Spirit of Autumn

     'It doesn't feel like Autumn,' Rebecca complained. She and her friends; Damon, Jared and Tara were walking through the woods that bordered their small town. There were only two weeks left of the term before they broke up for what the students called "Halloween Holiday" and yet there were hardly any signs of Autumn.
     'I mean, it's October for crying out loud!' Rebecca continued. 'We should be in the middle of a leaf fight or trying to find the most colourful leaf or something.'
     'Maybe Autumn's forgotten to come this year,' Damon suggested.
     'Or maybe it's global warming messing with the seasons,' Jared remarked, rolling his eyes at his friend.
     'Oh, don't be such a realist, Jared,' Tara scolded, whapping his arm lightly.
     'Being a realist is better than constantly having my head in fairyland like Damy over here.' It was Damon's turn to mock-punch his friend's arm. Jared hit him back and within moments, the two boys were engaged in a full on friendly fight.
     'Boys,' Rebecca muttered, falling into step with Tara.
     'Ah, you love them really,' Tara teased, grinning as Jared chased after Damon with a stick.
     'Most of the time,' Rebecca countered, matching the grin. Jared caught up with Damon and tackled him to the ground where they rolled over and over like a couple of wildcats. 'Seriously though, don't you think it's weird how there's hardly any wisps of Autumn?'
     'Maybe if you leave a message in Autumn's milk bottle, it'll remember to come,' Tara said, smiling.
     'Autumn drinks milk?' This made both girls burst out laughing, their voices carrying through the warm air.

     An hour and a half later, night was beginning to creep into the edges of the sky and the four friends headed for home. They left the security of the forest and automatically wound down the roads to the crossroads which separated their home streets and was their general meeting point.
     'Well, see you three tomorrow,' Damon said, turning down into his street. 'I've still got a ton of revision to do for that maths exam.' The other three groaned at the reminder.
     'Bye, Damon,' Rebecca called after him. He waved backwards, not bothering to turn around.
     'Autumn will be here soon, Becky,' Tara said with a small smile. 'You can count on it.'
     'Yeah, because she's going to write to the fairies and tell them that Autumn's overdue,' Jared muttered.
     'You know what, Jared, I think I might do just that,' she replied, smiling sweetly. He rolled her eyes and headed home, muttering something about kids and not growing up.
     'Guess we're Peter Pan's Lost Girls then,' Becky decided. The two girls laughed for a few moments.
     'Good luck revising,' Tara said.
     'Yeah, you too,' the taller girl replied, giving her friend a quick hug before they went their separate ways.

****

      Midnight.

     Or very nearly at least.
     I slipped out of bed and crossed over to the large window on the other side of my room, opening it easily and silently. As I stepped out onto the windowsill, my pyjamas shimmered and disappeared. In their place was a gown that rustled with all the colours and textures of Autumn. The scent of leaves filled the air around me and I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath in, filling myself with the smell. My body felt lighter and smoother, my eyes were able to see further and clearer. I leapt out of the window, landing lightly on the cool pavement in my bare feet.
     I ran to the forest as quickly as I could. It was going to be a long night, but I would love every second of it. I was stupid to have left it this long, but that dumb maths exam and the long days of revision that came with it were exhausting me. Oh well. Better late than never.
     As I reached the border of the trees, my pace slowed to a walk and a gentle breeze began to swirl around me, picking up the few leaves that had fallen. I ventured further into the forest until I was right at the heart. Once there, I rested my hand on the trunk of a sycamore tree, feeling the calloused bark beneath my fingers and its warmth spreading through me. Looking up, I watched as the green leaves began to ripple with gold, brown, maroon, red, crimson and ochre.
     'Pass it on,' I whispered. A few leaves broke free from the tree and my breeze picked them up and spun them from tree to tree where they passed on their colour to the leaves there. Those leaves then too began to shine with stunning colour and, in turn, detached from their branches and began to spread the magic to the other trees. It was a beautiful chain reaction of fiery colour and for a few minutes, I stood and watched in wonder as the colour spiralled out, passing to trees and bushes and saplings… On and on through the night. I wished I could stay and watch the whole transformation, but the night was short and I had other things to do. There was much more to Autumn than just the fantastical leaves.
     I slipped down to the edge of the lake in the forest and walked around the edge of the midnight waters until I found what I was looking for.
     The Canada Goose raised his dark head in surprise at my appearance and regarded me quizzically, his mate still asleep by his side.
     'Hello,' I said quietly. He just kept looking at me. 'I'm afraid it's time to fly South again. I know Autumn's late and I apologize for that, but it's going to get very cold very quickly and I don't want you or your partner to get caught in that and I'm sure you don't either.' The goose tilted his head to one side, a sign that he was listening.
     'I need you to tell all the other birds that migrate to do the same. Can you do that for me?' The goose dipped its head, then raised it again. 'Thank you.'
     I smiled down at the beautiful bird, so large and powerful, those strong wings tucked carefully into his back. He let out a low, quiet honk before settling back down next to his partner and tucking his head under his wing to fall asleep.
     I stood quietly so as not to disturb them and turned to the glistening ebony waters of the lake. The moon reflected perfectly in the ink. I raised my hands and a cooling breeze swept across the lake, creating ripples and carrying the flame coloured leaves of every species with it. Arms still raised, I turned back to the forest and the wind swirled through the trees, coaxing leaves from the safety of their branches to be caught up in the dance of flight through the flowing air.
     I was Autumn.
     I was the wind in the trees and the leaves of flame.
     Running back through the forest, I laughed as the wind and leaves swept around me in a mesmerising display of colour and majesty, whipping my long, auburn hair about my face. My laughter was swept up with them, becoming silver trails of mist in the crisp air. Pure joy ran through me and out through my voice and the mist twisted through the trees, stringing between branches like threads of smoky gossamer and filling the gaps between with a soft silver.
     It was perfect.
     I was jubilant at the array of beauty I had created during the night. The blazing colours of the leaves, softened by the silver mist and pale glow of the moon. I never wanted this night to end.
     But dawn was breaking, the strands of dark grey and blue beginning to paint away the star filled blackness. I had to leave. Breathing one last strand of mist into the world, I turned and slowly headed back through the trees and out into the silent streets towards home.

     The next morning, pupils were escorted to school by a crisp wind that carried leaves that almost glowed with the colours of fire.
     'Looks like the Autumn fairies got the memo,' Damon said, grinning. Jared, for once, was at a loss for words as he surveyed the scene that had seemingly appeared overnight.
     'Tara, you're psychic,' Rebecca declared, patting her friend on the back with a wide grin. Tara grinned back and brushed some of her auburn hair back from her face.
     'Psychic?' she repeated. 'No, I just happen to know Autumn.'