"An Ear For Song" by Douglas Eckhart

It was the crinkling sound of paper that interrupted my thoughts and brought me back to reality. I had hardly been paying attention to the food, despite having come here to try it. Human cuisine - so unpolished and rough. I didn't like it much, I decided. But what was this? A slip of paper - "Not your best day. Keep a clear head or you may meet with misfortune. A woman could be your downfall." I laughed as I read it. How odd, including a random form of divination to end their meal. And it's so vague it could mean anything. Surely no one believes in this, but still, it was such a surprise that I found it humorous. That was one of their better qualities, humor. Humans were overflowing with it, it seemed.

I almost lost myself again, musing about humans. "There'll be time enough for that," I chided myself. Now that the war was over, more of them would be showing up wanting to open shops and businesses. I sighed softly; I was getting distracted again. I had already stayed too long. If I didn't hurry I would miss the beginning of Cirric's song.

Since I was already late I had to find a shortcut to make it in time. "Through the carnivore woods", I decided. Not wasting another second, I leapt down from the walkway. No use going around to the ramp, it would only delay me further. The path was wide enough here, but it narrowed as it approached the carnivore forest. The carnivore trees were enough of an inconvenience that hardly anyone took that route even if it was shorter.

"I'll miss Cirric's song if I take the river path." I turned along a narrow footpath - the one that led through the middle of the forest. Since they were stationary, the carnivore trees weren't really very dangerous. They could cause a lot of damage, but only if you climbed on them or otherwise fell into one of their many mouths. Those were only at the V-like intersections of the branches, therefore easily avoided. I could remember when, as children we used to sneak food out of the house and have contests throwing food to the trees to see which items it would eat. "What would it think of human food?" I wondered, laughing at the thought.

Again, I had to force myself back to reality. My pace was slowing as I mused about the trees. "I've only made it through the third turn in the path. At this rate I'll definitely be late!" I forced myself to walk faster. The last cluster of trees was up ahead, and then it would be a straight shot to the amphitheater where Cirric would be performing.

Yet again, though, my thoughts drifted toward Cirric's ballads. I let my feet guide me; after all I'd been over this path countless time over the years. I'd have known the location of each tree, even with my eyes closed. "That's right", I remembered, "Last time I came to see Cirric perform, I'd been forced to take this path as well! Though it wasn't food that made me late last time it was...."

"A woman?"

This time it was a hint of color that brought me back from my thoughts. Something red and fluttery, silk glimpsed out of the corner of my eye. I turned and surely enough, there was a woman... not half a dozen paces away walking amidst the trees. Amidst the trees? The carnivore trees! I was about to call out a warning ... but at the last second I noticed the texture of her tanned brown skin ... a dryad? I laughed again at myself, of course a dryad was in no danger from trees. But, why was she here... where was she goin....

"AAAAIIIEEEEE!"

I heard my own voice crying out in agony as searing pain suddenly cut through the entire left side of my face! Wha....

My thoughts were interrupted and for the first time in my life, I could think of nothing. I was frozen, at least for an instant. I think it was my body acting on its own that pulled me back. I don't remember clearly.

For that instant there was nothing but pain burning along the side of my head, my left eye was watery, blurry.

I forced myself to focus, trying to clear my head.

Before me the branches glistened red. The branches of a carnivore tree. The 'V' between two branches was still swaying, dripping blood, my blood. I must have collided with it while my attention was distracted.

The tree was munching on something.

What was it?

Looking closer, I could see... the tip of... my... my ear?

I put a hand to the side of my head, gingerly; fearing to know the truth... there was nothing there... I pulled my fingers back, covered with blood. "Without my ear I'll never be able to hear Cirric's song properly!" was my last thought before everything went black.

Someone must have found me and taken me back to the village. Maybe it was the dryad that had saved me? My wounds had been bandaged and I was in my own bed, but the pain was still there. Worse than the pain in my head was the pain in my heart I had missed it... missed Cirric's song.

I looked down in despair and notice, on the bedside table was the slip of paper, "Not your best day. Keep a clear head or you may meet with misfortune. A woman could be your downfall."