The crowd stood gathered around us. Nearby families squeezed in to take a look at our clown show.

  “I’m taking these Terror Raptors off of me now,” I muttered, shaking them off.

  “Oooooh a talking tree!” cried a kid. His little eyes sparkled while gazing at us. I don’t have any stray leaves or bent branches, do I? An old elf hobbled to me.

  “Oh, bountiful tree, please keep the woodlands safe for our future generations,” he said. He pulled an apple from his pocket and offered it to me.

  “You better get used to that,” Basil said, nudging me. “Treants are treated with special care, they are the bridge between the silent forest and our village.” I bowed as I took the apple.

  “Woahhh,” echoed the crowd.

  “Hey, hey, that’s a Nighthaunter!” said the kid, gesturing wildly at Haunt.

  “You want to play with him? I promise he doesn’t bite,” I said.

  “Terrible friend,” Haunt muttered. He began dutifully chasing the kids around in a rudimentary game of tag.

  “Your people aren’t afraid of Nighthaunters? I heard from a friend they’re some of the strongest monsters in the Himavanta,” I asked.

  “Oh, we try to keep the peace with these monsters. It helps that we’re both here accompanying him. If any big ones come near, we catch and release them further into the forest,” Basil replied.

  The crowd began surrounding Basil, asking what he was up to today. But before he could answer, his face went pale as a figure came running from the distance. A girl that looked around Basil’s age was screaming at us. She and Vehyr would go well together.

  “What did I say about bringing guests over without letting Mom and Dad know?!” screamed the girl. She managed to run up to us at this point. The crowd quickly dispersed as her words hailed the entire area.

  Next to Basil, she barely reached his chest. Her white hair was braided in a lace over her back. Rocked over her shoulder was a bow carved with a motley crew of symbols.

  Never mind, it’s not rocked over. She’s brutally beating Basil with it. Every hit against him was like a pebble thrown against a rock. Her eyes were continuously shooting daggers in his direction as he half-heartedly deflected her hits.

  “Yen, I didn’t have time to contact Mom and Dad, they needed our help,” cried Basil. One of his hands had pried the bow out of Yen’s grasp. The other was pushing her head away.

  “Excuses,” she yelled. She turned to look at us. I took a quick glance at her face. It held a striking resemblance to Basil’s. Her blue eyes were squinting in Haunt’s direction. “He’s not coming near our food stores alright?” she said.

  “We don’t plan on abusing your hospitality, we just have some questions for your Mom. Basil mentioned how knowledgeable she is,” I said.

  “Oh alright then,” she smiled. It was unnerving how quickly she morphed from the wicked witch, destroyer of Basil, to the cheerful elf in front of us. “I’ll lead the way. We’d be terrible hosts without giving a small tour,” she said, walking away from us.

  “Your sister’s scary,” I said.

  “Oh, don’t worry about it,” Basil replied, throwing the raptor corpses over our bodies. “She’s got a lot of responsibility on her shoulders, being the next village chief and all.”

  “…Basil, who are your parents?” I asked.

  “Oh, my mom’s the town apothecary and magic instructor, my dad is the village chief. We barely see him until late at night because of all the paperwork. Don’t worry, they love raptor meat so you’ll be in their good graces,” Basil replied nonchalantly.

  “Can you lead with that information in the first place?!”

  **********

  The amount of elves drastically thinned as we ventured deeper. Lighting was entirely reliant on the fireflies that flew around Basil and Yen. Their miniature lightbulbs emanated violet and blue hues across our dirt road.

  “So, over there are the vertical farms, we try to keep everything as compact as possible,” Yen continued. Our walk into Fleurwind was filled with more wonders. Sections of gigantic trees were designated growth zones. Layers of mushrooms sprouted off their trunks and were gathered by workers rappelling off ropes.

  “We can return to the market square in the morning if you’re looking for anything specific,” Basil said.

  “That’d explain all the people at the gate,” I replied.

  “It’s easier for the occasional visitor and trader to come and go that way. Keeps everything contained that way,” Yen replied.

  The trees along our path gave way to a small clearing littered with mounds. Light broke through the forest canopy in this area. It was the only place in Fleurwind where the sun gave her full blessing. Rows of ivory carnations guarded the outskirts of the clearing.

  Yen’s voice dramatically descended into a whisper. “These are the dead that we lay to rest. Each of these mounds represents a family. When the time comes, the earth will reclaim their mortal bodies.”

  “It’s a beautiful place,” I blurted out. The white carnations acted like a floral embrace under the watchful gaze of the sun. “I’m sure the dead will find peace knowing they’re in such a place.”

  Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

  Yen turned towards me. “I’m glad you agree. I figured honored Treants would get it. Outside visitors struggle with the whole non-coffin burial deal,” she chuckled. Despite the silence that permeated the air, there was no sense of dread that I’d feel at a cemetery. Hundreds could have been laid to rest here. Yet here they were, sleeping quietly. “Would you care to bless these grounds?” Yen asked.

  “Oh no I wouldn’t know the first thing about this sort of thing,” I said, waving my branches about.

  Yen rested her arm against me. “I won’t force you to then. Was just hoping to get a blessing from a Treant is all,” she sighed, gazing at the mounds.

  “Oh Sallix, think of my poor little sister. Doesn’t her eyes get so cute and sad when things don’t go her way?” cried Basil. Yen swiftly kicked him in the shins before he could continue hijacking her sob story.

  Maybe there is something I can do, a memory from a friend. A mana circle grew beneath me. Yen stopped her bombardment and stood in awe. She immediately turned to Basil and grabbed his collar.

  “You brought an Elder Treant into our town?!” she hissed. He stared blankly at her. “You know Mom told us that any upper echelon figures of the forest should be brought directly to Dad!”

