The rain pounded down upon the forest trees, diffusing the scent of pine needles and musk throughout the air. Leaves drooped, hanging their heads in defeat as drops of water rhythmically dripped off them and splattered on the muddy ground. Drip-drop, drip-drop, drip-drop. Goodbye-bye, good-bye, good-bye...
Hatsuharu Sohma did not seem to notice that he was soaked to the bone, that there was mud splattered on his flowing white coat, that he was freezing so much his limbs were numb. Instead, he was walking, slowly plodding through the tree trunks, eyes vacant, mind wandering. He should be focused on getting out of the forest – it had been his second day lost in the wilderness – but he couldn't bring himself to the current situation. He didn't even flinch as lightning split the night sky and thunder shook the branches, splattering even more water on him.
He was thinking of her.
The wind sighed, and he saw her flowing black hair rippling in the breeze. Her pale skin would be illuminating, like the moon in the darkest of nights. Her voice was the soft melody of the leaves humming as they were whisked off their branches to dance in the wind. And her eyes... They couldn't be compared to stars; they were too magnificent. They shone more brightly than any physical matter. When he looked into her eyes, he felt like a blind man seeing light for the first time. The two glowing orbs gave him purpose in life, and he would love them forever. Love her forever.
And then she was there in front of him.
He knew he was hallucinating, knew she couldn't possibly be standing there. And yet, he so desperately wanted to believe. He wanted to hold her, to run his hands across her silky skin, through that velvety hair, to press his cold lips to her warm ones, to hear her whisper his name in his ear, to lock his eyes with hers, to see his meaning of life.
She smiled, and his heart nearly exploded.
And then she turned and ran away.
More determined than he had ever felt in ages, he pursued her.
He ran faster than he thought his own legs could carry him, yet she was always one step ahead. He reached, out, and almost touched a lock of her hair streaming behind her. Branches scraped him from all sides, bringing blood to his cheeks, as if trying to pull him back. Tree roots reached up, tripping him, but he couldn't stop running. He needed her.
She never stopped running, going on for hours. Yet for him the time flew by, because she was there. He could never spend enough time with her.
In his concentration, he didn't notice the rain gradually coming to a stop, nor the faint pinkish morning sun creeping through the forest. He hadn't noticed the trees slowly thinning, and the sounds of civilization wafting through the air. None of this occurred to him until she suddenly ran into a patch of light, stopped, and turned to look at him
Surprised, he stopped too, holding back in the shadows of the forest. Now that he was able to catch his breath, he was able to take his surroundings into account. He had been led to the edge of the forest, to the border separating his isolation and his previous life.
She was standing in the sun, the morning glow radiating against her body, droplets of dew caught in her hair. And with a comforting smile, she vanished.
He blinked, not sure what just happened.
A gentle breeze encouraged him forward.
It is time.
With a deep breath, he stepped into the sunlight.