Sounds that attract

Dark eyes watch the fallen. He doesn't do anything. The Fallen goes around the person. Leaving the stranger behind him he heads home. After a while, he wonders if he knows where he is. With a little time spent at the house and farm much less in the surrounding area. Still, the Fallen continued ahead.

The woods seemed to carry on forever. The Fallen wondered if he would ever find the house and barn. His heart beat faster and thumped in his ears. He balled his hands into tight fists, wary of what could be around. He was no longer what he used to be and that meant he lacked power.

Frustration and fear swirled in his chest like a storm as blood rushed like the angry waves of an ocean. His eyes darted around the terrain, searching for something familiar. Anything to grip on to and follow. The trees after a time began to feel as if they were moving, circling him. Breathing became difficult as if The Fallen could not get enough air. After a few seconds of the heavy and overwhelming storm of emotions, The Fallen took a moment to sit down. He tugged at long red strands of hair and tried to take deep breaths that only seemed to come out shallow.

"Mmmmmmoooo"

The Fallen looks up at the familiar sound and reaches for the Cow as soon as she catches his sight. The Fallen weeps while holding on to her.

"Hello, friend. Thank you," The Fallen's voice wavers.

The black-spotted brown cow moos at him and rests her head on his shoulder. The two stay together for a few short moments while The Fallen gathers himself. Thankful for the cow's help in calming him down The Fallen pats the cow's head, "Thank you."

The two then set off to the house and barn. While they walk The Fallen keeps his hand on the cow, relieved that she is still there. Everything seems to go by faster while he follows her home.

Once there he thanks the cow again and sets her up in the barn. He stays with her for a while, telling the cow about the boy and about how he felt in the woods. Once he finished the cow gives him a gentle head butt. The Fallen smiles and thanks her again.

When he finishes, he goes inside. He forgoes eating and goes to bed. He pulls the blanket around himself and goes to sleep.

In the morning the Fallen finds he is sore. He thinks of the night before and attributes the pain to the time in the woods. Still, he gets up and sets about getting breakfast together. He wonders if the boy made it home safe and about the young man who stares.

When he manages to go outside, he squints at the bright sunlight. He doesn't let that stop him from taking care of the animals and plants.

The heat of the day reaches its peak once he's finished his first round of feeding and watering. He looks over the plants and finds that one has begun to bear fruit. It holds three small green spheres. The Fallen wonders how long it'll be until it's time to pick them.

A snap of a twig catches The Fallen's ears. He looks up and searches for where the sound came from. As he looks around, he hears a second snap. Still not a person nor an animal in sight.

The Fallen can't put a name on the tight ball that forms in his stomach. Because of it, he feels as if he should hide while at the same time curious what the cause of the snapping sounds are.

As immediate danger did not spring out of the trees, The Fallen's curiosity won. Standing he approaches where he believes the sounds came from.

Each step he takes in the woods is slow and as quiet as one could make them. He looks through trees and brush with a carefulness that he doesn't usually use in their day-to-day life. The trees creak and the leaves shake in the breeze. With the airflow cooling the Fallen down he feels more energy grow inside him. The brush sways, yet there is nothing in it. Only the wind, much to the Fallen's irritation.

After a while, he feels as though there are a set of eyes on him. The Fallen mutters to himself but his curiosity does not fade. His eyes stop on a dark-haired young man. All sense of adventure fades faster than it was born.

"It's you. You show up every day, is there something you want?" The Fallen asks.

Still, the young man only stares.

"You wouldn't have seen a boy running around here by chance?" The Fallen questions.

With only silence and a set of eyes that do not leave him The Fallen sighs.

Waving the young man off The Fallen calls out, "Why bother showing up if you are only going to stare at me. I'm hardly anything to look at."

Not a muscle moves on the young man. The Fallen scratches at his shoulder waiting. He knows an answer is unlikely yet he can't help but want to talk to the stranger.

Again, the sound of a stick snapping catches The Fallen's attention.

"You wouldn't know what is making that sound would you?"

After several tense moments of watching each other, The Fallen gives up on the young man. Instead, he peruses the cause of the noise. Though infrequent, every so often The Fallen hears another snap. He wonders what the person could be doing to cause the sound with it being few and far between. He thought of what the person could look like or what they would be like. But nothing specific stuck.

Time seemed to slow down as if it had become molasses. Despite having the occasional snap to lead him, The Fallen began to grow impatient. After a long while, he soon heard a snap. It was so close that in his excitement he ran to it and found the source.

Cradled in the hollow of a tree sat the boy. The boy who slept in The Fallen's barn only a couple of days ago. The boy refused to talk and ate food without joy. The boy who ran off the night before.

Wide-open fawn-colored eyes looked up at him. A firm frown on the child's face as he sat with two small sticks in his hands. A small pile of broken sticks rested next to the boy.

"Hello," The Fallen called out, "Did you make it home safe?"

The boy turned away and placed the two small sticks in the pile next to him. He then picks up another stick and looks over it. The Fallen watches the boy wondering what the child is up to. After a while, the boy takes the stick between two hands and snaps it.

One question bubbles to the surface of The Fallen's mind. Why? That one question turns into more. Why was a child out here? Why snap sticks? Why was the child not talking to him? Why was he alone? Why was he in the barn that day? Why did he run away? Why did he look such a mess when found in the barn?

With no way to get answers, The Fallen sighed to himself. The Fallen thought of what he should do. This child was not his business, yet he felt as if there was something he ought to do. While lost in his attempt to decide his next course of action a snap filled the air. The sound is sharp and short. It was enough to interrupt The Fallen and pull attention to the boy in front of him.

"MMMMMooo"

The Fallen and the boy both turn around in unison at the call. To their surprise, the Black-spotted brown cow approaches them. She calls out and stops at The Fallen's side.

The boy forgetting what he was doing now gets up and walks to the cow. Timid, he reaches his hand out to the cow. She pushes her head into his palm with a gentle nudge. The boy smiles and pets the cow. First, he is slow, but it doesn't take long for him to reach an affectionate pace with petting.

The Fallen watches, a warmth blossoms in his chest.

"She lives in that barn you were sleeping in. If your family lets you, you can come and visit her," The Fallen offers.

The boy looks to The Fallen, his eyes seeming to light up at the words. Still, he doesn't speak.

"Do... you have a name?" The Fallen asks.

The boy only stares in response.

The fallen crosses his arms over his chest, "Can you speak?"

The boy turns his attention back to the cow. The cow moos and then licks the boy's cheek. The child giggles, the sound raspy and rough. The Fallen watches the warm cheer from the child and is grateful for the cow's arrival.

Once the boy finished petting the cow, she took a hold of the sleeve of the boy's shirt and begins to lead him. It doesn't take much for the boy to follow. Bringing up the tail end The Fallen also follows.