Revelations

Love, M.K. thought, is not the word for this feeling.

Because who in their right mind would be in love with him. Nod, that stupid idiot who had, once again, gotten himself hurt doing stupid tricks, on his stupid half dead bird. It had happened more often since she had left the company of the leafmen: Nod getting hurt doing something he shouldn't, and coming to her for comfort. Not that she cared what happened to him. Because she wasn't in love with him.

And yet here she was, holding Nod's small form in her hand, placing him gently on a small bed she had made just for him out of scraps of bedding. It sat on her desk, and as she placed his sleeping form down, she sat in her chair and thought.

Nod was of course still healing from his fall. He had been showing off to some of the new leafmen and gotten himself knocked unconscious. It seemed so unlike him to make such a stupid mistake. He was always so graceful and full of energy, always jumping and fighting with 100% of all his ability. She had seen him fly, he was one of the best.

Just goes to show you how much you don't know about him stupid. Her thoughts were right. You can't love someone you don't know. And yes, they had talked over video chat in the forest, and Nod would leave little messages on the trees for her, but they still never talked face to face much, and she hadn't been around him much to begin with.

No, this thing with Nod, this thing that made her hold him tenderly and carefully, the thing in her chest that sometimes couldn't get over how it had felt to hold him, that couldn't be love. It had to be something like pity, or- at worst- just a silly crush. It was much closer to friendship than love, because it was impossible to be head over heels for this tiny annoying person who kept her up at all hours watching over him to see if he woke up.

M.K. kept these thoughts going even as she closed her eyes and slept.

Nod awoke to find himself in pain. Not that he hadn't expected that of course. He had knocked himself on the head and fallen down to the forest floor, spraining his wrist in the process. He supposed he should be more grateful. He had heard of leafmen dying of less. But it still hurt, and the pain had woken him up from his sleep.

Sitting up and looking around, Nod realized he was in M.K.'s room. She had placed him on the little bed she had built, and covered him in scraps of soft fabric to keep him warm. A small pang went off in hes heart at the thoughtfulness of the girl, only to become stronger when he looked over at her sleeping face.

She was beautiful for a stomper. What little experience he had of them made them all seem like clamoring idiots who couldn't keep themselves from getting hurt. But M.K. had been different. She didn't really stomp around like her father, she was careful to tread lightly. She would look around with her green eyes, green as the forest, and see things that the other stompers wouldn't. She would Noticethe forest. She would see the way that the trees and the plant were all connected. If that was a side affect of being small and noticing it firsthand, it would make sense. But it was still amazing.

Nod groaned. Stupid thoughts. Thinking this way was, admittedly, how he had gotten himself hurt. He had been thinking about her and the way she talked to him and challenged him. The way that she would hold him when they visited each other, her hands warm and soft. She was so much different than the others, so much more…

Shaking his head, Nod walked over to her, shaking himself out of the perfectly warm blankets. He was so much smaller than her. She was a giant and he was a simple ant to her. A trickle of depression was warming its way into him now. She had a different life. one that would, eventually, lead her away from him and the forest. It was only a matter of time.

Why am I thinking this? The question had been bothering him, along with these thought, since M.K. had shown up with the pod so long ago. It was ridiculous really. Nod was the kind of guy who didn't have much of anything on his mind at any given time. And yet this girl had found a way to be on his mind nearly every day since they met. It was unnerving the way he couldn't forget about her smile, her voice, her lips against his…

With a huff, Nod spun around and nearly dove back into the blankets of the little bed, hoping sleep could dispel these thoughts, but knowing, on some subconscious level, that it wouldn't.

When, in the morning, M.K. found Nod still laying there, she was at first happy, then sad, then a little annoyed. Happy, because Nod was there, and he seamed to be recovering just fine. Sad, because she knew that he would have to leave soon, but for some reason, she wanted him to stay. And that sentiment, the desire for him to be around longer that he needed to be, made her annoyed with herself. He was simply a crush, their feeling brought together by the sudden events that the late queen had set in motion. Nothing more.

And yet, some distant part of her mind started to think, his smile lights up your world, and you can't get him out of your mind. You want him here with you. This thought floored her, and she got up from her seat at the desk and walked to the bathroom to brush her teeth, looking to distract herself from thoughts of tiny forest people, Nod, and, god forbid, love.

But think about it, that dangerous part of her mind was still there. He's important to you. you think about him all the time. You can't keep ignoring this feeling inside of your hear every time you see him. You DO love Nod.

Part of her wanted to fight it. She wanted nothing more than to keep going with her life as it was, to keep herself from thinking this was. Part of her wanted to simply quit, to avoid all of this pain and uneasiness and just go live in the city again. To just leave all of these issues behind and bury them deep in her heart.

But another part of her was winning the fight. It was her heart, that traitorous thing that kept beating faster every time she talked to Nod. She remembered his smile down to the last detail. She recalled all the times that she had stayed up past midnight, waiting to see if he had called, and then being more than happy when he did. She could feel it now, the emotion that had been threatening to kill her this whole time.

It was love, and it was for none other than that idiot Nod.

A small smile crept over her lips. She had never been in love before. It was different, not like those petty crushes of the past. It was fuller somehow, more tangible. And it had the power to give her a goofy smile like the one she had now.

The smile that, as she kept thinking, was starting to fade away. She was in love, not with some boy from her class, or some heartthrob she had met on the street. She loved Nod, the two inch tall leafman who lived in the forest and rode around on tiny birds for crying out loud. He was practically an insect, they couldn't even really talk to each other without technology, let alone kiss…

Once again, M.K. derailed her thoughts. She could think about this later. Right now she had to check on Nod, make sure he was OK. But as she was walking out of the bathroom, she could still feel a small pain in her heart.

Morning came, and Nod realized that it was time for him to go. He had left yesterday to see M.K., without telling Ronan, though he had probably guessed where Nod had gone. Looking around, Nod found that M.K. wasn't there, and that stupid pang went off in his heart again, this time with disappointment. He had, for some reason, wanted to see her when he woke up. Shaking his head, he quickly got up and prepared to leave.

He had preped himself to go. His swords were in place, his helmet was on, and he was seconds away from calling his bird, when M.K. walked in. She didn't notice him at first-he could see she had something on her mind-and her face was so… sad. Like whatever she was thinking was so painful that it was physically hurting her.

The pang in his heart multiplied. He didn't want to see her sad. He want to see her beautiful smile, her green eyes lighting up at some funny comment he made. It was hurting him to see her frown. And that's when he knew.

Nod loved M.K. It was obvious. All of his thoughts since meeting her were clouded with her image, her voice, her very being. He was in love with her smile, in love with her kindness, in love with her simple yet adventurous nature. He was in love with her.

And right now his love was sad, in a heart crushing way. Without thinking he made a leap toward her, landing lightly on her shoulder. She made a start, obviously startled, but Nod did't care. All he cared about was the small smile that came to her lips at seeing him.

As long as he could make her happy again, Nod knew that he would stick by M.K.'s side.