Delia Lady of the Woods

Delia stepped out of her small home, breathing in the fresh air. A couple of butterflies fluttered around her, and she allowed them to land on her like she was a perch. She smiled softly at them as she brushed a strand of pink hair behind one of her ears.

“Good morning, little ones. Anything you would like to share with me?” Delia asked, holding up a hand.

One of the butterflies landed on her index finger. She nodded along as if listening to something.

“I see. Thank you for informing me. I will handle it. You don’t have to concern yourself with that,” she assured the butterflies as they flew off.

She watched them fly off before doing her normal rounds.

Delia walked away from her home, completely ignoring the little girl who had popped out of her hiding spot nearby and was trotting behind Delia with stars in her eyes.

The woman observed her surroundings, her sharp eyes searching for any anomalies. She paused several times to check on the health of one of the plants before continuing on her way. The little girl remained silent, staying several feet behind Delia.

Several animals that happened to cross their path stopped in their tracks and allowed Delia to approach them.

She conversed with them cheerfully for a couple of moments before they went their separate ways. The girl trailing behind her stared anxiously at the animals that also returned her gaze with a nervous look.

By the time Delia had looped back to her home, it had been several hours.

Delia stopped in front of her door and said, “I think that’s enough now. Shouldn’t you be running home, little one?”

The girl flinched and scurried to hide herself behind some bushes.

With a sigh, Delia turned around and said, “I know you’re there. Your parents must be worried about you. You should return home.”

Even though the jig was up, the girl refused to come out of her hiding spot.

With a snap of Delia’s fingers, the little girl was abruptly lifted into the air by an invisible force and yanked forward until she was face-to-face with Delia. The woman crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at the girl, who covered her face sheepishly.

“Little one, I won’t repeat myself. This place is for human children. Return to your home,” Delia said as the little girl plopped down at her feet.

The little girl stared owlishly up at Delia before scrambling to her feet.

“No, I wanna stay. I want to live in the woods like you,” the little girl insisted.

“No,” Delia said flatly before turning to the door.

That’s when she heard a sniffling.

She froze, not daring to look behind her as she knew very well what that sound meant. Even so, she knew she couldn’t ignore the little girl and reluctantly turned around to see the child holding back her tears.

Holding back a sigh, Delia knelt down and asked, “Why don’t you want to go home? Are your parents mean to you?”

The little girl shook her head and said, “No. My parents are nice and give me lots of stuff, but they are busy. They don’t play with me.”

Delia took a moment to really look at the little girl and noted the fancy clothes the child was wearing. It was clear that the little girl came from a wealthy house.

“Don’t you have any siblings or friends?” Delia prodded, wondering how they could let a child roam aimlessly in the woods.

She knew for a fact that the little girl was completely alone, as everything in the woods had informed Delia that the only trespasser was the little girl. It was impossible for a human to evade the eyes of every living thing in the woods, so Delia believed them.

“No, I don’t have siblings, and the other kids don’t want to play with me. They think I’m weird,” the little girl muttered, looking down at her feet and kicking up dirt.

“So you thought it was a good idea to come to the woods alone. Do your parents even know where you are?” Delia said.

The little girl tensed up and remained silent, which answered that question.

Delia sighed and said, “I’ll take you home this time, but you can’t come back.”

“Why not?” the little girl whined, looking at Delia with puppy eyes.

“The woods are dangerous. You’re lucky nothing attacked you. Come. Let’s go,” Delia said, standing up and holding her hand out to the little girl.

She hesitated before taking Delia’s hand. The duo walked slowly in the direction of the human town without bumping into anything. When they reached the edge of the woods, they paused.

“This is where we part ways,” Delia said, slipping her hand out of the little girl’s hands.

“You’re not coming?” the little girl asked, looking up innocently confused.

Delia shook her head and said, “My place is here in the woods. You should go home.”

The little girl didn’t budge and said, “But I want to play with you more.”

Hearing such words made Delia ruefully shake her head.

“Sorry, but I can’t. Now run along,” Delia said, urging the little girl to go.

Unfortunately, the little girl refused to budge.

“No,” she said, stomping her little feet.

Seeing that the little girl was determined to kick up a fuss, Delia said, “Maybe next time.”

The little girl stopped and looked at Delia with wide eyes as she asked, “Promise?”

For a moment, Delia hesitated.

Then she forced a smile as she said, “Promise.”

At those words, the little girl smiled brightly and said, “It’s a promise.”

With the promise secured, the little girl ran down the path into town and only paused for a moment to wave back at Delia. Delia raised a hand to wave back and watched as the little girl disappeared from view.

Once Delia couldn’t see the little girl anymore, she dropped her hand and silently retreated back into the woods without a second glance.