The Waldgeist was an ancient oak, animated by a grumpy spirit. It resented intruders. Voice of the Hollow. It shuffled its roots, blocking the path with thorny briars. Barkbind.
Iktomi, the spider-man, the great trickster, sat on a stump. He was wearing a top hat he’d found on a settler.
"You look stiff, friend," Iktomi observed.
The Waldgeist groaned. "LEAVE."
The Convolution
Iktomi began to spin silk between his fingers. Trickster's Weave.
"I would leave," Iktomi said, "but I am waiting for the boat. You are the boat, yes?"
The Waldgeist paused. "I AM A TREE."
"Ah, but a boat is just a tree that has learned to swim," Iktomi countered. Tongues of Silk. "Look at your shape. Look at your buoyancy. You are clearly a majestic schooner in denial."
The Waldgeist creaked. It looked at the river. The logic was slippery, like Iktomi's web. "SWIM?"
"Go on," Iktomi urged. "Fulfill your destiny."
The Waldgeist, confused by the spider’s charismatic lies, pulled its roots from the soil. It waddled to the riverbank and flopped into the water.
"Wait!" the spirit gurgled as it sank like a stone. "I CANNOT SWIM."
"Details," Iktomi chuckled, walking past the drowning tree to steal its acorns.