By Lanice C.

Summary:
In the Bitteroot Forest, fearsome creatures called Worbles roam around at night. Even without eyes, Worbles have sharp claws and a hanging jaw of jagged teeth, and they track the vibrations of their prey with frightening speed and precision. It would be a shame if someone were to stumble upon one of them. In the middle of this forest lays the village of Wheaton where happy residents live…except for 15 year-old Kelly. Kelly’s parents just found out about her dangerously low grades and how she has been hiding her good spider friend, Hunter, in her room. According to legends, keeping spiders in houses only brings trouble and attracts Worbles to them. Kelly’s parents kicked her out of the house as a consequence for putting her whole family house in danger, and she has no where else to go except the forest. With the dangers of being among Worble territory and a worrisome hallucination of them attacking her village, Kelly and Hunter will have to make the decision to brave their fears and rush back to save everyone in time. 

PART ONE

KELLY

“KELLY!” Mom cried. 

“What?” a girl with dyed black hair plopped her spoon on top of the barely eaten pile of mashed potatoes. When she stood up, she seemed unusually tall (5’9) for a normal fifteen year old.

“WHAT ARE THESE THINGS IN YOUR ROOM? GET OVER HERE NOW!”

Kelly trudged over to where her room was and peeked in to see what her mom was referring to. She saw her magical potions covering her bed and floor. The walls were splashed with mysterious colourful liquids, and pieces of cactus spikes were scattered on her wooden desk, heavy with unfinished homework papers.

Kelly pursed her lips to hide her pleased smile. She had been extremely close to finding the right concoction for a potion which could expand a person ten times their size.

“Well? Explain!” her mom said impatiently, tapping her foot.

“I was bored,” Kelly shrugged as if her mess was no big deal.

“Clean it up or you’ll be grounded for a month!” her mom roared and slammed the bedroom door after  stomping out.

“It’s not your guests would come roaming in here” Kelly mumbled under her breath. “Besides, it’s only water with a few drops of food colouring.”

She snatched a dirty rag from her desk and used it to soak up all the liquid from the floor. Suddenly, she spotted a shadow peeping out from under her bed. She shifted closer and peeked underneath but saw nothing. The shadowy darkness under the bed hid the creature that was probably and most likely about to pounce at Kelly, but for some strange reason, she showed no fear.

“Hunter!” she cried quietly so her family wouldn’t hear. “Where have you been? I’ve been looking for you since this morning! Do you know what time it is?”

The creature squeaked like a mouse in response.

“That’s right, IT’S DINNER TIME. I seriously thought you were dead. What have you been doing without me? Weaving another web cave under my bed?”

The creature crawled out from the shadows. It appeared like a furry dot with seven thin legs attached to its sides. It blinked all eight eyes up at Kelly innocently and hopped onto Kelly’s palm.

“You can’t really jump for a jumping spider,” Kelly teased with a grin.

Hunter the spider peeped indignantly in a low tone.

“KELLY!” came a male voice from outside her room.

Kelly rolled her eyes, “What do you want?”

The sound of stomping echoed closer towards her room. The dying potted plant on the edge of her desk shook, threatening to fall down to the floor. Hunter’s eight eyes widened, and he scrambled out of Kelly’s palm and slipped under the bed. The white door flung open and almost hit Kelly in the face.

A tall man stood behind it. He had short blonde hair that was neatly combed flat against his head. A massive bumpy scar laid across his nose; a souvenir from a fight long ago with Worbles. Kelly remembered how long it took to heal after helping her dad carefully re-apply blood-stained bandages and spooning him awful tasting medicine while her mother was busy.

Instead of thinking back to how helpful she was, he now stood huffing and puffing at her doorway while still wearing his Worble hunting uniform. He insisted he didn’t need to rest for very long before jumping right back to work. A shiny golden pin on his ballistic vest indicated that he had just come back from the Bitterroot Forest. This forest was right next to their house and surrounded the outside of their village.

“WHY HAVEN’T YOU FINISHED YOUR DINNER?” he yelled, eyeing the watery mess around her room.

