The Tree's Heart

II

Clover woke up again when she felt something nudging her. It wasn't easy to wake up – she had been in some really deep sleep. It took her a while to realise where she was and that something – or someone – was nudging her. The forest. The witch. The serial killer. All the people that had disappeared.

Clover woke up with a start and moved away from the sensation at her shoulder. It took her a little while to get used to the bright light that was shining into her eyes – seemed like the rain had stopped and the sun was out again. She was still covered in mud and leaves, as well as pine needles. How had the leaves gotten there?

Either way, it didn't matter. Clover looked up to see what had woken her up. There was a woman standing under the tree, beside her backpack. She looked thin and weary, dark hair descending in a curly mass from her head onto her shoulders. She had tied it back with a headscarf to keep it out of her face, but it was still thick and wild. But her hair didn't matter. Who was this woman that had just appeared out of nowhere?

"You're awake. Good. I thought you might have gotten hypothermia out here." she said to her in a gravelly and unimpressed voice.

"Who are you?" Clover managed to get out. Her throat was sore, and she felt like death. Her limbs were hurting, and her ankle wasn't any better than before. She felt somewhat cold, too, but not as cold as she would have suspected.

"Name's Willow. That ankle looks nasty. How long have you been in the forest?" she asked. Clover stared at her, as if she was seeing a ghost. Willow... why did that name ring a bell? Wasn't that one of the two girls that had gotten lost in the forest? Why was she here? Maybe Clover was dead and she was some sort of forest spirit.

"Stop staring at me and answer the question. How long have you been here?" Willow repeated. Clover didn't know why it mattered, but if this was some sort of ghost, she didn't want to upset her. She looked up into the sky. It looked like it was late morning. Had she been sleeping her all night? Damn it.

"I came here yesterday, early afternoon. I think. I'm not sure what time it is..." Clover muttered and coughed.

"So you've spent the night in the forest?"

"I think so."

Willow mumbled something to herself, before taking a deep breath and looking back at Clover's ankle. Clover wasn't sure whether she should count her losses and try to make a run for it. She didn't think she was in any condition for that. Willow came closer to her and bent down to take a look at her ankle.

"You're not going to get out of this place with your foot like that. Can you get up?" she then asked. Clover had no idea if she could get up. She sat up, feeling weak and frail. She would probably be able to get up, but she wouldn't get far without help. Clover slowly stood up. Her legs felt wobbly and once she was standing up, she felt like she might collapse any moment. Willow came closer to her and supported her, making sure she didn't fall during her dizzy spell. Once Clover got her balance back, she realised that Willow was made of flesh and blood. Her skin was warm, and she could definitely touch her. So maybe she wasn't a ghost then. She seemed pretty alive to Clover at this moment.

"Right, you're coming with me. You're going to need help if you ever want to get out of this forest again." Willow said to her. Clover nodded. She was feeling too weak to protest much. And she did need help.

"Where are we going?" Clover asked after a while of limping alongside Willow. She had no idea whether she could trust this strange, random woman that had just shown up out of nowhere. Who knew if she even was the same Willow that disappeared years ago? How would she have survived out here, anyway? And who was to say that she was telling her the truth? Maybe she was just some insane woman.