Violet

I wake up facedown on the hardwood floor of a small cottage house. My breathing is ragged and it hurts to open my eyes. I turn onto my side and feel a miserable numbness sweep over me, my legs aching and my mind swimming. I lift my head slightly off the ground and lock eyes with a small boy, no older than seven. He blinks at me, and I blink back. I think we're already on the road to friendship. I try to offer him a sideways smile, but even that is strained and he seems to notice because he blinks again and flees through what I assume to be the kitchen door. An old woman steps out, letting the little boy run past her and I let my head fall back onto the floor. She's wearing a nightgown and her gray hair falls straight to her waist. I've never seen anything like it, though I must say it did suit her. I hate to wonder how I must look.

"You need a bath," she confirms, as if she's just now realizing, her nose wrinkling in response. "I shall fetch Mea to draw you a bath." Without waiting for a signal, she hurries off the same way she came in and I don't bother straining to hear what she says afterwards. I've no idea where I've wound up—a mad house, perhaps. It seems likely enough, even though we are in the middle of the woods. At least, that's where I think we are.

I look around, expecting Landon to be sitting up against the wall or lying with his hands behind his neck, ready to make a remark on how this is unsafe and then crack and joke and we'd be laughing until we're told to stop. Then I stop thinking and he's gone and all there's left is a cold, empty feeling in my chest telling me I let him down. That I couldn't save him. That I'll never be good enough.

I sigh and get to my feet, realizing that I was eventually going to have to learn how to walk again. It's surprisingly not that difficult.

I wobble down the hall a bit before my steps become more balanced and I'm walking like a normal human being again—not like a disheveled madwoman who's been out running all morning. Though it couldn't still be morning, it's already black as pitch outside. I wonder how long I've been here for.

The house is quite small, the walls made of bricks that were painted over poorly, a small kitchen that seems to connect to everything, a couple of dull rooms and a bathroom. There's a basement, but I don't dare go down there. I've no idea why, but I've always been afraid of basements. It always felt to me as if something lived down there and would get upset if anyone disturbed it.

I find myself rolling back to the kitchen, drawn by the smell of something cooking in the stove and I realize how truly hungry I am. I'm approaching the counter, peering over it to try and get a better whiff of what's cooking, but get stopped by a little lady in a cleaning outfit. "Tsk," she clicks her tongue at me and I step back, slightly startled and disappointed at getting caught. I was really hungry.

"Your bath is ready, miss." She smiles politely and turns her back to me, walking out of the room. I follow her out, still a little fazed by the odd behaviors in this place.

"You must be Mea," I assume, trying to make small talk as she leads me up the stairs. She doesn't reply and I take her silence as a yes. I don't bother introducing myself, just in case. "I don't remember how I got here," I say, talking to fill the silence but hoping for answers all the same. "Where are we—exactly?"

"Just North of Grandillas, not far from the River," she replies. Her voice is soft and for a moment it calms me. Then I realize that I must have run from Ashdown to Grandillas, a whole seven miles. Stars, I must have passed out. "Robin found you by the stream when he took out the dog," she informs me before stepping into the bathroom and nodding towards the tub. I have no idea who Robin is, but I don't think she cares.

"Very courteous of you lot to leave me on the floor at the entrance," I murmur under my breath and I know she hears me because her green eyes widen slightly and she mutters a short apology before giving me my privacy. I feel bad about my comment and suddenly wish I could take it back—but I'm exhausted and filthy and an overall wreck and it's truly no wonder they were weary about bringing me into their home. After all, I'm not a very good houseguest.

I don't even bother stepping up to the mirror; I probably look as awful as I feel. Like a million cats are clawing at my back and I just can't shake them off. We haven't even started yet and we've already failed. Dad would throw a fit if he knew.

I remove my ripped skirts and undress myself before letting the warm water envelop me. I take my time in cleaning myself, and when I've finished, I find a fresh dress lain out for me.

The fabric is soft silk, the dress fitting me perfectly, surprisingly. It was always such a struggle to find clothes that actually fit me correctly, and here I was being handed an item that curved perfectly around my thin body, the blue colour making my grey eyes stand out. I tie my newly cleaned hair into a tight knot, some wet strands popping out to frame my face. I hardly recognize myself.

"Miss!" someone calls from outside my door. "Do hurry, your dinner is growing cold."

"Violet," I inform them, replying loud enough for them to hear me through the walls. "My name is Violet. And I'll be out in just a moment."

I study myself in the mirror, trying to memorize every inch of my face in case I were to forget again. I bite my lip and pinch my cheeks, trying to bring more colour to my face. I look nearly as exhausted as I feel.

I open the door at last and hear a loud thud when the door is stopped halfway. Someone must have been standing outside waiting. Weird, I could have sworn I heard the person who came to rush me to dinner had left.

I start to apologize awkwardly, "I'm sorry, I didn't think anyone would—" I get stopped with the same apologies, but they came from a different voice than earlier.  I lift my eyes, my gaze meeting that of a boy who must have been around my age. His curly locks stick up on the side and he looks like he hasn't slept in days. "You're not Mea," I state stupidly, crossing my arms over my chest.

"You sound almost disappointed," he smiles sideways at me though I could tell it was strained.

"Don't flatter yourself," I joke, raising an eyebrow. "Are you my escort to dinner or something?"

"I am, actually. But don't get too excited, most of the children are quite impatient and don't like waiting so if you're met with unhappy glances, remember not to come crying to me."

"Wouldn't dream of it," I reply, wrapping my fingers loosely on the arm he offers me and letting him guide me to the dining room. The cabin was a lot bigger than I thought.

There are so many questions I want to ask him but I hold myself back, seeing his tired expression. It reminded me of when Mother still lived with us and would call us down for dinner. When we would ask her where Dad was, she would shoot us an angered look and tell us that it was bad to ask too many questions, that I should just do what I'm told and not say anything about it. I always found that part to be the hardest. It makes me feel bad to think that life was so much better when she left us. I bite my lip and dare look back at the boy, whose name I still didn't know, but his gaze is unwavering as he leads me through the revolving doors.

He stops once we're inside and my jaw drops slightly as I see what must have been around a hundred kids, varying from ages 7 to early twenties. I spot the young boy I saw early at one of the many tables, surrounded by a clump of kids. The old woman stands up from what must be the Head Table and makes her way towards us, her gown swishing around her ankles gracefully.

"How good of you to join us!" she greets, smiling genuinely at me. "Welcome to the Children of the Trees."

———
Author's note
So yes hi this is Dalia. I really hope you enjoyed the first two chapters of the Children of the Trees. If you already read this chapter before now (Feb. 28 , 7:30 pm) I suggest you read it again because I accidentally published it before I was done. Oops. Anyway, I don't know when I'll post next but lemme know if you like it! :)