The clouds rolled in as the pair crossed the river.

The sky was blanketed with dense grey clouds. A roar of thunder sent the pair crashing through the thickening stream, splashing water up and soaking through to their pants.

They were an unlikely pair.

A woman who seemed like she belonged more in a cafe or somewhere with a cosy chair and a fireplace to curl up by, and a man who knew the wilderness like the back of his hand.

Their story? _For another time. _

When they got to the other side of the river bank, the man, without trying to draw attention, nodded towards a cloaked figure who eerily hunched over what seemed to be an unlit makeshift fire. The woman turned her gaze towards the figure and flames seamlessly erupted out of nowhere. The pair turned to each other and without speaking, they had a conversation. _What do we do? _

The man nodded towards the mysterious figure and they slowly crept towards it. Although they tried to place their feet in a way that would make no noise, the figure sat up bone straight. The figure had sensed their presence; almost as if it had been waiting for them all along.

It turned half way towards them, but they saw no face under the darkened clouds. The fire did nothing to brighten the hooded face. The man, who by day was used to anything that go’s boo in the night, felt his heart start to race as his fight or flight began to pick up pace. The woman however felt a strange pull, like she knew this figure, like she was _like_ it.

Almost in a trance she began to walk towards it. The man reached out, but she was out of reach. She moved with such fluidity the man could only watch with bated breath, for what the figure would do.

As the woman got closer, the flames started to roar higher, climbing like ivy into the darkening air, twisting and reaching towards the sky. The figure waved its hand slowly, left and then right, almost as if they were conducting a peaceful choir. As the hand moved, the fire slowed and started to lull.

“We’ve been waiting for you.” The voice didn’t match the body, the man thought. This voice was… non-human? Unnatural? The woman tilted her head, not in surprise but in questioning. She felt the presence grow around her, and instead of it feeling like a cold chokehold, it felt like a comforting hug.

“Who are you?” The woman whispered, carefully taking a seat next to the hooded figure. She could not have prepared for what happened next.

The figure turned ever-so-slowly towards her, and she felt an unexpected fear at the piercing white eyes. Where was their iris? It was all white. She started to hear screeching noises and hundreds of layered whispering voices as she made eye contact with this thing. Was it a man or a woman? It looked like a man but gave off a presence of a thousand men and women.

The figure turned faster than the man anticipated and commanded a simple “sleep”. The man knew nothing else past that, he was stood in a sleep-like trance. His eyes rolled back, as if it were replaying every memory.

The woman should have felt fear at the power this _thing_ possesses, but she felt no such thing. She felt _honoured_.

“We wanted to speak with you. It must be this night.” As the voice spoke, she noticed it now took on a woman’s tone, as the sky overhead clapped, like it too had been waiting for its turn.

“Why? What is the significance of this night?” The woman asked, sitting forward now too avoid the falling raindrops. The figure swiftly moved its hands in a globe shaped way, and twisted it like he was splitting it in two. The rain seemed to have stopped. _Seemed to_. As the woman looked around, she noticed that it was still raining, quite heavily in fact, but they weren’t getting wet, nor could she hear it apart from a dull patter.

“You are magic?” She asked the new question, forgetting about the importance of why they may be here.

“We are all magic.” This time, a voice that sounded familiar. Oddly familiar. A voice that felt like a thousand hugs. It felt like her mum.

“Mum?” She stared at the thing but it didn’t look any different than it did before.

“You must listen now. There will be time **_after_** this is done.” The voice sounded panicked, as if time was limited.

“Listen to what? What needs to be done?” She heard a crash then, and the protection around them broke. The clouds got heavier, and mist rolled in. The river seemed to rise and water rolled around her ankles. The fire went out and her hearing locked onto the things breaths, everything else faded away.

It was low, there were few breaths being taken.

It kept getting slower.

“Please, tell me what I can do.” She felt panicked as she got stood.

The breaths stopped as she stood, and she tried to hear them over her own heart.

Nothing.

Then the arm reached out and grabbed her by the wrist, its white eyes staring up at her. It opened its mouth to speak, but stayed wide with no words spoken.

But now she understood.

She understood **_everything_**.