He opened his mouth to address the mess in her room, but Kelly stopped him, “Before you scream at me, Mom already told me to clean my room.”

Her father shut his mouth and thought of something to retort before leaving her room, “Well then? What are you looking at me for? Go on, clean your room. After that, you better finish that dinner.”

Kelly crossed her arms. Growing up, her parents would bring her to the park and play Hide and Seek. She remembered the joy she felt as she sprinted to different trees and large boulders to crouch behind, and how thrilling it was to clamp her mouth shut, so they wouldn’t hear a peep while they searched. They had felt like a real family then. Now, they acted like she was a dirt stain on white carpet. She had no idea what she did wrong to make them treat her this way. All she knew was that they started acting differently after her sister Nelly was born.

She continued to wipe up the mess she had created. Hunter peeked out again and squeaked. He crawled up Kelly’s arm and onto her shoulder where her hair provided good shelter. Yawning widely, he was about to curl up for a nap until Kelly stood up and caused a massive earthquake for the tiny spider. He clenched onto the fabric of her t-shirt to keep himself from flinging away.

“I’m going to get some cleaning solution from Dad’s room. Stay here, okay?” Kelly told Hunter, oblivious to the fact that he was perched on her shoulder.

Before he could get off, she had already stood up and walked out of the door. 

“What are you doing–” a girl with dyed blonde hair started.

Kelly was blinded by her sister’s flashy bright yellow clothing and the petite floral bow on her head.

“It’s none of your business, Nelly…but if you have to know, Mom and Dad are mad at me. They cannot know that I’m out of my room,” Kelly interrupted, holding up a hand to partially block the bright yellow and partially shut her sister’s mouth. She ignored her sister and turned into Dad’s room, leaving Nelly with little to no information.

Kelly quickly found the bottle of cleaning solution under her dad’s desk. From her shoulder, Hunter eyed the sleek black computer keyboard. If he were to sleep there, Kelly wouldn’t annoy him with conversations so much. He wouldn’t be found either because he could blend in with the colours. It was the perfect idea for a bed.

He calculated and angled his landing before leaping off without Kelly noticing. He shuffled towards one of the keycaps and curled up like a cat, purring contentedly. Peace at last. 

After taking her time and forcing herself not to touch all the cool gadgets in her parent’s room, Kelly finally returned to her room.

“I’m back!” she chirped, shutting her room door, “Hunter? Where are you?”

She peered around looking for her spider friend, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Kelly let out an exasperated sigh, “He disappeared again, didn’t he? Whatever. Just make sure you turn up by bedtime, Hunter.”

HUNTER

Hunter heard very loud footsteps walking towards the room where he was napping in, and it did not sound like Kelly’s. He got up on his thin little legs and shivered. What if it was a stranger or a kidnapper coming to swipe him away?

The door opened with an ear-shattering squeak, and a large human came into view. It was Kelly’s Dad! Hunter squeezed himself down in a hurry to obscure himself among the keys.

Dad let out a low sigh and slumped down in his black office chair with a stiff groan. He took a few minutes to gaze up at the ceiling with bleary eyes before he laid his fingers on the keyboard.

Hunter squished himself down as much as possible and tried to scutter off of the platform. Before he could get out of the way, Dad had already accidentally squashed his small spider body. His finger startled away after feeling an unusually fuzzy keyboard key. He stared down like a ginormous troll breathing hot angry steam at Hunter. The spider chirped nervously and scampered straight into the computer mouse head first. 

Dad tried to smoosh him with his fast, but Hunter was too fast and crawled behind the computer screen. A pair of giant enraged eyes peeked into the narrow gap of the wall and a hand reached in to slap down at random places with a fury Hunter has never seen before.

PWACK, PWACK, PWACK!

KELLY

The frenzied sound traveled into Kelly’s room and shook her nerves. Kelly’s head perked up and she knew she had to investigate.

As the fight between man and spider continued, Dad heard a nonchalant voice come from right outside his room.

