Grow
by Owl
Premise Tags: Ritualism/Cult,
Spirits, Trees, Devotion, Doting,
Reunited Lovers.
Content Warnings: gore,
cannibalism, identity erasure.
Yuan Hun shivered and pressed himself deeper into the grove. The wind was cold, especially since his clothes were torn. As beautiful as the forest was at this time of the year - full of white and pink petals - it also got incredibly chilly at night.
It was the season of new beginnings, which was very nice and all, but the temperatures had yet to leave winter behind and move towards summer.
The youth curled up tighter. If only he hadn’t played around and followed his family’s orders… Then he wouldn’t have gotten lost…
It was common for families to enter the forest during spring, when you could finally begin gathering edible plants again. They did that every year and Yuan Hun should have known how to behave.
The place where he had fallen asleep was a nice little clearing with bright sunshine. He had only taken a nap and the next time he had woken up, his family had left him behind. No surprise - this was punishment. His father had said that if he didn’t watch out, he’d have to stay the night out in the forest and they’d get him tomorrow.
In the chilly nights, a normal healthy youth would probably catch a cold and be down for a day or two afterwards.
Chilly didn’t mean cold enough to freeze.
Especially not if you still had your coat. And hadn’t lost it.
Or if you hadn’t fallen into the river.
Yuan Hun rubbed over his face. He was an idiot.
Besides, the forest at night was scary. He never knew when wild animals might appear, and there were a lot of noises, like that approaching rustling-
Yuan Hun froze. An even stronger cold settled inside his body as he clamped his hands over his mouth and tried to slow his breathing. Maybe the animal wouldn’t notice him.
The steps came, closer and closer, approaching dreadfully…
Someone stepped into the moonlit area in front of Yuan Hun. The man must have been older than him by some years, and he was tall and lean. He was handsome, with suntanned skin and brown hair that he had tied up. His clothes were simple and a bit dirty from the forest, but they were neat.
The stranger didn’t look too surprised at seeing Yuan Hun. Instead, he slowly smiled and Yuan Hun felt his heart quicken at the sight.
He immediately knew that this was a nice person. He couldn’t possibly be anything else.
The man squat down in front of him and stretched out a hand to brush Yuan Hun’s fringe away, earning a bright blush on the blank face. The man smelled like spring flowers, sweet and gentle.
“My. Did you get lost? What are you doing here, mmmh?” The indulgent tone of the hum tugged at Yuan Hun’s heartstrings. “You shouldn’t be in this kind of desolate corner where no one can find you.”
The young man quickly lowered his head to hide his blush and stammered an answer. “Y-Yes… I got lost and fell into the river… U-Uhm, do you live nearby? Could you help me?”
“Of course. I don’t live far from here. Come with me, you can change your clothes and stay the night.” The stranger didn’t hesitate to offer his help. Then again, if he didn’t, Yuan Hun might be a corpse by morning. “You can call me Qiao Mu. What about you?”
“I’m Yuan Hun.” Yuan Hun jumped to reply but suddenly froze. His face became blank for a second before he smiled again. “Thank you for helping me.”
“Not at all. We should all help each other out”, Qiao Mu said kindly. He reached out to touch Yuan Hun’s hand and intertwined their fingers. Stunned, the younger man stumbled forward but caught himself. Qiao Mu was walking as if there was nothing strange going on at all, so Yuan Hun couldn’t help but wonder if he maybe only did this to steady him during their walk in the dark.
Qiao Mu’s house was a little hut. There were a couple of others nearby, although Yuan Hun didn’t see any light. He didn’t even know that there was a clearing here with a settlement. This was further inside the forest than he had ever gone.
“Are you hungry?”, Qiao Mu asked, gingerly looking at Yuan Hun like at a beloved person. He was patient despite the twitching of his fingers revealing he was waiting for something.
Yuan Hun nodded several times. He was starving. His legs were weak and he was cold. The water on his clothes was gone.
“That’s great. I’ve prepared a meal already”, Qiao Mu said and laughed sweetly. It certainly was the most beautiful laughter Yuan Hun had ever heard. “You’ll feel better after eating, I’m sure.”
Yuan Hun felt a giddy warmth inside his heart. How nice. This person was so kind.
