This story is intended to be fairly wholesome and for most viewers. However…
*This story contains LGBTQ characters and concepts.
*This story has domestic trouble and fighting.
*This story has mild profane language.

Book of the Dryads - Chapter 2
They Followed…

=== The next day. ===

Keeping in mind that Pendra had told her the dryads were weary of her questions, Emily decided to keep to observations for now, asking questions only to those who seemed willing. Even still, she was filling up her book fast. The nuances of the culture, the magic capabilities the dryads had, and she was only beginning to scratch the surface! She was going to need to leave the valley to get more paper sooner rather than later.

For the time being, she was staying with Skyla. She had been happy to answer many of her daughter's questions and contribute to the book she was writing. Emily entered the home and sat down, gazing at her leather-bound book, filled to the brim with her scribbles.

"I can't believe it, a day in, and I already filled the book..." Emily sighed.

"Well, to be fair, it's a small book. That was meant for daily thoughts, not research on a different species."

"I know I have to get a bigger and better book, but... I don't know if I want to go alone."

"Well, we have all sorts of dryads who could pass for human around here, I'm sure that-"

"I wanted it to be you."

Skyla stared at Emily for a moment. "Uh, not to disappoint you, but with my hair and the flower, I’m going to stand out. We wanted to keep the village secret, remember?"

Emily sighed again. "I know, it's just... I wanted to spend more time with you. If only there were..." Emily stopped as she processed the thought. Without another word, she pulled out a hat from her pack and put it on Skyla's head. "Hmmm..."

Skyla started to get at what Emily was thinking. "You're thinking of a disguise, aren't you?"

"Exactly. If I could weave a bunch of hair into that hat, we could bundle the rest of your blue hair into it and make it look like you have normal hair... But where are we going to get that much hair?"

"We could grow it! Specifically, you could; the dryads developed a hair growth serum for me before I underwent the Ritual of Realization. We could grow your hair out with that, cut it, and use the trimmings for the disguise!"

Emily pondered it for a brief moment. "You know what? I like it! We would look like sisters, as long as we hid the brows and ears."

"I know who to talk to about that. I will be right back!" Skyla left in a hurry. She seemed excited about Emily's plan now.

Emily was left with her thoughts. It was going to be a short trip, but a meaningful one. She was going to go out with the person she now regarded as her real mom. She knew things could go wrong, but with such a short trip to a place in the middle of nowhere, could things really go badly?

=== Elsewhere... ===

"I can't believe she came all the way out here. I mean really, what does she think she's doing?" the woman snickered.

"We will find her a suitor, Mary, one that can temper that unruly spirit of hers."

"We've tried so hard, and now she comes out to Oregon? She had everything she needed with us. You came back with so much money, Tomas. What else could Emily want in life?"

"Uhg, some of the locals are saying she was looking for Steven's remains. I mean really, he's dead, so what does it matter?"

"She could never let him go, and now she's out here, in this... Uncivilized place."

"The sooner we can get her back, the better."

"Agreed, and we can put this whole ordeal behind us."

"How much longer to the outpost they were mentioning? This carriage is so uncomfortable."

"A few more hours, honey..."

=== Back at the dryad village. ===

"Just so you know, I really don't like this," Lilac said. "Too much can go wrong."

"It's just a quick trip to the outpost," Emily stated, her hair growing by the second. "Take the trail, get a book, come back. I can't imagine it would be that long. I can't think of what could go wrong..." Her hair started growing slower as the serum's effects wore off. It was now dusting the floor.

"Well, I think we have enough. Should I start cutting?" Skyla asked.

"Please do. I don't mind if I go a little shorter than before," Emily said with a smile.

Skyla began cutting with great precision. She had been learning to cut the hair of other dryads for some time now, a job of hers in the village. It was more of a side hobby, though, as she was responsible for a significant job in the village, thanks to a newly discovered ability she developed upon becoming a dryad... Emily didn't know about it yet, but Skyla wanted to tell her. The time had not been right yet, as Emily was absorbing all she could about the dryads since her arrival.