“Dad, what’s all that noise? Do you need help with something?” Kelly asked boredly. She twiddled her thumbs as she leaned on the doorway.

“Yes, there’s a spider crawling around, it’s fuzzy and black! It crawled behind the computer screen, could you help–” he stopped flailing his hands at the gap after seeing a twinge of shock in Kelly’s face. She never had another expression other than her usual I-don’t-care face. “Wait, what’s going on? Why does your face look so guilty?”

“Hunter…” The word slipped out of Kelly’s mouth quietly. 

“Who?” Dad asked sternly, his head twisted to look at Kelly. He stuck his arm back behind the monitor and swung wildly.

“Don’t kill my friend!” Kelly squeaked, panicked. She bit her tongue and tried to continue calmly, “Why do you have to be so violent? He doesn’t mean any harm.”

“He? How do you know the spider’s a he? What do you mean he’s your friend?”

“Uh…”

The spider emerged from the other side of the computer and slunk relieved onto Kelly’s palm where it was slick with a small pool of nervous sweat. Dad squinted his eyes menacingly and opened his mouth to yell.

“I promise I will keep him in a cage!” Kelly squealed in a rush. Hunter looked at her and also squinted all eight eyes.

“NO! How DARE you bring a SPIDER into our HOME! Get rid of him or you are also leaving this house. We CANNOT keep MONSTERS like these,” he bellowed red in the face.

“But why? Why are spiders such a danger to our village? What have they done?”

Dad sighed irritably and squeezed his temples to calm down, “They attract Worbles. Remember, Worbles can glide through walls whether we like it or not, and do you know what they are capable of? Do you know how dangerous they are and how impossible it is to fight them?” He pointed to the nasty scar on his nose and scowled at his daughter.

Kelly shuddered. Were the Worbles really that fierce? She once believed that her family was exaggerating about how dangerous the Worbles were when they still loved her enough. She thought it was just a tale to prevent her from wandering off alone into the forest. Mom told spooky stories about how capable Worbles can fight off a dozen trained warriors without breaking a sweat. Dad told Kelly about how large Worble’s appetites are, and how easily their sharp teeth can tear right through human flesh.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized half-heartedly, crossing her arms and looking everywhere but into her father’s bloodshot disapproving eyes. She just wanted this conversation to end so she can go hide in her room and never come back out. 

“Sorry doesn’t cut it. You’ve been failing school, which means we’ll have to pay more money for you to redo grade 10, and your teachers have told us about your despicable attendance. What have you even been doing with all your time? Wait, don’t answer that question, I know exactly what you’ve been doing. Disappointing the entire family.”

Just when Kelly thought he would take a breath to pause, he continued, “Now, you bring a DISGUSTING and FILTHY creature into OUR HOUSE putting ALL of us in danger. You are thoughtless and selfish. You ONLY think of yourself! You should be ashamed.”

His words cut her deep but she still need to understand the real reason why spiders were so feared, “But why do spiders attract Wor–”

“ENOUGH QUESTIONS! Either you throw that disgusting thing out or you can both make the Bitterroot Forest your new home.”

Kelly froze. Her arguments with her family always escalated like this, but her parents never threatened to kick her out before. She really would have no choice but to go live in the forest because she definitely could not live out on the streets; it would be embarrassing to be jeered at by her classmates. Should she leave Hunter all by himself after domesticating and befriending him for a whole year? Surely not, especially after [what she had done to his leg]. She would feel way too guilty to feed him to the wolves. If they both left together, they would at least have each other to fight for.

“Choose NOW,” her father demanded impatiently, tapping his foot.

“Fine,” Kelly said, holding back a waterfall of tears. She was suddenly unsure about her decision. “I’ll leave with Hunter.”

Dad’s mouth fell open like he wasn’t prepared for her final answer.

He cleared his throat and turned away from her, “Then get going. Pack your things and be on your way with that…thing.”

