She is much lighter footed than I am and I can tell she knows her way around the forest as I stumble and curse my way through. After a long stretch of silent running we realize we cannot hear any more signs that we are being pursued so we slow down to a jog to conserve our energy. Although I am unsure if Oleander’s energy stores will ever wane. She still looks fresh and bright eyed whereas I can feel my unruly hair plastered to my forehead and neck with my copious amounts of sweat and I know my stench is quite horrific.
“How are you not tired?” I ask as we stop for a breather, entirely for my sake.
“My mother was a deer Metamorph. I cannot transform like she could but I suppose some of her traits passed on. Not every child of an Elemental and Metamorph couple inherits both gifts, some barely receive anything at all. I have my father’s gift mostly,” she explains and I’m caught on the word “could” as I look into her eyes and see a glimmer of sadness.
“She is no longer alive?” I ask, cautiously. Oleander gives me a glare back. “My mother is dead too. She died giving birth to me,” I blurt out. I expect a retort about giving too much information away, instead Oleander gives me a sympathetic look and squeezes my shoulder.
“We should keep going. We aren’t far from the forest’s edge.” She looks off into the distance as if she can see the actual edge and we keep going, at a much more manageable pace.
Chapter Seven
The sun is just starting to peak over the soft rolling hills that stretch out in front of us as we finally emerge from the darkness of the forest. The stark contrast between the dense Tanglewoods, and the treeless expanse of hill and stone ahead of us is a welcome change. Oleander and I give each other a look and collectively let out a big sigh. For someone who seemed so comfortable in the gnarled woods I can tell she is relieved to be out. I look forward to my sunny destination with a big smile on my face and go to take a step forward when Oleander stops me with an outstretched arm.
“Wait, be wary of these gnomes you speak of. They have lived in the fae realm their whole lives and, judging by your willingness to trust, the gnomes who inhabit the human realm are a lot gentler than these. Careful with your words Nuri, look to me if you are unsure,” she says as she removes her blockading arm and gives me a half smile.
Is she offering me help? Is she being nice to me?I can’t seem to fight the cheesiest grin, she huffs through her nose and mutters under her breath.
“You’re staying with me? What happened to your mission?” I ask, she shrugs in response.
“It may yet be fulfilled on this path,” she says cryptically. A warning bell chimes about the same hunch I had from before about our missions being one and the same. I try to concoct a way in which she will come clean about her mission but I can tell it will be hard to extract that information. I bide my time until I can think of the perfectly worded questions. In the meantime, I look out to the horizon and start my search for the boulder gnomes.I’m coming for you Marissa.
After traversinga few of the wind swept hills, I start to notice more and more rocks littering our path, so every now and again I stride up to one and give it a little knock to see if anything will stir awake.
“Um, excuse me… are you a boulder gnome?” I say, feeling as ridiculous as I look, tapping on rocks. Oleander just keeps her distance, every now and again stifling a laugh. This carries on for a long while, with the sun now nearly overhead, I am sweating and very aware of my stench.
Oleander sidles up to where I am hunched over a cluster of boulders. “Why don’t you take a break? I think I saw a river off past that next hill. Besides, the gnomes do not usually enjoy answering to being summoned. They will find us,” she says, probably reading my hot and annoyed expression.
I nod and take one last glance at the scattered boulders around us and yell, “if any of you are gnomes, I have been sent by Granny Mog. Please come see me by the river… Thank you!” Before abandoning my search and following Oleander.
As we crest the little hill I halt, completely awestruck by the serene sight. A lazy, flowing river winds its way through the surrounding grassy hills with scattered weeping willows atits bank, providing the most welcoming shade. The occasional yellow spattering of hypericum and little white daisies, that would be perfect for the creation of the flower crowns of my youth, are poking their cheerful little heads up through the grass. I can hear the distinct call of a chickadee and spot a mated pair of goldfinches flitting in and out of the tall, purple heads of flax. Atleast, I believe that is what they are. I take a pause to wonder if the wildlife of the human and fae realms are the same. I breathe in the fresh cool breeze as it lifts my hair and a little laugh of joy escapes my lips. Oleander smiles at me before giving me a little nudge with her elbow, beckoning me to give in to the elation that is bubbling up. We both run down the hill laughing, like school girls running for the empty swing set.
