Jia Li Adlar had always been an early riser. She loved the sun, and she felt as if it gave her strength. Of course, in a way, it did give her the strength she needed because the sunlight strengthened her tree. As a dryad, she was bonded more closely with her white ash tree than any other living thing in the world.
She didn’t awaken as early as dawn because it seemed unnecessary, but by the time the clock read seven-forty, she had already showered, and she was in the process of dressing herself. Instead of wearing her usually wispy skirt and a camisole, a peak outside told her that she should prepare for rain. She donned a pair of loosely fitting jeans, a short-sleeved, jade blouse, a light, brown cardigan, and a pair of sneakers. She also wore the beaded, earthy bracelet on her left wrist that she almost never removed.
Rain was just as nice as sunshine as long as it didn’t rain enough to flood. Water gave life just as much as light, and both were important to the healthy growth of her tree and of herself. Even an hour away by human standards, she could feel her tree’s anticipation of the potential weather. It filled her with a bit of excitement, too.
If it wouldn’t be considered indecent, she would have loved to dance naked while the rain poured from the heavens, to welcome it into her flesh as her ancestors surely must have done. However, society’s norms in this day and age would have caused people to view her as insane or indecent. She may even be marked as an exhibitionist or as a slut.
Besides, she didn’t actually want anyone to see her naked, and she couldn’t feel assured that she would go unnoticed even in the Dryad Tree Reserve where her tree grew tall and strong. Ever since she had dated a jerk in high school who had tried – and failed – to pressure her into becoming sexually involved with him, she had worried that others may actually try to take what they wanted rather than just trying to “convince” her to do it.
Of course, in a wooded area, it was easy enough to escape quickly. If there were trees all around her, she would simply have to hop into one, moving through it to the next should she wish to do so. It was the fastest form of travel, and she could transfer herself far enough away that even a car would be hard pressed to make it to a location before her. The trouble was that there was always a chance that she wouldn’t make it into the safety of a tree. If someone was able to grab her, someone strong, she would be screwed. The world was a dangerous place. Clothing was her safest option, but she chose to forgo the raincoat and the umbrella.
Jia didn’t brush her thick, wild waves before she left her dorm room. She loved the way her hair looked when it maintained a lot of body. It was almost curly, but not quite. The dryad wasn’t overly concerned about her appearance unless she was performing for her competitive dance team for the school. Then, it was important that she make herself presentable because she wasn’t simply representing herself. Otherwise, she usually just combed through her hair with her fingers, and she wore very little make-up if any.