Kelly furrowed her brows in hatred and frustration. She didn’t expect him to agree with her either, but her ego and her friend were worth leaving the house for. She looked down at Hunter, who was cowering while perched on the side of her palm, and she stormed out of the room. She was ready to fling herself onto her bed to scream, kick, and cry loud enough to disrupt the whole neighbourhood. She wanted the whole world to know the injustice of her situation.

“Why are you so furious? Shouldn’t you be calm after eating delicious mashed potatoes?” Nelly piped up and stopped Kelly before she reached her room.

Kelly turned to glare at her sister with angry tears threatening to spill over. She knew her sister didn’t actually care that she was on the verge of angry tears. They barely even had a proper conversation in the last couple of years. Kelly couldn’t imagine a scenario in which either of them would care if they found the other weeping on the floor. She knew she definitely wouldn’t if she found Nelly soaking her frilly yellow clothes with salty tears while her little bow drooped over her scrunched up face. In fact, the image made her want to laugh and slightly cheered her up a little.

Perhaps it would be a good idea for her to move out. Would her sister care if she left home permanently? Would her mother sob and cry, “Come back, Kelly!” Would her father ever regret kicking her out for the Worbles to feed upon? She didn’t think the answer was yes to any of those questions.

She scowled and pushed past Nelly to rush into her room and began collecting items she’d need to survive in the wilderness. She knew a handful of spells that she wasn’t supposed to study and how to create healing potions. From her dad, she also learned enough information on how to defend herself from those creatures.

Her dad once told her that if she stayed still enough, the Worbles couldn’t sense her presence through vibrations. After all, they had no eyes, nose, ears to sense her with which makes hiding very easy. She also remembered her father mentioning once that Worbles are nocturnal, so she would definitely be safe during the day. And since they can’t smell, she can freely make a fire at night without worrying about smoke. It was the beginning of a perfect plan to stay safe, and she felt confident enough to leave the house.

After wrapping her essentials in a blanket because she didn’t own a traveling bag, she walked out of her room confidently with Hunter snuggled carefully inside the sack. She mentally prepared herself to enter the dining room to say one last goodbye to her horrible family.

As usual, her family waited until she finished dinner and left the table before they ate together without her. They were all smiling at each other, unlike the strained sour smiles she usually receives. What a happy family, she thought sullenly, I’m making the right decision.

Kelly didn’t know why she stood there listening to them take turns talking about their day. Dad told them that he finally caught a ginormous Worble to test in his work lab, while Mom chatted about the Worble that her group tested on. Nelly made jokes about the annoying people at her school and how none of them had any fashion sense. Her family seemed so cheerful without her. It’s like she never had a place in this family.

Without warning, Kelly felt a cold drop slip down her cheek. She accidentally sniffled too loud, and they all shifted their attention to her in surprise. Their grins instantly dropped into disappointed frowns.

“What do you want?” Nelly sneered, her mouth spewing out mashed potatoes onto the floor.

“Nothing,” Kelly started, her cheeks turning red. “I just wanted… I wanted to say goodbye. Before I leave, remember?”

“Leave? Where?” Mom asked curiously, scooping mushy peas onto Nelly’s plate.

“My new home, of course. Didn’t– Didn’t Dad tell you guys?”

Dad’s face flushed pink and dropped his spoon with a clang! Mom gave him a bewildered look. 

“I…” he started completely dumbfounded, “I didn’t mean it…I didn’t think she would take it seriously.”

Mom turned to dad and shouted, “WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HER?”

“He kicked me out of our– I mean your home,” Kelly explained hesitantly.

“Kelly, I didn’t mean it! You were supposed to apologize and get rid of the spider!” Dad exclaimed exasperated, obviously trying to recover from the damage.

Nelly’s eyes widened and hiccuped, “What spider?”

“Well, too bad! That’s your problem, not mine!” Kelly screeched a little too loudly.

“Young lady, that is not how we speak to your family!” Mom turned her anger onto her.

“Wait, but what is this about a spider?” Nelly butted in, but no one paid attention to her for once. Kelly would have felt gratified about it if there wasn’t a bigger problem that tumbled on top of her.

“YOU ARE NOT MY FAMILY!”

