Stevie scoffed.“Don’t be ridiculous.How didyoumake a man get lost in the woods?”
“I wished for it, Stevie!I stood there in the Refuge at the beginning of the hike and I wished the romance author would meet scrub jays and I wished he wouldliterallyget lost and it happened!”
“Slow down, there, my friend.You made a wish?What, like with a birthday cake?”
“I was angry about what he said at the panel and I dropped back where no one could hear me and I said it.I said I hoped he would get lost.Everything I said came true!”
Stevie shook her head.“Coincidence.”
“Why did the birds swarm that woman like she was covered in birdseed?”
“They didn’t exactly swarm—”
“You’ve seen three of them land on someone like that, then?”
“Well, no—”
“I summoned birds.”
“Corinthia, you’re scaring me—”
“You’rescared?I’mscared!What is this?What is happening to me?”
“Nothing is happening to you!It’s just a coincidence, that’s all.”
Stevie said further comforting words but Corinthia was only half-listening.When Stevie stopped, Corinthia continued.“He wasn’t even a bad guy, just a few stupid opinions!Now he’s gone and we can’t find him and I didn’t mean to and—”
“Corinthia, you didn’t do anything!”
Their steps had been quick-time on the path, in rhythm with their words, but at this Corinthia stopped.She closed her eyes, felt her weight supported by the sand beneath her feet.“I didn’t mean to, Stevie, I swear, I was only being petty and silly and impulsive and I’mneverthat way and Ineverthought the forest was listening to every word I said, it’s my fault, it’s all my fault…”
There was a rasping, unscrewing sound, and then Corinthia was hit in the face with the contents of a full mini-bottle of water.“Snap out of it!”
Corinthia sputtered.“What—” She wiped her face with her sleeve.“Why did you do that?”
“Because you were clearly losing hold of your faculties.”
Corinthia continued to dab at her face and brush at her clothes.The cold water, unwelcome and shocking as it may have been, brought back clarity.“I was, wasn’t I.”
“Talking about some guy getting lost was all your fault,” Stevie chided.
“No,” Corinthia said, thoughtfully.“That part was right.”
“Don’t make me get another water bottle.”
“Stevie,” Corinthia said, placing her hands on her smaller friend’s shoulders and looking into her worried face.“I haven’t lost my faculties.I’m telling you something’s changed.I’ve changed.Something is different.”
“Oh…kay,” Stevie said, clearly not convinced.
“Please don’t be frightened.”
“I’m not frightened,” Stevie said.“I just don’t understand.”
Corinthia let go of Stevie’s shoulders.Wind dried her face as thoroughly as a mother with a soft towel.Her understanding of the world was unfolding and refolding, like an origami bird deconstructed and rebuilt into something new.The grains of sand beneath her feet were diamonds; the trees, molten silver.All at once all of the birds knew her and she knew all the birds, could have pointed them out one by one no matter where they hid.Same for the tortoises and snakes and the spiders—my God, there were so many spiders!—and among all this small life it was easy, now, to sense one man wandering in the distance.“I found him,” Corinthia said, simply.
“You found him,” Stevie repeated, her words full of doubt.
“I can sense him.I can sense… everything.”
