Blessing of the Wood

"Thank you, dear. You don't know what a gift you've given me. And thank your great-grandmother as well."

"I will, and I'll come by to visit when I can," Ella said as she stood.

Penelope waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "Oh, dear, you're young. You should be enjoying life, not wasting it on an old woman."

"There are only so many people in the world we can share our secret with. It would be nice to talk to someone I'm not related to about it once in a while."

"Well then, you're always welcome. It will be nice to remember her with someone who understands."

"Goodbye. I'll see you soon."

"Goodbye, dear."

Ella left the door open when she returned to the hall, and saw Penelope pick up the phone. It might not be a done deal, but she felt that if anyone could convince Carolyn to let her family help, it was Penelope.

It was perhaps two hours later when her phone rang, announcing a call from her aunt.

When Ella answered, Kia said, "I just had a phone call from a Ms. Carolyn Williams. Might you have anything to do with that?"

"What did she say?" Ella asked, ignoring her aunt's question.

"She was calling to apologize for returning our donation to the camp the way she did. She sounded sincere, so I asked her if she would accept the donation now."

Ella couldn't help but smile. Penelope had been true to her word — and in record time. She prompted Kia to continue by asking, "And?"

"And I'm getting ready to head to the church to drop it off now. With what she's raised, it'll be enough to pay the bill, and she shouldn't have any trouble keeping up with it going forward."

"Glad to hear that."

"You didn't answer my question, though. Did you have anything to do with this?"

"Maybe."

"Maybe," Kia repeated, and Ella could almost see her aunt rolling her eyes. "I don't think I'm going to be the only one who wants to hear the story of how this happened, little Ms. Sneaky, but I'll let you off the hook for now. Good job."

"Thanks. I had help, though."

"You can tell me the whole story later. I'm going to go drop off this money before she changes her mind. Goodbye."

Ella hung up the phone, still wearing a smile. With everything that had happened since, she hadn't thought to tell anyone about the fairies yet.

They were in for a huge surprise.

****

Ella sat on the couch with John at his mother's house, wondering how she was going to survive another day. His appointment at the clinic was the next afternoon, but that felt like an eternity.

It wasn't all about sex, either. After having him share her bed every night for only a few weeks, she found it difficult to fall asleep without him there, and felt desperately lonely when she awakened. She glanced at the clock and knew that it was time to go home to that empty, lonely bed.

She looked at John, and she didn't have to say a word for him to know what she was thinking. He said, "You have to study and take a shower before bed. So do I."

Ella pouted and said, "That doesn't mean I have to like it." She sighed before saying, "I guess I'll go."

"Last night. I love you."

Last night was enough to cheer her ever so slightly. "I love you, too."

They shared a lingering kiss and then he said, "I'm going to go take a shower." The fraction of a second pause before shower was his way of eliminating the words long and cold he would have added if his mother wasn't in the room.

She knew that feeling all too well. Even though she had no reason not to assuage her needs with her fingers or the vibrator she hadn't used in weeks, she didn't feel right doing it when he couldn't. She leaned in for one last peck on the lips, and then finally headed for the door.

John's mother walked with her, took her hand after opening the door, and squeezed it in sympathy. The two women embraced, and then Ella stepped out into the cool night air, already missing him.

As she reached her car and hit the button on the key fob to unlock the door, someone saying, "Excuse me," startled her enough to make her drop her keys. She looked down the sidewalk toward where the voice had arisen and was even more shocked to see John's aunt.

Carolyn crossed in front of her car to the sidewalk and approached. She stopped at the base of the driveway and said, "I need to apologize."

Still in shock from the fright and the unexpected confrontation, Ella couldn't think of any way to respond. She stooped down to pick up her keys as her mind reeled, and when she stood, the sound of the door opening caused them to both turn that way.

"Is everything okay?" John's mother asked as her purposeful stride carried her toward them. Her face was flat, as if she feared to let any emotion take hold within her.

"Marie, is John—" Carolyn began.

"He's in the shower," John's mother said, cutting her sister off. She then stopped at Ella's side to stand with her and asked, "Are you okay?"

Ella found her voice to say, "I'm... Yes."

Marie turned her attention back to her sister and said, "Carolyn, I'm not going to stand by and let you treat Ella this way."

