The Lady in the Forest

by Jeanne Olivier

yesterday,” she said softly, without meeting his eye, “I was getting anxious to talk to you and I didn’t handle the situation properly.”

  A small nod was all he could manage.

  “I would like to talk some more, when you’re ready.”

  She got up and left him staring after her. He shook his head in confusion but then saw the piece of paper she’d left behind. It was her address. Coincidentally she lived in a cottage in the Witley forest not far from his own home. He put the note in his pocket and dragged his clumsy legs to class.

  It was impossible to concentrate in any of his lessons. People’s auras leapt out at him, engulfing the owner in a bright light. Thoughts were flowing freely from their heads and he was finding it very difficult to distinguish between speech and thoughts. By the afternoon he started to question his own sanity and he couldn’t bear it any longer. He took the train home and sat at his bedroom window staring into the forest but it was alive with emotion too.

  He went out the back door and walked into the dim woods when he saw his parents’ car coming up the driveway. He’d always been close to them and even though they’d try to understand, he couldn’t face them now. He didn’t even know what the hell was happening to him, how could he explain it to them? He had to speak to Professor Raine. He walked in the direction of her cottage. He’d been coming into these woods since he was a little boy and had often wondered about the person who lived in the pretty cottage by the river. As a child he always thought it might have been a fairy. The cottage was empty so he walked around to the back garden where the river was.

  At first he didn't see her but then the glow of the moon reflected off her pale skin and her warm breath created intricate fractals on the icy water as she gracefully swam through the river. She was mesmerizing.

  “Would you like to join me, Sebastian?” she asked, without looking up.

  “No, thank you. I choose life,” he replied, not trying to hide his disdain.

  “That’s quite ironic,” she answered quietly and he thought he saw the same sadness he noticed this morning, briefly passing over her face. “Everything in nature was created to coexist in perfect harmony and we are part of nature right?” She beckoned him to sit on a log close to the water edge and he shivered as he sat down.

  “Right,” she continued, “I noticed the way you observed people’s auras and heard their thoughts today in class. I would like to help you understand the significance of these abilities. The best way to do that, is to show you how to control your gifts and channel the energy into something useful.” A little grin was tucking at her lips.

  “Please just be honest with me, Professor Raine.” He was still so dubious.

  “I promise that I won’t ever lie to you. And call me Fee, I think we’ve past the point of me being your professor.” Her grin expanded into a beautiful smile and he returned it feeling a bit more at ease.

  “Like I was saying, everything in nature was created in perfect harmony. We are part of nature and play an important part in this harmonious coexistence. The same way you tuned into people’s moods and thoughts and ultimately understood them much better today, you can also tune into the forest or the river.” She was slowly wading through the water towards him. The icy drops were shimmering diamonds on her naked body and the fragments of beech were smouldering in her eyes, like flames licking through a luscious forest. She took both his hands as she knelt before him and his heart gulped down the emotion of her touch. He knew that it didn’t matter how much he tried to fight it, he had an intense connection with this woman.

  “Close your eyes. Listen to the water gliding over the rocks, feel the wind caress your cheek. See your importance in this night.”

  Her voice soothed him as she slowly peeled his clothes off and pulled him towards her. His skin tingled with excitement as he followed her into the river. The water wrapped around his body like a silky sheet. It was amazing.

  Fee explained that people were destroying the earth and upsetting the balance of nature. Apsaras – the spirit who controlled nature – had bestowed certain gifts onto a few chosen humans, the Manitou. These chosen ones could influence humanity to be more respectful.

  “Have you been influencing me?” Sebastian asked with a frown.

  “No,” Fee replied, and he sighed in secret relief.

  “And what if we – the Manitou – choose not to accept our gifts?” he squinted his eyes.

  “Well,” she inhaled deeply and averted her gaze, “you will carry on leading a normal human life without your extra insights.” She stared at the breeze drawing ripples on the water.

  “Fee, to what extent will I lose my insights? Will I still be able to paint the way I do now?” He tucked her chin up, forcing her to look at him. His blood raced through his veins.

