The morning sun finally crested over the hills and began to send its warm beams of light across the land. They went everywhere they could: shimmering across the waters of the creeks and ponds; through the green leaves and needles of the various forest trees; and into every valley and to all the dark places still clinging to the night.

One beam, leaving its sun-mother, shone over the horizon and could not be stopped by the clouds which dotted the sky, nor by the robin's nest lying high in a birch tree, nor could the birch tree itself. Though many obstacles sought to prevent its penetrating radiance, it kept shining on until it came upon a glade. There, it finally reached its destination and kissed the beautiful sleeping face of Susanna.

Within minutes, she began to stir.

Sleeping on the ground is not very conducive to a state of well rest. There's a reason why humans invented beds and pillows and sheets and comforters. The ground simply is not that comfortable and in the morning, one might experience aches and pains and stiffness in their muscles and joints.

However, on this morning, Susanna was feeling none of that. The bed of grass that she had slept on would have rivaled the sleeping quarters of all the wealthy rulers of the world. She had slept so soundly that she had forgotten ever going to sleep. Those memories were coming back to her, but Susanna resisted. She feared that their return would usher away her memories of the night. Her dreams had been vivid and exhilarating, especially right before waking when her mind was lucid and clear and her dreams felt very real. She did not want to wake up, because she did not want to forget that man...

Despite the initial reluctance, Susanna took the first step and started opening her eyes. At first, she peered through eyelids that were just barely apart. The sun was bright as it shone on her face and she squinted. She saw that she was outside. Above her, she could see the light blue hue of the morning sky, which was in the midst of chasing away the reds and yellows of the sunrise and establishing its dominance for the day. The sky was framed by the tops of the ring of birch trees that surrounded her, seen as a halo of green leaves and white bark.

The glade. Immediately, memories from the previous day were returning to her. She had been revisiting Cairnbridge. There was the powerful fragrance, the clearing in the forest...the little man. He spoke her name. Susanna remembered that she had fainted. But how much of what she remembered was real?

Before she could fully process her thoughts, a small voice called out from above:

"Good morning!"

Susanna sat up, fully awake. For the first time since the previous evening, she looked around at her location and she questioned whether she was in the same glade as before. It was very different. It was still surrounded by the same perimeter of birch trees, and the grass she was laying on was just as green and soft, but yesterday the grass had been the only thing there. The glade had been rather empty and nondescript.

However, today she awoke surrounded by color and life. She found herself in the midst of a garden of flowers! All sorts of blooming plants were about her: a rainbow of lilies and lilacs, pansies and petunias--everything from azaleas to zinnias! The horticulturalist inside of her was absolutely thrilled, and she wanted to leap to her feet and smell each and every one of them. Oh, and the smell! Language has its challenges and limitations when describing the sense of smell, but to explain what Susanna's nose was experiencing, one must imagine the equivalent of watching a glamourous parade or listening to a full symphony orchestra. Stretching her arms into the air, she let out a giddy series of joyous giggles.

Her laughter. Susanna remembered!

Looking up and around into the trees, she searched for the little man who had appeared to her yesterday after she laughed. He had called out to her just moments ago. She had been barely awake and the sights around her had distracted her since, but she was certain she had heard him. However, her eyes could not find him.

Just as she was about to call out, she looked right in front of her. To her left, among a bed of geraniums, a red tulip stood alone. Its flower had not yet opened for the day. Sitting on top of it was a small little man, not two inches in height, with tanned skin, a mess of brown curls on his head, and clothes that lightly shimmered in the sun. He was smiling at her. The sight of him made Susanna's heart race with excitement once more.

"You! You're real!" she said with wide eyes and wonder.

He hopped up and stood on the head of the tulip, which swayed up and down with his movement. "Why yes I am!" he responded, bending forward in a gentleman's bow. "You had a pretty bad fall last night. How are you feeling?"

"Oh, much better actually. I never faint. In fact, I can't remember the last time I fainted. I guess I got a little overwhelmed, what with the day of walking, my discovery of this place, and..."

"...and seeing me?" the little man coyly interrupted.

"Well, yes, I'm suppose that was a factor," Susanna said with acknowledgment. "Actually, there was more...it was something you said. You asked me if my name was Susanna."

"That I did. And you never did respond."

"No, I suppose I didn't. Yes, my name is Susanna. But...how did you know that? Do I know you?" Susanna realized that the man wasn't actually standing on the tulip anymore, as the wind was blowing it about and yet he stood in the same position, mid-air.

"That is a very good question. It also has a very long answer, one that I'm not quite sure how to explain to you just yet, especially not this early in the day," he said.

"But I have to know!" Susanna protested. She was sitting upright now, her legs crossed and the skirt of her light blue dress stretching over them like a tent. Its color was periwinkle, her favorite color, for they were her favorite flowers. Incidentally, she was sitting right next to a patch of periwinkles and they matched her dress perfectly. She would smile when she noticing this later.

"Very well...I will tell you," said her new friend. "I heard your name whispered on the wind."

Susanna was clearly not fully satisfied with this answer, but she decided that she was not going to pursue it further at the moment. She had other questions, and perhaps he did, too--whoever he was. In fact, that was the next of her questions to be asked. Also on that list was how it was that he was levitating in the air, which Susanna could not help but be distracted by, to the point that she asked if he could stand on her hand again. He obliged and she carefully picked him up.

"Okay, I guess I can accept that for now, but you'll have to tell me the full story later. You know my name, but may I know yours?"

The man in her palm paused and pondered for a moment before looking up at her again. "I don't have one."

Susanna was getting a little vexed at the miniature man's answers--or lack thereof. It did not help that it was still the morning and she had just woken up. "You don't have a name? Then what do others call you?"

"Nobody calls me anything. There is no one else," he replied plainly.

"No one?"

"None. You are the first person that I have ever spoken to."

Upon hearing this, Susanna's heart sank low with compassion and pity for the tiny man. "No one at all? My, that's one of the saddest things I have ever heard!" Out of feminine instinct, she gently drew her hands to her chest and lightly clutched him against her, not thinking of what reaction he would have.

He was, in fact, caught by surprise as he felt the hand below him moving and saw Susanna's body swiftly dominating his field of vision. Soon, he was pressed up against her increasingly familiar bosom. He did not feel threatened and understood that this was a kind gesture from her. Still, he was not sure if his statement deserved such sympathy. He was simply telling her the truth, and he knew not that it was something to be ashamed of. He had never experienced companionship or friendship before, and so he did not know that it was supposed to be preferable to loneliness, nor that his loneliness was to be pitied.

Becoming aware of what she had just done, Susanna's eyes shot open and she quickly extended her arm back away from her. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't realize what I was doing! Did I hurt you? I just couldn't help myself. Did I-..."

"Susanna, I'm fine!" he said reassuringly, straightening his shirt with a smile. "I thank you. But I'm not completely alone, you know."

"No? Who else is there then? Are there others like you?"

"No, not that I know of. But I do talk a lot."

"With whom?" Susanna asked curiously.

"Well, I do talk with the squirrels and birds and other inhabitants of the forest."

"Really!" said Susanna, her interest now greatly piqued. "You speak with the animals? How amazing! And what name do they call you, then?"

The man looked up at her with a raised eyebrow, unsure if he understood her correctly. "Name? My dear...animals don't talk back."

Susanna was staring at him inquisitively until she realized what he meant. "Ohhhh...oh! Oh my, you poor thing!"

Suddenly and once again, he found his face in the warmth of Susanna's modest bosom.