Aurora doesn't walk; she glides, or that's what people tell her. She is a tall, lithe young woman, who carries herself well for someone from Arrowedge - a tiny village, on the edge of Kankor Valley.
The night is dark, the only light coming from the broken blood moon. It shines down on her long, jet-black hair making it shimmer. The light casts a shadow bringing out her high cheekbones, showing off her beauty.
Aurora moves towards Wryamt forest. As she looks up, her big doe eyes sparkle. Normally emerald green, they turn a strange yellowy-red as they reflect the moon's glow.
What wonders there must be out in the world. She hums a simple tune, tickling the back of her throat making her giggle aloud.
As she reaches the tree line, she looks back towards Arrowedge, her home and birthplace. It's a place she adores, her friends, family and even the occasional stray dog make her heart swell. She loves it all, the scent of wet grass in the morning and the musk of wood smoke in the evening. Even the simple cottage she shares with her family although isolated on the edge of their village.
She enters the forest, surrounding herself with the rich smell of oak and birch. Her hands touching each one she passes, feeling the rough bark across her palms. She brushes past the tall ferns and the various shades of pink, purple and yellow wildflowers that cover the ground. The many scents and callings of the creatures envelop her as one of their own.
She goes deeper into the forest where no other humans normally venture. Picking up the trails of the deer and foxes; she notices a floppy ear from a half-hidden rabbit off to her left, then another two to her right. Aurora spins around laughing as a gust of air, filled with a few stray leaves, winds around her body to caress her in return.
Her ears twitch with the animals squeaking and rustling through the undergrowth. She inhales the sweetness of a vibrant blue wildflower; it's strong and overpowering but still beautiful. Aurora walks down amongst the trees, listening to the surrounding sounds. Listening for that distinct grunt of her furry little friends.
She looks at all the trees surrounding her. She can see oak, birch, pine, spruce and even some maple trees off to her left. Her father used to bring her here. He taught her about the plants and trees, how to distinguish them by their fallen leaves. She knows what plants are edible and which are poisonous. And he taught her about the animals too, her favourite things in this world.
Still searching for murmurs, she rounds a grassy knoll and spots them. She smiles from ear to ear, then reminisces to the time she told Matti about them.
"They're my friends, Matti. They have been forever."
"You're mad, Aurora. To get that close to them. You need to stop."
"I can't. They've never hurt me."
"You're going to get hurt, even killed, Aurora. So don't blame me when it happens!" She stormed off, not even looking back.
She didn't listen to her sister then, and she isn't about to start now. She almost sprints to them in her excitement. These majestic beasts of raw power, every bit as ferocious as people have heard.
As Aurora finally breaks into a run, she shouts out in greeting. They all turn with what can only be described as smiles on their small faces. They beam out below their short snouts. Their bodies huge, covered in hair, massive claws protruding from their paws.
It's a family; five of them. Their home is a bright little grove in the middle of the forest floor. A wide area covered with ferns, shrubs and flowers alike, with a small burrow dug into the side of the hill. As she nears, she notices the moonlight reflecting off the dew-covered leaves.
She runs to them with open arms and they envelop her in their embrace. She can feel their massive claws wrap around her waist; rough at first, then they soften. She buries her head into the beast's chest and inhales, smelling the damp earth, the scent of crushed grass and tree sap.
"Hello again." She grins. "Oh, I've missed you all so much!" she gushes. Aurora moves towards the smallest of them and ruffles her fur. "And I've missed you the most, Little one." She hasn't named them; she knows it's not her place.
As she spends her time rolling around in the grass, she notices how the beasts seem to be happy nuzzling her and each other. Her favourite, the smallest one, runs back then bounds over to her, nibbling her foot and pulling at her leg.
What are you doing, Little one? You've never grabbed my foot before. It doesn't hurt but she can feel her small teeth through her leather boots. The little one pulls again, harder this time.
"What do you want, Little one?" she asks. She pulls her towards the tree line off to their left. "Do you want me to follow you?" She pulls again, harder this time, so Aurora follows.
