer to what kind of resembled a face, or a branch as it was now.

" I wish I could talk to you, but don't worry! You're always welcome in my dreams! We could still laugh and joke there and still go on adventures!"
He wasn't necessarily sad or grieving or in denial. He knew his friend was still there. Just nestled in the tree. In his coffin.

" I know you can't come back home because you're always here, growing. I wish you could come back home but you seem to be doing fine here. Doing brilliant actually."

His voice began to crack a little. He began to climb the tree.

" I'm sorry for getting sappy I just want you back home. I want you to come back to my house and we could play board games. Joke about your sister and how gross she could act sometimes. Talk about your pickup truck and how adventurous it seemed to sit in the back of it while someone drived. But you're still here, I know your still here."

He sat on a limb carefully not to harm the bark.

"I-I know you're still here? Right? Your family cares about you and wants you to come home. They know very well you physically can't. They still beg for you to come home though. I don't really know why they can't just visit you here."

He reached for his mask preparing to take it off.

" I know I shouldn't do this, I know it's against our nature to purposely take off our masks in front of people but this is a special occasion."

He took off his mask as a flood of emotion ran over him. He dropped his mask as he fell to the ground. It sounded and looked a lot worse than it was. It didn't hurt his body but he still wasn't okay.

"I'm sssorry, I'm sorry I know I'm not supposed to do that I know I'm not supposed to take offmymask I'msorry"

He forgot to split apart his words with brakes so it just sounded like a mumbled mess.

" I just wanted you to see me I just wanted you to see me"

The owl kept repeating this phrase till the sun begin to be one with the ground again.

The owl fell asleep next to the tree and the owl talked to his friend once more.