Chapter 18: I Speak for the Trees

Sofia slumped into the break room chair with a groan, running her hand down her face. Every time she felt like she was getting her feet under her, it felt like something new was waiting around the corner to surprise her. Only this time, it wasn't even the kids.

They've honestly been pretty great today. Even with splash day throwing a huge wrench in the normal routine, it's been way easier to manage than I expected. Which makes this whole ‘hallucination’ thing even more frustrating.

She shook her head. Rejecting the idea of going home to sleep this fever dream off yet again, Sofia hauled herself to her feet and headed for the fridge.

Contrary to what she'd expected, the break room also seemed fairly normal. Sure, there were still plenty of those floating lights around, but that was neither here nor there. Sofia was honestly getting used to them. Other than that, the appliances, the furniture, even the snacks—all of it was just as advertised. Meaning it was a fine place to take a break.

Glancing down, she noted that the dog house was once again empty today. The detail was almost disappointing. She had been curious what her mind would make of that particular idiosyncrasy. But it was probably for the best.

Grabbing her lunch from the shelf, she plopped back into her chair. An all-too-simple sandwich with a side of fruit and chips emerged from a paper bag and was soon arrayed before her. Looks-wise, it was vaguely reminiscent of something the kids might be served.

Well, they would probably have a healthier veggie than potato chips, but still.

She took an experimental bite of the sandwich. It wasn't anything special, just a standard pastrami on rye. Nothing like Gretchen's cooking. But then, she hadn't truly expected it to be.

Shrugging, Sofia pulled up a video on her phone and waited. Before, she'd eaten her lunch in here as a way to meet new people. Now she was essentially aiming to do the same thing. But she also wanted to see what other kinds of weird forms they took in her current situation.

Her chips slowly disappeared as she kept an eye out for one of her coworkers to appear. One video passed, then another as she waited. And waited. And waited.

…No one's coming, are they?

She checked the clock. Fifteen minutes past noon. Well after when anyone would be reasonably starting their lunch break—for the first naptime shift, at least.

Sofia hung her head in resignation. Another disappointment. She considered pulling up another video and simply treating this like a normal lunch, then hesitated as a better idea struck her.

Why don't I go outside for a bit?

It was a nice day out. And besides, Ashley was always encouraging her to do just that. Maybe the fresh air would help to clear her head amidst everything.

Casting one last look about the room, she decided to go for it. Sofia gulped down the last of her fruit before collecting her sandwich and stepping into the hallway. Brushing past the clouds of indistinctly glowing lights, she headed for the front of the building.

“Heading out, dearie?”

Ginger gave her a motherly smile from the front desk, legs dangling from the too-tall chair. Her usual glittery peach shawl was nowhere to be seen. In its place was a pair of matching fairy wings, the translucent shapes fluttering lazily behind her.

Right. Ginger has wings. Of course she has wings. Why wouldn't she?

Sofia did the same thing she’d been doing all day—noted the difference, then tried her absolute hardest to ignore it. Even though the sheer sparkliness of the things made it quite difficult not to stare.

“Yeah. I won’t be far, though. I just wanted to eat outside today.”

Ginger chuckled. “I certainly don’t blame you. It is quite a nice day. I would join you, but…” She gestured toward the stacks of paperwork before her with a sigh. “Well, you know.”

Sofia tilted her head in confusion. “Don’t you get a lunch, too? You aren’t taking a break?”

“Goodness, no! Lunch is one of the best chances I have to catch up on things with minimal interruptions. I simply can’t squander it!”

She just stared at the small woman. A few hairs stuck out of her gray-streaked bun. She’d assumed that the color was due to age, but now…

That's… definitely not healthy. I mean, she can't possibly be that busy, right? It can't be that hard to take them half an hour to eat.

The barely-touched salad sitting on the front desk seemed to suggest otherwise. Still, Sofia decided to let the issue lie for the moment. She quite honestly had no idea how much the woman had on her plate. Maybe she really did need to push herself like that.

