This is a story about a boy and a girl.

The boy and the girl both came from a primitive tribe; a group of people who isolated themselves from any form of civilization. The tribe lived next to a lush, green forest.

The boy and the girl loved the forest. Together, in secret, they would sneak out to spend their evenings playing in the woods, against the warnings of the tribe elders. They said the forest was a dark and dangerous place, run by a devious forest sprite.

The boy and the girl found it hard to believe that such a beautiful place could be dangerous.

They would spend hours together with nature – frolicking in green meadows, swinging from tree to tree, dancing in showers of pink blossoms and swimming in warm waters made silver by moonlight streaming between branches. Then they would sneak back in the dead of night, stifling giggles, slipping into their crude beds and falling asleep quickly, dreaming of whole days spent in the forest. They'd try to keep their nightly visits from the adults; dry themselves off or clean themselves up as best they could, but occasionally a petal in their hair or twigs snagged on their clothes would give their secret away. Despite scoldings and punishments, they never stopped visiting the forest, never regretting a moment spent in each other's company.

Until one day.

"Hey, boss? What are you doing?"

I sighed. Toby may have been my best friend, and my protégé, but sometimes he did ask daft questions. Scratch that – he asked stupid things a lot of the time, not just sometimes. I wouldn't mind so much, only I was sure that I'd asked not to be disturbed less than an hour ago. His attention span was shorter than that, apparently. I was sitting in my favourite tree – a wiry but strong willow whose branches, teeming with leaves fresh and green, dipped into the glass pond below – watching a figure moving in the distance. I don't spy on mortals, you understand, but I have a right to know what's going on and who's in my forest at any one time. Most of them I didn't mind – the spaceman, the dwarf, the scientist, the poolboy, the owlkeeper, the mage – as long as they were respectful here, I was indifferent to their presence. Toby even agreed to leave 'those railway people' alone if they paid us a visit – despite engaging in hostilities with them previously. I was even happy to see some of them – the mage's apprentice, while…different, shared a similar interest in nature (especially mushrooms, for whatever reason) as Toby and I did, not to mention she's a little more talkative than either of her two colleagues; the mage (whose words are muffled by his mask anyway) and the dinosaur (who doesn't seem to have much to say).

But some people's presence here I would need to rectify. The nefarious SipsCo duo was certainly not welcome here. They only spread destruction and pollution wherever they went, and they would do the same to my forest if they got the opportunity. Still, they had some inkling of sense, since they hadn't bothered me in months. In fact, the hulking shape in the forest now was one I didn't recognize at all, which was why I had taken it upon myself to observe them from a distance, on the off chance they started causing problems. As they moved further away from my vantage point and closer to the lake buried deeper within the forest, I took the opportunity to turn to my protégé in slight irritation.

"I thought I said no interruptions?" I reminded him. "I'm a little busy here."

He grinned sheepishly. "Sure, I know that, boss, but I've got something important to tell you."

I sighed and jumped down from the tree, landing gracefully beside him. This had better be good to distract me from such an important matter. "Well, come on then. What is it?"

He smiled cheekily, digging both of his hands into his front hoodie pocket, clearly happy with himself. "Well boss, I was just chilling in the woods, minding my own business, you know, usual stuff…"

"Are you going to get to the point before I die of old age?" I interrupted. I was anxious to return to the business of the mysterious stranger who had entered my domain.

His eyes brightened. "I saw someone, boss! Someone in the forest! Someone…new!"

I groaned. "Yes, Toby. I already bloody knew that. What do you think I've been doing for the last hour?" I gestured towards the tree for a moment.

His eyes dropped to floor, a guilty look on his face as he rubbed the back of his head. "Oh…right. Sorry, boss."

I rolled my eyes at him, before having a sudden thought. "No, it's okay, don't worry about it. In fact, you can help me deal with them."

"'Deal'…with them?" he asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"Nothing, nothing. It's probably not going to come to anything. We just need to say hello to our…visitor." I caught his unsure expression. "I mean, just to explain to them who they're dealing with. Or rather, what they're dealing with. Right?" I gestured around to explain myself fully. Toby followed my hand. We were in a clearing, surrounded by trees covered in luscious leaves and tiny flowers, now beginning to bloom and burst, like tiny explosions of vibrant colour. Toby knew how protective I was of my forest, how much it meant to me. A quick glance around this tiny portion of it was enough of a reason to investigate the stranger. We had to make sure they posed no threat to this beauty. And if they did…they would have to be dealt with.

Swiftly.

