• A low, powerful rumble fell from the sky....

     Thunder rolled through the forest, spreading much like a wildfire blazes in the late summer. Rain was coming, I could feel it. I knew it was coming long before anyone else, even before clouds started to spot the sky. It's a sense, of sorts that I've lived with ever since I gained awareness of my surroundings. My childhood was spent in the woods near my house, and even if I didn't live near any, I would always find an alcove where trees grew.

     My sense of nature expanded the more time I spent outside. I always ended up telling my mother to bring the laundry in saying, 'It's going to rain soon, Mommy, you should bring our clothes in before they get wet.' And then I'd run off, heading for the haven's I found, to sit and wait for it. And always, it would come. It was at first unnerving for my mother. My parents were divorced before I was six so my father wasn't around for most of my life. My mother had to deal with my almost unnatural bond with nature on her own, but eventually she came to accept it. 'Yet another one of your wonderful gifts,' she would always say.

     This storm however, was a special one. I didn't know it yet, but I could tell there was something different about it. Maybe it was the way the lightning crashed over head, or perhaps it was how thick and, forcefully the clouds lay their presence on the area. One thing was for certain...

    ...I had to be outside tonight...and I knew the perfect place.

     I got dressed as fast as I could. I didn't need anything special. Pants of course, socks, shoes, a muscle shirt, and a flannel. And especially my necklaces. I never leave my house without my necklaces. If I do, and I know this sounds silly but, I feel fragile and unprotected for some reason. So, with what I needed, I went downstairs, told my mother I was going out, and glided out the front door. My mother understood, as I said she has long since accepted my irresistible lure to nature.

     The rain had started to fall by then. It wasn't heavy...yet, but I knew this was just the start. A prequel, or preparation for what was to come. My hair, long as I always preferred it, was slightly damp, but not quite wet enough to weigh on my head. I always loved long hair. It was sometimes difficult to manage, but whenever it was shorter I could never seem to get it under control. It always did whatever it wanted, like it had a mind of it's own. So, I let it grow. I had it cut only a little while ago so it's growing faster thanks to the fresh start. It's down to my shoulders and just barely tickling my back, right between my shoulder blades.

     I entered the woods, my own 'personal heaven' as most people said I tell it. I guess in a way they're right. I can't imagine my life without pines and shrub bushes and all the wildlife. It was a part of me, and I a part of it. Even some of the animals have come to greet me whenever I walked by. Squirrels and birds always chimed their greeting, then hurried off on their different ways, busy with their lives. You may not believe me, but I also accidentally stumbled upon a lynx once. It had caught a small owl and was happily enjoying it's meal when I happened to be passing. I froze, hoping I didn't scare it away, and it froze, debating on whether to run, attack, or finish eating.

     After almost two minutes, I took the initiative and slowly kept walking. I also held my eye on it, however, for my natural fear of being attacked. But I suppose it understood my action, as it seemed to grin and began eating once more. I hurried out of there by the time he resumed eating. But every now and then I catch the lynx out of the corner of my eye, watching me curiously as if to determine if I was really, well human I guess.

     The rain started to fall heavier now. My hair was drooping on my head by now and drops of water were falling from the tips of where it had gathered together. My shoulders were starting to feel the cold of the now wet flannel. But I was nearly to my destination. Of all the places I've explored in the forest, my favorite place is where I'm headed.

     I mentioned earlier that I always found a haven, no matter where I lived at the time. Well, this was the most special. It took me an entire year to finally find it, but when I did I realized why. And alas, I arrived. No one else who walks through this forest knows it's here, mainly because no one really cares to look for it. It's a place where only someone who knows how to spot animal paths can see...

     It was a glade, in the heart of the forest, where a small tree had fallen. The tree provided the perfect place to sit, and scattered all over the glade was sage. The trees around it made an excellent barrier from the rest of the world. It was almost as if it was a separate part of the forest. Not quite in it, yet a part of it all the same. And the smell, due to the sage, was nigh intoxicating.

     But that's not the reason I chose it. When I found it, it was a full moon, and the sage plants were in bloom with hundreds of white flowers. At a certain time, with all the things I've just listed in place, something spectacular happens. The very second I had entered the glade, the moon had shown from behind a cloud, and the light hit directly onto the fallen tree. As I watched, the hundreds of white sage flowers reflected light all around, shining on the entire clearing. The glade seemed to glow, almost as if a touch of magic had just frozen time.