Mom’s mouth hung open, unable to find the right words. Her eyes were painted with fire and lightning as she stared at her teary daughter in disbelief. Nelly’s eyes pivoted between each family member in confusion, her mouth still stuffed with mashed potatoes. Dad stood up with furrowed brows ready to explode again. Before her Dad could reach her, Kelly dashed out of the room and burst through the front door without a glance back. The cold wind numbed her face like someone dumped a bag of ice on her. 

She stumbled into the pitch-black woods, ignoring the calls from her family that became more distant the further she sprinted. She may have even imagined them calling after her, but it was likely just wishful thinking. Tree branches snagged at her shirt and pricked her skin as she rushed through the darkness. After running for a while, her lungs were suffocating and her feet ached. She stopped for a break and looked around. An owl hooted somewhere in the distance, and the crickets sang their melodies unbothered by her intrusion. Other than that, the forest felt still.

A gurgling screech echoed through the forest suddenly, and the bushes behind her rustled violently. The owls and crickets silenced. 

Goosebumps erupted across her arms, and the hairs on the back of her neck stood straight up. Why did she choose to leave at night instead of waiting until the morning? How could she be so dim? She hasn’t even set up a camp or a home base! How will she be able to run fast with a big bag over her shoulder?

A furry tingle slowly made its way over her shoulder and Kelly jumped with a small yelp.

“HUNTER! You scared my soul right out of my skin!”

He scuttered down her arm and made an attempt to snuggle in her clenched fists, but a louder screech exploded from the depths of the woods. Hunter’s little body shook at the sound and rapidly made his way back up into the safety of Kelly’s bag. Even though she was still catching her breath, Kelly worked up enough energy to hurry straight ahead along a clear path until she stumbled upon a giant opening to a dark cave. Without thinking, she dashed inside the rocky shelter.

Cobwebs itched at her face and tickled her nose. It was even darker inside, but the entrance was slightly illuminated by the moon. She furiously wiped at her nostrils while she observed her surroundings. The rest of the cave was shrouded in darkness, and leaves and sticks had been scattered around on the ground. Despite the eerie silence and ink black interior, it still felt safer than being out in the open where Worbles could find her. 

The gurgly screeches still bellowed from the forest, but it sounded further away. Hunter stealthily crawled out from the bag and ventured off in search of a pre-built cobweb. Kelly plopped her sack onto the cold ground and unraveled it. Bottles clanged onto the rocks as they slowly rolled into the dark, and unwrapped chocolate bars that Kelly stole from Nelly were broken into little pieces after being crushed by her other items. Her three small bottles of water sat sadly on top of her only source of nutrition.

Kelly stared at the items she packed. Who in their right mind would bring chocolate bars into a forest and call that a proper meal? There wasn’t enough proper food for one day. And only three bottles of water? She buried her head in her hand and wondered grimly if she would be able to survive the forest for even a week; her current bet was no.

*

The sun was already setting, and Kelly had done nothing for most of the day except sit inside her new shelter and pout. She had slept on the blanket overnight, cursing herself for forgetting a sleeping bag or at least a blanket, which meant she woke up shivering from the cold and aching from the hard ground. Her stomach screamed for real food, but she had to save her scarce supply. She had already gobbled up one of the chocolate bars, and it had done nothing but intensify her craving for more. She and Hunter had attempted to gather berries, but after picking a few that were unnaturally blue to the point where they were almost radioactively glowing, they decided it was best not to take the risk of being poisoned. On top of that, Hunter had been humming in obnoxious squeals every five seconds to pass the time. Kelly had to gently flick him to finally get some peace and quiet.

“What are we doing to do?” Kelly asked Hunter, and he squeaked confused in return. She sighed as she stared off into the orange sky, “I kind of miss them.”

Hunter turned around on her palm to look at her in surprise.

Kelly shook her head, “I mean, well–I sort of miss…their yelling. And the faint talking outside of my bedroom door. Even the sound of boiling potatoes when the water starts bubbling. I especially miss mom’s mashed peas,” her stomach growled again angrily. “It’s just… too quiet around here.”

