Vincent was already awake. He did not usually sleep longer than three or four hours at a time, intentionally restricting his sleeping and the time spent dreaming. This night, Vincent did not even have the desire. His mind was too active and could not find rest.

As the sun arose, he watched as Susanna's face was gradually illumined more and more by the rising light. It was apparent to him that she did not have the best night of sleep, either. There were times when she would toss and turn, letting out whimpers and groans, before eventually finding a comfortable spot sleeping on her side. At one point in the evening, she unknowingly reached out and grabbed a hold of him. She drew him to her bosom and clung to him as a little girl would a teddy bear in her sleep. Fortunately for Vincent, she did not clutch him too tightly. He let her continue and did not resist, finding comfort to be in her sleeping arms.

"Good morning," he called when he noticed Susanna's eyes start to open.

She yawned then looked around her. Vincent was not on his bed where she had last seen him...and yet he sounded very close.

"Good morning!" she said as she yawned and stretched. "Where are you?"

"Closer than you know," he replied. "Could you...help me out?"

Susanna looked down and followed the sound of his voice. "Oh my! What are you doing there?"

Vincent was tightly lodged in her cleavage, sandwiched between her two breasts as they lay one on top of the other. He was pinned down by the upper one's weight, though not to the point of suffocation.

"Don't ask me. You're the one who put me here," he nonchalantly replied as she extracted him. "Not that I mind..."

Susanna blushed and apologized profusely and was grateful that she had not harmed him.

"No, I didn't feel in danger at all, otherwise I would have woken you," he said. "At one point, you put me to your lips and I was a little concerned that you were going to eat me, but you just pressed me to them for a few seconds before putting me back down here. I think you were...kissing me? At least, wanting to but were too sleepy and tired."

With that, an embarrassed Susanna shifted the conversation.

"Where should I put this gigantic dress? It worked as a great blanket, by the way. I stayed very warm, even after we ran out of firewood."

"Well, I suppose I don't really have a use for it anymore, do I? I'll take care of it." Vincent held part of the fabric in his hands, closed his eyes, and gave it a vigorous shake. To Susanna's surprise, the entire dress evaporated like a mist and disappeared.

"I didn't know you could do that!" she exclaimed.

"Of course I can. I brought it into this world, I should be able to take it out, right?" he winked.

"Wait, does that mean you could do the same with this dress you made for me?"

Vincent remained silent, but wore a sly grin on his face. "Why would I ever do that?"

The two sat together as they enjoyed a breakfast of assorted nuts. It was not the banquet that Vincent had prepared for her the previous day, but he already had plenty of walnuts and almonds tucked away in his food reserves. It would be enough to give them the energy to return to Cairnbridge.

"Vincent, we need to talk about something," Susanna stated with an earnest voice.

"About what?"

"The future," she replied.

Vincent took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. He knew this was going to come up and had prepared himself for the conversation. Still, this was not going to be easy.

"First, I want you to know something," Susanna said. "These last two days have been the greatest of my life. I do not say those words loosely. I mean them. I have experienced great joy with you, Vincent: joy that frankly, I did not know was possible. I have known Cairnbridge since I was a child, but I have never loved it in the way that you have shown it to me.

"But..." she continued, "I'm going to have to go back home."

Vincent was silent. He knew the truth of her words. He anticipated their coming. And yet, it still felt as if he had been knocked to the ground.

"Vincent...I have a family. They'll be concerned if they never hear from me again. I have a life back home, too, and I can't just abandon it. If I could just leave it all today and run away with you, know that I would...but I cannot."

"So that's it, then?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

"So this is all over? You've had your fun and now you're going to leave and pretend like nothing ever happened?" His voice was growing more upset.

"Vincent!" she said. "You know that's not that case! First off, don't make it seem like this isn't extremely hard for me. I have been dreading this morning for hours. I couldn't sleep last night thinking of this. Second, I could never 'pretend like nothing happened' because that's just not possible. In fact, the opposite is true: I will never be able to forget this, ever."

"But it's only just begun!" he said, flying up to Susanna's eye level. "We had yesterday. One wonderful day. But could we not have more?"

"I wish that were the case. But remember, when I found you, I was out for a walk in the woods. I only intended to be gone for a few hours and was actually on my way back. No one knows I was out here, apart from maybe Cairnbridge's groundskeeper. It might be a couple of days, but people will eventually notice that I'm missing and will be concerned. They will look for me. And then, when I showed up, what will I say? The truth? Am I to tell them about you?"

"Why not?" Vincent said, slightly offended.

"It's complicated. They won't understand."

"But you did."

"Yes, but...just listen to me: for now, you have to be kept a secret."

"Fine," he huffed. All of Susanna's reasonings made sense and he understood, but he was still upset. He was running out of arguments for her to stay. Perhaps he was being selfish, but he had no stronger desire than for her to remain with him.

Susanna placed her hand under Vincent, then drew him closer to her face. "But Vincent...this does not have to be the end! I have to go home, but I can--and will--come back. And maybe with a change of clothes this time! And food! I can even bring a tent and a blanket."

"You would do that? You would return?" he asked.

"Of course I would! If I could, I would build us a cabin on this island and we could stay there together. It would be our home and you would not have to stay in your tree hollow. But I can't do that right now."