     I couldn't believe my eyes. Almost dumbstruck, I wandered into the center of the glade and sat on the tree, careful not to disturb any of the sage flowers. I sat there until dawn, in that mystical glade, watching the moon continue to slowly rise up. When daybreak came I went back home. I went back to the glade for the entire full moon cycle, and watched the amazing sight over and over. I did that again the next month, but it wasn't the same. So every year I waited for it. That special month and the full moon, and visited the glade...

    ...Tonight, just happened to be that special night. It was the second day of the full moon cycle, when it is at it's fullest. I was a worried I'd miss it because of the rain, but somehow I had a feeling it wouldn't matter. Either way, I still had to go. I just felt something driving me forward. I don't usually resist when things like this happen. I always knew there was a purpose to why I felt it. The only difference this time, however, was the strength of the feeling. It was almost overpowering, almost enough to make me want to run as fast as I could. But I had resigned to a determined walk, so as not to alarm the creatures and life around me.

     I entered the glade, glancing around at all the flowers, still in full bloom and now being pounded on by the dense rain. It was really pouring now. The din of the water hitting the trees and the ground was almost deafening. I was soaked to the bone, yet I felt a warmth, as I always did whenever I walked into the glade. My hair was now desperately reaching for the ground, and it hung in front of my face.

     But before I could think about brushing it away, I heard, I felt something else in the clearing. It seemed like it has been there for a while, but I had just noticed it's existence. I looked ahead, and sitting on the tree, staring at me, was a woman. She was my age, with very long, and beautiful black hair. She wore blue jeans, tennis shoes, and a denim jacket that seemed familiar somehow. I brushed away my hair and looked more closely. It was just like the jacket I had at my house, except a little smaller, the perfect size for the woman's slim, seemingly petite figure. She was just sitting there, smiling at me, with sparkling blue eyes that could stare straight through my soul...

    ...The only word I could describe her with was, beautiful. At that point, I was curious. Not of why she was staring, but how she found the glade. It seemed like I was, tied, to her somehow. Like she was a piece of me, yet separate. A part, yet whole herself. That urge came back, stronger than ever, and it said to go forward. So I did, and walked to the tree. I sat down next to her and said nothing. I didn't think anything needed to be said. She was content to sit and stare at me and I was content to observe the glade. It almost looked dark, seeing as the moon wasn't out and the flowers were being bombarded by rain.

     The woman and I sat there, for what seemed like hours, but I knew that time always went slower in the glade. It was a side effect of the sage, that coupled with the smell and sound of the rain hitting the ground and the trees, time appeared to come to a standstill. The woman, however, didn't know that from what I could tell. She had stopped staring at me, at least directly, and observed the glade to 'pass the time'.

     But alas, not much later I could tell she was uncomfortable with just sitting. She started to fidget and walk around, looking anxiously at me as if I would give her some sort of sign. She actually looked kind of, well, cute when she did it. In the end I took pity on her and broke the silence between us. I smiled at her and said, 'Time doesn't have much significance here. Believe it or not, we've only been here for about twenty minutes.' She stopped and looked at me, startled that I had actually said something.

     I didn't say another word, nor did I move. I just looked at her, smiling gently, and waited for her response. I didn't expect one, but I wouldn't unprepared for one either. After a moment, she sat back down, and attempted another smile. She was embarrassed, and I could tell. Her face was slightly red and she couldn't stop glancing at me, wondering if I would say more. Instead, I looked away and continued to observe the glade. I had gotten used to the log, after coming to the glade so many times before. It wasn't hard, however, seeing as no matter how you sat on it, it was always comfortable.

     It soon became somewhat of a game. We would always wait to see who would say something, then look away after a while of staring. Well, I suppose it wouldn't be fair to say 'we', seeing as I always seemed to get the better of her. Even with those stunningly beautiful eyes of hers, I always seemed to make her blush and turn away. I also was a master of patience. I didn't mind sitting in one place for any period of time. I guess it's because I always end up drifting into deep thought if I stay still too long.

     The woman, on the other hand, had an almost childlike need to do something. She even stood up and walked around the edge of the glade, avoiding the flowers just like I would, looking around and observing everything. Anything to pass the time and be active. I began to watch her, just because she seemed to be the only thing my attention would grab. As time slowly crept by, I began to see a pattern.

     She would sit next to me, we would stare at each other, she would look away and get up, blushing all the way, and start to walk around. As she did, she would take the same path to the edge of the glade, where she would encircle the entire area, muttering to herself and making hand motions. She did this several times a minute, from what I knew about how time went in the glade. And for three minutes, I watched her go through the same system. All the while, rain still poured from the sky.

