Drizzling rain tapped against the windows, blurring the glow of streetlights. The workday had long since ended, yet Kristina hesitated to leave her office—an odd feeling clung to her, as if something remained unfinished.

  She checked her schedule for the following day once more, but found no excuse to linger any longer. Taking her coat from the hanger and grabbing her purse, she cast one final glance around the room. Nothing seemed out of place, yet the vague unease refused to fade.

  Kristina reached for the door handle, ready to leave, but found herself face-to-face with an unexpected visitor. Caught off guard, she hesitated, momentarily lost for words, merely observing the striking young woman standing before her. Her curly hair was nearly white, her skin pale, yet the vivid green of her eyes held an almost hypnotic allure, stealing speech away for a moment too long.

  - Are you scheduled for an appointment? - Kristina finally recovered, offering a polite, professional smile, as if she had been expecting Huld all along.

  - Yes, - the girl confirmed, stepping inside as Kristina instinctively followed her back into the room.

  - Take a seat, - Kristina gestured toward the guest couch, hastily hanging her coat back up.

  The blonde moved soundlessly, settling into the offered seat. She carried neither an umbrella nor outerwear, yet her white dress bore no trace of the rain outside.

  - And you are...? - Kristina asked uncertainly, lowering herself into her own chair with a confused expression.

  - Huld, - the deity introduced herself, tugging at the right threads of fate, and at last, her companion relaxed.

  - Of course, - Kristina smiled warmly now, her expression shifting into one of genuine recognition—as if she had simply mistaken the girl for one of her regular patients.

  - What brings you here?

  - I'm not sure, - Huld hesitated, - work, I suppose...

  - Are you having difficulties with colleagues or clients? - Kristina asked in a bright, professional tone.

  - Clients... - the deity smiled faintly.

  - And what exactly do you do?

  - I suppose... I fulfill other people's wishes, - Huld answered honestly.

  - Yes... that's not an easy job, - Kristina replied, not fully grasping her words.

  But a few subtle pulls on the threads of fate quickly wiped the confusion from the therapist's face. In an instant, she carried on the conversation, completely disregarding the girl's strange remark.

  - Yes, people who work in service professions often suffer from stress caused by dealing with clients...

  - People often don't even know what they truly want, Huld confirmed with quiet sadness.

  - Many simply aren't capable of honestly voicing their desires, - Kristina observed thoughtfully.

  - And you? Can you say, honestly, what you want?

  The unexpected question caught Huld off guard. For a few seconds, she simply looked at her companion, unable to decide how to respond.

  - I want the wishes I grant to bring people happiness, - she finally said.

  But her voice no longer carried the same certainty as it had a thousand years ago, when she carved her wish into amber and placed it upon the branch of Idras.

  - That's admirable, - Kristina nodded, - but not very honest...

  - Is it not? - Huld questioned.

  - That's what you want for others, - the woman clarified, - but what do you wish for yourself?

  ***

  Kristina hurried—her heels echoed sharply against the cobblestone street in the crisp, invigorating September morning air. She passed by her favorite café with a touch of regret, already running late for her first session.

  Unlocking the office door, she quickly gathered the fresh mail from the floor—a few advertising leaflets and a costly envelope with no return address. But as she settled at her desk, Kristina exhaled in relief—her patient was running late as well.

  With no time to indulge in a cup of coffee, she absentmindedly sorted through the leaflets. The discount coupons went straight into the trash, but the envelope piqued her interest. Inside was an elegant invitation from one of her former patients. The thoughtful gesture flattered Kristina, yet as she checked the date against her calendar, her brow furrowed slightly.

  Just then, the chime of the front doorbell sounded, and Kristina went to greet her visitor. It was a fair-haired young man with an exhausted, downcast gaze.

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  - Good morning, Alv, - she greeted, gesturing for him to enter the office.

  - How was your week? - Kristina asked with a professional yet gentle tone as her patient settled onto the couch.

  - ...The same as always, I suppose...

  Alv didn't answer right away, as if he had to wrap his true thoughts in different words. The hesitation didn't escape Kristina's notice.

  It was difficult for her to work with Alv—he hadn't come to therapy of his own accord, but rather on the recommendation of his university administration.

  - Did you try talking to someone in your group like I suggested last time?

  - No... - the young man admitted reluctantly.

  - I understand, - Kristina began gently, - what happened makes you want to keep your distance from others, to maintain a sense of safety, Alv.

  - But in the end, returning to normal interactions with people is what will truly help you feel safe again...

  - I don't like getting close to people, - Alv suddenly interrupted.

  Kristina fell silent, sensing, at last, some kind of genuine response. For weeks, she had been trying to help him recover from the recent attempt on his life, but mostly, she had run into walls. Now, hearing even a glimpse of honesty, she grasped at the chance— even if it led away from the core issue:

  - Is there a particular reason for that?

  For the first time during the session, Alv looked at the doctor, as if truly seeing her only now.

