SMOKE SPIRIT

11:~tragedies~

We were on the five-minute walk from the mansion. I hated this habit of Elic's; he never told me where he was actually taking me. Yet, we couldn't ignore the fact that he never disappointed. We were deep into the forest, the winter sunrises fighting their way through the bushes and thick layering of leaves. It was cold but bearable, so I decided to wear nothing more than a full-sleeve shirt and jeans. The morning winter breezes made the branches of the trees sway rhythmically, their rustling sound soothing. The dead leaves beneath my feet crumbled, making a crunching sound.

I had lived in the mansion long enough, yet I didn't know this place. It would be right to say we never used to come out to the forest. Our mother was very sensitive and used to restrain us from coming here. Besides, the mansion was big enough that playing in it left us with no energy to explore outside. The leaves beneath my feet stopped crunching as I felt overgrown grass caressing them. I untied my hands from my chest and quickened my pace to match Elic's footsteps.

When I caught up to him, I asked him out of curiosity for the tenth time, "Where are we going?"

He clicked his tongue and looked at me. "Somewhere," he said nonchalantly.

 I rolled my eyes and decided not to ask anymore. After five more minutes of walking, we reached a place where there were no dead leaves, only grass. I spotted a small wrought iron gate, tarnished and partly open, accompanied by a short, roughly built brick wall. I widened my eyes and smiled. The place was almost in the middle of the forest, and it was dark here. The huge shadows of the trees and their branches cast on the grass, and as the branches moved, the shadows danced.

Elic paced quickly and made his way to the gate, opening both sides wide. I reached out to him, and he smiled. "There is more to see," he assured me, as if I wasn't already intrigued. "Um, we still have to walk more?" I asked, not sure if I could walk any further. The ten-minute walk had been enough, and now I felt cold, being out of the sun's sight. He leaned closer, blowing air on my face. The gesture was sudden, and I closed my eyes as my hair flew back from my forehead.

"You look good without bangs," he commented, and I nodded.

"We have to walk, I guess, five minutes more, and then we will be there," he announced.

"Um, Elic, can we sit here for a while? I mean, this place looks good," I genuinely wanted to sit and talk for a while before continuing.

"Umm, okay, then we will start walking again," he agreed. I nodded, smiling at him. His eyes were excited as if he wanted to show me more, and I was ready to see, but deep down, the nagging voice told me to sit here for a while and feel the nature, feel Elic's chatters along the rustling sound of the trees.

We sat on the small wall, my feet dangling while Elic, tall enough, had his feet slightly touching the grass. "I made most of my memories here," he said, smiling at me. I smiled warmly back. "I used to come here a lot, painting and just sitting with my own self and nature," he added pensively. His face was serene now, looking ahead with an honest smile, his expression showing he had dived deep into his memories once more.