It was quarter to ten and Lupin was in his room getting ready for the trip ahead, he gathered his notes and sketches and stuffed them into his bag along with ALL of the essentials. Suddenly, he heard footsteps outside the door, startled, he threw everything under his bed, it was Maple – he let out a sigh of relief. She marched into his room.
"I thought you were Mum!" Lupin scolded,
Maple just laughed and lugged her bag through the door,
"So, you're ready, right?" Lupin questioned,
"I have everything I'll need in my bag," She said, holding out a magenta backpack (about the size of Lupin's) but unlike his, Maple's was crammed FULL of things,
"Are you sure you need everything that's in that bag?" Lupin questioned,
"I'm certain," Maple replied, Sunglasses sticking out of a gap in the zip,
"Maple," He fussed,
"What? You never know when they might come in handy!" She shot back,
Lupin shook his head and began talking,
"Let's start by not waking Mum, Yeah?"
They got up and started walking down the stairs, cringing and exchanging glares when either of them stepped on a loose floorboard, they tiptoed over to their coats and shoes and quickly slipped them on.
They trudged up the path and out of their front gate, then started making their way up the road, climbing the hill, zipping through the market, reaching the beginning of the woods, where they stopped, and they stared into the silent, gloomy, bleakness...
"No turning back now," Whispered Maple, she let out a nervous sigh and followed Lupin into the towering trees. Twigs crunched beneath their feet, they slid on moss and mud, leaves swirled above their heads, showering them with raindrops.
"So where are these 'so called' monsters then, Lupin?" Maple questioned, after they had gotten further into the woods.
A rustle occurred in the big oak above them, followed by a clicking sound, Lupin stopped cold, it was the spider he had encountered earlier that day.
"That's where th...they are..." Lupin answered, the clicking growing louder,
He grabbed Maple's wrist and started running,
"I...I don't understand, where are they Lupin? Why are we running?" She said, sounding confused,
"Don't mess with me Maple, I know you can hear them," He muttered, dodging past trees,
"No...really, where are they Lupin?! Is this another of your loopy tricks?" she exclaimed, sounding panicked,
They slowed their running to a jog,
"So...you couldn't hear the clicking?" Lupin asked,
"N...no..." Maple muttered, slowing to a walk,
"What about the rustling? Or the murmuring of the trees?"
"No and...no..."
"Confusing...very confusing..." Lupin murmured.
"Why can I just hear them and not you?..."
"I...I don't know Lupin, maybe because you are mad?" Maple snickered,
They walked for a while longer, passing tree after tree after tree, until Lupin came to an abrupt stop,
"Look," Lupin gestured toward two dark silhouettes lingering in the distance, they were shining a light around, as if they were looking for something. Every now and then he caught glimpses of them: they had tiny, orange, squinted eyes, hooked and crooked noses that curled over at the tip, and from their bottom half - three horse like feet that they trotted around on and a tail, as they spoke Lupin saw that they had sharp, pointed, yellow-stained teeth. The creatures wondered closer, closer and closer - the glowing finding every nook in the woods, Maple quickly tugged her brother to the ground, shaking him from his thoughts, a beam of light passed over their heads.
"Oh my gosh, what are they?!" Maple said in a hushed tone, while dodging the next beam of light,
"I'm n...not sure," Lupin murmured, He ducked another unexpected beam, while scrambling behind a bush,
"But I think they're looking for something or someo..." Before he could finish his sentence, a grumble approached from the darkness behind, Lupin span around just as it leapt over their heads, Maple jumped a mile.
"Seriously, why am I the one who can't hear them?!" She hissed under her breath,
They looked around for the monster but could only see the two creatures, their lanterns manically shining everywhere. Lupin and Maple frantically looked around, searching for the beast who had saved them from being seen, when suddenly, the lights went out and the hoofed monsters were charging off in another direction. And before the siblings' eyes, stood a short, tortoise looking creature, with spines down its back and a small cherub face, its skin was a slightly off colour, pale and green - as if it may be sick. It looked down at them, where they were frozen on the floor with fear and panic.
"Th...thanks..." Lupin managed to stutter,
"F...for s...saving us just th...then," He managed to smile and look up at the monster, its eyes were a deep purple colour, mystical and marbled. The tortoise creature stepped toward them, stood up on its two hind legs and held out a hand,
"'Hello, my name is Tortuga," He said, and attempted a toothy grin.
YOU ARE READING
The Whispering Woods
FantasyAn ongoing fantasy novel about a young teen (Lupin Orchidal) who growing up feeling as though he never fit in with the crowd, bullied and picked on for his differences, discovers his magical abilities and his extraordinary family tree. Follow his jo...