  - Tired of making peace with how they disappear...

  - That sounds very specific, - Kristina noted.

  - Who do you mean?

  - Everyone, - Alv admitted honestly.

  - There's no one left in this world— no family, no friends, not even enemies... - he added with a hint of regret.

  - Withdrawing into yourself isn't the best way to cope with trauma, - Kristina said cautiously.

  - I can see that what happened has only worsened your struggles with socializing...

  - Who knows, maybe you're right, - Alv huffed.

  He found himself wondering how many times fate had tightened its noose around his neck, again and again trying to end his life. A fate that wouldn't let him move forward, but wouldn't allow him to stop either... A fate that condemned him to solitude.

  - If making friends with your classmates feels overwhelming right now, try starting with something less demanding, - Kristina suggested.

  - For example, do you practice any sports?

  - You could join a group class...

  - Horseback riding, - Alv cut her off.

  - Ah, the sport of kings, - Kristina smiled, a little flustered.

  Alv said nothing, but thought to himself that she had no idea just how right she truly was.

  - Oh, right! - the doctor suddenly recalled, quickly getting up and heading to her desk.

  - Do you like art? - she asked while rummaging through a drawer.

  - Here, Alv, go to this exhibition, take your mind off things, - she said, handing him the glossy invitation she had received earlier.

  - Maybe you'll discover something new...

  ***

  Standing at the grand staircase of the museum, Alv hesitated until the last moment, unsure whether he should step inside. The exhibition's opening had drawn a far larger crowd than he had expected, and now he was torn between two conflicting urges— to turn away as quickly as possible and the unwillingness to later justify his cowardice to Kristina at their next session. Though, if he were to be honest with himself, he wasn't entirely sure why he was still attending therapy at all. Perhaps, precisely because he truly was very lonely.

  A large group of visitors exited the building, leaving the entrance staircase nearly empty. Alv exhaled heavily and decided this was his best opportunity.

  The museum's high-ceilinged foyer was spacious and filled with light. At the entrance, guests were greeted by a large screen looping a video that strongly resembled a promotional clip.

  A fair-haired girl in festive garments—ones Alv recognized all too well from his youth—sat atop a golden-leaved tree, its branches heavy with old wooden plaques. The camera slowly panned outward, revealing a mesmerizing landscape of the shoreline and distant mountains. Suddenly, the girl rose to her feet and tore away the tree's very crown, which crumbled to ash beneath her. And then, she was standing on the shore, a branch in her hand, with thousands of plaques trailing behind her like a veil on the sand.

  The scene shifted, now showing the stranger carrying her peculiar burden through an entire city, until at last, she ascended the very steps that Alv had just crossed. She walked to the center of the hall and planted the branch directly into the marble floor—where it instantly took root, growing into a colossal tree...

  The video ended there, seamlessly looping back to the very beginning, where the exhibition's title once again appeared, written in ancient runic script. Of all the attendees, Alv was likely the only one who could read it.

  Yet he remained rooted in place, unable to tear his gaze away from the screen, his attention fixed on the unfolding images with unwavering intensity. It wasn't that he was still wary of modern technology—it was something else entirely. A sense of déjà vu had tightened the threads of fate around his heart, pulling taut with an almost painful familiarity.

  A shrill voice from the main hall broke his trance, dragging him back to reality. He followed the sound and soon found himself before the very tree from the video—its massive branches sprawling across the room, stretching above the heads of the gathered visitors.

  A tall, impeccably groomed woman, her voice carrying above the murmur of the crowd, was animatedly expounding on the intricate concept behind the young artist's work, flashing a dazzling white-toothed smile.

  - Yes, - she declared, - the title can be translated as "The Tree of the Future"—Skulden* Baun...

  - The artist sought to illustrate how the desires of each individual shape the course of our collective future...

  But Alv had already stopped listening. His attention was drawn elsewhere—to a lone figure silently observing the scene from a distant spiral staircase.

  The exhibition occupied only the first floor, leaving the stairway shrouded in dim light, its entrance cordoned off by a velvet rope. Yet despite the distance, Alv instantly recognized the girl from the video.

  Only that wasn't what pulled the threads of fate within him even tighter...

  ***

  Huld watched the commotion stirred around her tree and centuries of work, growing more disappointed with each passing minute. All her painstaking labor, thousands of human fates and desires, had been distorted and put on display as nothing more than an amusing trinket.

  Back then, Huld herself had wanted to finally step out from under Idras's shadow and cease being its mere reflection. She had wished to remain in someone's memory. To stop feeling her existence slipping through the threads of others' destinies.

  Bitter disappointment consumed the ancient deity. Disappointment and the sting of futility.

  But suddenly, weightless footsteps sounded behind her, and a soft voice followed:

  — Skuld*... — Alv called uncertainly, and the girl turned.

  His gray eyes were filled with sorrow and loneliness. But on his lips was her name—forgotten by all...

  ***THE END***

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