Hunter groaned and turned around. He knew the truth. Unlike his owner, he loved the breeze and being surrounded by nature. He loved all of that except the Worbles that also shared their new living space.

“Maybe we should pick apples instead?” 

Hunter squeaked at the idea and scuttled out eagerly into the open forest with Kelly following close behind. After an hour of searching, the sun fully sank behind the top of the trees. The sky dimmed from a fiery orange to a suffocating and eerie black while the pair slunk back to their base empty-handed and exhausted. 

“How could there be no apples in this ginormous forest? We must’ve missed some on the way! Why did you have to steer us in the other direction because you were scared of a butterfly?”

Hunter didn’t reply. There was an unsettling feeling in the forest as if everything in it was put on mute. No crickets chirped and no owls hooted like before. Just silence. The murky clouds covered the comforting stars and moon. 

Kelly shivered and thought about her home. The village was always covered in warm lights that came on at night right when the sun set. If she was a better daughter who didn’t anger her parents, she could be laying in a soft bed now, cuddled up with blankets, with a stomach stuffed with a warm meal.

I bet Nelly is glad that I have been banished into the dangerous forest, she thought to herself. She probably already knocked the walls down between our bedrooms to make hers bigger. The image soured her mood even further. Before she could slink deeper into her grim thoughts, a pair of glowing yellow eyes flashed in between the dark spaces of the trees. 

Kelly turned to it in alarm and froze, but it disappeared in an instant. Kelly squinted her eyes in disbelief and she waited in anxious silence, but they never reappeared. Hunter stamped one of his seven fragile legs on her palm to indicate that she had to move faster. Kelly took one last look. Nothing. Was it just her paranoia or did the creature run off? Maybe the creature was waiting until she turned her back to pounce? Kelly wasn’t going to risk waiting to be attacked and turned into its next meal. She counted to three silently in her head and bolted as fast as she could with her fists curled around Hunter so he wouldn’t slip out. There weren’t any sounds of anything sprinting after her, but that didn’t put her at ease. What if a BIGGER predator was biding its time, stomach coiled and rumbling in anticipation for a delicious meal of a young girl and a jumping spider as dessert? A predator like a…

Kelly rammed face first into a tree. She fell on her back and rubbed her head. Maybe there was nothing to worry about after all. Maybe she was running from nothing, and what she really had to do was conserve her energy. A lack of food and navigating through a dark forest at night would cause intense paranoia to any sane person.

A gurgling crackled nearby; it sounded so loud that it felt like it was right next to her. A sound that probably came from the tree in front of her. Kelly watched in horror as a tree weirdly spun around to face her. Its long branches arched dramatically through the air, and its claws extended from the ends of those branches.

Kelly slowly looked up, praying that it wasn’t what she thought it was. A faceless head turned to glare down at her, and she widened her eyes in fear at the sight. The creature had a long jaw that lay half detached from its skull with rows of sharp teeth extending deep inside its mouth. This wasn’t a tree, it was a—-

“WORBLE!” Kelly shrieked.

The Worble opened its jaw impossibly wide, and with one sharp intake of breath, emitted a piercing screech into the night. Goosebumps bounced along Kelly’s skin and her face turned ghostly pale. She backed away slowly, hoping that the Worble lost where she was. She knew it was blind and could only sense her if she made any sudden movements.

The ugly creature slammed its hand onto the soft grass, head spinning around angrily looking for its victim. Kelly tried not to jump and react, but it was impossible. The Worble was getting too close. If it just reached out one more inch, it could pierce her right through the chest with its long claws. Her only chance at living was taking a few slow steps, ensuring she wasn’t stepping on any branches, before fully dashing away with her heart throbbing in her ears.

The Worble chased after her on all fours, claws flicking random bits of dirt behind in a rageful race to get to its scrambling prey. The monster’s three-limbed legs flung around aimlessly while most of its speed came from its arm. It was not a graceful creature but it sure was fast.