…Or maybe she's just a workaholic.

Shaking her head, Sofia bid Ginger goodbye as the woman returned to looking over her papers critically. Then, she stepped outside.

The golden sun hung high above her head, filling the clearing with its cheery glow. The warbling of the lake kraken could no longer be heard behind the daycare. Instead, the forest was filled with the gentle symphony of birdsong and rustling leaves as a cool breeze swept through.

Sofia took in a deep lungful of air. It was fresh and heavy with earth.

…Ok, I definitely see why Ashley likes taking lunch out here.

She stepped toward the edge of the clearing and began to walk along the treeline. As she moved, she saw all manner of creatures scurrying amongst the branches or hopping about in the grass below. There was the standard assortment of wildlife one would expect, of course—birds and squirrels and insects of all types. Yet a closer inspection revealed some less-than-standard additions to the scenery.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Little fairies with butterfly or dragonfly wings flitted about in flower petal dresses. Strangely colored deer roamed about deeper in the forest. Even some of the birds had some distinctly un-birdlike characteristics, such as glowing eyes or feathers that seemed to shimmer.

Well, ok. A lot of them are still weird, but not all of them. I wonder if that means the effects are wearing off?

She came to a halt in front of one of the tree trunks to inspect it. In its bark hid the beautiful, intricately carved visage of a sleeping female, her eyes closed peacefully. Except that it wasn't carved at all. Rather, the face looked as though it had grown out of the very tree itself in some sort of freaky quirk of nature. That, or the most ambitious attempt at full-sized tree bonsai ever.

Sofia reached her hand toward it. It was hardly the most unbelievable part of today. Still, she found herself simply fascinated by the sight. Her fingers ran across the cool bark, tracing its surface.

The face’s eyes blinked open.

“Oh?” It gave her a sleepy smile. “Why, good afternoon. Have you finally decided to come say hello?”

Sofia snatched her hand back as the tree face fixed its eyes on her. It yawned, the presumably solid bark somehow creaking and shifting with the motion.

Now that it was moving, she noticed that it wasn't just a face. The entire tree trunk seemed to resemble the sinuous form of a woman stretching elegantly upward.

Sofia froze, unsure of how to respond to the apparently talking tree. But as its words finally registered, she couldn't help but frown in confusion. “Er… finally? What do you mean?”

The tree giggled with a sound of wind sighing through the leaves. It—she?—spoke in a slow, dreamy lilt that made Sofia feel a bit drowsy. “I mean that you’ve been coming through here for over a week and still haven’t introduced yourself. Honestly! I was beginning to think you were afraid of us. That or simply rude.”

“Oh. Uh… Sorry about that?”

…I’m apologizing to a tree.

Suddenly self-conscious of just how insane she probably looked, Sofia quickly scanned the area. Luckily, there didn’t seem to be anyone around to witness. Other than the trees, of course. And the fairies. Which didn’t really count.

“It’s no trouble. The important part is that you’re here now!” The tree seemed to sway, turning to one side and then the other. “Hey! Wake up everyone! The new girl is here!”

The nearby forest seemed to shudder and shake. More bark-skinned women blinked their eyes open and yawned before turning towards Sofia.

“Oh!”

“Hello there!”

“I’m so glad you came by!”

Sofia stood with her mouth ajar. What was she supposed to say? Heck, she wasn’t entirely sure if she should respond. Would talking to these trees be encouraging her own delusions?

Maybe it’s like one of those dreams where this is all a metaphor for my subconscious. If I treat it like that, then maybe talking to them could be enlightening? Or maybe I’ll catch myself in a lie, find something that doesn't add up and proves this is all made up.

Internally, she sighed. This was getting into the territory of something her astrology-loving ex-roommate would do. Sure, dream analysis was a thing in therapy, but…

Still, despite everything, it would feel a little rude to simply leave.