Skyla was careful with the long blonde hair she cut from Emily. She handed neat bundles of the wavy hair to Emily, who carefully stitched them into the hat. Before long, the hat/wig hybrid was ready to go, with long bangs to hide Skyla's sky-blue brows. Emily carefully positioned the hat on Skyla, making subtle adjustments to ensure it looked right.

"There we go!" Emily exclaimed, proud of her work.

Even Lilac had to admit, Skyla and Emily looked like they were related now. The hazel eyes and blond hair made them either mother and daughter or siblings. As long as the hat stayed in place, Skyla just looked like a very tall woman.

"Just, be careful you two, okay?"

=== A couple of hours later. ===

Emily and Skyla entered the outpost's shop. The walls were lined with all sorts of gear for use in surviving the wilderness and logging. There were other items throughout, and Emily was looking for one thing in particular.

Meanwhile, this was Skyla's first time outside of the dryad village since she washed up on the riverbank. It was strange having to duck through doorways. The dryads occasionally had people making 6 or even very rarely 7 feet. Now, at 6-foot-4, she was a giant in the land of humans. Doorways weren't meant for her.

The store's attendant noticed Emily. "Welcome back so soon!" he said in a gravelly voice. "Did you go on your excursion down the river? Did you find what you were looking for?"

Emily snuck a glance towards Skyla. "More than I thought. I have to ask, do you have a large notebook or two around here, Brice?"

"Hang on, let me have a look..." Brice said as he turned around and started shuffling through supplies behind the desk.

The door opened again. Skyla turned to see who it was, and her heart dropped. She recognized the man and woman who came through: It was Mary, her ex-wife, and Tomas, her former friend and would-be murderer.

"Emily Barford, get over here!" Tomas barked.

"You have a lot of explaining to do young lady!" Mary chimed in.

Emily turned around. "What the heck are you two doing here?! Didn't you get the hint I wanted to be left alone?!"

"It's not about what you want. It's about what's best for the family," Mary explained.

"We will find you a husband. You have too much wanderlust and spirit. We know of a few who can tame you... It's for your own good," Tomas said.

"Oh, and you would rather I didn't go looking for the man you tried to kill, put him to rest? You would rather I'd be miserable for the rest of my days?" This got several in the store, Brice included, to look up and pay attention to the arguing family.

"This is not up for discussion!" Tomas said as he started reaching for Emily. "YOU ARE COMING WITH US RIGHT NOW!"

Skyla slapped his hand away from Emily. "Don't you dare touch her!"

"Stay out of this, giantess!" Tomas shoved Skyla back onto the floor, knocking the hat off her head and revealing all of her dryad features. The hair, the ears, the flower, all of it. Everyone in the room save Emily gasped at the sight. Skyla's face turned bright red from embarrassment, as though she were nude.

"What the hell are you?!" Tomas exclaimed.

"Oh no..." Emily muttered. This was beyond the worst-case scenario; of course her parents had to be involved in this mess.

Brice could be seen deep in thought. He had heard things...

"This thing was posing as a person?! We need to get it out of here!" Mary growled.

"Give me something to get it out of here," Tomas asked with venom in his words.

"NO!" Emily yelled as she jumped in front of Skyla. "YOU ARE NOT GOING TO TAKE MY MOTHER AWAY FROM ME AGAIN!"

Skyla realized Emily just called her "mother." It warmed her heart to hear Emily say that.

Tomas and Mary were speechless. "Emily, have you lost your mind?! I am your mother!"

"Skyla is..." Emily began.

"Hello Tomas, Mary. Long time, no see." Skyla said with restrained anger.

"Wait, you recognize us?"

"Why wouldn't I recognize my ex-wife? Or my former friend, who if I recall correctly, told me - to my face - that I was a 'sad man who didn't deserve the wealth I found or the wife I had,' before trying to beat me to death and throwing me into a river. Sound familiar?"

