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What does a well dream of when it is at peace? Water, deep water. They dream in the ocean, in the comforting depths. They don't struggle to breathe, or to swim through the deep pressure. No, they belong here, as does every other drop of water here. Sunbeams filter down into the depths, and fish occasionally dart past, light gleaming silver and gold on their scales.
Lif drifts in the Deep's embrace, endless and floating... She watches the fish dart by, not afraid of her. But as she watches the school she sees something else drifting through the water past her, caught by the current, drifting along with her. Tree leaves.
She feels that she is not alone. There's a pressure against her, similar to the pressure of the deep, but... different. She gets the sense that something is metaphorically knocking, requesting entrance into her mind.
They wonder at it for a moment, and then welcome whoever's requesting access in, coalescing into a humanoid form in the water; no skin, just a barely visible form, water darker than the waters surrounding themself. It's easier to talk, like this, and they sense the need to.
More leaves drift peacefully through her mind, then roots appear to grow slowly through the water. They grow similar to lily pads might, clinging to the surface above, knitting together to form a little floating island of life. Above the surface of the water, Lif sees a figure standing on top of it. Waiting.
And so she swims upward, toward that little island surfacing with a gasp and allowing herself to take on the usual form she has. Terra cotta skin, the water leaking out of it constantly.
A woman stands on the lily-pad, her dark skin made of bark, hair untamed but beautiful for it, filled with flowers and leaves and vines. She looks upon Lif when they surface, offering a soft, gentle smile. "What a sweet dream," she murmurs softly.
"Thank you. I...your plants are beautiful, they enhance the experience. May I come sit with you, there? We can talk?" Their smile is uncertain, but friendly.
She nods. "Please. I don't have much time here."
So Lif climbs out of the water and sits on the island, caressing a flower gently before looking up at her guest. "My name is Lif Loracks. Who are you?"
"Meriday Cypress." She watches Lif for a moment. "But I think you might have guessed that already."
"It was a guess, but I couldn't be certain. Queen Cypress, it is good to see you. Good to talk to you." She stands to offer a bow--it's a little uncertain, but polite enough.
She smiles wider. "There's no need for that. I'm not a Queen anymore. Please, sit." She gestures for Lif to sit, and once they are, the Summer is regarded thoughtfully. "You're trying to help me, aren't you?"
"Yes. Yes I am. I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues and cannot speak for themselves. And...I'm trying to prevent a war. A terrible war that will affect many local Freeholds." She nods, looking up at Meriday quietly.
She frowns, brows knitting together. "It's my fault, isn't it?" she asks sadly.
"Blame's not the important thing. The tree, it's causing great destruction in the hedge, but I don't think you are bad or anything. I think...we can work to fix this. To help you."
"I'm sorry. I... think it's going to get worse, before it gets better." She stares out over the endless horizon of the water for a moment. "There's people inside me. I think... they're trapped."
"How did they get trapped? Can we rescue them? Or...are they making you hurt, are they causing this somehow?" Lif's watery gaze lingers on Meriday. "Please, anything you can tell me, we can use to help."
"They fell asleep. They're sleeping. They tried to help me... They came close. But I... I convinced them to stay. Convinced them they were a part of me. A part of the tree. They don't remember that they're asleep anymore." She frowns deeper, then gasps suddenly, arms curling around herself tightly as she hunches over, as if sudden pain. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she whimpers.
Lif stands, moving closer. "It's alright. We're going to help. We have plans, to send Oneiromancers in--we can send them to find the sleepers, if that will help."
She looks up at Lif, eyes wide and panicked. Her hands grip tightly to her arms--painfully tight. "You have to save them. You have to find me in the grove." Her body starts to wither and darken, the lift replaced with viciously knotted and twisted dead wood. "You'll only have one chance. The tree will attack once it realizes what you're doing. It will try to destroy everything outside of Patriarch Tree. I won't be able to stop it. You have to defend yourselves. Do you understand?"
"The people of your Freehold. They're sworn to protect the Tree. Is...is there anything that can be done to sever that Oath on your end, to...to make sure they do not feel they have to side with the tree, when it attacks?"
"The tree isn't me anymore." Her eyes fill with tears. "Show them what you have grown. Plant it at the crossroads, where I belong. I'll... I'll do what I can."
She gasps in pain, then lets out an unhuman scream as her body bursts apart into twisted, mangled branches and roots, spreading outwards in an instant. Spreading over Lif, threatening to overtake everything.
Then Lif wakes up abruptly. Beside her, the sprout has grown into a small sapling.
She leans in to kiss the sapling's leaves. "I will do what I can for you, too, Meriday. I won't forget."
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