  “I think I fell asleep during that particular lesson,” he mumbled.

  “By the gods, knowing you, you’d even forget who Nyla is,” she cried, slamming her face into her hands. Her eyes peaked through her fingers and stared at my casting.

  “I hope my intentions come through with this spell,” I said.

  The circle finished forming. The target? The white carnations. Mana rapidly reached out from underneath me, landing atop the flowers in front. Within seconds, they glowed a dazzling white light. Each carnation was a soul proclaiming to the sun above that it had its own grandeur and story to tell.

  Everyone stood in wonder as the flowers gave off their dazzling hues. Even Lesi managed to take a break from gnawing at one of the corpses and stare.

  “Thank you, Sallix was it? This would do quite nicely,” Yen smiled. Her softened gaze didn’t last long before registering her prior outburst. She frantically pushed Basil’s head down and bowed towards us. “Sorry for troubling you Sir Treant! I’m sure you have important business to discuss with Lord Fleurwind,” she said stumbling over her words.

  “Nice,” said Haunt. Can you not?

  “Don’t worry about it!” I said, trying to lift their heads. “I’m not what you think I am. Just a friendly tree living in Himavanta.”

  “Ahh, of course. Just a friendly tree who can speak and cast spells,” Yen said, winking at us. I fear she bought into the fa?ade she made up about us.

  “Anyways,” I continued, “Where’s your Mother?”

  “Oh right, it’s through our Circle of Dreams,” she said, walking through the flowers. Her figure disappeared through the beams of light.

  We quickly followed Yen. I twisted and combined my tendrils into larger spiralled roots in hopes of not disturbing any mounds. Who knows what kind of ghosts would emerge?

  Lesi eventually stopped following us and lay down beside one of the mounds. “Don’t worry about her, we like to think that she’s guarding the dead, even though Mom’s charms would instantly kill any intruders venturing this deep,” laughed Basil.

  My roots bunched up even further.

  “Dirt here very good for you,” commented Haunt.

  “I am not going to desecrate a holy site dubbed the ‘Circle of Dreams’ just to get extra fertilizer in my diet,” I whispered to Haunt.

  “Very good dirt,” he emphasized. Would there ever come a time when I’d need to do that? If I train and learn, I won’t have to.

  “Look,” Yen said, gesturing at a mound near the end of the burial places. “Unfortunately, we never got his name down. He’s our newest arrival, may his soul rest in peace.”

  “Who was he?” I asked.

  “A wounded man stumbled into our village twenty years ago. Mom tried to save him, but it was too late. He desperately mumbled about his children before he passed. Travelling through this forest without a guide is a death sentence. I hope his kids survived,” Yen prayed.

  The dates lined up. “I think we managed to save them…at great cost,” I replied.

  “Good job,” Basil said, slamming my back. Yen with immense speed knee-ed him in the groin.

  “I told you to be respectful in front of our guests,” she muttered, “stop causing a scene in front of the dead! Anyways, we’re here,” she said.

  Behind the rows of flowers rested a simple wood hut. Bushes and trees were woven to form the walls, and rows of vines branched from the top, creating an enclosed roof. Small wisps of smoke could be seen wicking through the leaves.

  “Nice! Mom’s home,” Basil said, running towards the house. Yen glanced at us with furrowed brows and downcast eyes.

  “It’s honestly nothing. Basil’s a great person. We don’t hold anything against him,” I said.

  “We?” asked Haunt.

  We hurried along to the door. I took one last look back at the burial grounds. Before the man’s spot stood a blonde-haired figure. His form was camouflaged with the beams of light shining off the flowers. He gave a brief smile before disappearing into the air.

  It’s confirmed. Ghosts are real. “You’re welcome,” I smiled back. A tree smiling with its hollow could cause hundreds of childhood nightmares. No more smiling.

  Basil stood waiting against the wall. “Guests first,” he said, opening the door.

  It opened into a cozy kitchen with a dining table nestled in the center of the room. A tall figure stood near a few potted plants on the windowsill with their back facing towards us. The wind from outside tumbled their porcelain hair. They turned to us.

  It was the nostalgic view of a proud mother’s face. As she smiled at us, it looked like stars were dazzling off her smile.

  “We’re home Mom,” shouted the siblings. They bounded to her arms as a hand wrapped around each figure.

  “Welcome home, Basi, Yeni,” smiled the woman. She looked towards Haunt and me, her eyes smothered any fears I had before the meeting. There was no doubt or surprise in her expression, she had the same gently woven aura. “My name is Daena Datsyr, care to introduce your two friends?”

  “Oh right, so this is Sallix, and that little fella is Haunt. They’re smart cookies that need your help going to the home of the fairies,” Basil said. One arm was busily reaching for a batch of dried fruits lying by the counter.

  “Pleasure to meet you two, come over little Nighthaunt, being surrounded by my son and your predator must have scared the fangs off your face,” she murmured.

  Haunt scurried off me and wandered sheepishly to Daena. She laid her hand on his head, sorting loose hairs off it.

  “I’ve never seen him do that,” I said in amazement.

  “Nighthaunts are poorly understood creatures. The monster encyclopedias merchants peddle certainly don’t help their case. Furgle Bears love to eat these younglings. Lucky for him, Lesi only likes eels,” Daena laughed.

  “He sure is,” I chuckled nervously. Daena glanced back at me.

  “Don’t worry, I can tell his journey lies with you, Sallix. I won’t be stealing him away,” she chuckled.

  “No, no I didn’t mean to assume,” I said. Daena gestured at Basil and Yen, they slinked away and sat at the table. Daena brought over a dish of dried fruits and sat down beside them.

  “So,” she said, “You’re not a Treant, are you?”