When A Tree Falls In A Forest And There Is Nobody Around, Does It Even Make A Sound?
The sun had set hours ago; the moon had taken its place and Elena was doing homework that she pushed off till the last minute. Groaning, El pushed the chemistry book away and began to stretch her arms. She placed her feet on the carpet and began tip-toeing out of the bedroom to get some water from the kitchen.
Pulling a glass from the cabinet she then brought it to the fridges waterspout, when the hairs on her neck stood up. El’s brows furrowed. Slowly feeling her neck with her free hand, head shifted slightly when she felt a breeze go past.
Not wanting to notify the intruder that the witch had caught them. El took a sip of her water then gently placed it on the counter. “Mot-” she began to say but was caught off when she was slammed against the wall of the kitchen. Elena’s sight took a second to come back because of the impact, but what she saw was something that could only be described as Jamie Parker’s worst nightmare. “Mikael?”
Suddenly feeling the Original squeezing her neck, he spoke. “Hello Doppelganger.”
“But I killed you! You burned!” El wheezed out. Any magical instinct was thrown out of the widow when she saw him.
Mikael leaned forward to where their noses almost touched. “You did.” He spat. “Let me return the favor.”
“Mikael?”
“Hello Doppelganger.”
“But I killed you! You burned!”
“You did. Let me return the favor.”
“You did. Let me return the favor.”
“You did. Let me return the favor.”
“You did. Let me return the favor.”
“You did. Let me return the favor.”
“You did. “Let me return the favor.”
“You did. Let me return the favor.”
“YOU DID. LET ME RETURN THE FAVOR!”
“RETURN THE FAVOR!”
“RETURN THE FAVOR!”
“THE FAVOR!”
“THE FAVOR!”
“THE FAVOR!
“FAVOR!”
Chest lurching forward, El woke up with a gasp. Once again clutching the fabric of her shirt where her heart would be. Her breath was heavy as she searched the room for any threats.
Realizing there was nothing there that could hurt her, the witch forced herself to relax. Leaning over, she turned on the bedside light, illuminating the room with a soft orange glow.
The same damn nightmare, over and over again. It was getting ridiculous! El thought to herself as she laid her head on the head board, looking up at the ceiling fan that was always on. She didn’t even bother checking the time, already knowing it was still early judging by the darkness that still littered the outdoors.
Sighing, she squeezed her eyes shut. She hasn’t gotten a full night’s sleep in weeks, it was getting on her nerves and it became apparent in her magic. While her magic has grown in power exponentially since Tessa had given it to her as a gift that seemed like a lifetime ago, it was becoming very evident that her hold on it was depleting.
Not wanting to think about her insomnia any longer, she opened her eyes and scooted out of bed and changed into some jeans and a random sweatshirt. Grabbing one of her many knives that was doused in vervain, she placed it into the waistline of her pants. Throwing on some socks and shoes, she placed her phone in her pocket and walked out of her room and down the stairs.
Hearing her come down, Dasher’s head popped up from the couch cushions. “Mama?” He forced the sleepiness out of his eyes. “Where are you going?”
With her back towards her dog, she reached for the headlamp that laid on a hook by the key table. “Just clearing my head, go back to sleep bud.”
Dasher just huffed. Stretching, then he jumped off the bed and walked up to her, his paws padding among the floor. “Not alone. I comes with.”
The witch petted the husky’s head, happy that she had a companion like him. Clipping on his leash, the two walked out of the house toward the forest.
—-------
Forest. Such a funny word. If people say ‘I’m going to take a stroll in the forest.’, it sounds somewhat magical. But if they change forest to woods, it suddenly sounds almost…dark, twisted, dangerous. Yet, El Gilbert didn’t feel that. Maybe it was because she wasn’t alone or the fact she knew how to protect herself, but that fear wasn’t something she felt as she and Dasher walked on the familiar trail.
Over an hour the two spent walking in the dark with nothing but the headlamp that rested on the witch’s forehead as the only light source because the dense foliage made it almost impossible to see the crescent moon that occupied the sky that night. Finally, the duo arrived at the lake. More specially, the spot where they told Jenna and Jeremy about the supernatural. Taking a few steps closer to the shore line, El stared out into the water. It calmed her. The water reminded her of her old life when she would go to the beach every summer with her family.
Suddenly feeling something wet on her cheek, El used her finger to wipe it away only to realize it was a tear. She was crying. Snapping out of it, she used her hand to wipe her face and shook her head to get the memories out. She couldn’t think about that anymore when she knew there was no going back. Her body in that world was buried, maybe even cremated, she didn’t know.
Dasher, noticing his Mom’s turmoil, tugged on the leash, snapping her out of her daze. Looking down, she gave him a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “What was that for?”
“You were gone.”
She crouched down to his height. “Don’t be silly, I didn’t leave.”
The husky did the dogs equivalent to rolling his eyes. “Not leave gone.” He booped her forehead with his muzzle. “There gone.”
“Well, that’s just something I can’t help.” Her lips pulled to the side before clicking her tongue. Scooting over, she sat on the ground next to her furry companion.
He placed his head on her knee. “Why?”
“I don’t know.” She muttered as she looked up at the sky.
He whined, crawling closer to provide her with some level of comfort. “You need sleep.”
Air blew out of El’s nose. “No kidding.” She rubbed his back as she thought. “To do that I need to not be haunted by the ghost of Christmas past, thank you.”
“Spell?”
She shook her head, staring up at the night sky that wasn’t covered near the lake. “Sad truth, I don’t trust my magic that much right now.”
Dasher huffed. “Drink spell.”
“Drink spell?” She questioned. “What the hell is a drink spel…” She paused, taking the time to actually think about what her dog told her. “…do you mean potion?”
It was Dasher’s time to squint at her. “What is a ‘potion’?”
“A drink spell.” She told it, finding it adorable that he knew what potions were just not the name, but her mood turned dark once again. “It would’ve been a great idea, but I don’t know how to brew potions.”
“Ask Tessa.”
“I would if I could see her. My dreams have been filled with Mikael. It's always the same one…” Suddenly it was like a light bulb went off in her head. “It’s the same dream.”
“What?”
“Do you know that riddle?” She began. “If a tree falls and there’s nobody around to hear it, does it make a sound?” El ran her tongue over her lips in thought. “Technically it does because it produces vibrations through the air, but since no-one is there to feel said vibrations, how could we know? Hence the riddle.” She looked over at Dasher. “I’m the only one going through his torment, so theoretically I’m the only one who can stop it. And since it’s the same dream over and over again, I know how it plays out. I can change it, I just have to remember.”
Safe to say, Dasher was confused. “How?”
“Lucid dreams, bud. Lucid dreams.”