We ran and swung through the treetops at a quick but quiet pace. Toby ran on ahead, while I remained close behind, forging a path through the tangles and brambles of the trees. Toby's many years in my service had meant that he was adept at climbing and swift at leaping from tree to tree, but none were faster or more skilled in this regard than me, thanks to the forest literally responding to my every move, redefining its paths and its limits around me to make my journey as smooth as possible. Adept though he was, Toby was still just a human (sort of) so I took it upon myself to create an untroubled path for the both of us; making bark rougher so he could get a better grip, taking away prickles from creeping vines so he wouldn't get snagged and caught on them, that kind of thing.

The boy and the girl ran through the forest, barefoot against the dewy grass. They held hands, swinging their arms and laughing until they reached the trees. They let go of each other, darting in-between tree trunks thick and thin. The boy surged ahead.

Eventually we reached the lake. I was becoming increasingly concerned. Buried deep within the forest, this part of the woods was especially beautiful, completely untouched by outsiders, rarely visited even by Toby or me. Something here just felt so special, so sacred. Pink petals rained down from the sky with even the slightest hint of wind; floating like slow drifting boats on the otherwise undisturbed water. The trees here were dark-barked and gnarled, their stringy but strong branches almost touching the floor; ancient entities older even than me, certainly older than this host. Toby and I remained crouched in the tallest tree, hidden by the thick branches and blossom. Our uninvited guest burst through a curtain of flowers into the clearing, and we got a proper look at her.

She was a most peculiar creature. How strange that she was dressed in animal skins and walked barefoot, like some savage tribesman – and yet her hair was long and flowing; a vibrant pink colour – as bright a pink as the blossom around us – running down her back, stopping just above her waist, like a cloak. Her skin was pale, her frame skinny – but she had pleasant features; her eyes wide and blue and bright, a soft and friendly face even in its current expression of worry and apprehension.

Some part of me twanged with a sense of familiarity – I thought for a moment that I recognized her. I frowned as I tried to place her – but surely I would remember someone as strange as this?

"She doesn't look like much." Toby's voice snapped me back to reality. I focused again on her face, but the feeling of recognition eluded me. I must have been mistaken – not for the first time and certainly not for the last. I shook my head and mumbled something in response, adjusting myself on the branch so I lay on my front. Toby crossed his legs as he sat on the branch opposite, just barely keeping his balance.

I narrowed my eyes. "Wait, what's that in her hand?" Toby followed my gesture. The girl clutched in her hand a small, dark grey box. A soft blue light flashed on and off, partly concealed by her clinging fingers.

Before Toby could reply or I could guess, the girl spoke. She called out, in a gentle but urgent tone. "Hello? Hello! Can you hear me?"

"Should we respond?" Toby asked, leaning forward slightly to allow me to hear his lowered voice. I held up my hand to stop him moving.

"Wait a moment. We don't know it's us she's talking to." I said, though her next statement contradicted me slightly.

"I request the presence of the forest sprite!" she called out, before dropping down to her knees and bowing her head. "May I be granted the honor of your company?"

I looked around at Toby, to see that he wore the same confused expression as me. While we were both something more than a mortal, no one had gone quite this far in recognizing – in fact, downright praising – our power. Even the more respectful humans were viewed by us as friends, rather than servants; something lower than us. Was this girl part of some kind of…religion? A cult?

She glanced around hopefully, but when all she received in response was a rustling of the leaves, she continued to call out her bizarre requests. I nudged Toby. "Go down there."

"Why me?" he complained, crossing his arms.

"In case she's dangerous." I explained, turning to him moodily.

"I don't think that's a very good reason!" Toby replied, irritated. "Why don't we just leave her be?"

"Look, she clearly wants something..."

"Yes. She wants you to go down there."

"…but she's not going to leave unless she gets it. Now stop being such a big baby – just go down there and see what she wants." I saw him open his mouth to protest, but a quick snap of my fingers and the branch he sat on retracted itself into the thick trunk of the tree. He tumbled down the tree, cursing me all the way as he landed flat on his back. The girl jumped to her feet in surprise as Toby sat up, rubbing the back of his pained head as he cast an acidic glance up into the tree, up to me.

Toby clambered to his feet, muttering abuse, before he noticed the worried-looking girl staring straight at him. He held his hands up, speaking in a friendly, reassuring tone. "Hey hey hey, don't panic. My name's Toby. I'm not going to hurt you."

The girl, panicked, began stumbling backwards, frightened. She swallowed, deep and nervous. "Are…are you the forest sprite?"

