Disclaimer: This story was a favorite of mine, but for some reason it dissapeared from FF several years back, and I haven't been able to find any archives of it. Until recently. It was a shame to see a great story from my childhood vanish like that. The formatting in the web archives didn't play well with FF formatting, so I'll be slowly re-converting the chapters into the appropriate format.
I do not own any part of the source material, as well as the story itself. "The Girl in Green" is the property of the user Saturnine Pariah.
Please don't Favorite or Follow my account, It's the story that deserves it, not me.
Chapter One: The Girl in Green
Spring had finally arrived after several months of snow and sleet blanketed the landscape of my home. The grassy fields, vibrant forests, newly sprouting wheat plants, and the vines that grew upon the bricks of my home all showed their vibrant new growths. The morning dew seemed to reflect and magnify rays of the morning sun off the landscapes greenery. The sounds of chirping birds and my three dogs barking awoke me to this revitalizing day of spring. As I dressed and looked out the window I fondly took in the view, rubbing away the last remnants of my drowsiness from my eyes. The place of my residence is a tranquil, peaceful and isolated place, far from most people. I live in a two story brick home; the humble structure was an inheritance from my late parents who built it before I was born and were i myself was born and raised. It was nestled in a valley in the northern hemisphere of the largest continent of this world, It is bordered by great forests to the east, rolling grasslands to the south and the extensive and awe inspiring Grelo mountains to the north and west.
Rarely did I see any hostile monsters or have to fight, a great blessing on my part which added to the serenity and ease of mind I had living here. Even so, I was always cautious on my travels on foot when I went beyond the borders of my estate. I would carry all the essentials if I had to stay the night outside my home. That morning I decided on exploring the forest just for the fun of it. After eating a light breakfast, attending to my chores, an out of the blue craving popped onto my tongue. I had a craving for venison or any wild game, it had always had a unique flavor over farm raised meat. Fresh deer meat in particular was on my mind and it's flavor plagued my thoughts. Knowing that I had nothing better to do, and that it would give me an excuse to go into the forest, I went with this impulse and began packing. I made mini- checklist as I reviewed what i had in my backpack. After completing my packing I grabbed my bow and arrows, knife, and adorned myself with a padded iron chest piece. The weight of the armor and pack almost caused me trip as I made my way through the wooden door.
After locking the door and calming down my three white dog companions, I walked slightly encumbered to my private rail-car. The red-stone powered tracks lead out and away to the east. The rail way ended at another piston station situated from my house about a few hundred blocks to the edge of the forest. My father's foresight in building this contraption really made my excursion far faster than walking. After pulling the lever the piston sent me flying through the green landscape. The forest was ancient and almost untouched, except for the trodden path that I had and my family had developed over the years. Rarely did I enter this primeval area for reasons beyond hunting or gathering the wild foods that grew in the on among or on the trees. The hunting blind I built was due south of me and so I began my trip with a cautious enthusiasm. It was small and unimpressive wooden box that sat nestled in the large branches of a huge ancient oak. Spring meant fresh growth and new shoots of tender young plants, which were very attractive for the deer. If that didn't appeal to them, I had a bait pile of old wheat near the center of a sparse clearing in the forest. My blind was situated above this bait.
With my pack and armor off, both resting in the corner, I stretched and prepared for the long wait that would ensue. And sat I did, waiting, listening and watching for anything to pass by; it was the customary price I had to pay for fresh meat. My bow and arrow were at the ready, but not fully drawn as I watched for what seemed like hours. The only visitors that came close to the bait were a pack of wolves and a doe and her fawn. Seeing the sun was beginning to wane and set, I realized that my trip was a fruitless endeavor. I decided to leave and to try again tomorrow, that was until I heard a loud crash and rustling in the flora below me. I could see the brush rustle and shake; I immediately drew my arrow taught and sighted in on the possible target. With adrenaline pumping and I breathed slowly, anticipating for my heartbeat to affect my accuracy. I began to see what the creature was that disturbed the brush. To my shock and surprise it was not an animal or a monster, But a young woman. Perhaps around my age of 19 or 20. She was dressed in a faded jacket that was green with matching shorts, and wore open toed-brown shoes. The hood that covered her head leaked out orange-red locks of hair under the hood's rim like vines. The hood itself had embroidery of a Creeper's face on it; it was surprisingly realistic and fierce looking.
