Bewitching Monsters

Hamadryad - Part 1

Golden eyes started appearing more often in the woods around my home. Sometimes they would quickly vanish once I noticed them. Sometimes their stare lingered. Neither threatening nor friendly, my curiosity was turning insatiable to figure out to whom or what the eyes belonged. Time for a little research.

Curled up at Honey Cup café with my favorite tea, I searched the Mind for local lore. I found some interesting tales of hauntings and a few trickster sprites, but nothing about gold eyes in the woods around Arvos. I moved on and looked up all lifeforms that can have the unique eyes I was seeing. Even when I narrowed it down to those with one pair, forward facing, circular pupil eyes, there were a lot of species to go through.

This wasn't working.

"Trouble, Witch?" Honey, the owner, asked.

She was a sweet pixie. Recently we grew friendly enough that she gave me a proper name to address her by—a major thing for a fae to do still. She sat down across from me and tilted her head inquisitively.

"You've lived in this area for fair time, right?"

She shrugged. "Fair enough I suppose."

"Do you know about golden eyes in the southeast woods?"

She drummed her nails on the table. "Could be anything from a fae to a shifter. What does it look like?"

"I don't know; I've never seen more than its eyes staring at me through the woods. I kinda wanted to figure out if it would kill me or not first before getting too close."

Her laughter was like little bells ringing. "Understandable. Though I think it would have attacked you by now if that was its aim."

"Who's attacking our dear little Witch?" I glanced up over my shoulder and met the sparkling smile of the air elf courier. Of course he'd be here too.

"Some mysterious gold eyes watching me from my woods," I replied. "I would guess that it's you but you're eyes are the wrong color, and you're too bold to keep your distance."

He touched his hand to his heart a bit dramatically. "I'm so flattered that you pay such attention to me." Both Honey and I rolled our eyes at him. "I believe I know who you're talking about though. I'd be happy to tell you if you finally have an answer for me."

"Answer?"

His smile faltered. He stepped around the table and took the seat the manager sneakily vanished from. There was a glow rising in his eyes. "Have you still really not opened my gift?"

"You didn't tell me if was a gift; you just handed it to me. And I have been a bit busy, I'll have you know." He raised an eyebrow and reclined back in his chair. Okay, yeah, they were weak excuses. They weren't lies though. "I might also still be a bit upset about our first meeting—or really how you won't let me forget it."

His smile returned. "Might want to ignore the last part of my note then."

Now it was my turn to glare at him. Why was I bothering with this infuriating creature? "So you know about my voyeur?"

"Perhaps," he mused, examining his nails.

"I promise I'll open your gift once I get home. Now please share what you know."

"He's a dryad. Probably one of the oldest beings around here. He'd only harm you if you posed a threat to him or his forest. If I had to guess, he's just watching you to see if he can trust you or not."

It made sense. I'd be wary of any newcomers in my territory too. "Any suggestions on how to make friends with him?"

"Hug a tree? Kiss a flower?"

I chortled and almost spat out my tea. "Wow. So insightful."

"Right? I was thinking of quitting this courier gig and becoming an advice specialist."

The next morning I saw the dryad again. I had risen early because I just could not stay asleep. So instead, I wrapped myself up in a blanket, hopped on my broom, and floated above my home to watch the sunrise. After the sun was fully above the horizon, I drifted back down. As my broom turned back into its convenient charm size, I saw the golden glint in the tree line.

I kept calm. I didn't want to scare him off. I slowly turned to face him front on then bowed low. The fae bobbed his head down in acknowledgment, giving me courage to slowly approach him. As I got closer I realized why his eyes always seemed to be disembodied and vanished so quickly. His body—his skin, looked exactly like bark. It was dark with long, deep furrows like an oak tree. At the back of his head rose a number of short branches. Of course he'd have a crown.

"Greetings, Neighbor. You may call me Witch."

A chuckle rumbled from him. "Yes, I know who you are." His voice was rich and deep, reminiscent of distant thunder. "Tell me, Witch: why did you choose to come here?"

Ah, a test already. I had to be careful with my answer. And though I wanted to take my time to think it out, I knew I couldn't keep him waiting either. "My previous home grew undesirable. I chose to live there for the wrong reasons. Here," I slowly looked around at all the woods, the field, my small home, "I thought well and good before coming here. I am both isolated and near a fairly large town. This home proves idyllic though I know many who would disagree. But I don't mind being off the light grid; it allows me to work with more beings. Other than those explainable reasons—this place just feels... right."

The dryad slowly circled me as I gave my answer. The moment felt tenser than my certification exams. Silence dragged between us well after I finished speaking. Was he displeased with my answer? Did he want me to somehow elaborate more? Because I couldn't. I tried thinking of more to say but no more words were coming to mind. There was a fuzziness around the edge of my mind. It felt as if we were just hovering in time like a humming bird. Moving but still.

Then it dawned on me what I was actually feeling. Harmonizing with nature, my body was slowing down to the earth's rhythm. Now that my mind wasn't racing with the anxiety of possibly insulting the dryad, I slipped further down into the trance. He had done something to trigger it, I was sure. This felt more like he was guiding me than the earth calling me itself. Then in my mind came the image of an enormous, wide tree. Ancient yet filled with life. The span of it was comparable to the size of the field surrounding my house.

"I have a proposition for you, Witch."