Chapter Text
Summer is drawing to a close, the long days stretching into cool nights over Orvud.
Kuchel and Kenny have finished moving in, settling into their parent’s old house near the edge of town. Though the townspeople have long since accepted the younger Ackermans, in contrast to how their parents were treated, the siblings welcome the spot away from the center of town. They valued the privacy it allows, and it lets Kuchel’s young son, Levi, be away from gossiping ears.
The sun is high in the sky, few clouds in sight, when the boy runs to his mother in the kitchen to pull at her skirt insistently. “Mama, can I play outside? I’m bored in here.”
Kuchel turns away from the dishes in her hand to him, hesitating as she regards her son. His gray eyes are wide and impatient, ready to plead if she refuses.
“Let the kid go,” Kenny interjects gruffly from the table. “He won’t get into trouble. He’s six, for cryin’ out loud.”
Her own gray eyes dart between the two before relenting. “Alright. But,” she holds up her index finger to emphasize her point, “you do not go into the forest, and you come back by dusk. Deal?”
Levi brightens instantly, nodding. “Yes!” He turns on his heel before Kuchel can change her mind, darting out the door. In his haste he forgets his shoes, but he doesn’t care, eager to feel the sun on his skin and run through the tall grass in the field by their home. His footsteps are quick, trampling the blades of grass with each padded thump. He forgets about the few worries he has at his young age, distracted when he spots movement in the grass. He freezes, wondering what it could be—it has to be an animal, he thinks. He slows his movements as he carefully walks to the spot he saw the grass shift, but he lacks grace with his young age, so he makes too much noise and startles the animal.
And then suddenly, it’s face to face with him as it darts from it’s hiding spot.
His eyes are round as he stares at the fox, it’s blue eyes zeroed in on Levi in turn. The fox is huge. The fox’s fur is golden, it’s tail fluffy and long, a white ring around it near the tip. It straightens to it’s full height, easily a head over the boy as neither moves away.
Unsure of what else to do, Levi blurts out, “Hi.” He holds up his hands, taking a step toward the fox. It tenses, bending it’s legs in preparation to sprint. “No—no! Don’t go!” He takes another step, and it breaks into a run. Levi runs after it, doing his best to keep it in his line of sight. He pays no mind to where it’s heading—toward the forest—until he’s already over the threshold of the trees, having to focus harder on the fox as it darts around trees and through bushes. The fox is too quick for Levi, losing him quickly once they’re in the woods.
Levi looks around, remembering his mother’s words—you do not go into the forest—but he doesn’t feel guilty as he ventures further in. He’s already here, and it doesn’t seem so bad as he wanders. The ground is cool under his bare feet, soft as his gait is as graceful as a child’s can be, kicking up dirt occasionally as he missteps. He finds a stick on the ground, about a foot long, and picks it up. He just walks, carrying a stick in one hand while brushing his hands against the leaves of bushes with the other, humming to himself. He watches as animals scurry by and birds occasionally fly over the tops of the trees, life bustling all around him. His mind drifts to the fox that ran in here earlier; will he see it again? Was it scared of him?
He can hear the river before he sees it, the water rushing over rocks and splashing not too far from where he is now.
He follows the sound, curious as to what he’ll find. Maybe the fox will be by the river—or another animal, or maybe there’s even fish. Distracted, he breaks through a stubborn patch of branches of a young tree to reach the sound of the water, he trips and falls face first, scratching his cheeks and landing on his nose. Tears pool in his eyes from the pain and he tastes blood on his lips, dripping from his nose off of his chin. Panic rises in him—how does he get home? What does he do?
And then he sees her, by the river.
He scrambles back, startled, and fear mingles with alarm. She’s sitting on a rock in a plain white dress, pulled back on her legs in the river, her back to him. Long blonde hair flows halfway down her back, moving as she turns around to look at him. Bright blue eyes widen when their gazes meet, and she reaches out.
He flinches.
“You took a nasty fall,” she says in a gentle voice. She sounds nice, like his mother. “Do you need help?”
His mother tells him not to talk to strangers, but he’s alone and hurt, so he nods. He slowly gets to his feet and walks over to her. Standing up straight, he’s about as tall as she is sitting down. She’s prettier up close, with soft features, also like his mom.
“This may hurt, but I need to touch your nose to see if it’s broken,” she tells him. He just nods, so she reaches out, gently touching along the length of his nose. A few more tears fall at the new pressure, despite how light it is, but he doesn’t move away. A small smile spreads on her lips. “Not broken, so it’ll just hurt for a while. Let’s get this bleeding to stop and clean you up, though. Can you wash your face in the water?” He nods again, leaning forward carefully as he wipes his face with river water, the lovely blue turning red as he cleans himself up. She tears off a part of her dress at the hem as he sits back, and she reaches forward to dry his face. She puts the cloth under his nose, holding it in place. “Hold that there. We’ll make sure that bleeding stops. Do you want to sit with me?”
