Adventure in the Trees

By: Rèîán§hitsü

It's a lie they said
it must be a myth,
but I really met her
the girl from the Labyrinth.

--Rèîán§hitsü

It was a warm, breezy, summer day in northern U.S. when I, Tom Sawyer, decided to take a walk. There's a forest trail not far from my home so I figured I'd go there. Why am I telling you this? I'm telling you this because this single day, is the best day in my entire existence. It was the day I met the girl of my dreams, Sara.

You see, I was simply walking along in the serene forest, taking in the sights of another beautiful day. When out of the blue I heard giggling in the distance. I stopped walking and looked around but saw nothing. Before I knew it the giggling had vanished.

For a moment I thought I was crazy, then I thought I was insane. After a few minutes, I decided it was nothing and kept walking. I probably walked another five minutes before I heard it again, this time it was closer.

So I started walking towards the giggling, thoughts passing through my mind of who it was. You see, I've been on many adventures. My first one was with the League, of "extraordinary gentlemen" that is. But… after Quartermain died… well, the league sailed with Cap'n Nemo for a little while, but then Jekyll decided to go back home to London.

Of course, shortly after Nina left too, I think in her heart she loved him, just wouldn't admit it. She always hung to herself and never really talked to anyone. Then, as fate would have it, I wanted to get on back to America. Just wasn't the same without Alan.

Anyway, so back to the woods; it didn't take long for me to realize it was just a girl. So I started to wonder what is a girl doing out here? Maybe the same thing I was, walking? Enjoying nature? It's a possibility. Again, the sound stopped and I stopped walking as well. I stood there for a few seconds, waiting, then out of nowhere, a young lady ran by me.

Her long black hair flowed down her body like waves in the ocean. She was tall and slender, and she caught my fancy at first glance. I called out to her and she slowed down, before coming to a stop. She turned and looked at me. Her smile was beautiful, like a ray of sunshine. Her eyes, brown as chocolate, met mine in an instant.

"Hello," she said.

"Hello," I replied, a little hesitant. "I'm Tom Sawyer."

She walked back closer to me. "My name is Sara."

"What are you doing out here today, Sara?" I asked with a smile on my face.

"Well see, I had to go get something, and now I have to get back to my friends. Hoggle and the others," she answered.

"May I escort you?"

She nodded and smiled. "I'd like that."

So we started walking side-by-side. After a few minutes she started talking. First she asked where I lived and why I was here. Then what kind of things I was into. Like if I enjoyed cosplaying or reading. We talked for a little about adventure, apparently she loved it almost as much as me, maybe even a little more.

After a little while of walking we came to a clearing in the woods, a place I had never been before. A small creek danced down the middle of the clearing, as fresh, spring water ran down it. It was like, the peaceful place in the forest. It was beautiful and full of life.

There was even a bed of flowers on the other side of the creek. They looked white and light purple from here. I had to stop and wonder what they are. I soon glanced over at Sara, her eyes filled with delight. She ran over to the stream and sat beside it. She watched the water flow, the birds about us, and the flowers twirl around in the wind.

I walked up to her slowly, and sat beside her. For a few moments, we let nature talk. We were silent and still, becoming engulfed in the beauty of raw nature. Then, at last, Sara spoke again.

"This is amazing, isn't it?" She asked, though it was more of a rhetorical question.

I added a slight agreement before glancing up at the bright, blue sky. The tall trees had blocked most of the sunlight so you could actually look up without going blind. I was stunned to see a bald eagle fly by. The majestic bird of America, a symbol of freedom; and that is exactly what this place is, freedom.

The bird circled around above us a few times, shinning in the sunlight, its presence illuminated even the darkest parts of the forest, as I suppose it did no matter where it went.

"Tom, wasn't it?" Sara asked as she looked at me.

"Yeah, that's my name."

"Thanks for walking with me, I never would have found this place if you didn't," she offered another glorious smile.

I smiled back and nodded. "It was no problem at all, besides, I've never been here before and I'm glad I got the chance. Now I'll have to come back," I softly laughed.

"I think I'll make a point to come back too," she laid her head on my shoulder. "This place is magnificent, definitely a wonderful place to come when I need to get away from my stepmom."

"Yeah, it is very peaceful." I stated calmly though my heart was beating faster then it does when I'm in a fight.

"And beautiful," Sara added.

"Not as beautiful as you…" I said without thinking. Once I realized I said it, I began to worry. What should I do now? I wondered.

She lifted her head from my shoulder and looked at me.

"Thank you," she said.

"O-oh don't mention it," I somehow managed to say, though it sounded a little more pathetic then I had hoped.

She reached out her arms and hugged me, it was a strange sensation, not something I'm used to. I haven't been hugged since I was a boy. It reminded me of my mom's hugs, so warm and comfortable. A pleasure I had long missed in my heart but would not admit.

She held on for a few moments before leaning back. She smiled at me again, just before pushing me back. She didn't push hard, but surprisingly hard enough for me to hit the ground. I heard her giggling beside me after I touched ground, and for some reason I couldn't help laughing myself.

Next thing I knew, she was on her hands and knees, right beside me, staring down at me like the eagle had done earlier. She had a different look in her eyes this time, a look of curiosity and interest. Though, she still had that same look of true happiness in her eyes just as well.

She leaned down toward me slowly. The thought crossed my mind 'she's gonna kiss me' I just knew she was. So I closed my eyes and leaned up toward her, but just as I felt her breath on my lips, I heard someone call her name.

She instantly sat up as I opened my eyes and sat up as well. I looked behind me and saw the strangest sight. A small… dwarf… like… wrinkled… something, a huge furry wad of hair and a tiny fox riding a dog was running toward us.

"Hoggle! Bluto!" She called, obviously happy to see them.

After they got to us, I asked who they were. Sara told me these were her friends, the ones she'd mentioned earlier. I smiled at them in disbelief of what they were, but trying not to show it.

She introduced me and the tiny fox rattled on about me looking like a brave knight. Of course, I agreed I was something like that since I do protect people as best I can. After that Sara and I stood up. Suddenly, the big fuzz thing hugged me and called me friend; though he nearly squeezed the life out of me.

Just when I thought it was over, the dwarf gave me a mean look. I really don't think he likes me too much. Probably because he likes Sara, and I was imposing on that relationship. But what's it to him, she's human, I'm human, and he's….. not.

We stood there a little while as Sara explained what she'd been through. Then the question I knew was coming.

Hoggle asked, "Well are you ready to come home Sara?"

And she was, she was ready to go home. So we said our farewells as she walked off with her friends. The were headed back the way they came, so obviously me and Sara would not have gotten back the right way. I sighed to myself because I had missed my kiss.

Just before the walked into the trees Sara turned and waved. I waved back with a smile on my face. I noticed she turned to her friends and told them something, then ran back to me.

"Thanks again Tom, maybe we'll meet each other again here," she said.

"I hope so," I replied.

She leaned up and kissed my cheek.

"Bye Tom."

She ran back to her friends and they soon disappeared into the trees. I reached up and touched my cheek. In that single moment, I knew I'd be back every day to this spot, waiting for her to show back up again, she alone was the greatest adventure of my life.

"Oh well," I paused. "Where was I again?" I looked up and smiled at the sky. "Ahh that's right."

I turned and started walking back into the forest, ready to accept the next adventure… to find the trail again!