The Tree's Heart

III

Clover hadn't been sure whether this was a good idea or not. She suspected that it was a terrible idea, but since she wasn't sure whether she could really trust Willow, she figured that she should try and escape from the little cabin. She had gotten clean, and Willow had given her some food and water and had taken care of her injuries. Clover had been resting at the cabin for another night and had woken up early in the morning, feeling much better. Willow wasn't up yet, and Clover saw that this was her chance.

She was feeling much better, and her ankle wasn't hurting nearly as much anymore. Whatever Willow had done to it, it had worked well. Which meant that Clover could make an attempt to escape. She still was convinced that Willow was insane and that it wasn't safe to be staying with her. She had to leave and try to find her way back out of this damned forest on her own. The way Willow was talking about it made it sound like she wasn't planning on telling her how to get out of here for ages.

Clover didn't have time for that. Her friends were worrying about her, and she had to get back home, so she could get back to college after the summer. Clover had no time to be lounging about in a cute little cabin in the middle of some magical woods. She had things to do in the outside world and she was going to get there on her own, because she didn't believe all that bullshit about the forest being magical.

Sure, it was creepy and there were lots of stories about it, but really? A magical forest? Cursed even? No, that was made up. It was just some stories that people told to stop their kids from running into the forest and getting lost. It was the stuff that kept being told around campfires, or at Halloween parties. It wasn't real. They were just stories, nothing more. Which meant that Clover could get out of here on her own.

Her plan was to just pick one direction and stick to it. She'd have to get out of the forest eventually that way. Because this forest wasn't endless, and it was definitely not magical. Clover didn't believe in those stories, they weren't true, no matter what that woman in the cabin was saying. She was clearly unwell – probably a mix of the isolation and some sort of malnourishment, Clover suspected. Not that she was an expert on this.

She got up, trying to be as quiet as possible and packed her things into her backpack, as well as a few slices of bread that Willow had left out on the counter. She felt kind of bad for stealing Willow's food, but if she was going to stick to one direction, Clover could be walking for several days before getting out of this place and she needed to have some food on her in that case. Once she had packed everything, she snuck out of the little cabin, quietly closing the door behind her so she wouldn't wake up Willow.

It seemed to be a sunny day. The morning air was fresh and clear and there was a mild morning dew on the moss and the little plants surrounding the cabin, making everything look like it was glittering. Clover could see why people would think this was a magical forest. It really did look magical when it was like this. It was beautiful – the lush green trees, the carpet of soft moss, the few sunrays that were shining through the leaves and the air... Clover wasn't sure if she had ever breathed such clear air.

It was still cool in the morning, so Clover rubbed her arms gently, trying to stay warm as she set out in one direction. No matter what happened, she was going to stick to it and just continue on in that same direction. It would have to work, wouldn't it? There was no other way for Clover to get out, so if that for whatever reason didn't work... she preferred not to think about it. She had to stay optimistic, or she was going to go completely insane. Or worse, she'd give up before she had made it out.

Clover had no idea how long she had been walking when she felt like she needed some rest. She sat down, leaning against a tree, her eyes firmly in the direction she had been walking in all this time. It looked like there was absolutely no end to this forest and it was getting warmer now. Clover had refilled her water bottle and she was glad that she had done that. She was taking big gulps from it, drinking about half of it in one go, before realising that she should probably be more conservative with her water.