Susan swayed to and fro as one with the wind, taking in the sounds and smells of the forest around her.
The trees were dark and willowy but she felt a sense of kin towards them, as they still stood through the times and trials they faced, no matter how much they wished to fall. But even still, she could see the druxy on them, the poor white spots of decayed timber stood stark against the chestnut wood.
When she stared at the spots too long she felt like she could simply crack like the wood did, right down the middle as the world tore her apart and she wouldn't be able to scream or shout or do anything as she fell to the floor.
But no, she would stay strong like the wood, she would weather the spots and simply let the tears stream down her face, the wind would be there to blow them down her cheeks and away.
She could not put into words how much she felt hiraeth towards her forest, even as she stood in amongst the midst of it she never could truly be a part. She would never be a tree, able to make roots and stand her ground here, she would never truly be a part of this life.
No matter how many tears she shed.
She stood in the breeze a bit longer.
It was cold; she liked the cold. It froze her feelings and let her feel a bit more human for just a little bit, it gave her the strength to go back from the forest to brave the real world.
Susan took a breath.
She heard a breath being taken.
Hannah.
Hannah was always there, she was as solid as the trees. Hannah was more than the trees though.
Hannah was like a warm summer's day that didn't just blow the tears away and leave icy tracks on her face, but instead dried them with a soft breath and left warm traces that couldn't be wiped away.
Hannah was amiable. Hannah was her friend. Hannah was everything put together that somehow Susan lacked.
When Hannah was with her, Susan sometimes felt a little bit less like she had cracked and instead, she was being carefully put back together and repaired. But not just in a blaisé way, covering up the cracks and pretending that everything was fine. Instead she treated her as one does the art of Kintsugi, Hannah carefully put Susan back together again with powdered gold, showcasing all her previous flaws and how they were now her shining features that shouldn't be hidden but treasured as markers of her resilience.
Hannah was always there, being the strength for Susan even when she still felt she would simply fall apart and shatter once more.
Susan still felt the tears on her face, but a whisper of a smile crossed her lips as she reached out to grasp Hannah's hand.
Susan thought that maybe the forest felt like her home but maybe Hannah was really her hiraeth.