She raised an uncertain hand to wave at the expectant forest. “Uh… Hello. My name is Sofia.”

“Sofia!”

“What a lovely name!”

“Nice to meet you!”

“I knew a Sofia once.” The first tree commented, smiling at her. “She was a very nice girl. Loved to nap beneath my boughs.”

“Right,” Sofia said. “So… what’s your name?”

“Mine? Oh! Silly human.” The tree laughed. “Dryads don't often have names. At least, not in the sense that your kind do. Names are so short and simply don’t tell you much about anything. We prefer to call upon each other by more expressive means.”

Sofia’s expression must have reflected her confusion. A round of soft rustling giggles rose up from the forest. “Well… what about Ashley, then?” She prodded. “Isn't she a dryad, too? Why does she have a name?”

She didn't know for certain if that was what the woman was supposed to be. But it would certainly fit the leafy and vegetal theme she had going on.

“Oh!” The tree brightened. “You’ve met Ashley?”

“Yeah.” Sofia nodded. “I’m helping out in her classroom.”

“Oh my!”

“How wonderful!”

“A friend of Ashley's!”

The tree before her seemed to sway in a suggestion of a nod as the others tittered happily. “Ashley is more of a nickname, as you might call it. She says that it’s not exactly convenient to have a child say—” the tree rustled a little more loudly, its branches creaking in an almost musical way that sent dappled sunlight sparkling through its foliage. It continued on like that for a solid ten seconds before speaking again. “—every time she wanted to get their attention. I say that it’s simply impatience, but, well…”

“Agreed.”

“Humans are always in such a rush.”

“Why not try to relax?”

Sofia shook her head. The “dryads” seemed to conveniently forget that humans had neither boughs to rustle or branches to creak for such a method of communication. Imagining what the kids might look like if they attempted to recreate that display brought a tiny smile to her face.

What am I even saying? I’m really assigning meaning to the trees rustling in the wind. What’s next? Am I going to start trying to sense auras?

Still, she had to admit that the whole “no names” thing seemed a bit strange for her head to come up with. It really would be much simpler for the trees to just have names. But did that make it more realistic or less?

She hummed thoughtfully as she mulled over the conversation, trying to glean whatever clues she could from the interaction. The most she could divine, however, was that she had a very active imagination. More so than she’d ever imagined.

…If this is all in my head, at least.

“Well, you make sure to take care of our little sister, all right?” The dryad charged her. The tree-woman’s dreamy smile was all too reminiscent of Ashley’s own. “She’s quite a young sapling, so she can be a handful sometimes. You know, full of energy and always wanting to go, go, go! So don’t let her run you ragged.”

Sofia thought about how completely relaxed the woman always seemed to be. “Full of energy” wasn’t exactly how she would describe Ashley. Then again, to a tree that didn’t move? The descriptor probably fit pretty well.

“I’ll… I’ll do that.” She reassured the dryad. “Thank you. I should be going, though.”

“Are you certain you don’t want to stay?” The lead dryad asked. “My trunk makes for a wonderful backrest, and you won’t find more comfortable roots around.”

A chorus of protests rose up at that remark. The trees began to debate whose roots were the most pleasant for resting on, followed shortly after by a discussion of shadiest boughs and comfiest trunks. Sofia just shook her head. “No thanks. I, uh, appreciate the offer, though. It was nice to meet you. All of you.”

“You as well!”

“Goodbye, Sofia!”

“Come back soon!”

“Feel free to say hello anytime.” The lead dryad smiled again. “Even if we’re asleep. It’s always a pleasure to talk to humans such as yourself.”

Sofia bid the trees a final goodbye before turning and continuing on her way around the clearing. As she left, she saw the feminine faces on each trunk already beginning to close their eyes and return to sleep.

…Well. Let’s add that to the list of weird stuff I need to ask Ashley about once things are back to normal.

She continued on her walk, considering how one was supposed to discreetly ask about a grove of talking trees without sounding insane.