"I came to apologize, Marie."

Marie hesitated when the unexpected admission derailed her train of thought, but then said, "If that's true, then it's long overdue."

"I know," Carolyn agreed, and then sighed. "I'm sorry for putting you in the middle, Marie, but we can talk about that later." She then faced Ella, took a deep breath and said, "Ella, I judged you without making any effort to know you, and I'm sorry. I don't know what to say for myself except that I was afraid."

Caught off guard once more, and perplexed, Ella asked, "Of me?"

John's aunt shook her head and said in a small voice, "That you were going to take him away from me. I wanted to believe that I was protecting him, but that's the truth. I realize that now."

Ella felt every ounce of the heartbreak in those words. She could see it in Carolyn's face as well. Empathy overwhelmed her, and she said, "I would never do that. You're a part of him — who he is. I don't want to change that. I don't want to change him."

Her eyes cast downward, Carolyn said, "I'm sorry."

Marie's stiff, defensive posture relaxed, and Ella could see the familiar concern of a sister in the woman's eyes. It was but one more reason for her to say what was in her heart.

"I forgive you," Ella said.

Carolyn looked up. "Really?"

"Yes. And I'm sorry, too. I haven't exactly thought nice things about you."

"You had good reason."

Ella shook her head and said, "No, I didn't. I didn't make any more effort to know you."

A few moments of uncomfortable silence followed, until John's mother laid a hand on Ella's shoulder and asked, "Do you think you might be able to start over?"

"I'd like to," Ella answered without hesitation.

"Yes," Carolyn agreed.

"Baby steps," John's mother suggested. "I think you may both be a little overwhelmed tonight."

Ella and Carolyn both nodded in agreement. Then Carolyn asked, "Do you think John will... Will he let me apologize?"

"I'll put myself in the middle one more time for that, Sis."

A thought occurred to Ella and she asked, "Did he take his phone into the bathroom?"

"No, it's on the coffee table."

"I'll send him a text so he knows I want him to listen," Ella said as she pulled her phone out of her purse. "That might help, so make sure he looks."

"I will," John's mother said.

The look of surprise on Carolyn's face was impossible to miss. She stammered, "I... I... Thank you."

Ella offered a half-smile and finished her message. "Tell him he can call me if he needs to. It doesn't matter how late," she said as she opened her car door.

"I will," Marie said, and then waved for her sister to follow her to the house.

Ella climbed in, started the car, and then watched the two older women walk inside. As hurt as he felt, she knew John would forgive his aunt for what she'd done. For him, holding a grudge took work. Forgiveness came naturally.

It was one of the many things she loved about him.

****

Ella glanced at her phone, smiled, and then turned off the television. Though the results of John's second test were the same as the first, the campground's taxes were paid, and he had reconnected with his aunt. To Ella, it was reason enough to celebrate.

John looked at his phone as well and stretched. "Almost midnight. We'd better get to sleep. Busy day tomorrow."

He was right. Earth Day was always a full day in her family. Sleep was going to have to wait, though. She climbed out of the bed and said, "I want to show you something."

"What? Right now?"

She crinkled her nose and smiled. "Yes. Come on."

"Okay," he chuckled as he swung his legs out of bed.

Ella held a finger to her lips, made a shushing sound, and then took his hand to lead him through the house. Though the lights were off, the moonlight streaming through numerous large windows lit their path.

"Where are we going?" he whispered when they reached the front door.

"You'll see," she answered, and then giggled.

Once off the porch, Ella had to tug him away from the familiar trail into the woods. Instead, she led him toward a different spot, where they stepped onto a path that had only existed for a brief time. Though the thick canopy should have made it impossible, the trail was lit as brightly as the yard in the open moonlight.

The trees opened into a bow-shaped clearing, where Ella guided him to the right loop of the bow. She pointed at two saplings growing close together and said, "Those are ours. Nathan and Terra's are on the other side."

"Huh?"

Ella rolled her eyes and laughed. "You've seen Mom and Dad's tree, and Grandma and Grandpa's. Those are ours. After the Handfasting, we'll come here and bind them so they grow together into a single tree."

"Oh, I get it. Why did you want to show me right now, though?"

