By Abigail Hart
“Uh, Harmony?”
Harmony dropped her ukulele with a clatter and glanced at the owl perched nearby. “Yes, Aldo?”
“You have an”—he tilted his head, blinking slowly—“an interesting visitor.”
Harmony leapt up. “Ooh, splendid! I adore the interesting ones.” She skipped to the oval door and flung it open. “Well, hello th—what in the ukulele?”
A chipmunk stood before her, gazing up with strange, wistful eyes. Along his back danced silent purple fire.
“You poor thing. What happened to you?” She reached toward him, hoping to smother the flames with her sleeve, but the chipmunk scurried back, chattering furiously.
“Stop! I’m trying to help you. Aldo, get water. Quick!”
Aldo flapped off, returned with a bucket, and Harmony drenched the chipmunk.
“There you go. Much—”
The fire didn’t stop. It still rippled across his fur, undisturbed. The soaked chipmunk glared at her, hissing loudly.
“Is it just me, or is this a tiny bit weird?” Aldo whispered.
Harmony shrugged. “Yeah, but the poor creature needs my help.”
The chipmunk chattered again, more urgently, beckoned with a tiny paw, and then darted into the woods.
“Wait, Chippy!” Harmony bolted after him. “You’re still on fire!”
Aldo groaned and flapped behind her. “Why are you chasing after it? If anything, you should be avoiding it. Purple fire, Harmony! And this is the forest where people have disappeared or returned hexed.”
“Ignore old folk tales. He wants me to follow him. A cute innocent animal needs help.” Harmony grinned over her shoulder. “You worry too much.”
“Good point. You’re already in trouble.”
The chipmunk stayed just ahead, occasionally glancing back. Then he slipped behind a bend.
They turned the corner.
He was gone.
“Where is he?” Harmony spun. “Aldo—?”
The owl flew ahead, scanning the trees. After a few minutes, he returned. “He vanished.”
“But…you saw him. He wanted us to follow.”
Aldo shrugged. “Strange little guy.” He yawned. “Can we go home now?”
Harmony smiled and hugged herself. “The sun’s going to sleep. It’s too late to turn back now. Let’s camp.” Before Aldo could protest, she flopped onto a soft patch of grass. “This’ll be lovely.”
But Harmony couldn’t stop thinking about the chipmunk—the fire on his back, the look in his eyes. As she stared into the campfire she saw purple flames dancing before her.
“Aldo?”
“Hmph?”
“What do you think is wrong with him? I swear I’ve seen him before.”
Aldo turned, one eye open. “Some freak of nature, probably. And no, you haven’t. Your memory’s just weird.”
Harmony frowned, a dull ache in her ribs. “Poor guy. I really feel sorry for him.” She brightened and her voice came out excited. “Maybe my ukulele will help?”
“Nope,” Aldo muttered, curling up. “You’ll scare him off.”
“Hey!”
He hopped onto a low branch. “Good night.”
“I thought owls were nocturnal.”
“Most are. But when your best friend chases glowing squirrels through a cursed wood, you nap when you can.”
Harmony laughed and laid down.
“Aldo?”
“What!”
“Do I fit in? Have the right role in my life?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Sometimes I wonder if I was born in the wrong story.”
“You need sleep. Go to bed.”
But sleep brought no rest. Purple flames flickered behind Harmony’s eyes. The chipmunk was gone. Only the fire remained, undulating like a ribbon, whispering her name.
Harmony. Follow.
She struggled in the dream, but it pulled her, held her, wrapped around her thoughts like a net of heat and color.
“Aldo!” Harmony jolted awake. Morning light streamed through the trees. The campfire was only a ring of ash.
“Wh-what?” Aldo fell from his branch in a blur of feathers. “Who died?”
“Look!” Harmony pointed.
The chipmunk stood at the forest edge, outlined in purple fire.
She bolted after it.
Aldo groaned, “Not again” and followed.
After a long chase, Harmony stopped so abruptly that Aldo nearly flew into her.
“Careful!” he said.
“That’s it.” She panted. “This is where he meant to take us.”
Before them stood a lonely door, no walls around it. Just a doorframe nestled between two ancient trees, and forest on both sides.
The chipmunk waited. Beckoned. Then vanished.
“See?” Aldo landed beside her. “He’s mad. Brought us to some random door in the middle of nowhere. Probably just lonely. Let’s—Harmony, wait!”
But she was already walking forward, drawn by some invisible thread. Her hand closed around the knob and she stepped through. She could no longer see Aldo or the forest.
Purple light bloomed around Harmony like mist. She stood by a pool, its surface rimmed with flame. In the center, a gold ring shimmered with white light.
A voice, smooth and deep, echoed in the air:
“Harmony, take it. Become the next guardian of this forest—its secrets, its burdens, its blessings. This is your duty. Your destiny.”
Harmony trembled. The fire surrounded her, warming, binding. Somehow she knew that if she put the ring on, nothing would be the same. She would never be able to take it off. “If I take this… will I forget who I was?”
“Wait!” Aldo flapped in her face. “You don’t have to do this. Someone else will come. Walk away. Forget it. Let it go.”
Harmony shook her head slowly. “I can’t forget.” She reached down, grabbed the ring, and slipped it on.
A pulse of light rocked the forest.
***
They say a willowy girl with striking blue eyes walks through the woods, with purple fire along her back and a ukulele in hand. Some hikers swear she showed them the way home. Some never come back at all.
Hunters whisper her name. Poachers run when they see her eyes.
But she’s just a legend.
Isn’t she?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
This was a fun one, Abigail. Thanks for sharing! I especially liked Aldo the owl. He had some wits about him.
Lovely story. I liked the legend ending.
Harmony was born to be a legend!
Entertaining. Harmony certainly makes a mysterious main character.
Just a reminder that absolutely anybody can be a forest guardian. Seriously. Just buy a grip-n-grab and a few trash bags and start by cleaning up the place. Gold rings and self-immolation is not necessary.
Thanks LucaNobleman! Aldo is one of my favorite characters I’ve written so I’m glad you enjoyed him (:
JM Allison, thank you so much! My brother was not impressed with the ending, lol! He likes all the loose ends tied together in a neat bow at the end. So thanks for your comment.
Pamela Love and jdoran, thank you! I’m so happy you liked Harmony! I had fun writing her whimsical personality.
Oh my gosh wow!!! Even though it was short, I felt intrigued and interested in every second of this! The details were amazing, and the dialogue not too complicated or boring. This even got me to laugh (which I don’t do very often when reading because most humor is predictable, but this was genuine and hilarious!) I think my favorite part was probably the italics at the bottom. It was mystical and made me thirsty for more!
Thanks Madelyn for your feedback! Mmmh, in that case maybe I’ll have to write another story with Harmony (:
Fun and lyrical, whimisical and mysterious, with great characterizations and a nifty ending!
Very interesting twist on the Harmony character. Well done!
Oh, how I love the idea of an owl 🦉 companion!
Whoa! What a vivid story! Thank you so much for sharing!