  “Yes,” she whispered. A lone tear escaped her right eye and painted a glimmering line down her cheek. He wanted to wipe it away but he was too confused.

  “I want to help you Sebastian, but I am not prepared to be responsible for manipulating your decision!” she cried and disappeared into the water.

  Sebastian stumbled home through the woodland and collapsed into bed. After a short disturbed sleep he got up, walked to the station and took the first train to London.

  “What are you doing here, Bastian?” Mia rubbed the dreams from her eyes as she opened the door with a yawn.

  “Uhm. I don’t know. I’m sorry,” he stammered.

  “Come in,” she offered with a dishevelled smile.

  He sat at the kitchen counter while she made coffee. He had only been to her flat a couple of times for a study group. Although he had an earth-shattering crush on her and he knew the exact lines of her face they had never spent any time alone. Heat rose in his belly when she squeezed his arm as she handed him his coffee. He followed her into the living room where she draped herself across the sofa.

  She was gorgeous. She didn’t carry herself with the same mysterious grace and breathtaking beauty Fee did. Mia had an honest innocence streaming from her clear sapphire eyes. Her blonde curls fell untamed across her confident shoulders and her delicious body projected a relentless energy that sent him into delirium.

  He stood in front of the window and wrapped his hands around the oversized mug. The sun was rising but it was a cloudy day and dawn still lay heavy across the Thames.

  “What’s going on, Bastian? Are you okay?” she asked.

  “Yes. No. Ugh. I don’t know.” He turned and saw genuine concern on her face.

  “You didn’t just wake me at crazy-o’clock for a cup of coffee?” she smiled.

  “Yeah, I know. I’m sorry about that,” he grinned, pulling his fingers through his tousled hair.

  “You can trust me, Bastian.”

  “Thanks Mia, that means a lot to me but it’s so complicated.” He sunk into the sofa next to her.

  “Is it Professor Raine? Are you in love?” she blurted out.

  “Yes, it’s about Fee … Professor Raine, but it’s more than that. I don’t think we should be talking about it. I’m sorry I woke you up so early. I don’t know why I came here.” He got up.

  “Sebastian, please don’t go,” she bounced off the sofa and grabbed his arm. “You don’t have to talk about it. It’s fine. Let’s just hang out today, okay? You probably need the company and I could do with the distraction. Please?” she asked, almost urgently.

  “That’ll be nice,” he answered, offering his easiest smile in days, thinking everything with Mia was just so much less complicated.

  They walked along the river, had breakfast at Borough Market and Mia did most of the talking. She told him about her family, she was an only child like him and she grew up in London. Her parents were famous engineers and didn’t approve of her passion for art.

  “I’m sorry, that must be hard,” Sebastian replied, instinctively putting his arm around her and squeezing her shoulder.

  “Oh, it’s fine.” She nonchalantly hooked her fingers through his and produced a spont
aneous grin. She walked him to the station and he didn’t want to leave her but he needed to go back and find Fee.

  “I had a really good time, thank you,” she looked up into his face and he felt himself getting lost.

  “Thank you,” he smiled and bent down to kiss her. At first it was just a friendly kiss but the warmth that flooded his chest made him feel like he was going to explode. He nearly drowned in the moment as they passionately embraced until he saw Fee staring at them. The look on her face was inexplicable. He instantly abandoned Mia and ran after Fee but she had disappeared into the crowd. When he realised how his reaction must have affected Mia he staggered back to find her but she had gone too. He got on the train in a haze and he barely remembered getting home and crawling into bed.

  He didn’t know how long he slept but when he woke up the sun was streaming through his bedroom window. He decided that he needed to talk to his parents but it was Saturday morning and his mum had left a note saying that they had gone shopping.

  Overcome by emotion and feeling trapped he blindly ran into the woods. He was already too far into the forest when he realised it was a bad idea. He could feel sympathy seeping from the trees. He could feel their need to comfort him but he continued running, he had to get away from them.

  “Why are you running away, Sebastian?” He was leaning against an old oak to catch his breath when she spoke next to him. He stumbled backwards and fell on