Her furry little friend pulls her past the tree line and into the forest. They go past tall ferns, scattering the rodents and smaller mammals on the way. She is led deeper into the forest, farther than she has ever been before. They pass the trees she knows, and then she realises that everything is getting bigger. She notices the old oaks, covered in green vines.
They must be five footsteps wide and as tall as mountains.
The little one lets go but carries on running. Aurora stumbles but follows, even though she's not sure how to get back. She trusts her, even for a youngling. As she passes the old oaks, she sees plants and shrubs that are new to her. These strange but wonderful flowers, so familiar but completely alien. They're taller than normal, their shapes bulging, with a fluorescent colouring all around.
Aurora suddenly loses sight of the youngling. She stops, calling out, "Where are you, Little one?" Nothing, just the faint rustle of leaves. She calls out again, "Little one? Where have you gone?"
She hears a rustling from her left. Turning, she sees the youngling just at the last minute. She bounds out from under the shrubbery heading straight for her. Aurora moves her body without thinking and catches the youngling in her arms; the sheer weight topples her to the floor. Together they roll around laughing and grunting.
When she finally stops herself, she sits up pulling grass from her hair. "Wow, that was fun, don't you think? Even though I'm covered in grass." She chuckles. The youngling grunts in agreement, wriggling her snout.
As Aurora glances around. It's brighter than normal. She looks up expecting to see the blood moon shining through the trees, but instead, she sees the giant branches and leaves of the old oaks. They intertwine and push against each other, a solid wall of nature as if protecting her from the outside world.
She blinks in disbelief as they glow. Gazing closer at the wildflowers and tall ferns, their stems illuminating in the darkness. She spins around in excitement, taking everything in.
"Humpf."
She stops dead in her tracks.
"Humpf."
She looks around at the youngling suddenly remembering she was there. Aurora flops down next to her, "What is it, Little one? Can you see it all too? It's beautiful, isn't it?"
"HUMPF, HUMPF, HUMPF." The youngling grunts.
"What is it?" asks Aurora.
The youngling turns her head, looking toward the biggest oak tree Aurora has ever seen. The trunk alone, bigger than her families' cottage extends around in a slightly oval shape. It has gnarled roots spreading out across the forest. Looking up she can see the top, it mixes, seeming to melt in with the canopy of the other trees.
The youngling pads over to it with the sound of crunching leaves. Aurora follows, her curiosity burning. Seeing the ancient trunk up close in all its glory, the thick gnarled bark with bright green vines that stretch all the way up. It makes Aurora feel insignificant, a single ant in this vast forest. She places both hands on the trunk. It seems enormous to her. She runs her hands over the bark feeling every hole and crevice. Slowly, moving around, her ears pick up a faint humming coming from within.
As she stops, she takes her hands off and the humming stops. "Interesting, I wonder if?" She places them back on and there it is again, coursing through her limbs and into her core. She does it a few times just to be sure. She turns to the youngling. "Is this what you wanted to show me, Little one? It's fascinating."
With what looks like a smile, the youngling stands up on her hind legs and places her small paws on the ancient oak, "Mmmm, mmmm." An expression of pure joy comes over the youngling; she closes her eyes, "Mmm, mmm, mmm."
"I feel the same way, Little one." As Aurora places her hands on it, the humming is louder. She listens, trying to pinpoint where the sound is coming from. She walks around the giant trunk again, this time looking up and down. Then she sees it, a small nook about midway up the tree. She removes her hands again and the hum stops. Stepping back trying to get a better look and maybe find a way up.
She sees it clearly now: a small nook with a faint green glow emanating from it. Moving further back, trying to see inside to no avail. She lines herself up with the nook and walks back to the base of the tree, looking for any way up. Her heart pounds against her chest and her body starts to tingle as her excitement grows.
As she gets there, the youngling looks around with her big dark eyes. She scratches at the trunk, barking. "Ime, ime, humpf."