Kelly was already feeling a bit woozy, wishing she had snuck in a few more bites of chocolate before attempting to return to the cave. She snuck a look back over her shoulders, and oh what an awful sight the monster was. Its head spun in all directions, threatening to unhinge itself. Its jaw swung back and forth, saliva sent out like rocketships. It let out another disgustingly wet noise and lashed its claws out at Kelly. The Worble’s arms smacked the air left and right, and the silence filled itself with heavy whooshes.

Kelly ducked under a few low-hanging branches, pushing herself to the limit and trying her best escape to scope out an escape route. 

A wave of pain swept over her face. The Worble’s nasty hand slapped her and she felt her body lift into the air and bounce across the dirt floor. Kelly tumbled over like a rolling armadillo with the thing of nightmares finally coming to a halt. The cuts on her face stung and pain began to spread across her body from getting flung around like a ragdoll, but nothing compared to the fear she felt as the Worble searched for her with its nonexistent eyes. It stomped on the ground with its fists aggressively, hoping to sense some of her vibrations. It growled like a wolf, mouth so full of saliva. Kelly’s heart pounded so hard that she could have died by a heart attack before the Worble found her exact location. It leered over thick logs and overturned boulders. It seemed to skim over a bush, then a branch, and a nearby bunny who was terrified to death, and finally stopping on…

Kelly.

The Worble’s face was just inches away from hers. Its breath reeked of the earthy smell of mud and raw meat left out in the sun. Kelly quivered at its ferocious, raspy huffs. She squeezed her eyes shut, unable to look at the ugly creature anymore. She swore she was going to give up her location with how fast her heart was pounding or from her body tipping to the ground from passing out. Her brain was a scramble of potential worst case scenarios of her making the wrong move when suddenly—the musty smell dissipated.

Kelly cracked one eye open. The Worble was gone. She let out the loudest, shakiest breath and fell to her knees. She waited for her heart to slowly shift back to normal, but it felt impossible at this point. She still remained very alone in the dark forest. Even though she knew no one was going to come to her aid, she waited for someone, anyone to find her and patch her wounds. She winced as her fingers gently went over the cuts and felt blood ooze down the side of her face. Funny how adrenaline makes the mind miss these wounds while she was in a state of panic; now that she had time to calm down, the pain rushed in to remind her how fragile her human body was.

She closed her eyes calmly, thinking about everything that had just occurred. Everything had happened so fast that it was impossible to process without feeling an overwhelming sense of crying. She was close to being out of food, the cave they found was not great shelter, and worst of all, her family hated her.

All of a sudden, she was given another surprise. Without understanding how or what she was even looking at, a hazy image of her village erupted in front of her vision. Warm, orange lights emitted from familiar street lamps, and a smile twitched at her mouth for the first time in weeks, but her brief happiness was short-lived. There was something different and eerie the closer she examined the scene.

Corpses. Dead bodies scattered across the street. The screams of the villagers and cries of babies. Kelly watched as the scene unfolded, rooted in her spot unable to do anything about it other than react in horror. A mysterious, tall figure that she couldn’t quite see chased the townspeople. Houses were burning and she could feel the heat grazing against her face as if she was standing right next to it. The figure slashed its ginormous claws at the villagers one by one, and before she could let out a piercing scream, her eyes flickered open. She was back in the cold, deserted forest sitting with her back against a tree. She breathed hard, gasping for breath like she had almost drowned in the middle of an ocean after being chased by a shark. The night felt the most dormant it had ever been. The stillness and muffled silence meant the Worbles had scared all the poor animals away. 

What was that vision? A thought hit her. Was she clairvoyant? Could she possibly have seen the future? It felt like a silly idea, but the scene felt so vivid and real like she could reach out and touch the townspeople. She had to get back home in case this turned out to be a premonition. Her real home where Nelly, Father, and Mother were. 

As she was willing her body to move, a thought flitted across her mind that made her bounce upright. A thought about an absent Hunter missing from her side.

*

“Hunter!” Kelly cupped her hands and yelled out, “Hunter, where are you?”

