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Dead leaves and twigs crunched beneath their feet. The tree limbs blocked the fading autumn sun. It would be night soon bringing freezing temperatures with it, yet they kept walking. The girl pulled her thin shawl tighter and shivered not just from the cold. So few ever ventured into these cursed woods. The ones who did never return.
Darkness shadowed them. Not from the fading sky, but the unnaturally big trees that loomed over the normal ones. The line between reality and nightmares. The girl let out a small whimper, her mask of indifference falling. A large hand gripped her shoulder, preventing escape. She looked up at her caretaker with watery eyes.
“Please…”
“Don’t make this harder, girl.”
She grabbed his coat. “I-I’ll do whatever you want! Just please don’t-”
“Enough!” The man roughly shoved her back, causing her to fall hard. “Go on now.”
When she didn’t move, he took off his belt and whipped the ground.
“GET!”
Terrified, the girl scrambled back then took off down the dark path where she would surely never be heard from again.
~*~
She walked until the path was no longer a path; until her bare feet grew sore and bloody. She collapsed at the base of an ancient tree and pulled her thin shawl tighter. Alone and broken, she finally allowed herself to cry.
She knew it would come to this eventually. The orphanage was overcrowded and harvest poor this year. No one else would take her in and she was too young for that other kind of work the adults only whispered about. If she was older and prettier, maybe more people would reconsider; give her one last chance. But life did not give people like her second chances.
What’s wrong, little one? Voices floated by on the wind. Are you lost?
“N-No…” she whimpered. “No one wants me…That’s why they left me here…”
That’s awful. Don’t cry, little one. I’ll find you a home!
Vines curled around her, entrapping the girl inside.
“AH! Let me go!” she cried.
It was useless. The forest had claimed her at last. She curled in on herself as the last of her energy seeped out, and numbly accepted her fate.
~*~
It was cold.
The bitter kind that came with frost and ice. Her breath came out in small puffs, the only sign that she was still alive. It would not last long. The girl could only pray the cold took her before the monsters did.
“Aang, why have you brought me here?”
A voice.
Not the wispy whispers but a normal human one.
She was left here. I told her I’d find her a home.
“Her?”
There was a rustling sound as the vines retracted, followed by a sharp gasp.
“Tui and La! Are you okay?!”
A warm hand touched her cheek. The girl cracked her eyes open and was greeted by wide blue ones.
What a strange color.
The world faded black.
~*~
Humming.
Slow and steady, like a lullaby coupled by the rhythmic crackling of a fireplace. Warm and soft; hidden from the monsters of the world. The girl cracked open her eyes, finding herself on soft bedding under layers of blankets. Across from her stood a woman tending to a large pot over the fireplace.
Was she recused? Did someone actually come for her?
Tears welled up at the thought. The little girl sat up as gratefulness filled her. Something shifted on her other side. Curious, the girl turned to face it. Her heart dropped.
A large red dragon was curled up at her side, taking up most of the room. A large puff of steam escaped his nostrils as a huge golden silted eye opened and stared right at her. She screamed and jolted back.
The dragon reared his head back alarmed.
“Whoa! Easy.” The woman tried to soothe over.
Ignoring her, the girl threw off the blankets and tried to make a break for the door. Her legs wobbled and gave out. The woman caught her before she fell.
“Easy sweetheart.”
“Please don’t eat me!” she begged.
She heard stories, warnings actually, about the monsters here. The Blood Witch that drained children dry then fed their bones to her dragon. And the foolish girl just wandered right into their claws.
“I-I’ll clean, mend, cook, w-whatever you want! Just please don’t eat me!!!”
“Eat you? Darling, who do you think got you out of the cold and nursed you back to health? You’ve been asleep for two whole days.”
She stopped struggling. “W-What…?”
Was this trick?
The dragon released more steam and gave a firm nod then transformed into a man. A very tall man covered in red scales and curled horns, but a man nonetheless.
“We’re not going to hurt you, little one.” He said softly.
The girl didn’t know large men had such kind gentle voices, yet alone monsters.
“P-Promise?”
“We promise.” The woman smiled and led her to the dining table. “I’m Katara, and this is my husband Zuko.”