"Well," she said as she wrapped her arms around him, "That could have waited, but something else can't. We only have one day a year to try, and I'm not going to waste one minute of it."

His eyes widened. "You mean..?"

Ella bit her lower lip and gave a slow nod as she answered, "Mmm hmm."

"Here? Outside?" he nervously asked, and she could tell by the darkening of his cheeks that he was blushing.

"Right here," Ella whispered into his ear, and then sucked the lobe. "Right now."

To prove how serious she was, she grabbed the tail of his shirt and jerked it free of his pants. That must have been the moment where arousal drowned his hesitation, because he took over to whip his shirt over his head.

They stepped apart to tear off their clothing in a frenzy of need. Once every garment lay scattered around them, they came together in a hungry kiss. His hardness throbbed against her mound. Their hands roamed over each other's bodies, driving their passion higher. Soon enough, Ella could wait no longer.

"I need you inside me," she said before releasing him to sink down to the earth.

John joined her on his knees just as she sat down and reclined. She didn't feel a single twig or acorn poking her when she settled onto the grass and leaves. Moonlight and the shadows it cast seemed to highlight every muscle in John's gorgeous body as he rose above her with his cock bouncing in anticipation. He took it in hand, and a moment later, the tip pressed against her folds.

Ella groaned as his cock slipped inside her and sought her depths in a slow push. He felt absolutely huge. She whimpered, "Oh! Oh! Oh!" as he stretched her canal, and then cried out, "Oh god!" when her nether lips kissed the root of his cock. Her eyes rolled up in her head and she squeezed her breasts as she experienced fullness like nothing she'd ever felt before.

"God, Ella. You feel so good," he said as he thrust again.

She yelped when his balls slapped against her, sucked in a breath as he withdrew, and screamed, "Oh yes!" as his cock dived back inside her.

Thrust after thrust sent shockwaves of pleasure coursing through her body. Ella's head lashed back and forth, picking up leaves in her blonde tresses — not that she had the slightest awareness of it. Her whole world was John and his wonderful cock inside her.

She half sat up from the intense bliss of one deep penetration and saw her wetness glimmering along the entire length of his shaft. When it vanished inside her again, her head thumped to the earth and she screamed loud and long to the stars above. The sound warbled with his thrusts, and ended in a noisy gasp that might have embarrassed her if she had a moment to think about it.

She didn't have that moment.

John growled and his next thrust came faster. A loud skin-on-skin slap echoed amidst the trees, and her breasts bounced from the impact. Before they could even settle back, his cock slammed into her again, and again, making the mounds dance erratically. She slapped an arm beneath them in an attempt to limit the bouncing, while clawing at the soil with her other hand. It had little effect, and she didn't have enough presence of mind to curl her fingers around one, either.

Ella climbed her mountain of pleasure with astonishing speed. Some tiny part of her not overwhelmed with ecstasy realized that neither of them had touched her clit, yet she was still nearing her peak. Within a heartbeat of it sparking to life, the flash of thought vanished into a tumultuous sea of delight.

She cried out in full voice as she rushed headlong toward oblivion. She drew closer and closer, teetering on the cusp, but still her body denied her release. The sounds bursting from her throat took on a weepy cast, and then suddenly went silent in a squeak. Time seemed to stop. Her senses went numb. Then everything returned in a rush.

Ella loosed a wail and dug her fingers into the forest loam as sweet agony wracked her body.

"Are you coming, baby?" John asked without even a hitch in his stroke.

Her shrieked answer only faintly resembled the word yes.

Toes curled tight and her body thrashing, Ella just kept coming. John held on tight, continuing to thrust into her clenched sheath. He'd always had more than enough stamina to satisfy her, but this was different. Long after he would have usually erupted, he was still going strong.

Sweat beaded on her body despite the cool night air. Every muscle seemed to have a mind of its own, causing her to undulate and thrash under his assault. Somehow, amidst the mind-numbing pleasure, she saw John's expression was growing tight, and heard his grunts of exertion growing louder. He was getting close to the point of no return. In a moment of clarity, she thought that it was surely after midnight. It was Earth Day, she was fertile, and he was about to fill her full. Despite the long odds, she wished with all her heart, and an electric chill tingled in her every pore.

Then it hit her.

