Page 4 of A Winter Admire
At some point, Edwin would send his drawings and notes, as well as samples, to Loran, his mentor and teacher in Bordertown. Edwin had studied botany under Loran for two years. It was the only thing he had enjoyed in Bordertown.
During his studies, it had become clear to Edwin that many of the plants that grew in the Norend Mountains were unknown to those in Bordertown and the kingdoms beyond. So when he’d decided to return to Ores, Loran had suggested he catalogue and collect specimens for Loran and the others in the botanist society to study.
He sat on a log and pulled out his notebook from his rucksack. The sound of the trickling river reached him. Balancing the book in his lap, he pulled out a pencil and started trying to capture the trees. It took him longer than usual to get into the flow of his work, sketching the brittle, almost black branches. His mind kept trying to pull him back to the letter in his bag and the interaction with Torin and Ulir.
But as always, after several minutes, he lost himself in the movement of the pencil on the paper, finding peace in the motion and scratching sound. His whole world focused in on the trees and his sketches. The sun, low on the horizon, moved across the sky, and the cold seeped through the layers of his clothing.
After a couple of hours, he sat up, stretching his neck from side to side. He’d drawn several of the trees, and the anxiety that had clawed through him had slipped away. He shivered. Time to head home. He never stayed out too long in the winter.
Edwin stood and stepped toward the tree, touching the roughened bark. The tree was similar in height to himself, and it looked almost dead at this time of year, but in a few months, fresh green growth would burst forward. He loved the cycle of the seasons, watching the plants as they changed. He opened his book. He flicked back a couple of pages, to the sketch of the tree in spring. It looked nothing like this bare tree.
Edwin glanced up. He sucked in a breath. A mountain nymph stood, completely still, almost blending in amongst the trees and snow. His grey skin glistened in the gentle light. He wore only a pair of woollen breeches, leaving his slender feet completely bare.
How long has the oread been standing there?
Growing up in Ores, Edwin had seen many mountain nymphs. Several who had oread heritage even lived in Ores. But something about this oread held his attention like no other had before. The oread stepped towards him, and Edwin’s lungs constricted. The oread’s long white hair swayed in the breeze.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you,” the oread said, his voice soft and melodic. He walked towards Edwin. “I’m Sinoe.”
“Edwin. I’m a… My name is Edwin.”
Sinoe’s dark-grey, almost black lips smiled, and Edwin’s heart skipped a beat. “And what is a cute human doing so intently in the forest?”
Did he call me cute? He must mean cute like a child.
“I’m a botanist. I document plants, collect samples, and send them to Bordertown, to my teacher and mentor. She is a botanist there.”
Sinoe tilted his head. “Why does someone in a faraway city care about the plants we have here?”
Edwin stared at his drawing, trying to collect himself enough so that he could properly answer. “Well, they want…they want… We want to catalogue the existence of all the different plants. They might put my sketches and notes in books, so people throughout the kingdom can learn about them.” He swallowed. “And there are potential properties of the plants that are beneficial—medicinal and healing properties, for example.” His cheeks heated as he spoke.
“And you enjoy this work? Studying plants?” Sinoe’s silvery eyes seemed to capture all the light and beauty of the mountains. Somehow, it felt like Sinoe embodied the very forest around them. And Edwin had always loved the forest.
Edwin nodded. Sinoe blinked, and Edwin realised long white lashes framed his eyes.
“How interesting.”
Edwin didn’t understand why Sinoe thought what he was doing was interesting. Or why the oread had shown any interest in him at all. He was bookish and shy. Plain and dull. There was nothing of note about him.
Sinoe stared at him as if waiting for Edwin to tell him more, but Edwin could think of no words. What could he possibly say that would impress someone like Sinoe? Even his own family found him boring. The silence stretched between them.
“Well, I should leave you to it, then,” Sinoe said. “I would not wish to disturb you during your important work.”
Edwin flushed. For a second, Edwin thought Sinoe was mocking him, but the gentle smile and the kindness in Sinoe’s eyes made him think he was being genuine when he called Edwin’s work important. It was on the tip of Edwin’s tongue to say that Sinoe wasn’t disturbing him, or that if he was, it was a welcome disruption. A perfect disruption. The best disruption he had ever experienced in his entire life.
“Good day, Edwin. It was a pleasure to meet you,” Sinoe said.
“Good day,” Edwin said.
Sinoe stared at him for a second. He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something more, but then he smiled again, turned, and walked back through the forest, his feet making no marks in the snow.
Edwin let out a breath once Sinoe disappeared. Edwin didn’t move from the spot, still reeling from the short encounter.
He’d promised himself after Torin that he would never fall for someone so clearly beyond him, but with that one interaction, he felt his resolve slipping.
But it isn’t like I’m in love with him. I’m just…overwhelmed and captivated by his incredible beauty. Wouldn’t anyone be?
And it doesn’t matter anyway. I’ll probably never see him again.
