The forest lay hushed under the vivid, cold moon. Occasional hoots of an owl rung out, echoing softly. The leaves of the tall trees rustled slightly due to the soft wind that swept through the darkened landscape, and droplets of water fell from the leaves onto the damp ground. The moon shown its light onto a figure just beginning to show sign of movement after a long period of stagnancy. The figure was that of a young woman with hair the color of the darkest night, lying in an almost fetal position. Her eyes slowly flickered open to reveal a warm honey-like hue. She tried to make out her surroundings, but the forest was too dark, for the moon became partially hidden behind the clouds and the trees were quite thick. She let her eyes close, and waited for her mind to defog. The woman took in the scents around her. They were not very familiar to her.
Her eyes closed tighter, as she struggled to comprehend where she was. Everything was confusing to her. A faint memory of working on paperwork in her hometown, which she was chief of, danced around in her mind, clashing with the reality of where she was at that moment. Maybe she went on a mission, she thought. But if so, why can't she remember how she came to be on this damp forest floor. Her head did not ache, so she couldn't have hit it and therefore lose some of her memory, she reasoned, though she could have lost her memory another way.
The woman struggled for moments longer on where she was and how she came to be where she was, but she failed to think of any explanation. A sigh escaped from between her lips. She had no idea where she was. A slight chill lay on her dampened body. Also, her body felt strangely heavy. Maybe this was all a dream. She lay there for a while longer without opening her eyes, hoping that by keeping them closed, she would not have to face reality. Even though she hoped that this was a dream, she knew that she was awake and in the real life.
Suddenly, she finally realized the warmth that pressed against her. She heard soft breathing. She could feel a body underneath her draped arm. Her eyes shot opened and her breath caught. Slowly the women angled her eyes towards the body. She stared through the darkness and waited for the clouds to allow the moon's light to shine back down. Finally, the clouds finished their passing, and she was able to see the body that laid against her. It's a young child, she realized. The child couldn't be more than three years old, judging by the size of its form. She slowly brought the hand of her draped arm to the mass of black hair that was next to her chest. Her fingers hesitantly combed through the hair.
"Who is this kid," she thought. "Why is he here with me? Why am I here with him? I think it is a he."
In order to see this young human better, she gradually began to lift her body up with her other arm. But she stopped almost as soon as she started. Her body felt so heavy and unusual. Rather than looking at the child, she looked down at herself. Her eyes widened with shock, and her breath caught once again. She reluctantly brought her hand to her stomach, but as soon as it made contact, she shot up into a sitting position, which she soon regretted as a wave of nausea and lightheadedness hit her. When she recovered, she looked back down at her stomach in disbelief.
"It's so huge," she murmured into the night air. The woman looked to the sleeping child and back to her swollen belly and then back to the child again.
"I…I…Oh…what in the world is happening to you, Sheena Fujibayashi." She quietly and tiredly said to herself. She buried her face into her quivering hands.
"Mommy, are you okay?" A little voice asked.