AN: This hasn't come out exactly like I had planned... Ah well, hope you still like it.

There had always been a rumor of a spirit that resided in the forest. It was never seen, but it was said that one could feel his presence somewhere nearby if you stood still among the trees. Some said it was a gentle spirit that nurtured the many animals that found refuge there. Another might tell of the spirit having a mischievous streak and would torment travelers by making them become lost and circling for hours. There were even fearful tales of the spirit becoming vengeful if it thought you were being disrespectful to its lands.

No one was sure how these stories came to be, but they were continually whispered among the locals that lived in the small village just outside. They would gather in the darkened tavern and exchange the tales that they heard of travelers who thought taking the path that led through the forest would save them time on their journeys. It wouldn't matter if the stories ended with the person never leaving and succumbing to the cruel fate bestowed by the protective spirit, only that they were true and came from the most reliable of sources. It was in this manner, that those who were smart would take the path that led around the forest, rather adding a few extra days to a trip rather than losing their lives in the forest.

But smart would not necessarily be the first word to describe the three that decided to take the forest path this day. A touch young and fool hardy, they saw the rumors as just that, rumors and not be taken seriously. There were no spirits that haunted those woods, and they marched forward without hesitation to enter its depths.

That is not to say that what they had heard did not reside in the backs of their minds. The occasional stirring of a branch or rustle of the wind would cause them to jump, but they would laugh at the fright they had received, and attempt to prove who was more frightened.

The trio soon reached the midway point and they relaxed considerably. If they had made it this far without incident, then it would prove that the existence of spirits to be false. They let their guards down and that was when another rustle caused them to freze where they stood.

The albino, Gilbert, recovered first and turned to his friends with a laugh. "Look at the two of you! Getting all worked up over something like that. What? Afraid the rabbit is going to come out and eat you?"

The blonde, Francis, became poised and indifferent. "I was not as afraid as Antonio."

The brunette, Antonio, shook his head. "You could not prove-"

A branch snapped directly behind them and all three began to shake. Gilbert tried to sound confident, but the slight quiver to his voice betrayed him. "It was nothing…"

Francis shifted closer to his friends, his blue eyes darting and searching the dark spaces between the trees. "Perhaps we should keep moving?"

"I agree." Antonio began, but there was another rustle and the cracking of a branch combined with the creaking and groaning of the trees as they seemed to move closer to the huddled trio. Gilbert stood frozen, terror making it impossible for his limbs to move even when he realized that Francis and Antonio were taking off into the trees without him. He tried to call after them and force them to stop but his voice caught and they soon disappeared into the dense vegetation. The trees continued to creak and groan and he became aware of a presence approaching from behind. His mind raced, the only clear thought being that the stories had been true and now he was facing the wrath of a vengeful spirit. Running was no longer an option, the only thing left to do was to face whatever this thing was and fight it if possible. When he was sure whatever it was felt close enough, he took a deep breath and spun around quickly.

Of all the things that Gilbert could have imagined, nothing could have prepared him for what stood before him. A gentle smile and curious violet eyes captivated him and a soft voice that seemed a part of the wind that echoed through the trees. "Hello" he greeted the albino traveler, and Gilbert's pink eyes took in all of the stranger. He looked young, but not too much younger than Gilbert, his blonde hair had a slight wave to it and he wore long robes of dark browns and greens that reached the ground. He would have passed for normal, except his skin and hair gave off a slight glow if you studied it long enough. No extra limbs, or fierce fangs like many had suspected.

"Wh-who are you?" Gilbert breathed, having some difficulty getting his voice to start again.

The blonde started, then blinked several times. "I am many things."

"But… don't you have a name?" Gilbert tried, feeling a little more at ease.

"A name?" The blonde looked confused and seemed to think about it for a moment. "I… I do like the name Matthew."

"Matthew?" asked incredulously, "that seems really plain-" he caught the disheartened look of the blonde and quickly attempted to recover, "I mean, it suits you very well and it's a great name."

The blonde instantly brightened. "You are strange, but I like you. What is your name?"

"Uh… Gilbert?" he replied.

