Flash Fiction Friday (19)

Dottie over at Tink's Place have come up with the idea for a Monday Morning Flash Fiction challenge. Each Monday a new picture prompt will be posted and if you choose to participate you post your story on Friday - 350 words, give or take.

I have to thank Blodeuedd at Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell for introducing me to this fun meme. I don't know if I'll be able to keep up with every week, but I'll give it a try from time to time.

The Image This Week:

By:  Melissa

She stood in her deceased mother’s best dress and all fancied up, using the red berry juices to shine her lips and flowers decorated through her hair. And she felt a fool.

She lived in the forest alone, but even being one with nature as she was she ventured close to towns to see and learn. She knew the ways of the women there. And she swore she was not like them. Only fool girls sat waiting for the men of their dreams to come gallivanting to them and whisk them away in their arms to the safe grounds of a castle or large manor.

She is a simple girl, in his eye although she had more power than he knew. He found her as he was lost in the woods. He couldn't even find his own obvious brush hacked trail through and the harsh prints in the ground. He had wondered almost to exhaustion when she found him. She left him feel the part of a hero even though the spites and birds had told her he was here and lost. She never thought she'd lose her heart to any man, let alone him, in that short of time together. But he had to go back to his village to tend to matters. He said as he held her and kissed her lips he would return in a week’s time to take her with him to be his bride and love.

She looked around as the birds weaved around her head playing with the flowers and her hair. She swatted at them chasing them away, ripping the flowers from her hair. He wasn't coming. She had come here every day for the last five, waiting his arrival, hoping.

She was partly glad there were no others with her to laugh at her foolish thoughts, but then half wished she had someone to cry to then maybe she wouldn't feel so lonely and...desperate.

She shook her head and ripped the gown from her body, grabbing the fur hide pants she donned in comfort and the top woven of cotton, climbing the vines into the tree tops.

Never again would she wait for a man, or anyone else for that matter. She would live out her life as a bitter woman aging slowly to feel the pain every day.

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Little did she know her all loving nature was jealous of her feelings for this man and played cruel tricks with their hearts to get what she wanted, for now and the future.

The young suitor did return to the forest for his hearts love, but once again lost his way in the forest of ever moving greenery. His trail always covered and hidden from him.

The young man found he wandered aimlessly through the forest for days, not knowing his way to her or to his home. Tripping over a large tree root that mysteriously appeared from under long plant leaves, he fell hitting his temple on a hidden rock with jagged edges.