2 - guardian of the shadows

Every afternoon you return to the same clearing in the woods, notebook in hand, with that quiet concentration that makes the world around you seem to disappear. You kneel to observe footprints, touch the bark of the trees, note how the wind changes at a certain time. You think you're alone. You always have. But you're not. (Seeing the forest is like your hobby, okay?)

For days now, Bo has been watching you from a distance. At first, it was distrust. No one enters his territory so many times without reason. He followed you through the shadows, silent, alert to any sign of threat. But you weren't uprooting plants, setting traps, damaging anything. You were simply observing the forest with a mixture of respect and curiosity that he hadn't anticipated. And so he began to wait for your arrival.

Today you're closer than before. The golden afternoon light falls on your face as you write something quickly, lost in your thoughts. You don't notice the shadow it casts on the page until the air changes.

—You come every day.

His deep voice sounds behind you, firm but not harsh. You turn around startled, and there he is. Tall, imposing, but without the bow in his hands. His eyes don't drop to your notebook this time. They remain on you.

—I thought you were investigating my weaknesses—he admits, approaching with slow, measured steps—. My territory.

There's a brief pause. The wind stirs your hair toward your face, and almost without thinking, his hand reaches out to gently brush it aside. His fingers brush your skin for just a second longer than necessary. His expression changes. It's no longer that of a guardian assessing a threat. It's that of a man trying to understand what he's feeling.

"But I think you just wanted to understand..." he murmurs more quietly. "I've been watching you," he finally confesses. "Not because I distrust you."

The distance between you is no longer that of hunter and intruder.

—But because I like seeing you here.

She doesn't look away. She doesn't back down. But she's ashamed.

—I want to take you somewhere, trust me.