Foreverland

Chapter II

Chapter II
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It felt like they had been walking for hours. She didn't think it was possible, but the forest had seemed to get darker. Every snap, every echo made her jump. She didn't want to seem terrified, but it was obvious that Peter knew by the way he turned around to make sure she was okay every time she flinched.

She had no clue where they were, no clue who this boy was, and no clue who she was. She didn't think this was normal, but she really had nothing to compare this experience to. Peter seemed less and less surprised by everything that happened, so maybe it was normal that she should forget who she was, where she was, and be led through a dark and dangerous forest by a complete stranger.

Her feet were cut and bruised, and by this point they were numb. She wished she had something other than just a thin t-shirt.

Peter slowed his pace and came to a stop. He looked at her and put his finger to his lips, his back to a thick tree. He listened for a second before softly knocking two times on the trunk. Somewhere close by, something seemed to shift, making a quiet raking sound in the dirt. Peter pulled her to the left, walking a short distance before stopping again.

"There's a ladder at your feet," he whispered. He helped to lower her until she got her footing. She slowly climbed down the pitch-black shaft until her feet landed on the cold dirt. Peter wasn't far behind. She followed him through a tunnel until he stopped at a wall, knocking four times.

A part of the wall slid open, revealing a dim light. There seemed to be a big open space behind it with animal hides covering the ground. On one side there was a wooden table with six chairs around it, and on the other was a smaller table with some kind of board on top. Peter led her in and slid the wall shut behind them. She heard movement from somewhere in the den, and spun around, terrified it was whatever had been chasing them in the forest.

Peter looked at her. "It's okay, it's safe here."

She nodded once, her eyes still wandering over the room around her.

On some of the walls there were curtains hanging, covering other doorways. A curtain was pushed to the side and someone came out, followed by two others. She stood quietly by Peter as they approached, feeling extremely exposed. All three were boys, two looked to be around the same age as Peter while the third was younger looking. The two older boys had dark brown and light blond hair while the younger one had light brown hair. They examined her, not scrutinizing her but still making her uncomfortable.

The one with blond hair looked at Peter. "Is it her?" he asked softly.

Peter looked at her but said nothing. She swallowed the lump in her throat, wondering if they were expecting her.

The boy with dark brown hair spoke up. "We should probably get her some clothes."

She bit the inside of her lip. "I'm Max," the younger one spoke up, giving her a small smile. "You probably have a lot of questions," he said, giving a small glare to the rest of the boys.

They all turned to her, waiting for her to speak. She didn't know what to say, or what to ask. "I don't really know what to ask. I don't know anything."

"You don't know your name, do you?" The blond boy asked.

"No, she doesn't." Peter answered for her, giving the blond boy a look.

The dark-haired boy crossed his arms, putting a hand on his chin. "Well, we have to call her something."

She fidgeted as they all looked at her thinking of what to call her. Max spoke up, smiling. "How 'bout we call her Iris, because her eyes are so pretty." She blinked, wondering what her eyes looked like.