Toby scratched the back of his head again, awkwardly. "Well, not exactly." He caught the girl's slightly disappointed expression. "I know him though."

The girl narrowed her eyes, looking him up and down suspiciously. "You…know him?"

Toby nodded, enthused. "Yeah. I'm kind of like his wingman." The girl still looked suspicious of him. "Honestly, I'm telling the truth. He doesn't like talking to humans that much. That's why he sent me out instead."

The girl tightened her grip around the strange grey box. "What are you if not human?" she asked, raising a delicately arched eyebrow.

"It's a long story." Toby said simply, digging his hands into his pockets. He sighed deeply. Something I'd always noticed about Toby, and something the girl was noticing now, was that his face was young and yet his eyes were so old and tired.

The girl's own eyes softened, her face relaxing. She lowered her voice, speaking half to Toby, and half to the box she held in her hand, gazing down at the device dreamily. "Look…I don't know if you are who you say you are. But…I don't know…something about you…it's strange, but I feel as if we've met before."

Toby cocked his head. "No, I don't think we have."

"No. No, I suppose not." The girl muttered, focusing on him entirely. "But something just tells me I can trust you, so you'd better not let me down." She outstretched her arm, holding the grey box out to him. "Please give this to the forest sprite. It's a gift from my tribe."

Toby took it cautiously, inspecting it once he held it in his own hands. "What is it, exactly?"

She shrugged. "We don't really know, but it's different from anything we've seen before, so it's special. It's precious. We wanted to give it to the forest sprite in order to show our appreciation for what he's done here."

For what…I'd done? Did she mean the forest? No one had ever given me gifts before.

Toby was equally baffled. "Uh…sure…I'll…I'll give to him, yeah. I'm sure he'll really like it."

The girl gave a small smile. "Thank you. It really…means a lot to us." Toby was still inspecting the object curiously before he noticed the girl drifting away, back to the edge of the clearing, about to enter the thick of the forest.

"Wait!" he called. The girl stopped. "Sorry…I don't even know your name."

She blushed, sweeping a lock of pink hair out of her eye, scraping it away from her rosy cheek. "My name is Kaeyi. Kaeyi Dream."

"Come on, Kaeyi, keep up!" The boy called, as the girl began to lose sight of him in the thick of the forest. She dodged around silvery trees, darting between small gaps, but he was faster and stronger, at one with the woods as he sprinted further and further ahead. She was about to call out to him to slow down.

Then she saw the shape.

A black blur, streaking through the forest, ducking and weaving through the trees much faster than she could even attempt. Maybe even faster than the boy. Her call caught in her throat as she skidded to a halt, paralyzed with fear.

I leant against a rough-barked but comfortable log on the very edge of the forest that night, inspecting the box more closely. Attempts at opening it had failed, so now I just found myself running my fingers over the smooth metal, examining the markings. Neither Toby nor I could work out what it was, and though perhaps we should have been more suspicious about it, not much was convincing me that it was anything other than a good natured gift. The girl was a mortal, certainly, but something about her…I don't know. I just trusted her.

I pushed the box aside, burying it slightly in the damp earth so the blinking blue lights didn't disturb me too much while I tried to rest. I found myself thinking about the girl – she dominated my thoughts. Not even just her – silly things about her; her pink hair, her delicate but defined features, her pale skin, her gentle voice…

I stopped myself. I should care for the forest more than a mortal. I began thinking about flowers to distract myself. Any old flowers. Just something other than her.

"Martyn?!" the girl finally managed to screech. When she heard nothing in response, she, despite the throbbing pain in her chest, began running after the dark figure and the boy.

She ran until she reached the other side of the forest.

I awoke with a start, to see Toby shaking me by the shoulder urgently.

"Boss! Boss! Come on, you've got to get up! Now!" he cried, his brown eyes wide and scared. I clutched at him, heaving myself up.

"Toby? What…what's happening?" I said, trying to force myself awake, blinking my heavy eyes.

He shook his head, his chocolate hair falling over his eyes in doing so. "No time to explain. We need to get out of here!"

"Why…what's…?" I began, but I stopped when I glanced over his shoulder. Against the blue-black sky I saw them. Thundering towards us, orange flames flickering in their hands. I watched them coming towards us, fixated for a moment, until Toby gave me a firm shove which snapped me out of it.

"Boss! Move!" he ordered, and for once in my life I obeyed, heaving myself up and scrabbling around for the box. I dug my fingers into the cool earth, feeling around blindly in the dark. Where was it? Panic begin to rise in my chest, my heart thumping loud in my ears. For some reason the box felt precious. Irreplaceable. Where had it gone?

