Where the Roots Begin

Chapter XXV

I have loved the stars too fondly

To be fearful of the night.

-Sarah Williams

Alessandra decided to warn Violet and Mikaela. She would tell them to get themselves somewhere safe, so Dmitri couldn't get to them when he felt like threatening Alessandra.

"You must be careful," the Tree warned. Ollie warned. She was still fuzzy on how exactly that worked. "Once you break contact from the trees I won't be able to reach you, and Dmitri will. You must get out of the castle as soon as you can".

I will.

The Tree took his roots away from the trapdoor, and Alessandra went through it, back into the castle.

She ran through hallways and stairs, hoping to get to the entrance unnoticed. She touched every tree she came across, and Ollie told her to keep moving, so she did.

Once she got to the forest, Ollie could point her in the right direction, but she had to go through the town first.

She got to the trees' tunnel in the entrance, and hid in smaller alleys once she was in the town.

Atticus had taught her well how to go unnoticed.

Once in the forest, she tried to find a big tree, since the older they were the faster they could let Ollie now where Alessandra was, and they could talk, which was an advantage.

Ollie had said he was the soul of the forest, but Alessandra imagined it like he was the kid gripping all the balloons in his hand, keeping them from drifting away.

Like gravity.

She went to the oldest tree in sight, which wasn't as old as others she had seen but it was old enough.

Hello, I'm looking for the forest's soul, she thought. Those were the words Ollie had told her to say. The tree shifted.

"Alessandra, I'm here".

She sighed, relieved. It was hard to believe something like that would work; she still had some getting used to do.

"The anthousai girl is in the clearing where you two first met".

Alessandra headed that direction.

She found her way around easily. Alessandra managed herself better out in the forest than she did in the castle.

She looked over her shoulder, just out of curiosity, just to see if it was still happening.

It was; the white flowers followed her, leaving a trail after her. Leading straight to her.

She kneeled and touched the flowers, trying to show them that she was trying to move inconspicuously, and the snowdrops immediately closed and disappeared into the ground.

Alessandra placed her palms against it, and thanked them.

She resumed her walk, but suddenly stumbled into a girl-like creature whose back was to her.

She had orange dreadlocks falling to her waist, and was kneeling on the ground. Her arms were bare and her skin was striped.

She looked back still kneeling, her face stripped as well but with more delicate designs. There was a ball of light on her hand, between her very long fingernails.