Fablehaven (a rewrite, book 1)

Chapter 3

Seth pressed through dense undergrowth until he reached a faint, crooked path, the kind made by animals. Nearby stood a squat, gnarled tree with thorny leaves and black bark. Seth examined his sleeves for ticks, scrutinizing the camouflage pattern. So far he had not seen a single tick. Of course, it would probably be the ticks he failed to see that would get him. He hoped the bug spray he had put on was helping.

Stooping, he collected rocks and built a small pyramid to mark the point where he had intersected the path. Finding his way back would probably be no problem, but better safe than sorry. If he took too long, Grandpa might've figured out he had disobeyed orders.

Seth rummaged through his cereal box and pulled out a compass. The animal track ran northeast. He had set off on an easterly course, but the undergrowth had grown denser as he went deeper into the forest. A faint trail was a good excuse to veer slightly off course. It would be much easier going than trying to hack his way through with a pocket knife. He wished he had a machete.

Suddenly he heard what sounded like a goat's bleat, coming from the treeline. He whipped his head around, finding nothing. Maybe Grandpa had goats here too. He hoped they'd stay away, Seth couldn't remember if goats were aggressive or not. Probably not, it would be fine. Right?

He looked back towards the trail and followed it. The tall trees stood fairly close together, diffusing the sunlight into a greenish glow laced with shadows. Seth imagined that the forest would be pitch black at night.

He looked back through the trees, wondering what could be hiding behind them. He saw a small movement, like brown fur, moving through the trees. He stepped back, startled. Then a bleat sounded through the wilderness, and Seth sighed in relief. It was just a goat, who may or may not be dangerous. He'd rather take his chances with a goat than a bear or something.

He proceeded along the trail until the goat emerged on the path not twenty feet ahead. It stared down the path, head cocked slightly sideways.

"Bleat bleat," it said, shaking its head.

"What in the—" Seth said aloud. Did goats shake their heads?

The goat started towards him, and he backed away. It stopped in its tracks, bleated once more, and walked back into the greenery. That was weird. Really weird.

He looked around. He had come a long way. Of course, finding his way back would be no trick. He just needed to backtrack along the trail and then head west. But if he turned for home now, he might never make it back this way again.

Seth continued along the trail. Some of the trees had moss and lichen growing on them. A few had ivy twisting around their bases, and he made sure to avoid them. What if they were poisonous?! The path then forked. Checking his compass, Seth saw that one path went northwest, the other due east. Staying with his theme, Seth turned east.

There began to be more space between the trees, and the shrubs grew closer to the ground. Soon he could see much farther in all directions, and the forest became a little brighter. To one side of the path, at the limit of his sight, he noticed something abnormal. It looked like a large square of ivy hidden among the trees. The whole point of exploring the woods was to find strange things, so he left the path and walked towards the ivy square.

The dense undergrowth came up to his shins, grasping at his ankles with every step. As he tromped toward the square, he realized it was a structure completely overgrown with ivy. It appeared to be a big shed.

He stopped and looked more closely. The ivy was thick enough that he could not tell what the shed was made of—he could only see leafy vines. He walked around the structure. On the far side a door stood open. Seth almost cried out when he peered inside.