by Tay LaRoi
And then of course there was Elah.
My Elah is alone and defenseless with you, you wretched bitch.
“If I’m still allowed, I’d love to come to Ostara. Would that be okay?” Alyssa asked, the wheels already turning. She was going to have to do something to get Elah off the land that belonged to Rachel. She didn’t know how that was going to happen, but she needed to have an opening of some sort.
“Well, I haven’t planned it yet, but the power just wasn’t the same without you. I suppose this time I can forgive the absence. This year has just been shit all round anyways,” Rachel had conceded.
The very next day, Alyssa drove out to Rachel’s farmhouse, but left her car on the side road and walked through the brush trying to find the grove where the Sacred Earth coven had practiced so many rituals. It took a few hours, and Alyssa was wet from stomping through the snow and bitterly cold, but she finally found it.
There was Elah’s oak tree. Intact and safe, for now. Alyssa carried an arsenal of protective herbs with her and promptly got to work. With handfuls of crushed bay leaves and shaved ginger, Alyssa cast a circle around Elah’s tree. Using a piece of chalk, she found several spots in the bark where she could scrawl Algiz, the protective rune of the Norse. It looked like a little stickman with raised arms and no legs. Saying a quick prayer to the Goddess, Alyssa placed her hand on the thick oak. She heard a rustle, perhaps more of a creaking, and when Alyssa peered at the trunk of the tree, the bark moved slowly and gently until Elah’s face appeared, looking up at her. Elah seemed peaceful and happy.
She stroked Elah’s face and gave her a quick kiss.
“Soon. I promise I’ll get you out of here soon.”
Not wanting to, Alyssa packed up her things and brushed the snow so that her footprints were erased. The last thing she wanted was to have Rachel suspect someone had been here.
Alyssa had some serious planning to save her dryad from Rachel, but she didn’t have a clue as to what she was going to do.
AFTER UNLOCKING THE door to her apartment, Alyssa walked in, dropping her soiled and stained apron on the floor. Her shoes were pitched off, and she sank into her comfy chair. She still reeked of restaurant.
“That was pure hell.” Alyssa sighed and closed her eyes, thankful to be home. Fifty dollars in tips really wasn’t worth the effort. This was just another reason to add to the ever growing list of needing to find a desk job somewhere.
A hesitant hand, like sandpaper, gripped her forearm.
Alyssa screamed, jumped out of her chair and stumbled backwards. Smacking up against the wall, she hit the light switch. Her heart was beating fast and hard against the inside of her chest.
Crouched near the chair was Lilifolia. She was trembling, cowering and curled, half-hidden behind the piece of furniture.
After the chainsaw incident, Alyssa wasn’t surprised at the creature’s timidness.
“Oh no! I’m so sorry,” Alyssa cooed. She walked slowly towards the dryad in an attempt to assure the nymph’s safety. It was the first time the dryad had extricated herself from the vine.
Reaching out and offering her hand, Alyssa smiled. Her heart ached as she studied the nymph. She should have been regal and glorious and situated in a natural setting—a magnificent old grove forest—not a city apartment where she looked small and terrified.
Lilifolia frowned as she took Alyssa’s hand.
“We need to get you back to the forest. It’s not right to keep you here.”
Lilifolia shook her head violently, and her eyes went wild and wide.
“Right, Rachel. Okay, well, you can stay here as long as you want, but we need to save Elah too.”
At the mention of Elah’s name, Lilifolia smiled back at Alyssa and pressed her hands to her chest, presumably, where her heart was. She closed her eyes, and Alyssa would have sworn that the creature was glowing slightly.
When Lilifolia opened her eyes, she was grinning, but it was a mischievous grin, and Alyssa felt a twitch of excitement and nervousness in her stomach.
Just like Elah had done, Lilifolia beckoned Alyssa with a curling of her fingers and her long green nails. As Alyssa leaned forward, the slight creature, radiant in her foliar beauty, gently kissed her with cool emerald lips.