He just stares at her, unsure of what to answer; he’s mainly thinking about how gross it is to breathe through his mouth. But she helped him, so he sits beside her, his nose throbbing.
“My name is Historia.” Her smile is still there when she tells him her name. When he doesn’t reply, she waits patiently, kicking her feet in the warm water. He watches her splash the water, fish coming up to her for a brief moment before continuing their journey in the river. She doesn’t look as old as his mom or uncle, but she’s definitely not a kid.
He figures it’s safe to talk to her. “I’m Levi.”
Historia turns to look at him again, her smile widening excitedly. “I’m very happy to meet you, Levi.”
He can’t help but smile a little in return even if it hurts his face. He turns back to the water, watching fish swim by. A few stop again near Historia’s feet, lingering before going on downstream. She hums softly, content in her own world; her humming reminds him of his mother, and he perks up as he shifts to face her. His voice sounds strange as he asks her, “How do I get home?”
“I can show you,” she offers. “Your parents will probably worry about you if you’ve managed to wander this far into the forest.”
Levi doesn’t know how far he was from home, so he doesn’t necessarily care about where he was as long as he can get home. So he just says, “I just live with my mom and uncle. But okay.”
Historia gets to her feet, the hem of her dress falling unevenly to her knees now with the tear, and she holds out her hand to Levi. He wants to tell her that he’s six years old, not a baby, but he holds her hand anyway as she guides him back home. He keeps the piece of cloth to his nose, and eventually his nose stops bleeding. He doesn’t talk most of the way, so she doesn’t. He likes how soft her hand is and how warm she is to touch. When he stumbles over branches, her hold tightens momentarily, ready to catch him, but holding her hand helps him stay balanced when he trips.
“Do you live in town?” she suddenly asks.
“Yes. Do you?”
“No. I live here.” There’s a bounce in her step with her answer.
Levi’s eyebrows furrow together. “Why?”
“Because it’s my home,” she states easily. “I’ve lived in the forest as long as I can remember.”
He decides that Historia is strange, but he shrugs nonchalantly; sometimes his Uncle Kenny doesn’t make sense either. He sees the archway at the edge of the forest, so he begins to walk with renewed energy, pulling Historia forward. The setting sun is making the forest dim and he’s eager to get home for supper. Once they approach the archway, Historia lets go of his hand and he crosses the threshold. She remains a few feet back, looking at him fondly. He whirls around and stares at her. He lowers the bloody cloth and it hurts to breathe through his nose, but he tries anyway as he asks, “Why did you stop?”
“I can’t leave the forest,” Historia replies. Sadness fills her eyes, but she smiles anyway.
“Yes you can. Just try,” Levi implores her.
“No, I can’t. I’m...not exactly human. I’m the spirit that watches over this forest,” she explains. He doesn’t really believe her but he won’t argue since his mother is probably worried sick. She suddenly looks back to the forest and whistles. Within a moment a blue warbler bird lands on her shoulder, looking expectantly at her. “Make sure he gets home safely,” she tells the bird, which chirps before taking off again, circling a few feet above Levi’s head. His gray eyes widen, but he looks again at Historia, and when her eyes glitter he wonders if she really is telling the truth.
His tired mind doesn’t dwell on it too long. “Bye.”
“Good night, Levi.” She waves at him before he turns away, breaking into a run as he heads back home.
When he returns to the house, the bird calls to him. Levi looks over in the direction of the birdsong, and he gasps when he sees that the fox is there, standing in the grass with the warbler perched on it’s back. Levi doesn’t want to scare it off, but he wants to try and approach it again—yet he loses the chance when it turns, the warbler taking off in flight as they both head back in the direction of the forest. He watches until they disappear from sight in the grass before heading inside, unsure of how to explain his bruised face to his mother.
The explanation doesn’t go well.
“You fell and hit your face on the ground? I told you that you shouldn’t wander around the forest!” Kuchel scolds him as she cradles his face, looking him all over. “You should have come straight home.”
His Uncle Kenny laughs, tossing his head back as he bellows. “It’ll do the boy some good. Toughen him up some.” He leans in close to look him over as Kuchel does, and he notices the bloody cloth in Levi’s hand. “Where did you get that, kid? You’re mighty clean for having nearly broken your nose.”
“From Historia,” Levi answers easily. “She lives in the forest. She helped me get home and then a bird followed me back from of the forest.” Kuchel looks back at Kenny with a questioning look, and Kenny’s face whitens at his words. “She said she can’t leave. Why wouldn’t she be able to leave the forest?”
“Kenny,” Kuchel’s voice is firm, leaving no room for lies, “what is he talking about?”
Kenny’s face hardens and he turns to look out the window, suddenly seeming disinterested. “Ain’t got the damnedest idea.”
Realizing Kuchel won’t be able to get her brother to open up, she focuses on getting her son cleaned up and put to bed instead.
Levi returns the next week, eager to find his newfound friend in the woods.
She is waiting patiently at the threshold of the forest. She smiles, holding her hand out for him take.