They were the Blood Witch and Dragon! Or maybe, that was a different couple. These people seem so nice. Still, the girl couldn’t let her guard down.
“I’m sorry for frightening you.” The dragon man crouched down, but didn’t get too close again.
The girl’s cheeks colored as she darted her eyes away, embarrassed. “I-I wasn’t frightened.”
“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. I had the same reaction when I first met him also.” The Blood Witch smiled. “But he’s sweet as a duckling once you get to know him.”
“Katara…” The dragon blushed.
Strange. The girl didn’t know monsters blushed. The thought was so silly that she giggled. She gasped and quickly covered her mouth. The monsters didn’t yell or strike her. Maybe they didn’t notice. She let out a relived sigh as the Blood Witch placed a steaming bowl before her.
“Oh! I-Is all of this for me?”
“Every last drop. Potato and mushroom stew is perfect for getting your strength back.”
The girl scooped out a spoonful and sniffed it carefully. It didn’t smell like lost children. In fact, it smelled really really good. She took a bite and sighed out loud. It was better than it smelled! She scarfed down the rest as fast as she could. At least if she was killed, it would be on a full belly.
“What’s your name, dear?” The Blood Witch asked while refilling her bowl.
She wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve. “Most people just call me girl or brat.”
And some other not-so-nice words. But she got in trouble for repeating them so she wasn’t going to say them out loud now.
The Blood Witch and Dragon exchanged somber looks.
“What name would you want to be called by?” the Dragon asked.
The girl paused eating. “One time, a nice lady read us a story about a beautiful princess who died saving a village and came back as a river spirit. Her name was Princess Izumi.” Tears welled as she recalled one of her few good memories. “I… I always liked that story.”
“Izumi is a beautiful name. It means spring foundation. Would you like to be called that?” the Blood Witch asked.
The girl thought for a bit then nodded.
“Izumi it is then.”
“Princess Izumi the River Spirit.” The Dragon threw her a playful wink causing her to giggle again.
The Blood Witch sat down across from her with a concerned expression. “Izumi, we were talking while you were asleep and well… would you like to stay here? At the very least until winter passed.”
Izumi tilted her head. “If you don’t want to eat me or make me work, why should I stay?”
“Because…” the Blood Witch clutched her blue shell necklace with tears in her eyes.
She didn’t know monsters cried either.
“Because no child should be abandoned or mistreated.” The dragon growled causing her to flinch.
The Blood Witch placed a hand on his cheek, calming him down. “Izumi, I was like you a long time ago. I lost my parents and brother, and the town people were very unkind to me as well.”
Izumi felt a familiar weight press against her heart. She immediately ran over and hugged Katara. The woman let out a surprised gasp then rubbed Izumi’s head.
“I’m okay now, sweetheart.” She placed Izumi on her lap. “But the beings in this forest accepted me. They comforted me after my grandmother died and gave me a home.”
“But what about the monsters…?”
“Not everyone means you well. Even the people who should.” The dragon spoke. “But we take care of our own, monster or not.”
Izumi closed her eyes and thought. She knew without a doubt that she did not want to go back to town with the old drafty barn and mean adults who only yelled and hit her. The Forbidden Forest wasn’t so bad. For the first time, she had a full stomach, warm bed, and even a name all to herself. And the Blood Witch and Dragon, Katara and Zuko, were really nice to her. The nicest anyone had been in a while. Surely, that was worth keeping.
“C-Can I stay with you?”
“Of course you can.” Katara said gently. Zuko wrapped his arms around them, completing the hug.
Tears ran down Izumi’s face. At long last, she felt peace.
~*~
That Spring, new rumors spread through the town that sat at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Rumors of the orphan girl captured by the Blood Witch and fed to her dragon. Her spirit wandered restlessly through the woods, clothed in pagan blue colors and white flowers like some sort of unfinished ritual.
If you drew close enough, you could see her between the leaves, her laughter drifting on the wind as a warning and a signal for the beast that consumed her mortal form.
The girl was gone forever, claimed by the Forest and Monsters. She was one of them now.
And she couldn’t have been happier.