When Alyssa broke the kiss several moments later, there was a twinkle in her eye, and the mischievous grin that had been on the dryad was now plastered all over Alyssa’s face.
Lilifolia glanced towards the vine that had grown from Elah’s seed. The flower buds that had been developing on the vine were in full bloom, and as Alyssa watched them, the flowers began to wilt and dry, but the centers started to swell and develop.
Alyssa witnessed the vine produce the most unusual-looking, velvety peach-like fruit.
RACHEL’S BAT SLEEVES swayed in the late March wind as she concluded the Ostara ritual. March had come in like a lamb. Temperatures soared to record highs and most of the snow had melted. Only the odd pocket of white crystals clung to the hollows of the landscape.
Although it was far too early in the season, Alyssa would have sworn the trees in the sacred grove had already taken on the celery-green appearance as the sap rose, getting ready to burst forth with another season of leaves. Elah’s tree was looking particularly vibrant, which made her smile. The protection had worked, but then Alyssa had come out every other day to check and be sure, and to refortify the protection spells.
When she wasn’t visiting Elah’s tree, she worried.
She had seen what Rachel and her family had done for years. But that no longer mattered. It ended today.
The ceremony had been static and flat. Everyone had felt it. It would appear that Rachel had lost the grip she had over the coven. Alyssa was certainly not having any of her bullshit, but then, Alyssa was near to completion of her own plans.
As the women sat around the circle, they passed the various foods that had been brought to share after the ritual. Normally they would have retreated to the picnic tables that were outside the grove, but it was sheltered in here and warmer.
Turning around, Alyssa pulled the handle of the cooler towards her. From the underbrush that was sparse and bare, she spotted Lilifolia hiding. She winked at her—they had become good friends. The dryad smiled back, and then put her finger up to her lips and disappeared.
Shifting the cooler in front of her, Alyssa lifted open the lid and pulled out a large pie, some plates, plastic forks, and a large knife.
“Oh Alyssa, that looks fantastic! I swear, your baking skills are way better than mine,” Samantha gushed over the perfect-looking pie.
“Well, I certainly hope you like it,” Alyssa said.
After cutting several slices, she passed the pieces around.
Rachel was busy putting things away, which was just as planned. Rachel wouldn’t be getting any pie.
Each member of the coven had tucked into their dessert, all exclaiming how delicious it was.
“What is this? It’s like a spicy peach… I swear I’ve never tasted anything like this before,” Belinda cooed.
“Oh, honestly, you’ve outdone yourself. This is good,” Marcy said.
Just as Rachel sat down, and almost in unison, the members of the Sacred Earth coven all stopped eating.
“What’s the matter? Don’t stop on my account. Alyssa, hand me a slice. It looks great,” Rachel said, her hand out, expecting her own plate.
“Oh, there will be no pie for you,” Alyssa said.
And just then, Elah and Lilifolia appeared behind Rachel.
The entire coven gasped in shock.
The soft fawnlike features of the dryads held the group captive, but in one short breath, the two forest creatures morphed.
As their fierceness took over and they gathered the power of the forest into their lithe little bodies, teeth grew and sharpened, nails lengthened and became daggers.
The girls screamed. But then their screams became garbled.
“What’s happening? Why do I feel so weird
?” Christina rubbed her legs. Belinda was shaking her arms. Marcy looked like she was having a seizure.
Roots erupted out of their shoes as their toes grew and lengthened, burrowing into the hard and cold ground.
Screams erupted around the circle. The women’s eyes dimmed as leaves grew over them. Bark patches flared out in random spots on their faces and necks. Samantha’s arms were pulling upwards and stretching. From her elbow, a branch ripped through her clothing.
Rachel stood, staring down Alyssa. The anger wafting off of her was almost palpable.
“This is not how it’s supposed to happen!”