"Boss? Come on!" Toby yelled, tugging on my arm. "What are you doing?!"

"The box!" I cried. "I'm looking for the bloody box!"

"It's too late for that, boss! Just leave it!" he yanked forcefully on my t-shirt, pulling me away from my search. I wanted to protest, to explain the strange feeling I had that insisted I protect the gift from the mysterious girl, the only connection to her, but the instinctive truth was that I valued my life far more than some box. I took off after Toby, who had already disappeared into the thick brush.

I knew where he was headed anyway.

We reached the sanctuary, leaving the crazed pyromaniac mob miles behind. Their large size was intimidating, but not practical. They travelled slowly, unable to move through the thick trees either quickly or effectively. Even so, I knew I would lose a part of my forest today. I felt the trees keeling over and dying, their roots scorched and their bark burnt away. The leaves tasted smoke.

We sat in silence for an uncomfortable while. Toby glanced at me warily.

"Hey…uh…boss? Do you want me to go and…survey the damage?"

I shook my head. I already felt the damage inside.

"Oh." He said. "Well…do you want me to go and see if they're still there?"

Another shake. Accompanied by a grunt this time.

"Do you want me to ask around and find out who did it?"

Shake.

"Do you want me to do anything?"

I sighed. "Toby. Go do whatever you want. Just do it away from here. I need to be alone."

Despite my blunt tone, he nodded and spoke softly, understandingly. "Sure thing boss. Whatever you need." He got up and wandered slowly away, into the trees. I watched as a petal dropped down, making ripples on the lake, disrupting his retreating reflection. I sighed and leant back against the tree, surrounding myself in blossom, trying to block out the screams of nature in my head. My eyes slid shut once again.

"Martyn?!" a voice suddenly said, jolting me awake. I blinked and looked around. Through the grey-blue mist of an early morning dawn, I saw the darkened pink of the girl's hair against the acid pink of the flowers around her. I scrambled to my feet, suddenly defensive. It was her, the same girl from before – same pink hair, same soft voice, same beautiful face; the one that plagued my dreams. She looked at me, aghast. I frowned at her. No one had referred to me by that name before…had they…?

"You're the forest sprite, aren't you?" she asked, approaching me slowly. As she got closer, I examined her features closer – they still throbbed with familiarity, a sense of recognition swelling up inside me. Where had I seen this girl before?!

"It's you…isn't it?" she said, her voice cracked. "Martyn?!"

"Martyn?!" the girl finally managed to screech. When she heard nothing in response, she, despite the throbbing pain in her chest, began running after the dark figure and the boy.

She ran until she reached the other side of the forest.

"Kaeyi?!" the boy tried to say, muffled as the hooded figure covered his mouth and disappeared into the dark.

Something exploded within me. I felt searing hot tears welling up in my eyes…but they were not my own…but they were…

"Kaeyi?" I croaked, and again, the words were being spoken through my mouth, but by someone else…and yet I felt like I meant it. She clasped her hands over her mouth for a moment, before launching herself at me, throwing her arms around me in a gigantic hug. I froze. No mortal had ever…embraced me…before. Why was she so fearless? Why did I know her?

She pulled away, tears in her eyes as she traced over my face with her soft fingers. "Oh…Martyn…I thought I'd never see you again…it's been so long…and I…" she smiled and shook her head, taking short breaths, clearly caught in an effort not to cry. I shrugged and eased her arms off my shoulders.

"I feel as though I know you from somewhere…and yet…I don't know where from…" I saw her eyes go wide and sad and regretted my words instantly.

"Martyn…it's me. Kaeyi?" her eyes watered again, from sadness this time, a terrible sight. "Don't you…remember me?"

"Kaeyi?!" the boy tried to say, muffled as the hooded figure covered his mouth and disappeared into the dark.

I suddenly realized something. In fact, many somethings.

"Sit down." I said, pointing at the base of the tree. She dropped to the floor, holding onto my hand so I was half-taken with her. All of the puzzle pieces had fallen into place for me – now all that was left was to explain it to the gir…Kaeyi. Kaeyi was her name.

I sat down next to her, memories once suppressed and buried flooding into my mind. "So, my name is Martyn?"

She frowned. "Of course it is."

I shook my head. "No. This host's name is Martyn. This body's name is Martyn. The forest sprite – the creature inside – has no name. I have no name. Well…I mean, I do, technically. My name is Chisanamorinonaka. But very few people know what that translates to, so…."