Vincent thought on that idea with fondness. He had no idea what a cabin was or what it looked like, but the thought of living with Susanna gave his heart a feeling of joy just thinking of it.

"I'm sorry, Susanna. I don't mean to be difficult," he said. "I just...really don't want to see you go."

"I can come back every weekend. Though I do not own the estate, this land belongs to my family and I can travel here anytime."

An air of relief was entering into their conversation. Vincent sat cross-legged on Susanna's palm, thinking about the situation and the possible solutions. He sat with increasing hope.

"I could go with you," Vincent said.

Susanna thought on this for a moment. "I'm not sure if that's the best idea. The human world is much different than the world of the forest. It can be very dangerous, especially for someone like you. Besides, I cannot risk you being found by others. Not all humans are good. Some might seek to exploit your powers or take advantage of you. I fear I would not always be able to protect you. Perhaps one day, but not today."

Vincent had no imaginings of the human world, having intentionally strayed away from it. His mind held no concept of cities, apart from having seen Cairnbridge Manor a few times. On one occasion, he had encountered Susanna's cousins. (Or that is who he presumed they were. They had not seen him as he had hidden, but he took note of their clothing and it was from that memory that he fashioned his own clothes.) All in all, Susanna was correct: returning with Susanna would have been a very overwhelming and potentially perilous experience for Vincent.

"Well, then I can at least make sure you return home safely, yes?"

Susanna smiled. "Of course."

By the time the sun was in the middle of the sky, the two of them were more than halfway through their return journey. The waters of the lake had still been frigid, but Susanna was able to find her original dress, which was warm and dry after having sat in the sun for so long. Their trek was very similar to that of the previous day: the apple tree, the conjoining of the rivers, the familiar creek that led them back to Cairnbridge.

Before long, they were back at Lydia and Dan. The glade would be only another few minutes away, but Susanna and Vincent decided to take a little break. Susanna removed her sandals and dipped her feet in the cool waters of the brook. (She made a mental note to remember to bring more suitable shoes next time.) Meanwhile, Vincent zoomed along the surface of the water, skiing along and leaving a small wake in his path, much like a boat would. The day, like the previous days, was a very pleasant one and the wind brought a relaxing breeze to their faces.

"Would you mind if I went with you to Cairnbridge?" Vincent asked. "I would not go further than the edge of the woods. But we don't have to part company at the glade..."

"I would love that," Susanna replied. "It's only another hour, but that would be another hour spent with each other."

Their respite over, they readied themselves for the last leg of their journey.

A few minutes later, however, Susanna stopped suddenly.

"Vincent, do you smell that?"

He inhaled deeply, taking in a lungful of air. "No...what is it?"

Susanna sniffed the air again. "I know that fragrance...the aroma of sandalwood and amber. It's the same fragrance that led me to the glade two days ago!"

"What? Why? You've already found me. What do the trees want with you again?" Vincent said, very puzzled at this development.

"Well, last time I followed it, I was blessed with a wonderful gift. Maybe they have something else to give me?" Susanna replied cheerily.

Like the previous encounter, the fragrance grew stronger and heavier the closer Susanna neared its source. Vincent, however, could not smell it himself, but believed her when she said that she did. It became very clear that they were returning to the glade.

Knowing where they were going, Susanna began to run quicker until she could see the clearing in the trees up ahead. Sidestepping trees and shrubs and bushes, she emerged into the place where she had first met Vincent.

However, it became clear that there were some stark differences to the glade since they left.

"Where are the flowers?" she asked. "They're all gone!" The glade was completely barren, even more so than when Susanna had first stepped foot in it the other day. Even the grass was gone, leaving only rough dirt and soil. There was no life apart from the tall white birch trees that continued to stand vigil around the perimeter and swayed in the wind in unison.

"My power must have worn off. Peculiar..." he said, "I usually have to be intentional in removing what I've created." Vincent paused. "...we must be cautious."

"Why?" Susanna inquired.

Vincent did not respond.

Meanwhile, the scent was growing stronger as ever before. Susanna wandered into the middle of the empty glade. The air felt denser and almost thick, as if she were breathing in water, but it was not humid. It was starting to affect her and she faltered in her step.

"Susanna!" exclaimed Vincent. "Are you okay?"

"Yes...I'm fine, I think. The scent is even stronger here today than it was two days ago. It quickly disappeared when you entered, but is has not done so.."

"I am here now. And it is still stronger?" he said.

"Very..."

Susanna began to cough, worrying Vincent greatly. Her breathing was becoming strained as well, and she was having more difficulty walking. She fell to one knee before righting herself and making her way to the center of the glade.

"Susanna...we need to leave right now."

His words came too late.

"Vincent! Vincent...I can't...I'm having trouble breathing. I feel ill--"

Susanna collapsed to the ground, coughing and wheezing.

"Susanna!!" Vincent shouted, rushing to her aid. She lay very still in a curled up position.

Before he could reach her, however, the wind quickly picked up. In a matter of seconds, Vincent found himself flying directly into a gale force wind. The air rushed around the glade, swirling him around in a violent vortex.

In the wind, Vincent heard an airy, wispy voice call out:

"Yoouuuu....shallllll...staayyyyy!!"