The moment they stepped inside the hut, Yuan Hun saw the feast on the table, illuminated by little lamps at the side. Fireflies buzzed inside, lighting up the room, not candles.
The meal that was prepared was sumptuous. Yuan Hun made a happy sound and almost threw himself into the chair. He began to eat, feeling much better now that he was dry and out of the wind.
Qiao Mu sat down opposite of him and smiled lovingly. He pushed over a cup with water.
“Thank you. Can I have some more?”, Yuan Hun asked, gulping it down.
Eyes turning into smiling moons, the man carefully probed with his words. “Of course. You need to drink a lot, Ah-Yu. You’ll feel better soon.”
Yuan Hun paused his chewing. He tilted his head, looking blankly at… who? Then he laughed in embarrassment and continued to eat. He really did feel better.
“I’m so happy you’re back, Qiao Mu”, someone said.
“I’m Qiao Mu?”, Yuan Hun asked, his eyes wandering over to the other man. The familiar face. The one he knew. The one who he loved with all his heart.
“Yes. You’re Qiao Mu. I am Qiao Mu. But you can also be whatever you like.” Someone raised his hand to rub it over the younger one’s head in a familiar gesture. “How about being Yu Shu? Would you like that?”
“I like that”, Yu Shu said. Like his old name. His head slowly cleared of the mud that made his thoughts sluggish. “Li-Ge, are you Li Shu?”
“Yes”, Li Shu said happily, his face suddenly beaming with joy at being recognized.
How great, Yu Shu thought as he finally remembered things. Who would have thought he’d find his Li-Ge again! Li-Ge had left exactly three years ago. He had to leave, because people hadn’t liked that Li-Ge and he were… well.
Right. His parents had always disdained Yu Shu for it. That was how things had come to this point. That Li-Ge had… been made to leave.
Sadly now wasn’t the time yet for a happy welcome. He still had to eat.
Yu Shu picked up the eyeball with his chopsticks and placed it on his tongue. It was soft, a bit like jelly, as he bit down on it. Not that good, but there were only two. He wasn’t going to leave any food behind.
The head on the plate before him had been conveniently opened up to allow for better access to the brain. Li-Ge had taken the scalp away, since it was inconvenient to eat with all that hair. Yu Shu looked at the face that was his own without any feelings.
His body.
Or what it had been once.
Yu Shu wiped a drop from his lower lip before it could drop and sucked on his finger.
Blood dyed his lips a beautiful red, tempting Li Shu to lean in and lick it away, although he couldn’t. This meal was for Yu Shu and Yu Shu alone.
Yu Shu obediently continued to eat, satiating his hunger. He broke open the ribcage like the shell of a crab and carefully picked out the heart first. He cut it into its parts and enjoyed the taste.
He couldn’t eat the outside. Still dirty from being buried, it wouldn’t taste good at all. But with the way Li-Ge had prepared the meal, it was still appetizing. The body lay on the long table, opened up like a buffet.
Only the head had been placed separately. Yu Shu stared back at the eye-less, terrified expression half stuck in a scream, skin tinted a bit blue from suffocation.
“I’m sorry, Ah-Yu”, Li Shu apologized uncomfortably. “I was a bit slow in digging you up, so your face couldn’t be formed into a nicer expression again. I had searched in the wrong place. I was in a panic because I couldn’t find you immediately too, since you wandered off.”
“That’s fine. I’m thankful for everything you’ve done for me, Li-Ge”, Yu Shu honestly replied as he chewed on a fingerbone for its marrow. “I’m sorry for running around.”
“The others will love to meet you tomorrow. I told them a lot about you. I’m happy you are finally here with me.” Li Shu grabbed Yu Shu’s hand again and pressed it tightly. The pain on his face was obvious. “I was worried… Worried that you wouldn’t come.”
“Of course I’d come”, Yu Shu said blankly. The more he ate, the more he remembered. He felt like he should be mad or scared, but… He wasn’t capable of that anymore. “There’s no way they wouldn’t use me as a sacrifice for the ceremony, since I’m useless anyway.”
The forest was a hungry thing. You had to feed it with people by burying them in the soil, or it would come take its prey itself. The forest would take the body. The forest’s inhabitants its soul.
Every spring it would wake up, and every spring the villagers had to make a decision. Who did they not mind losing?
However, they did not know - it was a season of beginnings, not endings.