Matthew tilted his head. "Do you not know?"

"What? Of course I do!" Gilbert protested. "My name is Gilbert, and I am awesome!"

"Awesome?" The blonde looked him over very carefully, studying everything. "What about you is awesome?"

"I just am." Gilbert announced and Matthew seemed to accept this. "What are you? Are you the spirit of the forest?"

Matthew shrugged slowly. "I guess so. I live here and care for everything." He was quiet for a moment, looking hopefully towards the albino. "Would… would you… like to see it?"

Gilbert suddenly felt a bit uneasy. "Are you going to kill me?"

"Wh-What?" The blonde looked shocked, and Gilbert hoped he hadn't seriously upset him.

"You know, like in all the stories." Matthew still looked confused and Gilbert tried to elaborate a bit more. "People come in the forest and never leave again because the forest spirit sends bears after them that eat them and leave the bones for wolves to gnaw on."

Matthew looked slightly sickened by the idea. "Why would I do that?"

"I-I don't know…" His pink eyes roamed the dense leaf cover. "It's just what they say."

"I… See…" The blonde turned sadly away. He faded a bit, Gilbert suddenly being able to make out the outlines of the trees behind him, and the air that surrounded them began to chill. The spaces between the overhanging limbs showed the sky darkening with a threat of rain.

"Hey, wait. You said you were going to show me around, right?" Gilbert tried and the blonde stopped. "Yeah, that sounds pretty awesome."

"Oh. Sure!" Matthew weekly smiled and Gilbert felt relief that things warmed up once again. The spirit began to walk away, leaving the path and heading deeper in the forest and Gilbert had to jog to keep up with the other's swiftly moving steps. The trees bowed, their wooden frames protesting as they did, and stepped aside for the teen as he moved easily ahead. With each stride forward Gilbert caught sight of the bare feet that were hidden beneath of the long hem of his clothes and his steps were silent compared to the loud crunching of Gilbert's heavy boats against the ground.

Gilbert lost track of how far they went, he only knew his breath was more labored from trying to keep up with Matthew's effortless movements, when the blonde suddenly stopped and turned back to him. Matthew's eyes shone and he held up his arms. "This is my home."

Gilbert gasped at the new surroundings. The forest had opened up to reveal a large lake filled with clear sparkling water; he could make out several fish swimming about in its depths from where he stood. The banks were covered in thick lush grass, small flowers poking their heads up from between the blades, turning their brightly colored petals towards the warm rays of sunlight. Animal life quietly filtered in and out of the clearing, predators and prey coexisting in the space and treating it as neutral ground. Gilbert's pink eyes were wide as he took everything in, and he took a step back in surprise when a large white bear sauntered up and stood expectantly behind the blonde.

Matthew giggled and rubbed the bear's head as he looked at Gilbert. "What do you think?"

"It's…" Gilbert looked around again, and held out a hand as a yellow bird approached and landed on his palm. It fluttered its wings and chirped and the albino ran his finger over its head. "It's awesome."

"From you, I will assume that is of the highest praise." Matthew responded, his smile warm and friendly. "Will you join me for a while?"

The bird fluttered away and Gilbert nodded, moving to join the blonde that had chosen a seat on the grass. He watched the water and the life that swam beneath the surface quietly. The blonde studied him carefully before asking, "Is it because you are awesome that you are able to see me?"

"What?" Gilbert stared at the curious expression. "You mean other people can't see you?"

Matthew shook his head. "No, only a few can me, though most can feel me near."

"That must get lonely…" Gilbert stated, and the blonde fidgeted with his hem.

"It's… not all bad. The animals here can see me." Gilbert's face softened and he too looked down.

"I live alone with my brother since our parents died." Gilbert whispered, somehow feeling he could trust the guarded information to the spirit. "I've been on my own for a few years trying to take care of him."

"You have a brother?" Matthew asked, and Gilbert nodded. "What's he like?"

"He's very strict and orderly. Likes things clean and done in timely manner." Gilbert recalled, thinking of his younger brother. The blonde laughed.

"He sounds like a nice brother. Mine is very much the opposite."

