"The forest remembers what the world tries to bury."

The voices echoed again.

Soft.

Distant.

Warm enough to make Rosaline’s chest ache.

She stood slowly within the endless meadow, the tall grass brushing against her bare ankles while sunlight spilled across the earth in golden waves. The air smelled different here...cleaner somehow. Rich with wildflowers, damp soil, fresh water, and something faintly sweet she could not name.

Life.

The entire forest felt alive.

Not merely growing.

Breathing.

Rosaline turned slowly, her now short white hair lifting beneath the gentle breeze while her pulse continued thudding unevenly against her ribs. The towering trees surrounding the meadow stretched impossibly high into the sky, their leaves glowing emerald beneath the sunlight filtering through them.

Then she saw it again.

The wooden house.

Nestled quietly between silver-barked trees and flowering vines, smoke curling lazily from the chimney while flowers bloomed wildly beneath the windows.

Recognition hit her so sharply she nearly stumbled.

She knew this place like the back of her hand now.

Every stone path.

Every tree.

Every flower.

Well....at first glance.

Yet she had never truly been here....she had only kept thinking about here.

Or perhaps...

she had.

The thought unsettled her deeply.

Rosaline took a hesitant step forward through the grass before a burst of laughter drifted toward her again.

This time closer.

A woman stepped out from behind the house carrying a woven basket filled with herbs and flowers.

White hair spilled down her back like silk touched by moonlight.

Green eyes.

Her eyes.

Rosaline’s breath caught instantly.

The woman looked younger here than she had in the fragments of her dreams before. Softer. Happier. Sunlight warmed her pale skin while the wind tugged gently at the loose sleeves of her cream-colored dress.

Beautiful.

Not in the distant way nobles admired beauty.

But in a way that felt alive.

Real.

The woman turned the moment she sensed Rosaline standing there.

And smiled.

"There you are, little moon."

The words wrapped around Rosaline’s chest painfully.

Little moon.

Why did hearing that make her want to cry?

The woman walked toward her slowly through the grass, every movement graceful and unhurried, like the forest itself bent gently around her presence.

Rosaline remained frozen.

Part of her wanted to speak.

To ask questions.

To demand answers.

But another part...the strange part trapped inside this dream...felt small.

Young. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Confused.

When the woman finally reached her, she crouched slightly until their eyes met.

"You wandered too far again."

Rosaline opened her mouth instinctively, but the voice that emerged startled her once more.

"I wanted to see the flowers."

Small.

Childish.

Not her adult voice.

The woman’s smile softened even further. "And did the flowers tell you any secrets today?"

Rosaline blinked.

Then answered honestly before she could stop herself.

"They said the river is angry." Saline said and Rosaline wondered if she knew what she was saying herself.

The woman paused.

Only briefly.

But Rosaline noticed it...was she taking that word serious?

Then the smile returned immediately, though quieter this time.

"The river complains about everything."

Rosaline stared at her.

Something felt wrong.

Not dangerous.

Hidden.

The woman rose gracefully before extending her hand toward her. "Come with me."

Rosaline hesitated only a moment before placing her smaller hand into hers.

Warmth spread instantly through her skin.

Not ordinary warmth.

Something deeper.

Power.

The moment their hands touched, the wind around them shifted softly through the trees as though the forest itself recognized the connection.

Rosaline’s heart pounded strangely.

Together, they walked deeper into the woods.

The forest floor shimmered with patches of sunlight filtering through endless branches overhead while silver butterflies drifted lazily between flowers blooming beneath ancient roots. Strange glowing insects floated near tree trunks, illuminating hidden corners with pale blue light.

Everything here felt enchanted.

Rosaline glanced upward as vines curled naturally around branches high above them. Tiny droplets of water floated through the air near clusters of flowers, suspended like crystals before dissolving into mist.

Magic.

Not the kind she had read or seen in stories.

Not controlled.

This magic breathed freely.

Her mother noticed her staring.

"The forest speaks when you listen properly."

Saline looked up at her. "Can everyone hear it?"

"No."

"Why?"

The woman smiled faintly while brushing her fingers across the bark of a passing tree. Instantly, tiny flowers bloomed along the trunk beneath her touch.

"Because nature does not trust everyone."

