It was unnaturally quiet on the pristine riverside in Mægen Scōl. Normally in the early afternoon in the summer months there would be numbers of students in groups packed all along the well-maintained bank of The Brook. The groups would congregate under the shadows of the relatively small ornamental trees which dotted the riverbank as they either had fun, studied, or even the occasional couple spending some time together.

But today, other than the wind rustling through the new tall trees in a dull undertone on the far bank, the riverside of M ægen Scōl was empty but for a single student. She had been reading handwritten notes until I crossed the tree bridge—two tall trees which had a hollow through their rough dark grey barked trunks, connected by a narrow, but wide enough, flat-topped branch—into the grounds of Mægen Scōl.

Though I had every desire to rush towards her. I stumbled to a stop when the slightly curvaceous and stunningly beautiful Tan-bei rose to her feet. She brushed her silky, straight black hair over her ear so that I could see her copper-fawn face clearly. Those warm eyes of hers stared straight back at me. In them, I saw a depth of loneliness and sadness.

Yet there was also joy in them.

A joy of seeing me.

The two of us stared at each other for a while. Then we rushed towards each other. I took her into my arms. She wrapped her arms around me.

Those brave, joyful eyes which had been waiting for me burst into tears. She rubbed her face into my already ruined tunic, covered by blood and mud as it was. But she didn ’t care. She held me tight. And I held her tight.

Her warmth and her smell filled my world.

Being one with the trees, I never knew how much I missed human contact. Maybe that was why I introduced the idea of simple shelters in amidst the roots of some trees. But I realised that all of my longing for human contact was really a longing to be with my wife … My wives.

We pulled apart slightly.

I looked down at her wondrous face as it stared up at me. She had a patch of mud on her cheek from my tunic.

I brushed it off tenderly.

She reached up and stroked my cheek. This time we reached together for a kiss. It started out slow and uneasy, but the longing inside me burst out and we started kissing passionately.

Her fruity kisses were filled with longing and passion and a warmth that rivalled the sun shining down upon us as we kissed.

‘I said, that is enough.’ A stern commanding voice said, one which was used to its orders being followed.

Tan-bei broke off our kiss and let go of me. She turned around and stared at the woman who dared interrupt us.

She was wearing a solid black, skin tight outfit. The outfit emphasised her solid and muscular body, which had a lack of womanly curves. In fact, she was the only person I ’d seen who had a body as muscular as mine. Only in her hip and breast areas was there any slight hint of her femininity. Unlike me, she was short, shorter than an average woman.

A funeral shroud face covering covered her face. The hair sticking out from beneath was a deep raven black, unlike the glossy black hair of Tan-bei. Just from seeing her plain black outfit, I knew who she was. This was Castor. She took the name of the first martyr hero and was the leader of the Livery Company, Castor ’s Defiance.

This Castor, the third to take the name, was likely the strongest hero in Lundein. And likely to be the strongest m ægen in the Bernician Isles.

‘We allowed you permission to be here because of your potential links with that dangerous forest, Tan-bei. Do not forsake what you promised.’

‘I promised I would not get in the way if something dangerous came out of the forest. So far, nothing dangerous has come out of the forest.’

‘ Anything , coming out of the forest is dangerous. ’

I put my hands on Tan-bei ’s slight shoulders. Under her dress, I could feel her toned, muscular shoulders. With a slight squeeze, I informed her I would take over.

‘Are there protectors in Three Bridge?’

From the silence in return, I gathered her answer was negative.

‘You interest me, boy. Fight me.’

The change in topic shook me for a moment. Following the shock came annoyance. I believed I had long since passed the threshold into manhood, no matter what arbitrary standards were in effect. Still, I never thought I would have this chance to face off against Castor. It was a dream come true for me.

I nodded.

‘You, stay.’ She said to Tan-bei, then she turned around, looking into the open door of the abandoned part of Brook Dorm, the part which jutted slightly into the river. ‘You stay, too.’

Daddy, Nolicia ’s voice echoed in my head, she nice person. Tan-bei happy for ya to accept.

I already accepted, though.

Daddy, I missed ya.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Then the short, muscular, black outfitted hero strode towards the tree bridge.

I hugged Tan-bei from the back and kissed her cheek. ‘I love you. I will be okay.’

She reached up and grabbed my arms and rested her head on one of them.

‘Be victorious.’

That was why I loved her.

Even after being missing for who knew how long. And after the wounds she must ’ve heard, I gained from that fight. She was not worried about my safety. She knew I would come back to her. All she cared about was being upright and strong. knows That was something I could do.

I followed the small and solid form of Castor into the woods.

The giant rough-grey barked trees towered high above us. The dull roar of the rustling of the leaves from outside was strangely muted in here. Beneath our feet was a strange, soft forest floor. It was as if decades of needle leaf drops covered the ground. But the giant trees had broad leafy green leaves which bathed the entire forest in a dull evening twilight.