Once we reach the soft, babbling river she immediately starts to undress and I can feel the heat rise to my cheeks as she faces me, bare-chested, with a questioning look. I try to not look as though I am staring at her breasts with rosebud nipples that have risen with the sudden cold exposure, so I make, what I am sure feels like, very awkward and intense eye contact instead.
“Will you not join me? You surely smell as if you need a wash,” Olander laughs as she removes her trousers, now standing stark naked in front of me. I have never been around any naked women and it takes me a moment to stop staring. She looks completely unbothered by my gaze and I can even see the slight twitch of her mouth as the edges of her lips curve up. The elegance of the lines of a woman’s body makes me yearn for my paints as I take in her soft curves and strong arms. She has light skin with freckles dappled all over and I notice a little tuft of orange hair poking out from under her arms that matches the rest of her body hair.
No one would dare go swimming naked in the creek back home, not that they would ever swim anywhere other than their chlorinated pools in the first place. The only person I have beennaked in front of as an adult was Benji and even then, it would often be in a darkened room.
Oleander gives me a wave to come join her as she turns around to wade into the glistening river. A little gasp escapes her lips as she enters the cooling waters and I can’t help but admire the gentle swish of her long curls against the dimples in her lower back and the ripple of muscle in her strong thighs as she walks. I take a deep breath for courage as I start to tentatively peel my clothes off to join her.
When I look up, Oleander is hovering under the water with just her nose and eyes above, watching me like a crocodile. Her red hair is flowing in the current, reminding me of a bright piece of kelp that I once saw as a child when we visited the ocean. She stays perfectly still as she watches me.
I quickly undress, feeling the weight of her gaze but when my clothes are left in a heap beside my feet I find I already feel lighter, freer. I see her eyes snap to the necklace my birth mother left for me before she dunks herself under the water. I run into the river diving in and dunking my head under the sweet cool waters and emerge feeling bright and new. Oleander laughs and gives me a splash before she scoops up a handful of white, sparkling sand to scrub herself clean with. I follow her lead and can feel the multiple days’ worth of grime and dried blood being washed away.
When we are done scrubbing ourselves until we are pink all over, Oleander motions for me to turn around with the twirl of her pointer finger, and I obey. Her hands reach over my shoulders to grasp my long hair and she sweeps it onto my back. The light touch of her fingers on my skin makes me shiver, I tell myself it must just be the cold water and nothing more.Surely nothing more…
She works her fingers through my extremely tangled hair, then efficiently gives me a braid to better keep it under control.I can’t help but let out a little moan at the soft scrape of her nails against my scalp as she pulls back sections of my hair for the braid. A blush stains my cheeks at the intimacy of having someone tend to me in this way. Our closeness leaves me feeling even more naked but I am unsure if it is in a good or bad way.
After she is done I dunk my head underwater to cool the heat from my cheeks so she does not see my blush. When I emerge she is already exiting the water but turns back to suggest I give my clothes a rinse too. She says they will dry quickly in this heat so I acquiesce and we both end up lying naked under the willow tree as we wait for my clothes to dry in the sun.
I am lying like a starfish, looking up at the waving branches of the willow tree, completely entranced by the simplicity of the moment. I swear the wind is consciously moving the branches for my own viewing pleasure. The honeyed sun moves like a mesmerizing kaleidoscope, dancing through the leaves. Oleander is sitting up, running her fingers through her hair to detangle it. I can feel her looking at me so I turn my head, the sun is reflecting a golden halo through her coppery hair and the sight steals my breath away.
“I’ve never met someone like you,” I say, looking in her eyes.Shit, that was supposed to be in my head.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she laughs,she shouldn’t trust me so freely. I do not deserve it,I can hear her say, picking up on a twinge of what sounds like sadness. I furrow my brows and shake my head.
“I mean… you’re just so free and sure of yourself,” I say back, trying to avoid eye contact. I don’t want to accidentally transfer my questions about the meaning behind her thoughts.
“Huh, well to be truthful, it is abnormal in this realm for the women to be carefree. Most of us are in servitude in one way or another. I just decided to shirk my familial responsibilities to serve The Divine Mother instead. She wants all of her childrento be happy and comfortable within her embrace and serving her feels more noble,” she says as she smiles up at the tree. I feel the conflict within me about her true nature pulling at my seams. What she says rings true within me but what she thinks is making me worry.
