Nature calls

7 - Shawn/Kira

I'm sitting outside Kira's house, looking down at her. Her body is covered in roots that's pulsating a bright green.

"The council will be here in a couple of hours," Kate says, making me raise my brows. "That was fast."

"Yes. When I told them about the strange things happening to Kira, they decided to stay close."

I slowly nod. I really hope they will let me stay. I can't handle it if I can't be close to her. Especially not now.

A couple of hours later, we hear rustling between the trees and five women appear. We both stand up to greet them. "Thank you for coming." Kate says.

"Of course, we came. It's so nice to see you again, Kate." One of the women says. Then she turns her attention to me. "You must be her mate." I swallow. "Yes. My name is Shawn." She smiles at me. "Very nice to meet you, Shawn. My name is Akita."

I'm so scared. Are they going to send me away?"

It's like they read my mind because a woman named Olea comes over to me, puts a hand on my shoulder, and smiles reassuringly. "Don't worry, Shawn. We're not going to send you away. You're her mate and the forest have accepted you, therefore so do we."

I let out a big breath I didn't know I was holding before I say, "thank you." They all turn their attention to Kira and frowns. "Interesting," Olea says, and Akita nods. "Yes, very. I've never seen this before." They all sit down and look at Kate in wonder.

"Shawn, I understand you marked each other?" Olea asks. She points to the mark on my neck. "Uh, yes." She tilts her head to the side. "Fascinating." Akita looks at me and asks, "and you saw what happened?" I nod. "Yes, my sister recorded it."

"May we see it?" I nod again before I rummage through Sharon's clothes. When I find her phone, I press play on the video and give it to Akita. They all stand up and gather around her. And a few seconds later, they all gasp.

"Oh my." Olea says, and Akita nods again. "This is..." The video ends and they give me the phone back before they sit back down around Kira. Still panicked, I ask, "is she going to be alright?" Akita thinks for a moment. "Well, I'm not sure. Nymphs aren't supposed to be marked, but I don't think she's a nymph at all."

"What?" Kate asks in surprise. I raise my eyebrows and wait for Akita to continue. "I think she's something else. She obviously has a connection to nature. A strong one. The way the forest protects her... I don't know."

"The change must have been hard on her body and mind. The earth is healing her." Olea says. I slowly walk over and sit down next to her head. I feel fresh tear roll down my face. A couple of them lands on Kira's face and just like last time, they vanish in small green swirls in her skin. All their heads snap up. "What was that," Olea asks, and I look at her. "What?"

"The green swirls."

I slightly lift my shoulder in a small shrug and say, "oh, uhm, it's when my tears hit her face. I'm sorry."

"No, don't be. Let me try something," Olea says before she stands up, walks up to me, and looks at me. "Try touching her face." I raise my eyebrows. "Why?"

"You're her mate. Her other half. Maybe she needs you to help her. Put your hands on her face." Slowly and gently, I put my hands on her cheeks and the pulsing in the roots becomes faster.

"Yes, that's it," Akita says, almost in a whisper. Leaning down, I brush my lips against hers, which makes the roots pulse hard in one big pulse and everyone except me is blown back. I look at them in surprise before I turn my attention back to Kira. Running my thumbs over her cheekbones, I whisper, "come back to me, my love."