Gilbert's eyebrows shot up. "You have a brother?"

"Yes, though he is very noisy and a bit mischievous." The blonde sighed. "He seems to like pranking people who visit." Gilbert laughed loudly and Matthew tentatively joined him. For the time being, Gilbert temporarily forgot about everything outside of the side of the small clearing, spending the entire day with the forest spirit and enjoying the other's company. The daylight was waning when he realized the time and that he needed to make it home and it was reluctance that he informed the blonde of that fact.

Matthew seemed to understand and stood with Gilbert as they both shifted awkwardly next to each other, neither one quite ready to part. Gilbert wasn't sure what came over him so suddenly, but he quickly leaned in and placed a chaste kiss upon the other's soft lips. The blonde pulled back in surprise and stared with wide violet eyes. Gilbert immediately began to regret doing something so forward. "Ah, about that… I didn't mean… I'm sorry about…"

"It's alright." The blonde muttered quietly holding his fingers over his mouth and tracing his lips. "If you come back, could we do that again?"

"You can bet I'll be back." Gilbert smirked, and Matthew returned the gesture. "I'll visit whenever I can."

"I'm glad." The blonde walked away, stepping out onto the lake and walking easily across its surface to the center. "Thank you, Gilbert the Awesome for spending today with me. I look forward to your return." He called back, and Gilbert watched in awe as the blonde form disappeared in swirl of red leaves.

While his eyes took in the spot where his friend had once stood, a single leaf floated towards him and he easily caught the crimson item. "Yeah," Gilbert whispered as he held the leaf close and looked around the clearing once more, "I'll be back."

With that final glance, Gilbert turned and headed back the way he came, the trees stepping aside to lead him back to the path he had been traveling on. His hands unconsciously clenched tighter around the leaf as he walked and thought of everything he had witnessed that day. He couldn't wait until he would be able to visit the forest again.

But with a sigh as he returned to the path and to normality, he began to walk in the direction of the exit. He still had a job to do and a brother to care for and, he reminded himself as he looked around the empty trail, he needed to find his two idiot friends. Hopefully they hadn't gotten themselves lost somewhere.

Pale legs swung back and forth as blue eyes glinted with deviousness from where he sat on the tree limb. The two men he had followed were really making it too easy. They scared easily and would fight with one another over which direction to follow. He had them walking in circles for hours.

"Look! See? I am telling you we passed that tree an hour ago!" The blonde cried, pointing to a tree he had indeed seen before, but no longer sat in the place it had been last.

"We should keep going in this direction and just make sure not to turn! We will either end up back on the path or outside the forest." The brunette shot back, ignoring the other's whine.

The spirit in the tree giggled, and the sound was loud enough to carry down to the men below him and they froze looking around for the unnatural sound, passing over his form that wasn't visible to them. He continued to watch them until a swirl of wind and red leaves signaled the arrival of his brother. He scooted over to allow room for his brother on the branch and Matthew perched comfortably beside him.

"Have you been torturing them all afternoon?" Matthew asked, looking his brother over with questioning eyes.

"Yeah, they are a great form of entertainment." His brother responded and grinned as he watched the brunette grow tired of the blonde's complaints.

"We would actually get somewhere if you didn't stop to fuss over everything!"

Matthew shook his head as he looked on. "You should really let them go. It's almost nightfall and they need to be able to see to move around through here."

"Fine…" his brother grumbled and allowed a few of the trees to shift and direct the pair back towards civilization. They watched them leave in relative silence and when their footsteps and bickering quieted, Matthew sighed and rested his head on his brother's shoulder. Blue eyes regarded him curiously. "What has you acting like this?"

"Oh, nothing." He breathed, unable to stop the smile that played across his face. His brother shrugged as the strange behavior and turned his attention back towards the sky. The sun had begun its descent and the creatures of the day were looking for rest while the ones of the night were awaking. They huddled closer together as they felt the shifting and settling of their forest, and Matthew's mind wandered back to the albino who at that time was arriving home and greeting his younger brother with incredible story that would add to the whispers and rumors of the forest spirits.