Based off of "The Willow Maid" by Erutan Music. I would not recommend listening to the music or watching the music video until the end. Unless you'd like to spoil this story for yourself.
The young man wiped the sweat off of his brow as he traipsed through the forest. The overhead trees filtered out most of the noon sun but it did little to fight off the summer heat and humid hung thickly in the air.
He grimaced. It was unusual for the weather to be as hot as it was, even during the summer. He was sure that if he had dressed in his usual thicker clothing, he would have collapsed already. Taking a swing from the leather water pouch that hung at his side, he wiped his mouth and continued on.
It was his father's idea to send him out into the forest to find the source of the heat. Like most of the town, the man had believed the unusual heat to be the work mischievous fairies as revenge for cutting down a small portion of the forest without leaving an offering in return. As the son of one of the more well-known families, he was expected to ease the troubles of the town. On top of that, other men had refused to come along and used the excuse that unlike him, they relied on working daily to make a living and couldn't spare a day to go on a fairy chase. He knew, however, that it was merely a cover up for their fear. No one in their right mind would go chasing after fairies. Who knows what they'd do to any poor human who came their way?
Adrien, which was the young man's name, grimaced and swatted some bugs from his face. Truth be told, he hadn't wanted to go either. He would have been far happier staying inside the family estate to wait out the heat but his father had been very insistent and the town mayor's daughter, Chloe, had been pushy, declaring that the problem would be quickly solved if Adrien was the one who went.
Which is how he was chosen to investigate. He wasn't expecting to actually find anything; fairies and the like were notoriously hard to find if they wished to stay hidden. Only the most unfortunate travelers ran into fairies and only a fool went looking for them.
He gripped his hunting bow tightly in one hand. His quiver of arrows was slung comfortably across his shoulders. He had figured that if he was to be forced out into the forest, he might as well make the time useful by hunting small game. Not that he needed any, of course. His family was richer than most and it was more of a sport than a way of living for him.
Hearing a slight shuffling off to one side, Adrien froze. Careful to not make a sound, he slowly turned his head towards the source of the noise.
At first glance, he was unable to locate the noise. After a few seconds, however, he noticed a tiny movement, partially hidden by the springy ferns of the forest floor. A small brown rabbit was digging away at the forest undergrowth, its furry tail turned towards him.
Slowly and silently, Adrien pulled out a wooden arrow from his quiver. As he turned his body to fully face the animal, his finger tested the point of the arrow. He'd hardened the arrow in fire and sharpened it himself a few days earlier. Satisfied with the point, he nocked it to bowstring and drew back.
The rabbit never saw it coming.
Adrien smiled at the kill before walking over and retrieving his arrow from the body. It was a one-shot kill. He picked up his kill and shoved it inside his small game sack which he then returned to his waist.
He was about to begin walking once again when a particular sound caught his attention. Frowning, the young man straightened up and looked around.
A very faint, but audible nonetheless, voice carried over the forest sounds. The words were unclear and it was difficult to tell which direction the voice came from but he could tell that it was a young woman singing.
Curious, he cast away the years of warnings of fairies that his father had drilled into him and began walking further into the forest. He wasn't sure if he was walking towards the right direction but logically, it would he from deeper into the forest if it truly came from a fairy. He had no fear of getting lost. Part of his upbringing included training in this very forest and not once had he seen any evidence of fairies or the like, which was probably the reason why he could tread so fearlessly.
His guess was correct. Within ten meters or so, he was confident he was walking towards the right direction. The voice was slightly louder now, the sweet song blending in and out of the forest sounds. It sounded as if it were one with the forest itself; the words of the song unintelligible to him yet sounded completely natural at the same time. He picked up his pace now, eager to find the source.
He knew that he was playing a dangerous game; it was well known that the call of the supernatural was made to be tempting to humans and, more often than not, fatal. But even if the warnings were given to him at that moment they would have fallen upon deaf ears.
He moved swiftly. He was still within the area that he was familiar with and knew that if he continued the path he took, he would soon cross paths with a small pond surrounded by willow trees.
The song was clear now. A beautiful melody, quick at times but gentle. The soft voice which sung it seemed to be accompanied by the breeze itself, luring him closer and closer. Underneath his feet, the vegetation changed from springy plants to a dull green grass with areas of brown where soil could be seen. Sturdier plants replaced bushes and he brushed them aside as he sprinted towards the song. Willow trees gradually surrounded him and he nearly ran into a couple as he the ground began to incline downwards and his footing became unsteady upon the slope.
He slowed to a jog, then a walk. And finally, a stop. He could see the pond now, but that wasn't the reason for his stop. A ring of red toadstools, a little less than a dozen meters across, surrounded a single willow tree. A fairy ring.
It was then that he finally hesitated. If there was any uncertainty about whether or not he was following a fairy song or not, it was now dispelled. There was nothing that was a clearer giveaway of fairy activity than a fairy ring which he now stood in front of. Tales of men stepping into one and being trapped by the fairy within often came up during long winter nights and very few of such tales ended well for the human. There was no mistake; the voice was coming from within the ring of mushrooms.
Adrien took a deep breath. Even he wasn't impulsive enough to simply stroll into the ring. And yet...the voice continued to tempt him.
And like most young people, Adrien was never one to resist temptation.
Author's Note:
Wow. I should really finish my other stories first.
In my defense, I tried working on A Minute Until Midnight but YouTube autoplay introduced me to this song and I couldn't focus without writing this first.
I'm not sure if I'll continue this since I've never written an AU before and I don't know how most people feel about them…
BUT until/unless I say that I will not continue this story for sure, I would not recommend looking up the song this is based on just yet since I'm planning on trying to follow the song as much as I can.
Reviews make me smile :)