Saline stared openly.

The woman laughed softly at her expression before continuing down the narrow forest path.

Soon, the sound of water reached them.

A stream.

Clear water flowed gently between smooth stones while sunlight reflected across the surface in shimmering patterns. Wildflowers grew thickly along the edges, their petals glowing faintly beneath the light.

Rosaline stopped immediately.

Something inside her reacted the moment she saw the stream.

Warmth spread through her chest again.

Stronger this time.

Her mother noticed.

"You feel it."

Young Saline nodded slowly.

"Yes..."

The woman stepped toward the water before sitting gracefully upon one of the large stones near the edge.

"Come here, little moon."

Rosaline obeyed instinctively.

The moment she sat beside her, the woman reached forward and dipped her fingers into the stream.

Immediately, the water reacted.

Silver ripples spread outward unnaturally fast, glowing beneath the sunlight while tiny streams of water lifted gently into the air like ribbons dancing around her hand.

Rosaline gasped softly.

Her mother smiled at her reaction.

"Nature listens to us because we belong to it."

Saline stared at the floating water in awe. "How, mother?"

"Power isn’t something you force," the woman explained gently. "It’s something you feel."

The water drifted slowly around them now, moving like living silk through the air.

"The earth breathes," she continued quietly. "The rivers carry memory. The trees remember. The wind warns. And the moon..." Her green eyes softened slightly. "The moon awakens."

Rosaline listened carefully.

Every word felt important.

Ancient.

The woman touched Rosaline’s chest lightly with two fingers.

"You already carry it inside you."

Saline frowned slightly. "Carry what?"

But instead of answering immediately, the woman guided her hand gently toward the stream.

"Close your eyes."

Young Saline obeyed.

At first, she heard only water.

Then wind.

Then something else.

Something deeper beneath it all.

A pulse.

Soft.

Steady.

The forest.

Rosaline’s breath caught.

She could feel everything.

The water moving over stone.

Roots twisting beneath the earth.

Leaves trembling high above them.

Magic flowed everywhere around her like invisible threads connecting every living thing.

Warmth spread through her fingertips.

Then suddenly...

the stream erupted.

Water burst upward violently before spiraling around Rosaline in glowing silver ribbons.

Her eyes flew open in shock.

The water moved wildly around her body before crashing back into the stream again.

Silence followed instantly.

Rosaline stared at the water breathlessly.

"I did that?"

Her mother looked at her quietly.

Not surprised.

Proud.

"Yes."

Rosaline’s heart pounded faster.

"But how?"

"Because you were born to."

The answer settled heavily between them.

Rosaline looked down at her own hands again.

Then slowly toward the forest surrounding them.

Everything suddenly felt too alive.

Too aware.

The wind shifted sharply.

Her mother stilled instantly.

Rosaline noticed the change immediately.

The warmth inside the forest disappeared.

Birdsong stopped.

Even the stream seemed quieter now.

Then...

a sound echoed faintly through the trees.

Crack.

Like a branch snapping somewhere far away.

Her mother stood immediately.

Every softness vanished from her expression at once.

Rosaline’s stomach tightened.

"What was that?"she asked her mother fearfully.

Another sound followed.

Closer.

Voices.

The woman grabbed Rosaline’s hand instantly.

"Stay close to me."

Fear entered Rosaline’s chest immediately at the sharpness in her tone.

The forest itself seemed uneasy now.

The trees creaked softly beneath the wind while distant noises echoed deeper within the woods.

Then suddenly...

Rosaline felt it.

A strange pressure.

Wrong.

Not belonging.

Her mother’s grip tightened around her hand before she turned sharply toward the direction of the house.

"We need to go back."

Rosaline stumbled slightly trying to keep up as the woman hurried through the forest path much faster now. Branches brushed against them while the peaceful beauty surrounding the woods moments ago suddenly felt darker somehow.

Dangerous.

Another loud crack echoed behind them.

Closer this time.

Rosaline looked back instinctively toward the trees...

and thought she saw movement between them.

Something fast.

Watching.

Her breath caught.

"Mother.."

"Don’t look back."

The command came instantly.

Firm.

Terrified.

And for the first time since entering the dream...

Rosaline realized her mother was afraid.