Appleyed - Tumblr Posts
“ appleyed. ”
🌿 “ 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐟𝐚𝐫, you’ll wander away. they’re pesky little trickers. ” but her words roll affectionately off her lips ; they quirk upwards with the statement. andromeda’s hand hovers midair around the lightning bug, waiting patiently for the light that shone like the beat of its heart. on, then off. on, then off. it takes flight north, and her feet yearn to step after it, her hands ache to keep the light against her palm. ( she had known a boy who was like light once. once, once. not now, but once before. she can feel the warmth of his skin if she thinks hard enough. but it flutters away, too, and she knows only his absence. ) the other girl tends toward wandering, andromeda has noticed, and she worries after her, feet padding gently in allie's wake. “ these woods like to play tricks in the dark. ”
it takes her a moment to hear andromeda clearly, mind very much elsewhere, very much away as she follows her new lighted friends through the trees with utmost trust. " but i like to wander! and i- i like away, everything's so much lovelier away. " away like the city she's always yearned to know from aklla's stories, away like anywhere outside of the quelled. she wonders if the buildings really sparkle like stars, though nothing in the whole world could beat the way they look on a clear forest night. sometimes, she found herself with an aversion to the night, to the dark. but then once she was in it, she couldn't remember why she would be afraid of something so lovely. the feeling carries her through the forest, and andromeda's words a faint murmur against her back. " i don't mind the tricks! " she laughs, twirling around to face her, taking her palms in the warmth of her own hands and drawing her closer. " come on! it's fun to just not worry, you just- you just have to let it happen to you! everything's easier when you just let it happen. "
“ appleyed. ”
🌿 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤. the waves to not lap this far inland — something had moved in the water a ways off. ( she is not the only one who inhabits these lands, these swamps and creeks, these forests that inhale and exhale with the rhythm of her very lungs. ) andromeda pays no mind to the dark algae smattering across her collarbone and elbows. her back is hunched – she inspects the moss on a boulder, a low hum in the air cuts off as she speaks. “ if you’re comin’ in, leave your shoes on the dock. ”
the water is gentle, the feeling of it, even from far way. it's different from the wildness of the sea, but not much from a creek in the forest, where little frogs lay on sun warmed rocks. it feels safe, and water never does. it's all of the green, and, of course, andromeda, though allie still doesn't know if she could go that deep. " 'kay! hi annie! " she calls out, beaming with a smile that is undeniable under the light which all things grow that is andromeda. she already wasn't wearing shoes, so when she skips to the dock- her own light bursting through her as she feels the plants reaching, wavering under the water. giggles spill from pink petals, she doesn't normally get so close to those under the surface, and she finds it feels ... funny. she feels safe enough to sit on the edge of the dock, dip her toes in, and then her fingers, just enough to wiggle under the surface of the murky water. " whatcha' doin'? "
“ appleyed. ”
🌿 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲. 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭 to she who has been rooted for so long. ( maybe in the life she cannot remember she had feet instead of roots. the topic breaches an ache in her ribs that warns of a lesson learned already, even if she cannot remember what that lesson was. andromeda supposes it is instinct : she should flinch from a fire, she should not be far from the earth, she should always be polite to new trees. ) she sidles through the woods after the other girl. she is flighty like a small bird, andromeda thinks as her eyes watch her friend scramble through wild bushes and misshapen stones. it is something like watching a young doe learn where feet do and do not belong. “ you should mind the tricks. they are not always affectionate. ” andromeda soundlessly follows, listening to the delicate hoots of the nighttime birds. ( andromeda is thankful they do not turn off their song in her presence. they understand she is shaped like a girl, but the air shifts when she steps among her earthen throne. ) a thin sigh is exhaled at the girl’s response. only the young think themselves so irrefutable, so indisposable. “ yes, yes, i’m comin’. at least look where you’re goin’. the vines don’t like to be crunched on. ”
" i know! i'm careful! i just- i just- i have to go. i dunno', i can feel it. i have to. " suddenly, she bends, and then half-falls to her knees, humming and her fingers searching, padding across the ground as the bare skin of her knees presses into the dirt. she feels the roots, the seedlings beneath, it feels alive, so alive. the closer she pushes, the closer it feels, though not as if she hadn't already. the fairy girl feels the green wrap around her hands, and allie smiles, beaming and bright. " oh, annie, can you hear them? can you feel them? they don't want to trick us! not really! it's just fun, it's just- it's just silly! " she giggles, and she, gently, pulls her hands from the ground, whispering goodbyes to her friends beneath. then, just as sudden as she had fallen, she shoots up like a stalk, taking andromeda's hand in hers. " can't you feel it? we have to go! " allie tugs on her hand, she can feel the build of a run in her legs, she just has to go, she has to go. the idea of going back to the cottage, now, seems impossible.