Silence. Kelly sighed hopelessly and rubbed at her sore torso. She tried for what felt like hours to search for her friend, but there wasn’t a single tiny spider that re-appeared to the sounds of her desperate calls. Hunter was way too small to be found by sight alone, so what if he has already died without her help? What if a wolf accidentally stepped on him and squashed him like a pancake? Kelly trudged back to her base. Her scratch felt a bit less painful, but it still stung as the wind gently blew dust against it.

She made it back to the cave feeling helpless and worn down, and crawled into a ball. With a free hand, she grabbed the last chocolate bar and shoved it hungrily in her mouth. She tried to ignore the cuts and bruises all over her body. Surely, a bone or two may have been fractured, but she was relieved that nothing was broken though.

The wind rocked her gently and her potion cups softly clanged together in the background. She was absolutely exhausted after the longest and most terrifying two days of her life, but the thought of her missing friend still stabbed at her. As she continued to think about Hunter, her lips quivered until she felt a cold tear fall onto her blanket. Whimpering, she shut her eyes and a waterfall cascaded down her cheeks. She lulled herself into an uncomfortable sleep filled with the worst case scenarios of Hunter.

*

When Kelly woke up, the sky was still dim, but the rising sun gave off a beautiful orange hue. Feeling dry drool at the side of her mouth, she quickly wiped it away as best as she could with her sleeve. Her stomach still felt as hungry as a neglected bear at a zoo. The last chocolate bar was gone.

She momentarily looked around for Hunter but remembered her frantic search for him last night. Kelly sighed, disappointed and infuriated at herself. She was left in a hopeless situation. She was absolutely not going back home without her friend. She owed a lot to him after the accident that was caused by her.

A few years ago, Kelly had a school project that required her to re-create a replica of her village with cardboard and clay, which was insanely hard for a slacker like her. Hunter snuck around the corners, rushing to help smoothen out the edges of the clay as Kelly cut the cardboard into tinier pieces for house windows. Hunter had finished his task and stealthily crawled under the cardboard she was cutting to spook her as a prank. When he jumped out using his tiny legs to spring up as high as he could go, Kelly accidentally cut one of his eight legs in surprise with her sharp scissors. After that, Kelly had sought out every possible way to atone for this terrible accident.

She hoped that Hunter would accept her continued efforts, like sneaking him small pieces of apple slices covered in fruit flies. She couldn’t believe that she let go of him during the Worble attack. He must assume she had forgotten him and despised her for it. What was Hunter feeling at that moment? Betrayal? Heart break? Kelly knew that feeling well because of her family, but she had repeated the exact same thing to Hunter.

There was only one way to distract herself from the hopeless situation and that’s to distract herself by creating the potion that she had always dreamed of creating. She scooted over to her makeshift bag and picked up a tall, glass container and threw ingredients in messily. Her jumbled mind made it difficult to concentrate but she needed to do something with her hands to distract herself.

Hours felt like minutes, and her distraction was working. She concentrated on stirring the brown potion with a thick branch she had found. It was nothing like her vibrant, artificially coloured potions at home. The murky liquid bubbled with sticks and leaves. Drowned ants were sprinkled on top of the potion. Kelly winced. Did the recipe instruct her to add insects? She didn’t have the book with her so she couldn’t be sure.

With an exasperated sigh, she dumped the failed potion into a nearby dirt hole and glumly sat staring at the mess. She was starving and friendless. She had never experienced this kind of loneliness. Should she just head home alone, suck it up and offer a fake apology to her family? It was beginning to feel like the best choice if she didn’t want to starve to death in the forest. If she went with that idea, she could head home first and regain her strength before setting out again to properly search for her dearest friend. As each minute passed, her reluctance melted and the idea of finding Hunter urged her into action. 

With a new goal in mind, she began scooping her items back into her makeshift bag. Once she was done, she took one last look at the cave she called home for a few days. Good riddance, she thought. She was ready for a nap on her soft, dumpy mattress after a bubble bath and hot meal. She heaved the bag over her shoulder and took one last deep breath before setting off on sore, tired legs. It was time to go home.