Both Tomas and Mary swore under their breath. Steven was right in front of them. There was no way anyone else could have known about those details.

"Steven, you're... A-Alive..." Tomas stuttered.

"No thanks to you..." Skyla had been so tempted to say more but restrained herself. "And it's Skyla, by the way."

Emily helped Skyla up. "I'm sorry..."

"Don't be," Skyla whispered as she hugged Emily.

Tomas couldn't believe it. Was he about to lose his bargaining chip to this freak of a ghost? He wasn't going to have it. "One of you, get me something to take care of that creature! I will pay handsomely..."

Brice stood up from his desk, revealing a scarred, muscle-bound figure who clearly survived a violent encounter with death. "We don't take too kindly to murderers and thieves around here. You should be lucky you're only one of those."

The rest of the patrons of the store stared at the well-off couple. Tomas and Mary could feel the daggers being fired by their eyes. Their money couldn't get them out of this...

Realizing they were vulnerable, Emily made her move. "I am not going back to New York. I am staying here, with my real mother, Skyla, and I am going to live my own life."

"You will be-" Mary began.

"Cut off? You can take your wealth and shove it. I'm happier with people who care about me. Besides, I am Emily Ashland, not Barford," she said, looking at Skyla, taking her old last name.

"We-"

"First of all, Mary, you are a shallow hag. You were too obsessed with riches and the trappings of high society to care about your own children. And Tomas, you never could replace my father, not that you tried. I knew from the start you wanted to use me as a means to marry into another rich family. It was all about the wealth, wasn't it?"

Tomas and Mary made unintelligible stammering. Emily leaned in closer. "Also, one day, I am going to have a girlfriend. I will take her to be my wedded, and we will be happy together, snuggling together on cold nights," she whispered with a smugness. She knew that would sting, and she relished it!

Mary almost vomited. Tomas knew he lost. "I will come back, and I-"

Brice hit the table, startling everyone. "You will not come back. You will not breathe a word of what took place here. If we so much as feel you are coming back for vengeance, or to harm these people..." He took an ax and swung it into the wall. His point was made.

Tomas and Mary scrambled out of the shop, nearly tripping on top of one another to flee.

Emily turned to Brice. "Did you just defend us?"

"Most of us have heard rumors about this area, that there were some sort of mystical creatures nearby. We have seen people fall into the river and come out on the other side healthier than before. And some of us... Have had encounters, ones we've whispered to each other, hoping we could trust one another with the secret..." Brice turned to Skyla. "Some of us have much to thank for your people. It sounds like you do as well."

"I do, and you're welcome." Skyla said, bowing. "Although, our elder isn't going to be too happy about what transpired here..."

"We know. We saw the hatred on full display there. However, the world is changing, and you aren't going to stay hidden forever. If your 'elder' or what have you wanted to talk more, we would be open to it. Otherwise, your secret is safe with us, assuming you return one day."

"Thank you, I will let her know."

Brice turned to Emily. "And you, you are one of a kind. You are very welcome here. It sounds like you know what you want to do with yourself."

"Thank you, that's why I'm here. I was looking for a book I could write down knowledge about the dryads in." She held up her notebook. "This just isn't enough."

"Tell you what, I have my registry book here." Brice put the massive tome on the table. "It's practically new, with only three pages written in. I can take those out and give the book to you. Sound good?"

"For free? Really?"

"It's on me. Besides, I think you telling off those overstuffed moneybags was the most entertaining thing many of us have seen in a while!"

"Thank you so much, Brice."

"I hope to see both of you again soon!"

With that, Emily and Skyla left. They looked at each other and smiled. Both of them had just closed the door to the last chapter of their life, and it felt amazing. That said, they had a lot to explain. They knew Lilac was not going to be happy with what happened...

CHAPTER 2 END

By CrystalSeaDragon44