Yu Shu finally finished devouring himself. Now that he was done, he was part of the forest, but wasn’t gone. He was still… himself. He’d grow to increase the size of the forest and snatch up every Yuan Hun… Snatch up every soul that died unjustly, as his food.
Now was a good time of the year for him to place his roots. He could grow next to Li-Ge, sharing a space, forever together and never to be parted again.
The thought was sweet. Yu Shu looked up at the person he had once lost and held back a relieved sob.
Li Shu moved his chair closer and finally kissed his beloved. He had waited so long for Yu Shu to come back to his side, where he belonged. It didn’t matter that the humans did not like this kind of relationship.
This forest had no humans. It only had Qiao Mu.
Because a forest…
...is a place for trees.
✿
Footnotes:
Yuān Hún - A spirit that has grievances
Qiáo Mù - Tree (A tree with a trunk, not shrub etc)
Yú Shù - Elm (tree)
Lí Shù - Pear (tree)
✿
Author's Account:
Owl (SH).
It's sweet... It's horrible... It's sweet... It's horrible... Ah, and it satisfies my horror addiction like tablet for a sugar junkie.
I was going to wax on about how handsome your ML was and how I'd be spellbound by him too but, you know, I think I'll throw him out in favour for the entire man-eating forest. Gimme, gimme, gimme~!
Also! *T-posing commences* Greetings, fellow member of the Tree-lover Supremacy Society!
I really do love the bittersweet romance you have here for these two, and the transformation into Eldritch is intriguing.
But seriously, I'm going to steal your evil forest right out of your story. It's coming home with me.
protects evil forest
Yessss it was so nice writing a horror and fluff mix *T-poses as well* Tree-love!!
the wordplay got me in this one, lol
gotta say, i thought things were getting sus as soon as
"yuan hun" froze upon hearing qiao mu introduce himself,
but things got even weirder with this bit:
"Not at all. We should all help each other out", Qiao Mu said kindly. He reached out to touch Yuan Hun's hand and intertwined their fingers. Stunned, the younger man stumbled forward but caught himself. Qiao Mu was walking as if there was nothing strange going on at all, so Yuan Hun couldn't help but wonder if he maybe only did this to steady him during their walk in the dark.
doesn't that sound like a nice friendly kidnapper leading you deeper into the forest of doom? so yeah, my chips were in on qiao mu being some weird monster or whatever, but then the bombshell dropped and we saw "yuan hun"
eating his own body which really skewed the perspective.
i actually got lost between all the body/POV switching at one point because of this confusing bit of dialogue:
"I'm so happy you're back, Qiao Mu", someone said.
"I'm Qiao Mu?", Yuan Hun asked, his eyes wandering over to the other man. The familiar face. The one he knew. The one who he loved with all his heart.
"Yes. You're Qiao Mu. I am Qiao Mu. But you can also be whatever you like." Someone raised his hand to rub it over the younger one's head in a familiar gesture. "How about being Yu Shu? Would you like that?"
by this point i thought "qiao mu" was the only character in the story and he was having a serious case of dissociation.
it took me a reread to realize this was the point where the souls were being assimilated into the forest and taking on new "tree" identities as Elm and Pear, respectively. i was also misled into think Yu Shu's forbidden relationship was with the tree spirit Li Shu (aka Li-ge) until the very end of the story, where my brain caught up and went "oh they were both humans! but they were sacrificed at different times or something and now they're both tree...spirits!"
i think language played a big part in the confusion, if "Qiao Mu" had directly said "How about being Elm? Would you like that?" then things might have fallen into place quicker. on the other hand you would have to give up some suspense in return for clarity.
i would say the strength of this entry lies in its plot twists and horror elements. the ending was even unexpectedly sweet! now then, will this world end up being a giant forest apocalypse utopia by the end? they're gonna have to
farm some humans at least to keep themselves fed...how creepy.
ur local cherry blossom rep signing out~
༺ ?༻
I really really wanted this story to focus on the wordplay. Did have to sacrifice some comprehension for it... But it's short, so people could read it twice
Long comment made me happy
owl~! I'm so scared reading this. The gore part.. maybe I haven't read many gore so I'm not used to it. Nice work though!
So scary? But now you're a bit more used to it
This was interesting and a bit frightening yet somehow a little bit sweet. Thank you for writing and I enjoyed reading. It was a change of pace for I do not usually read this type.
