VII.

"Spirit of the Forest," Artetris called to her old mentor and companion, but no answer came.

Weeks had passed since Herakli's death and the tree and wood witches' departure, but it all still felt as if only a matter of days had passed her by. The bear was gone, and his family and friends had been told his tale so that they would not hate him. She had buried him off in the woods next to King and kept his pelt for the warmth, the same warmth he had brought to their brief friendship by being himself. The tree nymphs had thanked her and relocated to their proper homes while she had relocated to hers; cleaning it up had been a wonderful distraction…

Still, she felt ill at ease.

The Spirit of the Forest still eluded her, too, and she needed him. She needed his guidance, his voice, no matter how cryptic it would end up being.

Did he not forgive her for leaving the forest and allowing the forest's dark events to transpire? Or was he gone?

"Hey…" she called out to him once more.

She still received no answer, and a sigh escaped her before refocusing on the task at hand, hunting from lunch. Since her companion's death, she had barely felt like eating, but a good Watcher needed to stay healthy, so she would.

Around her, the renewed forest sang joyful yet mournful songs, like how she felt inside. Her combined success and failure left many things feeling rather bittersweet.

On one hand, a great curse upon the forest had been lifted, multiple curses in fact, for the witch Arbottoma had been run off along with her wood witches. Acteo was also gone forever, the most powerful of the vengeful forest spirits now deceased.

On the other hand, Herakli and his friends were dead, and his family still mourned the violence that had truly taken control of him. In several ways, they blamed her for it, and as far as she could say, they had every right to do so.

"I won't let your death be in vain," she spoke aloud to know one. It simply felt like Herakli's spirit walked with her. "I have given your fur the highest honor in my home. Hopefully, that's not too weird. I've made it strong, and I call it the Pelt of Herakli, a light armor of great assistance…

"Because you were my big little helper."

Artetris temporarily stopped her hunt and observed the forest, the rejuvenated forest. Her mind fully took it all in; the cursed parts that had once been barren and black with dead trees now shined a bright green in the light of the new day, a green that reminded her deeply of the path she had chosen. It warmly reminded her "She was home."

Artetris ignored the forest and its trees' kind words of thanks for freeing them as she headed off to keep searching for food. A small bit of anger and frustration grew in her as Arbottoma appeared in her mind. That stupid Tree Witch… She'd hunt her and end her. The wood witches were truly gone, gone from her and her anger's reach. But she had not finished the mission. Arbottoma had escaped like a coward, and she needed to find her. For that, however, she would need help.

The Spirit of the Forest's help. He could find anything tree related, even a witch.

In addition to that, the Spirit could also help her find the answers she needed for being a better Watcher. She could not allow another forest creature to suffer as Herakli had because of her negligence as a guardian. Artetris took a deep breath and kept her gaze focused straight forward. She could not afford to look back and reflect on past mistakes, not anymore than she already was at least.

The wood nymphs of the forest danced and laughed as those who had been displaced by the wood witches were very glad to be back in their homes. Though trying to resist it, Aretris could not help but muster a gentle smile at their laughter and the song of glee their voices and the wind carried. Unable to resist, she closed her eyes and allowed the music of the forest to lull her along.

She'd follow it to Herakli's grave. She'd follow it to the comforts of her family tree home. She'd follow it to him, the Spirit of the Forest. She would follow it to wherever she needed to be.

Her name was Artetris. She was the daughter of Hylea Huntress and Manevus Wizard. She was eighteen years old and a mistress of forest magics and trees. She hailed from a home on a peaceful cliff where the water always flowed over the edge in tranquility…. and she was its Watcher of the Forest—of its lands, beasts, and bees.

She smiled. She loved it. It fit perfect. Finally, she had found where she belonged…

Flute? Flute. Flute. Flute…

Artetris stopped as her mind annoyingly became fixated on a sound in the wind far off from her. She opened her eyes and looked towards it as she stopped. It's magic… It pulled her like a summoner's song. She narrowed her eyes.

Was it her? Was it Arbottoma?

Artetris huffed and rushed off into the direction of the sound. She had to find it before it could escape. If Arbottoma had discovered a new summon in pursuit of the Artemis Band, she would stop her in a hurry. Never again would evil magic have free reign within her forest.

She was just the Watcher, just the Huntress, to carry that mission out.

As she followed the sound, the music grew louder. It carried a mixture of loneliness, sadness, madness, and rage, as if multiple souls were fighting out their battles and pain in song. The sensation of it touched her and resonated with her own internal conflict, particularly the parts that were lonely and sad. If Arbottoma did not end up being the culprit, who would she find at the end?