“No, probably not. But then you shouldn’t have killed the dryads that once lived here. How many Rachel? How many have your family taken? Lilifolia could only show me so much. And I swore to her and Elah that you’d never take another.”
“Bitch. They’re nothing but plants.”
“You think so? Well, I think the plant behind you thinks otherwise.”
Daggerlike branches pierced through Rachel’s torso.
The look on her face went from rage to shock. Blood stained the front of her robe and slowly cascaded down to form a puddle on the ground. Several more sharp branches poked through, each one proceeded by a deep puncture sound. Rachel screamed once, but then Elah stabbed her with a sharp stick right through the throat.
Alyssa turned away, walking down the path towards the farmyard. She let Elah and Lilifolia have Rachel.
An hour or so later, Alyssa returned to the grove.
The coven had been thirteen women including Rachel.
Eleven new oak trees grew in a perfect circle around the perimeter of the sacred grove. Within each trunk, Alyssa could make out the shocked faces of each of her coven mates. Good riddance, she thought. None of them had ever really been particularly nice to her. Maybe their dryad forms would be kinder.
Lilifolia had grown herself another oak, having healed herself within Elah’s vine. She had already snuggled herself into it.
A massive blood stain marred the center of the grove, but there was no sign of Rachel anywhere.
From the head of the clearing, Elah appeared. Even though it wasn’t quite spring, she was reborn and looked more human than ever. With slow, graceful steps she swayed over to Alyssa.
They kissed.
“You saved me.” Alyssa heard quite clearly in her head.
“You can talk?”
“It was the last sacrifice. A little more human each time,” Elah said. “I’m in your debt. You’ve helped us replenish the grove, and you’ve ended the contract that surely would have seen our demise. Anything I can grant you is yours.” Elah let go of Alyssa and bowed deeply.
“I want to be with you.” Alyssa said. She reached for Elah and kissed her, tasting the sweetness of her lips. They were still cool to the touch.
Elah lacked the foliage that had covered her the first time Alyssa had seen her. Instead, she was covered in soft down. She was the new growth of spring.
“Are you asking to join us?” Elah asked.
“I am.”
“Do you know what you must do?”
“I do.” Alyssa smiled and nodded.
Walking over to the cooler where the pie had been, Alyssa pulled out a whole fruit that had grown and ripened on the vine that grew from Elah’s seed.
“You can’t go back,” Elah said.
“I don’t think I want to be part of that world. I don’t want to belong to a people who would have taken you away from me.”
“Then eat. I will help you. I will protect you, as I will assist the others. But you will always be mine.” Elah stroked Alyssa’s cheek with a furry soft finger.
Alyssa ate the entire fruit. She wasn’t afraid.
“You shall be beside me, and we will be together.”
It didn’t take long for Alyssa, the tree, to grow.
She barely felt a thing. In fact, having fallen asleep, she rested. It would take some time for the transition to be complete.
Elah stroked Alyssa’s tree lovingly.
Crawling into her own oak, Elah nestled into its massive trunk. Spring time temperatures would bring about a faster growth. In the meantime, she would sleep and watch over her love. In time, they would grow together. For now, no human would harm them. All was well in the forest again.
A root from Elah’s tree reached out and gently wrapped itself around a tiny immature growth from Alyssa’s tree.
They would grow together, forever.
About J.P. Jackson
J.P. Jackson works as an IT analyst in health care during the day, where if cornered he’d confess to casting spells to ensure clinicians actually use the electronic medical charting system he configures and implements.
At night however, the writing happens, where demons, witches and shape shifters congregate around the kitchen table and general chaos ensues. The insurance company refuses to accept any more claims of ‘acts of the un-god’, and his husband of almost 20 years has very firmly put his foot down on any further wraith summoning’s in the basement. And apparently imps aren’t house-trainable. Occasionally the odd ghost or member of the Fae community stops in for a glass of wine and stories are exchanged. Although the husband doesn’t know it, the two Chihuahuas are in cahoots with the spell casting.
