The Girl With Lost Memories - Parts 1 & 2 (An OUAT Fanfiction)

𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 46: 𝐻𝑜𝓇𝓉𝑒𝓃𝓈𝑒

I arrive at Heritage Park, my legs burning from the sprint. All my previous visits to the North Woods were chill strolls, but time is a luxury I can't afford now. Luckily, I cross paths with Doctor Hopper, who gladly gives me a ride.

The sky darkens on the way there, ashen clouds obliterating the blue expanse. The distant rumble of thunder intensifies the tension in the pit of my stomach.

Hopper drops me off a short distance from Emma's cruiser, parked in the middle of the street by the woods. I thank him and step out of the vehicle, and after convincing him to leave, I gaze into the looming trees.

I have no weapon, no tracking experience, no useful skills for this type of scenario. But there's a girl in there who's probably lost and scared. Possibly a bear, too, not to mention wolves.

I plunge into the forest, leaves crunching under my boots. Thin branches whip at my face, one of them leaving a stinging cut on my cheek. When I stop to catch my breath, I find myself in an area where the trees are less dense.

"Delilah!" The sudden outburst sends a flock of crows soaring into the sky, their eerie caws resonating in the stormy atmosphere.

Rain falls, cold drops pelting my skin and forcing me to squint. When I open my eyes again, a solitary, precarious raindrop clings to my eyelashes, suspended like a tiny crystal bead. With a blink, I absorb it into my eye, its icy touch shivering through me.

"Delilah!" I use my hands to amplify the sound.

The rain intensifies, the air thick with the scent of wet earth and the electricity of an impending storm. The sticky muck slows my momentum and resists my boots' attempts to gain traction as I run deeper into the woods. My foot slides into the mud, and I grab a tree to stop myself from falling.

"Delilah!" My voice echoes through the woods, and I cry because now I'm lost. I can barely see with the storm clouds obscuring the sun, and I have no idea whether I'll find Delilah alive or make it out of here. "Emma," I mutter, hopeless. "Emma!"

Silence.

I press forward, my steps cautious on the slippery ground, focusing on avoiding tree roots. Soon, a horrible stench fills the cold air. I follow it to a thick-trunked tree and gag when I see the decaying flying monkey on the ground, swarming with flies. I hold my hand over my nose and hobble a few steps back, my stomach churning.

Nearby, the rainwater accumulates in two depressions in the dirt. They're not just holes; they're animal tracks. Large ones. The weather distorted them, but I can still make out the claw marks.

Bear tracks.

I crouch down and place my hand next to one of the imprints. It's bigger than my hand—almost three times the size. Lifting my head, I gaze toward where the tracks lead, then sprint through the trees as the rain drenches my hair and clothes, chilling me to the bone. I try not to think about that. I just keep running.

I come to a small clearing and freeze.

A brown bear stands on its hind legs, its back to me. Delilah's in front of it, her arm outstretched. I inch closer, attempting not to alert the bear. Each step is laden with tension, my breath catching in my throat. Raindrops cling to my lashes, distorting my vision, while the scent of wet earth envelops me.

"Delilah," I whisper, the name carried away by the wind. "Delilah."

She spots me, fear in her eyes. She moves her hand, signaling me to shoo.

A branch snaps under my boot like a gunshot in the tense air. The bear whips its head to me with a grizzly grunt that makes my heart skip a beat.

"Bella, run!" Delilah's urgent shout fills my ears as the bear lunges toward me, its roar vibrating through my bones.