     After the twenty second time she sat down, I had to let out a laugh. She jumped slightly and looked at me. Still smiling, I said, 'Time wont go any faster if you move around. Like I said, time doesn't really matter in this glade. It's going to come and go at the same speed no matter what you do.' She stared at me, blinking, as if trying to make sense of what she heard. She ended up looking down at her feet, her face now glowing red. And through the patter of the rain, and the thundering sky...

    ...'So no matter what I do, I'm stuck waiting for it to come?' My breath caught in my chest, and my heart skipped what felt like three beats. Her voice was almost angelic, like the thrum of a thousand harps weaved into one sound. For a second I was speechless, but I blinked and exhaled. My face grew hot and I looked ahead. I was actually blushing. I had never blushed before in my life, and now this woman's voice made my heart flutter in my chest.

     A few seconds later I gathered my thoughts, and said, 'Is being stuck with me so bad? I for one am kind of enjoying the company, and I've never actually known anyone who could find this place, so I've always ended up alone here.' She sat down on the tree, all the while keeping her eye on me. 'Why hasn't anyone found this place? It's not that hard to find if you follow the trails,' she replied. 'Ah, but that's the thing,' I said. 'Not many people around here know how to see the trails, much less follow them.'

     It was a strange experience, hearing my own words spoken so long ago to my mother. I had the same kind of thing happen when I was living near town. I had taken my mother to my haven at the time, and had to show her how to find it. She said something along the same lines I did, 'Most people don't know how to spot animal tracks, so they can't follow them as easily as you.'

     What was also strange was the sudden change in the atmosphere. As we kept talking, we both gradually realized just how similar we were. We thought relatively the same way, had the same opinions on many things, and even shared the same love of music. We even ended up finishing each others' thoughts after a while. It was a refreshing feeling to find someone so much like me, yet still have their own small differences.

     We stopped talking after a while and were content with just looking at one another. The rain didn't bother me much, but I could tell she was getting cold. She began to shiver and she crossed her arms to try and keep warm. By now her denim jacket was soaked and sticking to her body, which only made her colder. I took off my flannel and wrapped it around her shoulders, and she grasped it gratefully. 'Won't you get cold?' She asked.

     I just smiled and said, 'The rain doesn't bother me, and I've always felt warmer whenever I enter this glade. I'll be just fine, but you shouldn't have to be cold. You are a girl after all.' The last thing I said just slipped out, and I blushed after I said it, and quickly looked at the ground. 'Aww, you're sweet,' she said. I heard rustling next to me, and then...

    ...she kissed me on the cheek. I couldn't help but grin, and my face felt as though it would burst into flame. My heart was pounding harder and louder than even the thunder and rain could drown out. I glanced at her and she apparently was just as embarrassed. We caught each others eye and held gaze for a moment, then looked away hastily. About another fifteen minutes passed by before we moved. I adjusted my position on the log and she squirmed a little bit to find a better place to get comfortable.

     It was so strange, just sitting there, with this woman, this beautiful girl that is so much like a mirror image of me, in the pouring rain. It almost seemed surreal...but I had forgotten something...

     'What's your name?' I muttered...

     'What?' She asked...

     'I asked, what's your name?' I said, a little louder...

     'It's Heart. What about you? What's your name?' She asked...

     'Soul. My name is Soul.' I said...

     Then, almost as if it was waiting for this exact moment, the rain slowed and ceased. I knew what was coming and told Heart, 'Watch, this is why I come here whenever this month has the full moon.' So we both watched as the clouds parted around the glade, and the moon gazed straight through the gap onto us...

     It was the most amazing thing I had ever experienced. As the light hit us, the ground beneath our feet began to sparkle, and the sage flowers seemed to stretch and open up as the light touched each and every one of them. The trees around the glade showed dazzling specks of white light and the whole clearing glowed with more brilliance than I've ever seen it show before. Time no longer moved...the only thing that I could hear was my heartbeat...animals gathered all around the glade, peering in to see who caused the shift...a white wolf comes up the path I always walk...

    ...I turned to Heart...
    ...my heart beat is so loud...
    ...I touched her shoulder...
    ...it feels like I'll break under the force...
    ...she turned to face me...
    ...my heart is like thunder in my chest...
    ...she is so beautiful...
    ...so strong, it hurts...
    ...she's so close...
    ...I feel so alive...
    ...I can almost taste her breath...
    ...my heart is beating for the Earth itself...
    ...her eyes are windows to eternity...
    ...I can't stop...
    ...closer...
    ...I won't stop...
    ...so beautiful...
    ...I love you...

    ...a kiss...

    ...and the white wolf howls at the moon, completing the bond that brought us together...

    Eternal love, forevermore...