Rowan makes her way back through the forest, heading towards the bramble patch. It looks different when she gets there, but she can't completely figure out why. It isn't just the brambles that look different, either. It's the entire clearing. All the trees she healed, all of them look different. Rowan steps closer to one, careful not to touch it. Its leaves shift towards her despite the lack of wind. She looks up into the tree's branches, frowning. Her voice is soft as she speaks into the air.
"What changed about you? You look different, but I can't tell why."
Something grabs her from behind and she whirls, only to see some low-hanging branches. Nothing is touching her. She frowns. Were the branches that low before? She doesn't remember ducking beneath them or stepping around them. Hadn't she just walked straight up to the trunk of the tree? She glances back at the trunk, confused. When she looks up at the branches above her for the second time, they don't seem to be in the same location as they were.
Why? Is she just not in the same space? No, her feet haven't moved. So it must be the tree that's moving. At the same moment she comes to her realization, something grabs her again. But this time, it doesn't let go. She cranes her head back to look at whatever has hold of her. It's the tree, the brown branches are wrapping themselves around her. She kicks out, trying to get free, but the tree doesn't release her.
Its grip tightens instead. She loses her footing and glances down to try and regain it, only to discover that the tree is lifting her into the air. She thrashes harder and the tree tightens its grip. Something flashes through her. Its a feeling, but not a feeling. It's like the emotion is speaking to her in words.
Stop.
She pushes a response out through her teeth. "Why? Where are you taking me?"
Safe.
Rowan frowns. "I don't understand. What do you mean?"
Don't fight. Look down. Quiet.
Rowan gulps but does as the tree asks. Beneath her is a glimmer of golden hair. The Seelie Lord is walking into the clearing. Rowan shivers. He found her. She wishes her hand was free so that she could wrap her fingers around the protection charm, but her arms are held fast by the tree. The moment she thinks of it, a branch shifts from her side, freeing her right arm. The tree knew what she was thinking. She reaches up to grab the stone pendant, clutching it tightly between her fingers, so tightly that her knuckles are turning white. The Seelie Lord steps further into the clearing and the tree lifts her higher into the air, away from him.
Once she is several meters above the Seelie Lord, the branches begin to push her towards the trunk of the tree. Her feet hit something solid and she shifts them around, trying to stand. The branches lift her up a few centimetres and her feet find purchase on a thick branch. Her back presses against the tree's trunk and the branches release her to form a wall around her. But are they there to keep her there or to keep her from falling? There are thin gaps between the branches, large enough for Rowan to see through.
Beneath her, the Seelie Lord has moved farther into the clearing, towards the bramble patch. He is almost right beside it. As Rowan watches it, the bramble patch moves. It reaches out towards the Seelie Lord, trying to grab hold of him. The air around him darkens and crackles, just before fire sparks to life in his palm. He tosses it onto the brambles and they writhe in pain. Rowan lets out a cry of her own, her skin is burning. The Seelie Lord's attention snaps to Rowan's tree. The branches around Rowan press her back into the trunk, she lets out a muffled cry.
His attention moves up to where Rowan is hiding and fire appears in his hand once again. The branches around Rowan shift to cover her mouth just before he lobs a ball of flame up into the crown of the tree. Sparks rain down onto Rowan just before she screams, the sound muffled by the branches covering her mouth. But just as quickly as the tree, caught fire, it disappears again. Down on the ground, the Seelie Lord scowls. That must not have been meant to happen. He tosses up another ball of flame and that too disappears. The fire on Rowan's skin increases in intensity, all her nerve endings screaming in agony.
The Seelie Lord frowns but steps away from the tree, the fire disappearing back into his skin. He turns away from the tree and starts walking away from the clearing, a dark expression on his face. Even from so high up, Rowan can see it for what it is. Anger and disappointment. The tree doesn't lower Rowan back to the ground for several minutes, not until it is sure that he has gone. In all that time, Rowan can still feel the pain of the bramble patch, but she keeps quiet, just in case he is still close enough to hear her.
The tree lets her back down to the ground at last, waiting until her feet are securely on the forest floor before the branches release her from their grip. Rowan darts for the bramble patch, sinking to her knees beside it and placing a palm against one of the burnt patches. The fire flickers out at once and the brambles begin to restore themselves, green leaves appearing and the warm brown wood emerging from beneath blackened grey. The bramble patch recovers faster than it did the first time, but that could be because she has healed it before. She gets back to her feet and returns to the tree, placing a palm against the bark.
She leans her forehead against it and whispers. "Thank you."
Leaves brush against her back in an attempt at a hug before withdrawing.
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Were you expecting the moving trees to be bad at first? I know I was. Why do you think the trees are moving like this now? Will Darach know? Why can Rowan feel the tree's pain? Why does the fire disappear so quickly after it touches the tree? Tell me your thoughts!
Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!
~Goddess of Fate, signing out.