Chapter Text
The sun had set hours ago. The forest that surrounded his house had grown dim, and only the flickering light of his lamp kept the darkness at bay.
He didn’t have much with him when he followed the smiling girl down the path, and it was at this point that he was starting to regret his light load. At least his scarf kept the worst of the chill out.
At some point, a sound drew his attention away, and when he looked back, she was gone.
In her absence, the shadows on the trees grew sharper, and it felt as if something was watching him from the shadows.
Unsure of what to do, he kept following the path even as it grew rough. Briars broached the boarders of the ever narrowing road with complete disregard to whatever order they once had.
He thought he heard murmurs.
Shaking his head to let that thought loose, he ignored them in favor of trying to find the girl again. He paused and closed his eyes as he focused on his breathing.
Thunk
Thunk
Thunk
His eyes snapped open when he picked out the unnatural sound from the usual ambiance of a forest at night. What could that be?
His rounds often dictated checking strange noises to ensure there weren’t any intruders or problems with the building itself, but none had sounded quite like this.
The path went in the same general direction as the noise, but he picked up the pace as he hurried towards it.
THUNK
THUNK
THUNK
Eventually an opening in the bushes allowed him to go off the path, and it didn’t take long for him to find a clearing. On the other side-
Light.
A person.
The person was wearing a strange hat that emitted light, and in their hands was an axe. The tree in front of them had a notable chunk missing from the side.
He didn’t have time to fully appreciate the sight of another person before a loud groan not unlike the creaking of trees in a strong wind filled the air.
The other person nearly dropped the axe at the sound, but they quickly regained their grip before running.
He reached out a hand as his feeble voice tried to call them back. “Wait!”
Before he could say anything else or even pursue them, a heavy weight slammed into his back.