The sound of her heart pounding in her ears dulled her croaking scream. Her vision swam, and darkness crept in from the edges. It was no mere aftershock, or spike in the pleasure, but another orgasm taking her before the first even ended. Everything was a jumbled blur of ecstasy until John slammed into her one last time and roared.

She went from one extreme to the other. Incoherent rapture gave way to an intense focus on his cock buried inside her. She could feel every pulse and throb of the hard organ. Hot jets of cum blasted against the entrance of her womb to pool in her depths. She could even feel the twitch of his tight balls against her nether lips. Her intimate muscles contracted and relaxed of their own accord, milking him until he fell forward atop her.

A sweet moan of perfect satisfaction escaped her as she embraced him with trembling arms. Long minutes passed before the aftershocks faded and she could catch her breath enough to say, "I love you."

"I.. I... L-love y-you," he responded in a high-pitched voice. A moment later, a squeeze of her walls caused him to jerk his softening cock from her and whimper.

Ella offered a weak chuckle as he slid off to the side and rolled onto his back. She asked, "Where did that come from, baby?"

He shook his head and mumbled something that sounded like, "I don't know."

"I don't either, but wow."

"Uh huh."

They lay in silence for a time, letting their racing hearts settle and listening to the crickets chirp. Ella reached for his hand, and he clasped it while they stared up at the stars.

Ella let out an, "Oh," of surprise when she felt his cream seeping from inside her. She clamped her legs together, pulled her knees toward her chest, and held them there.

"What are you doing?" John asked, amused by the spectacle.

Ella moaned and said, "I don't want any to escape."

"Remember what we said, honey?"

She ignored the substance of what he said to say, "I like that. Honey. It's wifey."

"Wifey?" He shook his head for a moment, and then chuckled. "Don't change the subject. We're not supposed to be getting our hopes up."

"I'm not." After a brief pause she admitted, "Too much," and let her legs drop back to the ground. "I don't hear you complaining about trying."

"Nope."

Ella scooted closer and rested her head on his shoulder. "Good. Because we're going to be trying a lot today. Are you up for that?"

"As often as I can get it up," he said, and kissed the top of her head.

"Good answer," she said as she snuggled against him.

****

Xantina cuddled with her mate, still quivering from the aftershocks of her own orgasm. She let her senses drift, bolstered by the strength of magic her ever-expanding family granted her.

A young nurse lying in bed and trying to fall asleep rubbed her breasts, which felt heavy and tender. She vividly remembered the conversation she had with her sister about her sibling's first pregnancy. Tender breasts and an insatiable libido had told her she was with child long before a pregnancy test.

Christine knew the chances were slim. She'd come to accept that. Yet she couldn't help but hope and wish.

The dryad smiled, knowing the young nurse's wish had been granted — and that it was only the first. A single sip of tea made with the water of the fairy world had forever mended the ills that had kept her from conceiving.

Xantina reached out elsewhere, to a window in a building just outside the city limits. Within, Penelope breathed her last with the faint hints of a smile tugging at her sleeping lips. Her spirit soared skyward, and Xantina followed.

Within the woods she had loved, nurtured, and protected, Penelope's spirit alighted next to a hollow, blackened stump, where another spirit coalesced from the nature around her. Three fairies trailing sparkling motes of light circled the embracing spirits of Penelope and Xantwilla as they faded, going together to that which waited beyond.

In the earth below, an acorn that had waited patiently through the years for this moment sprouted.

And finally, Xantina turned her senses to a place within her own wood. There, Xanella and her mate held each other in the afterglow of their lovemaking. Though they had faced many trials, their love now had the blessing of his entire family — including his aunt.

And within Ella, an egg released only minutes before joined with John's seed, sparking a new life, and fulfilling the unspoken promise that was the Blessing of the Wood.

****

Hope you enjoyed my latest venture into the Wood. If this is your first time reading one of these tales, you can find a chronological listing of the stories in my author biography, if you'd like to take a deeper look at other characters you met in this story. For example, you can read about Terra and Nathan's romance in "Friend of the Wood".

If this isn't your first time taking a walk in the wood, then I apologize for the story coming out so late. After years of missing Earth Day and not getting a story out in the series at all last year, I decided that late was most certainly better than never.