Below Ellen, water poured down the slopes towards the stream which was being battered to a white froth by the rain. Water ran down her face, for once her hair was straight like a dark sodden shower curtain. The path looked ready to cave in on itself where it was being pummeled by the vast swathes of rain. A shiver ran down her spine, both from the wetness that was rapidly cooling her body but also the feeling that this was something dangerous that she was getting herself into. She took hold of the branch from a silver birch that hung down towards her and she began to edge down, setting one foot at a time on the nearest rock that jutted out from the slick mud. A zigzag of bright light cut the sky, she froze instinctively to count the seconds. She counted to five before the deep rumble came, it wasn’t too close. As long as it wasn’t just above her. The feeling of being out in a thunderstorm was thrilling.

She had been caught in a thunderstorm once before when she had been camping with her parents in the mountains. That time she had only been a little girl and their tent was pitched not too far away from their car. Her father had taken her in his arms and run with her, the way a prince would hold a princess. The rain had been like it was now, pummeling down over the world. But once in their car they were safe and they could enjoy the storm. Her father had told her that the lightning storms were like large batteries, electrons jumping from the clouds. As a contrast her mother had told her of Thor and how he would make thunder. Another flash of light, and she counted to four before taking her next step.

She had taken a few more steps before the next bolt illuminated the world around her and the willow below swayed and whipped its long branches against the water. That was the answer. Willow bark was what she needed to help Sebastian with his fever. Though she wasn’t certain how effective it was she knew that people in her world had chewed it to help relieve pain and fevers and that there was a precursor to aspirin in the bark. 

The next step was a long one, a small rock jutted out from the side of the path. The surface slipped slightly under her foot and she adjusted her balance before taking the step down with her other foot. Leaning back, she took hold with her hands on the rock that she had been standing on to keep from destabilizing. Only a few more steps and she would have reached the bottom. The world came alight once more. She jerked in surprise and lost her foothold. She slid downwards, feeling pebbles and mud sliding along with her. There was nothing to grab onto. Before she knew it she was lying beside the edge of overflowing water. Her back was sore. At least she had been nearly at the bottom before she fell.

Pushing herself back up to her feet she looked around, the rain was abating and the wind stilling. Unfortunately the willow was on the other side by a steep incline where several of its roots jutted out like strangely curved limbs. She would have to wade and then climb. 

This time she didn’t even remove her jeans, there was no point. She stepped into the water, it felt warm against her skin, a strange phenomenon she had noticed many times before, if you go swimming in the rain the water always feels warmer. For some reason she had never tried to find the answer as to why, maybe it had something to do with the contrast.

The willow was close to where the water was at its deepest and the combination of the quick flow and it reaching up to her chest made her feel nervous. If she fell and was swept away there was no one that would save her. She took another step and felt the muck under her feet suck at her. Another and she reached out her hand to take the nearest root. Under her she could feel the squelching of the mud, even if she couldn’t hear it. Light ripped the sky apart, the rumble following closely. She grabbed the limb, pulling herself towards it and climbing up onto it. Straddling it she held on tight feeling the slippery surface beneath her. She didn’t know if it made any difference where she took bark from, but just in case she would take it from the stem. 

Carefully she pushed herself up onto one knee on the branch and reached for a long slender root above her. The whole root system was like some strange web, or the beginnings of a woven basket, roots weaving in and out of each other. 

Rain began to fall again, pelting her as she climbed. She had to stop mid-climb, standing on one root and her arms wound around the last root that she needed to ascend, hugging it tightly to her wet torso. The hanging branches above her began to wave to and fro as the wind picked up speed. A long vine whipped her face, making her skin smart. The branches continued their motion, gathering momentum. It was like the Whomping Willow in Harry Potter but in a completely natural non-magical way. 

Despite the obstacles and also because of them she decided to continue her climb, just in case things got even worse. She pulled herself up onto the top most root. Holding on for dear life she scooted one centimeter at a time towards the trunk of the tree and grabbed onto it. Five people could have stood around the tree, holding hands and just about reached. The rough bark against her cheek sat in massive ridges along the trunk. The wet tree was somehow comforting. She had reached her target, now she needed to retrieve the loot. Grabbing on with her left hand to the root she used her other hand to scratch at the bark. Getting in between the ridges and pulling as hard as she dared. She slid to the right, nearly toppling over. 

Looking down, she could see that it would be a bad fall. The roots that she had climbed up were right below her. Swearing at herself for being so stupid as to go out like this in the middle of a storm, she adjusted on the limb and began again to tear at the bark.

Finally a piece came loose, big enough to fill her entire hand. It was time to go back and cook some willow bark tea. Heaving her right leg over the root she slid down towards the one below. It was much more difficult going down than up because of the piece of bark that she held in her hand. There was a real risk that she might fall if she didn’t take great care. To make things easier she slid the piece of bark into her back jeans pocket.

The climb went smoothly until the point where she was lowering herself down to the last root. She set down her foot, feeling for a secure spot. A flash of lightning broke through the sky. Her foot slid away along the slippery root, making her almost go down in a split, something her body was not made for. The pain made her lose the grip she had of the upper root and she fell. Her body scraping along the root, chin slamming into it before she splashed into the pool of water below. 

Emerging from the water she gasped and began to swim towards the shore where she had come from and crawled onto land. Once more that day her body ached, her tongue felt strangely thick in her mouth. But she was alive and the bark could very well be the solution to the problem.