Her hair was longish, orange-red and unkempt. Her eyes were a distinct shade of amber, and with some straining of the eyes i though i saw some clusters of freckles on her cheeks. She was carrying apples, nuts and a few mushrooms in her arms and hummed as she walked through the clearing. Curiosity and a profound awe made me lower my bow as I gazed upon this new face. I took every detail to memory, her long smooth legs, petite frame and colorful hair. I mentally recorded this moment not knowing if I would ever witness her again. She continued to blissfully walk with her harvested food of the forest, humming a sweet little tune, all the while completely unaware of my presence. While caught up in the moment I failed to notice the direction in which she walked. In the seconds of my first sight of her, she apparently moved quit quickly while i was in my daze. She had walked to the base of my tree stand, i felt the vibrations of her movements as she began to climb the ladder upwards.
Panic took me out of my trance as I began to realize the situation at hand. Before I could react, she had already begun to throw her collection of food into the stand, she energetically burst upwards still humming her tune, only to encounter me sitting on the inside. Her eyes grew wide with shock and surprise, the humming stopped and she was quiet. She was even more stunning up close, We both simply stared at each other for what may have been an eternity. She cocked her head in a pensive manner, she had a look of curiosity and confusion. Her eyes were still the size of dinner plates, they gleamed as she crawled slowly into the hunting blind. We simply sat there and mirrored each other's movements.
She then asked in a confused and timid voice " W-What are you doing here?". Too embroiled in this moment it took me a moment to register her question. She asked the question again but more sternly. "What are you doing here?"
I stammered in response...Still got off guard by this young woman's presence and her unique and utterly beautiful appearance. "I..I was hunting... I was about to leave when I saw you appear..." I silenced myself, unsure of what to say next, leaving an opening for her to respond. Her face was still wrapped in surprise but a spark of greater curiosity gleamed in her amber eyes at my response, she then directed her gaze at my bow and arrow.
"What's hunting and what are those things you are holding?" she gestured with her hand at my bow and arrow.
"Well it's when you kill an animal for food, and these are the tools one uses to do it… this is a hunting blind." I sat still, anxious and surprised by her arrival, yet she seemed to drop her confusion and surprise rather quickly, only be replaced by a neutral expression. She refocused on her pile of food and began to separate the nuts, mushrooms and apples three little piles. The situation appeared to be more awkward for me than it was for her, an odd turn of events. I decided to shift my mind away from the gawky silence by trying to start a conversation with this mysterious orange haired girl.
"So why are you here?" I asked. She kept herself at an arms length, her hands perusing the various edibles that the forest had to offer. She kept her gaze from looking at me directly and made quick glances at me rather quickly with a neutral expression on face. The food was obviously a higher priority, and her body language showed that she was disinterested with me.
"I sleep here sometimes, when it gets too dark outside or if it's raining" she replied plainly in a low tone.
Seeing her composure I refrained from asking anymore questions, and I redirected my gaze outside the window with my bow at the ready. I made glances at her, she was more energized and emotive without my direct gaze, and she began to eat the various edibles with little care of my presence, biting, cracking open shell after shell and chewing at a voracious rate. The intake of food lightened her tense disposition, for the once neutral face she wore was now content and she wore a small smile the entire time. She paid little attention to me as I watched her eat more directly. It was amusing and entreating to watch a stranger eat with such joy and at blazing rate. I gave up on the hunt, I was far more interested in this strange girl and put aside my bow and arrow. I quietly leaned against the wall. The only distraction was the sight of the sun slowly setting in the window behind me. I had sat there and watched this girl eat enough food to put a pig to shame, I smirked and shook my head in silence. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the final rays of light from the sun fade from the horizon and wane into dusk. Before I could talk or try to re-initiate a conversation with her, I turned back to find the female interloper sleeping on her side after gorging herself on her food
The apple cores and nut shells were in a pile next to her," You must have been hungry" I said aloud to myself. Seeing that the sun's light was gone and the ever darkening sky crept forward, I weighted my options for what possible actions I could take.
