The people in town all think you’re insane for buying this house, not that they hadn’t thought you were insane beforehand. It’s not like the town is all that massive, since most take any chance they can to leave this place and never return. There’s always quite a few empty houses ready to be bought, you could have chosen any of them. And yet you chose this one.
The town is surrounded by a rather dense forest, a forest which is known to house all manner of supernatural beings and creatures. Everyone knows not to stray into the forest, and if you do, then not to do so alone, of for long. For some reason though, the beings of the forest cannot seem to exit the forest completely during the day, thus leaving the town in dubious safety whilst ever the sun is up.
Going into the forest itself at night is a death sentence, but being out and about in town or having your doors and windows open at night, is rather dubious as well. Most supernatural beings view such a thing as an invitation. Luckily, the further away from the forest you are, the safer you are from their trickery. Most of the time.
The home you purchased, just so happened to be the only home in town that was technically within the forest border. Understandably, it had stayed empty for a very long time, despite how beautiful it was.
You loved it though. The house was old and quirky, and had an air to it that you adored. Your rear garden was pressed right up against the old forest, the fence having long since rotten away, and wildflowers having overtaken most of the space. All except for one tree that sat in the centre of your yard, between the forest and your home. The entire rear half of your house had large beautiful windows that faced the forest, as well as a massive section of glass doors that opened up to the rear garden, almost like an entertainment area, thanks to the simple stone porch.
The first thing you did after you moved in, was to open it up wide and set up your art studio in that room. You knew that people were said to be harassed and driven insane by the creatures of the forest if they lived this close, but honestly, you would prefer their harassment to that of humans. You weren’t even sure you could be considered sane to start with. The townsfolk certainly didn’t seem to think so.
It never took long for people to realise you were an odd one. You were an artistic soul with a quirky nature, and unfortunately that didn’t go over too well with the more reserved folk one tended to find in small towns such as this. It was better to save yourself the trouble, instead of risking being chased out of town again. Hopefully here, you could immerse yourself in your artistic endeavours as much as you wished, and still be left alone by the bitter people further into town.
Your first couple nights there were uneventful, but after about a week, you started to feel their eyes on you as you went about your day. On a whim, you decided to greet your new “neighbours”, by filling a basket with fresh fruits and homemade foods, placing the basket just a little ways past your tree.
By the afternoon, when you finally dragged yourself away from your canvas, you found the basket empty, and placed on your side of the tree. Happily, you decided to continue to share. You usually had some surplus anyway, and it was nicer and more satisfying to share it with the “others” than it was to share with the townsfolk.
Each morning, at your own pace, you would happily open up your large glass doors, place your basket of goodies on the grass, and settle down to begin creating as you pleased. Though you continued to place the basket between the tree and the forest, the basket itself would be returned to you closer and closer to your home, now often coming with flowers, seeds, or herbs that grew only in the forest, in return. You had never had such a lovely selection of plants in your garden before, and you were more than content to share your newer gains with your non human neighbours as well.
One morning, you were feeling particularly melancholy, and so instead of sitting inside with your doors wide open, you sat quietly against the tree, completely focused on what you were writing. You never heard the basket being taken but you were eventually startled by the sight of a strange fox appearing at your side.
It was cautious at first, but it took surprisingly little time to warm up to you, eventually settling right up against your side as you wrote, much to your delight. You were very sad to say good bye to it at the end of the day.
Luckily for you, this seemed to usher in a new routine, and each time you found yourself sitting by the tree, canvas, sketchpad, or laptop in hand, your new friend would cautiously come and join you. You relished in their comforting presence, and began to bring treats specifically for them as well, when ever you would settle out on the grass with them.
One evening, as you sat on your rear porch, just outside the wide open doors to your art studio, you accidentally drifted off to sleep, the sounds of rain lulling you and leaving you blind to the dangers that came with the approaching night. The next morning you woke to find yourself gently laid out a few feet past the now shut doors, a cloak of glistening silk, lined with fur, laying over you.
You were startled, but took it in stride, gently folding up the cloak and putting it into the basket with that mornings gifts, before depositing it in its usual place in order to respectfully return it. Not long after you had settled in for the morning, your fox companion came to join you once more, settling directly in your lap as you leaned against the tree, working on your creation of the day.
Yet again, you found yourself unintentionally falling asleep, this time lulled by the gentle warmth in your lap, and the soft cool breeze that could be felt by the tree in your garden. You didn’t even wake as you were shifted and carefully lifted, sleeping soundly through the afternoon and the night.
The first rays of sunlight were what finally started to stir you awake, and sleepily you shifted, looking around in confusion. Once more, you had been carried inside, only this time you had been gently laid out on your bed. Your covers had been discarded, and replaced instead with that same beautiful cloak, its scent surrounding and covering you, leaving you feeling warm and safe.
Sleepily, you began to sit up, pausing as something fell from your head and onto the soft cloak, waking the fox that had contentedly curled up against your side. Surprised, you looked at the fox, only to startle as something once again fell from your head at the sudden movement. Curiously, you reached up into your hair, discovering dozens of flowers gently woven into your hair, having been lovingly placed while you slept.
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