J.P.’s other hobbies include hybridizing African Violets (thanks to grandma), extensive travelling and believe it or not, knitting.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JP-Jackson-550124411805790/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Canuckbear88
Other books by this author
Daimonion
Romancing the Healer
Caitlin Ricci
The coming storm raged along the mountains to the southeast, and I knew that soon those strong winds and walls of snow would be barreling toward my forest home. My pack had provisions, and our homes were deep underground, safe from the storm, but I was nowhere near them. With my dinner of a hare clenched between my teeth, I hurried along. I had maybe ten miles between myself and safety. My scouting trip to find fresh hunting grounds this late in winter had taken me far, but I knew my way back well enough. On my paws, I was light and fast as I darted between trees, following my own trail back the way I’d come.
The storm chased me, riding fast on my heels. Much faster than I was able to run on my own, even on four legs. Icy air whipped against my fur, and I turned to bare my teeth at the falling snow as the dark clouds grew above me. In the mountains, the snow was unpredictable. It came hard, often with little warning, and it was fast. If I didn’t get home soon, I would soon be faced with the unpleasant prospect of fighting my way through not only the six inches I was running through now, but feet of it. I had to hurry if I was going to make it back before the storm, and if I wasn’t, then I needed to find shelter a lot sooner than that. I didn’t have time to build anything, so that left spending the night in a cave. I’d done it before, but it wasn’t my first choice for a place to sleep. Still, it would get me out of the wind and snow for the night.
I turned and ran, darting toward home as fast as I could. I was no longer concerned about following the trail I’d made out there, or of not disturbing the other forest creatures I shared the land with. Those were concerns for a nice day, and I expected the animals to be in their homes, safe and warm, right where I should have been too.
My back leg caught on a tree root in my haste, and I went down hard. I dropped the hare and shifted. Thumbs were useful when feeling for broken bones. I hoped my ankle was fine. I needed it to be. But that didn’t seem to be the case. Nothing was broken, at least that I could tell, but it throbbed and was quickly swelling. I shifted back and began to limp along, the rabbit back between my teeth and my leg held high off the ground.
My progress was slow, and I knew there was no way that I was going to be able to get home before the storm now. Snow began to fall into my eyes as I looked around the evergreen trees, trying to find a place to hide among them. With no cave immediate
ly coming to my rescue, I looked for the next best thing—low branches that touched the ground, giving me enough space to hide out from the worst of the storm.
I found a tree that would work, at least for a little while. It would be better than nothing. The cold started to seep into my fur as I huddled under it. The winds came and the snow slammed down, coating the world around me in white. I stayed still, tucking my tail around me, whimpering through my pain.
I closed my eyes. Not wanting to sleep but being too tired to stay awake. I knew I needed to be awake though. Hypothermia wasn’t just something humans got, and being a werewolf, my coat wasn’t quite the same as a wolf’s. It wasn’t something a human would necessarily notice, not unless they were familiar with actual wolves, but I knew when I was meeting a werewolf or a real wolf. They had thicker coats that made living out here in the mountains easier. Being away from humans made the mountains an easy choice for my pack, but we were much better suited to suburban life. I’d grown up on the outskirts of a big city, but looking human and never being able to shift wears on a werewolf after a while.
I heard the crunching of snow, the sound of something coming toward me. It didn’t take long for the scent of a bear to reach me. I hoped they wouldn’t notice me hiding as I was. With my pack, I could take on a bear, but injured and alone, I was no match for one, and if the bear wanted my hiding spot, I would have to give it up to them.
The bear came closer, and I held my breath, fighting back my urge to whimper in pain. The bear shifted just feet away from me, becoming a slim man with long black hair. “Come on out, you don’t have to be afraid of me.”
I shifted as well. “I didn’t know there were werebears in these parts.”
He smiled at me and offered me his hand. “I’ve got a better place to hide out from the storm than under that tree, if you’re interested.”