I would have to stay the night, but I was distracted by the now sleeping form in front of me, this young girl's face was simply peaceful, seeing it put me strangely more at ease. Considering the distance I would have to travel in the dark, I decided on staying the night in the hunting blind. I positioned myself near one of the corners and began to unpack my gear as quietly as I could as to not disturb my unexpected roommate. A sleeping bag, pillow and extra blanket were a standard part of my provisions.
I sprawled out a good distance away from the girl and kept in parallel to her frame; I plopped down belly first onto of the puffy sleeping bag, and rested my face on the pillow. It was warm enough outside to go without the covering up. Yet despite the distance between me and the girl, I still felt like that I was inappropriately encroaching upon her personal space.
"It can't be helped I suppose" I whispered to myself. Her presence prevented any sleep and I lay there awake looking around the interior of the wooden structure. I then noticed that the girl was shivering, which odd was considering that she was wearing a jacket. and that it was relatively warm I quietly crept closer to investigate. She shivered and began to whimper softly and pulled her limbs inward until she was in a fetal position. Her once tranquil sleeping face looked wrought with pain, rapid eye movements under her closed eyelids showed that she was dreaming. She was afraid of something or experiencing some form of horrid nightmare,. Dumbfounded and conflicted, I tentatively tucked my spare blanket around her, and crept backwards, she stopped shivering but her whimpering did not cease.
Apprehension, worry and my desire to help all rose up; my meager attempt at consolation did little to help her. I mentally yelled and argued with myself as to what I should do.
"What can I do?"
"Help her!"
"How should I?"
"Comfort her you idiot!"
"But I just meet his girl, she'd think I am some sort of freak."
"That doesn't' matter can you sleep knowing that she is suffering?"
"No, of course not! I just don't know what to do."
"Well, what did mom and dad do when you had nightmares?"
"They held me, rocked me and stroked my head"
"Then do that!"
As all these thoughts raged and i was at the point of that my internal screaming might become audible grunts of frustration. Small tears began to roll down this girl's cheeks to join with her whimpering. Seeing this and hearing her soft whimpers broke down all my previous reservations, and doubts.
"Fuck it!"
Without hesitation or a second though, I threw away any logical thinking or concepts of the repercussions of my actions and went with what my heart told me to do. In the heat of the moment I gently picked up her sleeping form up, still keeping the blanket wrapped around her and cradled her in my arms. I positioned her against my chest.
Almost out of instinct I found myself softly stroking her head and held her against me tightly to support her frame. She didn't struggle or resist and as the time passed her whimpering stopped and her body relaxed into mine. She nestled her head onto like i was pillow, her rapid eye movements and pained expression was replaced with a smile on her face. She rubbed her head against my chest further almost like she were cuddling up to me.
My heart was fluttering and a warm sensation washed over my body, i swear i could have felt her heart beating… She was very cute, and had surprisingly clean smooth skin, soft facial features and I could now clearly see the small clusters of light brown that scarcely seemed to emerge from her flushed cheeks. I stared at her before my eyelids grew heavy, and my mind began to wander and fade from consciousness. I imagined that my face had to have been redder than red stone. I slowly fell asleep still gazing upon this girl nestled against my body. "I'm really going to regret doing this in the morning." i whispered aloud to myself.
"But, you did the right thing though."
End of Chapter 1