Occasional bright patches of sunlight shone on the ground.

Being in here, surrounded by life affirming nature, I felt energised beyond anything I had ever felt before.

‘Castor,’ I said. ‘Use the amphitheatre.’

‘Why? Why would I want to do that?’ She turned around and took off the funeral shroud mask.

Other than the broken and reset nose, her pale pink face was remarkably plain. It was looking at a stereotypical farmer ’s wife, who had recently become a joyful grandma in her mid-forties, complete with freckles on her pale pink dimpled cheeks. Her hair changed in colour from black to a rusty brown.

‘I’ve always wanted to find someone stronger than me.’ She said, settling down onto the soft forest ground. ‘Come sit. First, we talk. Then we fight. And if you’re up for it, I need some sexual tension release.’

I sat down opposite her, still on edge, trying to understand what she was up to. Was this why Nolicia said about accepting? Even though Nolicia said she was a nice person, I was wary of her.

She seemed too open.

‘It’s hard having to put on an act just because I was cursed with this body.’ She said, collapsing down to the ground. Her hands beneath her head. ‘It’s lovely in here. No noise of crowds. No squealing wagon wheels. Almost like it was back where I was born. Except there’s no animal noise here.’

She lay in silence, looking up at the quietly rustling leaves far above. I didn ’t want to disturb her, as she looked at peace right now.

‘I really should interrogate you. Figuring out why you caused this to happen, and how? Also, I was to asked to figure out if you’re Treeman, but I already know you are.’

I started getting ready to flee, grab Tan-bei, and then hide out in this forest with just the two of us.

‘Honestly, I don’t care.’

Those four words hit me hard. She was telling the truth; I was sure of it.

‘Did you know I was twelve when I awoke in this body? At the time, I lived in a small, remote village on a small, remote island. My boyfriend, whom I had planned on marrying, got scared of me. I had been a beauty, you see, and had the choice of many boys. But it was my neighbour I had set my heart upon.

‘At once I stopped being the pretty girl every boy wanted. Instead, I was used like a communal farm labour animal that every person wanted. Pull the ploughs, they said, unearth the stump, lift the hay bales, carry trees, pull the wagon out from the muddy ruts.

‘They even lent me out to neighbouring farms. None of the money they charged ever came back to me. It all went to enriching the village and my family alike. They moaned when the clothes I wore got damaged doing their tasks. I ended up wearing patchwork clothing which I had to beg for whatever scraps of fabric and thread people would give me.

‘Even my best friends started ignoring me, no matter how much I tried to spend time with them. It was a lonely life, but no one cared about me. Indeed, they forced me out of my home. So I lived in with the barn. Around my thirteenth birthday they forced me out of the village for a long-term loan to a distant, island wise, village.’

All the while she was saying this I had flashbacks to my childhood, fighting, killing, seeing the atrocious disgusting things that the invaders to the isle had done. Seeing wagons so packed with woman, girls, and boys that they had to remain standing at all times, even as they slept, eat, or shat. I had to remind myself that everyone ’s traumas and hurt are valid.

‘I’m sorry, Berwyn. I know that you’ve been through much worse.’

Just how did she know? I know a few knew of my past life, but they promised me it was to remain a secret. I shook my head. ‘No. All trauma is… Hurting.’

Tears filled her eyes, giving them a watery look.

She scrubbed away at her tears. ‘I snuck away from the village, wanting to see my family on my thirteenth birthday. There was a feast going on. When I appeared at the farm…’

She started sobbing. I made my way over to her, and lifted her up so she sat on my lap. I enwrapped my arms around her solid body, giving her a tighter squeeze than I would with anyone else.

‘On my thirteenth birthday itself, my best friend married the boy whom I still love. I—’ She took a deep breath and rested her head against me. ‘I went on a temper tantrum. All the anger and upset and negative feelings I had done my best to hide all burst out. I— She was my best friend, and I broke her back. Snapped it when I threw her about like a doll. I destroyed the farm buildings, the ones they forced me to build. Then I went on and did the best I could to ruin the fields by tossing heavy stones and rocks into the midst of their fields. It was fun watching everyone panic and run away. In the end, it was only me and my best friend left.’

Castor started chuckling, ‘do you know what she said to me? “Morag, you glaikit lass. Aye, you cannae wait to return to cause trouble as always? I sold you off so that I could marry him . Aye, I was glad that you were gone. I could get him, finally, me, I ’m the lass of the village. Me! But you, pretty lass, you had to get in my way—” I buried her, my best and last friend, in the village well.’

I rubbed my thumb along her wet, freckled cheek and looked down in those deep, sad eyes. ‘I would be happy if I could call you a frie—’

Her lips covering mine stopped me from finishing the sentence.

‘Dinnae want a friend now,’ she said in a different accent than she had before. Her eyes were still weak, but they held a depth and hunger to them that they hadn’t before. ‘I’m after a man.’

I showed her just how much of a man I was.