"'In the little wood.'" She said, matter-of-factly. I stared at her, mouth agape, eyes wide.

"That language is lost to all…"

"…but a handful of people. My tribe is the handful." She said, surprisingly cheery.

I gave a wan smile. "I am an ancient and powerful entity. However, I am a symbiotic being, completely dependent on my host. This is how I have survived for so long. My being in a host's body slows their aging, but it is necessary for me to change hosts when one grows too weak and frail to support me any longer."

"You're a parasite?" she asked, and I noticed the slight tone of disgust in her voice.

"It is a simple fact of my being. I do what I can to survive." I said, monotone. "The fact is, if I die, the forest dies. Not just this forest. I mean all forests. All trees. All plantlife." Her eyes widened. "Do you understand why it is not difficult for me to use one host if it will keep the entire planet alive?" I asked, but I did not expect a response. I did not get one either.

"And you chose Martyn." She said. It was not a question.

"I was weak. Close to death. We were desperate. We saw him running through the forest, at one with the wildlife, so young and strong…so we had to take him."

"And by 'we' I presume you mean you and your 'wingman'?"

"Who, Toby? He's a friend, as well as my first host. He ensures my survival, and safe integration to a new host. Think of him as my…supervisor."

"So…not a 'wingman'?"

"Not really."

She laughed softly. I could sense something – something other than what we'd already said – was troubling her.

"I could have destroyed everything tonight." She murmured under her breath. She looked straight me, bleary-eyed. "Please forgive me."

"For what? You've done noth–"

"It's all my fault. I tried to ask what it did, I swear. But they were so secretive…wouldn't tell me anything…wouldn't say a word…"

"What are you talking about?"

Her eyes were wide and solemn. "I'm sorry. The box I gave you…it was a tracking device."

I froze up. "A what?"

"It tells them where you are. They wanted to kill you…I'm sorry…I'm sorry…" she was beginning to cry again. "Your…Martyn's parents never recovered…they left the tribe and turned to science. They told me to give the box to you so they could destroy the forest. They wanted to find their boy…" she said, before she began sobbing. "I didn't know what it was…I'm sorry…"

"No…it's alright." I said, gently. I placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay…but the box has gone. Where is it?"

"I took it."

I pulled away, suddenly, sharply. "You took it?! Where?!" my voice was forceful, urgent.

"Far away from here." She said. Her gaze drifted downwards. "But…but they caught me." She rubbed her shoulder, and it looked like it hurt her.

I narrowed my eyes. "What did they do?"

She didn't respond, eyes fixed on the ground.

"Let me see." I said, very gently pulling down on the skins covering her shoulder. Down her back I saw great lash marks – caused by slapping leather, or a whip of some kind – beaten and bloody gashes bleeding scarlet. I gasped, and she hitched the clothes up instinctively. "It's nothing. I'm alright." She muttered a couple of times, when she very clearly wasn't. Her captors had been savage, merciless creatures, beating this poor girl and letting her crawl away, bloodied and weakened into the forest they had sought to destroy. And what had she done? She had protected the forest, and all the life within it – including my own.

That sounded like the sort of lengths only I would go to.

Taking care not to press against her gaping wounds, I threw my arms around her in my own hug. She had protected the forest, my home – but most importantly she had protected this place we sat in now.

The boy and the girl sat under the trees together, holding hands, their feet dipped in the warm waters.

"Sometimes I just want to stay here forever." The boy said.

The girl agreed. "One day, we will. Together."

The boy nodded. "Pinky swear."

And they did so.

And now I understood why this place in particular was so precious to me.

Because it was precious to us.

I outstretched my hand, and a branch uncoiled from the tree, reaching down to us. "Hold still." I whispered to Kaeyi, rubbing the tree's oil against her back tenderly. She whimpered slightly at first, but then curled up in my arms. I rested my chin on her soft pink hair, smelling sweeter than any flower in the forest. "Consider this place your sanctuary." I murmured, just barely loud enough for her to hear.

I felt her nod. "Your sanctuary too. We'll stay here together forever, Inthelittlewood."

I nudged her. "Inthelittlewood…also known as Martyn."

I felt the trees smiling as we did.

This is a story about a boy and a girl.

The girl never lost her love of the forest. Or the boy.

A/N: Here's a tip: never try to write something in stupid-degree heat when you're really ill. It does not bode well.

This took an embarrassingly long time, but it's here now! An inthelittledream (hard to believe there aren't more of these on le interwebs) as the final request from SilverG64. Hope you enjoy!

AJ