Thanks for reading even though it's not your thing
Read the story. Still confuzzled. Sadly, the word play was lost on me and my Chinese proficiency isn't up to par.
The comprehension could have been clearly improved, and I wonder how trees can eat themselves when they are ritually sacrificed ... But, oh, well.
The change of scene surprised me. I didn't expect the story to take this turn. Playful for sure.
But I must admit ... your style is wholesome. Your words are healing my heart. The elegance. The smoothness. The parsimony. Wonderful.
Understood ... nothing. Must reread.
yo what. im so confused. BUT SO INTRIGUED. ooooooooo i hate horror in visual media, but i love the horror in writing. OK YEAH, i found myself getting extremely lost at the beginning.
idk if it was supposed to be cute, but I WAS SO SURE THAT the mc was gonna get murdered and that the other guy was an axe wielding serial killer because of how that first scene played out. like the scene reminded me so much of a child getting lured away deeper into a forest just to get killed.
i mean. there was still some bodies in the end tho XD
for some reason, i find this really beautiful. idk idk. im so intrigued, i dont know what else to say!
it leaves me with so many question around perspective and stuff for some reason.
Yuan Hun paused his chewing. He tilted his head, looking blankly at… who? Then he laughed in embarrassment and continued to eat. He really did feel better.
“I’m so happy you’re back, Qiao Mu”, someone said.
“I’m Qiao Mu?”, Yuan Hun asked, his eyes wandering over to the other man. The familiar face. The one he knew. The one who he loved with all his heart.
“Yes. You’re Qiao Mu. I am Qiao Mu. But you can also be whatever you like.” Someone raised his hand to rub it over the younger one’s head in a familiar gesture. “How about being Yu Shu? Would you like that?”
“I like that”, Yu Shu said
like im most interested in this part because its like. is he really getting lost memories back? or is he being like hypnotized or possessed or something like that? definitely interesting. if he is getting like hypnotized or possessed, then it makes me really nervous because of a possibly cute kid having an unfortunate thing happen to him? idk, its like seeing someone young die or something. im not making sense
ANYWAY. i like it. A LOT. even though it gives me more questions than answers XD.
The story you get at the end is the truth. There were two young men, who were a couple. Unwilling to see this, the village sacrificed one of them, who turned into a tree and waited for his lover, who he already knew would be sacrificed too, sooner or later.
As a lost spirit, the mc is easy prey, having forgotten his death and wandering around blindly. The ml helps him become a tree as well, by giving him his body to eat. Their identities are shifting - the mc is a lost spirit, then becomes a tree spirit, and finally decides on what tree exactly he wants to be. The male lead, on the other hand, "regains" his identity from "just a tree" to "the lover of the main character". The name shift was supposed to be confusing on purpose, since the mc is struggling with his returning memory for a moment and the realization that the one in front of him is not only his old lover anymore... But also a tree.
@Owl NARUHODO. HAHA. my imagination just went whooooooooooshhhh
Um, that was dark but also oddly inspiring. I feel like I just walked into a room I'll never be able to escape from. I never knew I was into gore BL but oh well, we live to learn, now don't we? Great work, @Owl Thanks for opening my eyes
Join the daaaaaark side.
We are evil and have gore.
@Owl Hehe, I already joined
Hello~
Finally got around to reading the other cannibalism story of this anthology
Spring and death go too well together, especially when you think of plants thriving off the dead.
I liked the themes of the story, I think they held up well in the context of a short story. We got all the info and worldbuilding we need to enjoy the setting and I didn't feel like I was missing any context, maybe just the Chinese terms that I wasn't familiar with.
Although, it was a clever way to hide that the MC was a ghost.
I did get a little confused at first with the name changes and the reveal. I don't think the reveal hit the right notes for me, as it broke my immersion more than it pulled me in.
But overall great work and thank you for keeping it short and sweet for us competitive peeps who are trying to read this entire anthology
Yeeeees I like plants and death! It's kind of a nice mix of death and rebirth? I like it~~
That was an interesting journey, even with the tags that caught me by suprise lol. Indeed, the spooky tree... can I say amalgamating? It was pretty cool, I love me some horror tbh
A short horror story, to be devoured in one bite~