Aurora blinks, her forehead creases as her mind is suddenly pulled away to the sound she just heard.
The youngling looks up towards the nook and seems to speak again. "Ime, rora, ime."
Aurora looks at the youngling in disbelief, thinking to herself that she didn't just hear her speak. "It's not possible, is it?" she asks herself. Her head seems to spin slightly; she sits down on the warm grass.
Finally, she turns to the youngling who's just staring at her now. She hesitates at first then asks, "Are you telling me to climb, Little one?"
The youngling tilts her head, then nods up and down in agreement.
Aurora can't believe it. "What is happening? Am I going mad?"
She stands up deciding that she isn't going crazy. She steps up to the youngling stroking her fur on her way past. Aurora stares at the nook searching for a way up. Placing her hands upon the tree again she feels the hum, stronger, vibrating within her. Then, realising that the trunk is so big, the bark has natural handholds, perfect for climbing. She can feel it under her fingers, a slight sponginess when she grips as she continues her climb up. As she gets nearly halfway, she looks down to see the youngling watching. She seems to sit on her hind legs, eyes locked to Aurora watching and waiting.
She carries on up the tree, careful with each movement, she loves to climb but this is different, dangerous. As she gets near to the nook, she relaxes again. Holding on with one hand she releases the other clenching her fist and wiggling her fingers. As she grabs hold again, she can feel the humming in her bones now, it's getting stronger the closer she gets.
She climbs again, the final part; she reaches the nook and grabs hold. Her fingers grow cold and she feels something slimy, her hand slips off, and she starts to fall. She reaches out frantically trying to grab at anything she can hold on to. She finally scrambles and grabs a nearby branch. Breathing heavily, she just freezes, thinking about what could have been. "But it didn't happen," she says aloud. "Get a grip, literally," she laughs to herself, a short and croaking sound.
Shaking her head, she rolls her shoulders trying to relax and continues to climb, this time to the left of the nook. She does it slowly and carefully. As she gets level, she peers inside. It looks just big enough for me to squeeze into. Mmm, interesting? It looks hollow, and it goes deep inside, I can't see where it ends.
She grabs hold again making sure she has a firm grip and squeezes herself in, brushing the sides as she goes. Crouching at first and stretching out her hands hitting empty space. Wow! It's a lot bigger than I thought. She tries to stand up, hitting her head. "Ouch! Not big enough," she says aloud. Rubbing her head, she moves toward the glow, finally seeing the source of her wonder. It is a gemstone, maybe the size of her father's fist. It looks strange, with many uneven edges, the outside seeming to be clear but the inside bright green. As she looks closer, she swears that she can see movement right in the centre. It's suspended in mid-air, within a liquid bubble.
She stretches out her hand and then pulls it back. "Should I even touch it?" she says to herself. "It is beautiful though." She leans forward, reaching out her hand, it seems to glow brighter the closer she gets. She stops before the bubble, her heart tries to escape from her chest. Hesitantly, she reaches inside. It's warm but not wet. She grabs the gemstone and the bubble pops and disappears. The only feeling is of warm air rushing over her body.
She turns her hand to look at the gemstone; it gives off a slight glow but nothing as bright as before, almost dull. Beautiful, it must be worth a fortune. She looks at it in amazement, moving it around in her hands, looking at each facet in turn. As she looks deeper, she can see a slight swirl from inside, she looks closer still and sees it's a multitude of colours dancing together.
Suddenly, the gemstone flashes brighter, it begins to warm then gets hotter in her palm. It fills the whole space with a brilliant white light; Aurora feels a searing pain in her left palm, smells burning flesh. She realises it's her own and cries out in pain, tears coming to her eyes.
She falls to her knees feeling a sudden surge of energy fill her body. This time she screams, for how long she does not know. Her body goes rigid, her every nerve twitching with fire. She starts to shake uncontrollably, still screaming, her throat raw and bloody. Finally, after what feels to her like days, the pain eases, she weeps as she curls up into a ball and lets the darkness take her.
***
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