Page 4 of Must Love Moss and Moonshine
If so, why was I starting to feel so…
Lonely.
The word settled in my chest like autumn frost, sharp and unexpected.
Feeling oddly despondent, I sighed heavily, then slipped toward the nearest hollow tree.I set a protective hand on Marvelle, who clicked nervously.
“It’s an easy ride.Just blink and it’s done.”
I placed my other hand on the tree then closed my eyes.
“Home,” I said, entering the tree.For a moment, wind whirled all around us.I was engulfed by the scents of the forest: ferns, violets, and earthy loam perfumed the air.I emerged on the other side at another hollow tree near the creek close to my cottage.
“See,” I said, giving Marvelle a comforting pat.
We made our way up the slope to the tiny stone cottage sitting in a small glen.The moss-covered roof kept the place warm in winter and cool in summer.A tendril of smoke rolled from the stone chimney.The herbs in my window box showed the coming of autumn, the last flowers blooming before they came to an end.Outside, benches sat around a fire ring.There was a stone well not far from the house.Beams of sunlight slipped through the canopy overhead, shimmering down on the small cottage.The leaves had just begun to turn, hues of gold, ruby, and vibrant orange just beginning to emerge.Usually, the sight warmed me, but today it left me feeling empty.
“Come, little one,” I told Marvelle, shifting my thoughts away from my brooding.“We have a foot to tend to.”
Ducking so my branch-like antlers would not catch on the doorframe, we entered the house.The small cottage had a kitchen space, which included a table and benches.There was a small bed tucked away in the corner of the room not far from the stone fireplace.A wall separated a reading nook where the shelves were lined with the books, journals, scrolls, and archives of the previous dryads who’d tended Silver Vale.There was also a massive cabinet for all of my dried herbs, roots, and stored seeds.The cabin had been my home ever since I’d left the dryad home city of Woodsong, taking on the responsibility as caretaker of the ancient forest.
I set Marvelle on the table.“Here, friend,” I said, setting a handful of nuts before him.Then I went and collected my small medicine kit.Returning, I sat once more.I smiled gently at the creature then reached deep within me, awakening the magic of the forest inside me.“Now, let us be calm,” I said, giving Marvelle a soft pat.“And let’s tend to that leg.”
Gently stroking him, Marvelle laid down and closed his eyes, drifting off into a deep, peaceful sleep.Once he was out, I examined the leg.Nothing was broken, and there was no sign of a cut.Closing my eyes, I felt more deeply, realizing that he had torn a muscle.Working gently, I wrapped the injury then set the sleeping squirrel in a basket on my table, adjusting him so his leg was elevated.
“Little daring one,” I said, smiling gently at him as he slept.When he woke, I would fix him a healing draft.With a little rest, care, and patience, he’d be back to his antics in a week.
Shifting, I sat back, leaning against the table and looking out the open door.
The wind blew gently, sending a flurry of amber-colored leaves swirling past my door.I could hear the wind’s gentle laughter as it played.The trees swayed, and songbirds chirped.In the far-off distance, I heard the bark of a cat-sized moonbandit, small dragons with the coloring and personality of raccoons.Otherwise, the forest was silent.
The embers in my fireplace shifted, sending a crackle of sparks upward.
I inhaled deeply then exhaled slowly.
From outside, I heard the soft sound of water dripping down the rainspout into the catchment barrel just outside.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
I closed my eyes, listening for more.
Anything more.
The sound of Marvelle’s gentle breath came to my ears.
Otherwise, there was only the wind and thedrip, drip, drip.
CHAPTER3
TANSY
“Pitchforks and torches,” I cursed, snapping the horse’s reins again.The stubborn creature, for whom I had traded my very last dragonfire opal, stood unmoving in the middle of the trail.The vendor had assured me he was sturdy and fast, even named Thunderbolt, but I’d seen no signs of the beast living up to that promise.I was already behind thanks to his plodding pace.I imagined Bromir laughing when I told him what a nag I’d bought.The dwarf had warned me that the horse looked surly.I didn’t care how the horse looked.I only needed him to get to Moonshine Hollow.Once I arrived, I planned to resell the horse to some nice family at the horse market.Now, I was doubting myself.Maybe Bromir had been right after all.
While the landscape around me was beautiful, the autumn forest blazing with scarlet-colored maple leaves and golden birch leaves, the air perfumed by late-blooming woodrose and earthy mushrooms, I was in no mood to linger.