The sound of the flute song rang loud as she approached the river. Sniffing the air, she smelled someone, though it was not the target for whom she had hoped. It did, however, smell familiar, a scent she had captured here and there time and time again. A scent she had known once, long, long, long ago. But it couldn't be him. It could not be…

She parted the plants and stepped out into the open to see who played the music for herself, and her breath slightly left her in disbelief as she found him. It was him.

Finn, the Human and Hero of Ooo. Artetris eyed him closely. He had grown well since she last saw him as a babe in her youth…. before her parents left him for another family to raise. For some reason, they had not wanted to take him that day they found him on the beach. Instead, they set him loose in the wilds and watched over him until two dogs came along and took him. She had practically forgotten about that.

Finn quickly took notice of her as she stomped forward, and he sputtered in surprise before dropping his flute into the water to hide his body, not that it would do much good if she decided to attack him.

What was he up to?

"Hello," Finn said, trying to diffuse the situation as calmly as a nude man could.

"How are you playing like that?" Artetris demanded, pointing at him.

She'd find the truth to this human's magic. He had never been a wizard before, so why now? What spirit helped him play? And why?

"I don't know," Finn said in a mildly cheerful manner. "I'm just making stuff up."

She did not like that answer. It sounded all too familiar. Luckily, she had arrived in time to find him and stop him.

"Something in your notes has the qualities of a powerful evocation spell," she explained to him. "What spirit guides your hands?"

She reached for an arrow and levitated it before her.

"Tell me, or I'll put this up your nose…!" she demanded.

She would worry about people skills later.

Finn glared at her sternly and pointed. She glared back. He wasn't going to scare her into backing off from this. The magic of his flute carried the potential for danger if not properly guided.

"First off, I'm a great fighter," he said. "I'm especially agile when I'm nude, so good luck."

Artetris continued glaring. Nude, huh? She'd destroy him whatever way he came.

"Secondly," he spoke on, wiggling his fingers upon his flute, first his left and then his right. "My flute improv ain't no secret."

He held up his right hand which sported a green thorn. Plant magic… Where had he received it?

"I let my grass hand do whatever it wants when I play," he said wiggling it. "It's usually sort of busy and shreddy."

She threw the arrow to the ground and stepped forward towards the river.

"Let me see that hand!" she exclaimed, an idea coming to her. Finn wasn't who she was looking for, but his magic, it was possibly the key to finding the Spirit of the Forest and more. She stared at his hand in disbelief as the idea filled her mind, and then she turned to stare at him. Confusion filled his mind, clearly, but he remained calm. "You're what I've been looking for…"

She could use him. She could have him summon the Spirit of the Forest who, in turn, could help her find Arbottoma and exact judgment against the witch. Only then could Herakli be avenged. Only then could she call herself a proper watcher.

Finn stared at her blankly before rubbing the back of his head in confusion. He was, clearly a hero and an idiot. Artetris heaved a sigh and thought of how she could word it before the obvious hit her.

"I need help," she said, knowing that Finn would understand that much. His eyes lit up at the mention of the word. She had captured his attention. "Will you play you flute spell to summon someone for me?"

He scratched his chin as if in thought before smiling.

"Sure," he said, cheerfully. "I'll gladly help you M—"

"Huntress Wizard," she declared before he could say "miss". He rubbed the back of his head and slightly chuckled at her.

She turned away from him but not before glancing down and realizing she had barged into the river and just stood talking to a naked young man. She definitely still needed to work on her people skills. All that time in the city, and it was the one thing she had never truly learned.

"Huntress Wizard," Finn repeated behind her as he followed her to the bank. She slightly looked back before looking forward once more. "Nice. Cool name. Do you hunt monsters, demons, evil, or just game?"

She slightly smiled. No one had ever bothered to ask her before. She did not let Finn see her smile, of course. Why would she? She did not need him hanging around any more than necessary, not with what she had to do.

"All of them," keeping her answer short and sweet. "I'm Watcher of the Forest and trees and such… Hurry up and get dressed. I'll train you to be in tune with the forest and understand your music so that we can pull this off."

"Okay, sure," Finn said, somewhat excited.

"Good," Artetris said, thinking of the best place to get started. "Meet me at the center of the forest by the large oak when you are done. I'm going to find something to eat, but I'll be there soon."

With those words, Artetris leapt off before Finn could reply. She figured if he got lost, she'd find him. The important thing was that he had agreed and that she had stopped him before his songs could send him tumbling into something dangerous…like Herakli. She had finally returned to the forest, and under her watch, she'd never allow a tragedy like that to happen again. She just had to focus on finding her mentor and working with him to get better at the job. That's what she would do.

After all, she was Artetris, the Huntress Wizard.

She was its Watcher of Forest—of its lands, beasts, and bees.

That was the path she had chosen.