Snowcon Forest

Top of the World

If any of his subjects had asked him how he had ended up on top of the snow covered mushroom that grew on top of his tree, stargazing with the kiddo sitting in his lap once again wrapped up in the red blanket, Snatcher was certain he could recall the exact events that led up to that moment.

It had all started when the hat brat had shown up to his home one day. She had barged in like she usually did and greeted the shadow with her typical cheer. Snatcher was in a better mood than usual since the snow had finally stopped falling, so he humored the girl for a couple of minutes before kicking her out of his home.

Granted, he could not actually kick the kid out, stupid contract, but ignoring her until she left did the trick!

After Hat Kid left, Snatcher had continued reading his book and basked in the silence. He had assumed the girl was in the village or exploring the surrounding forest which would give him at least an hour or two for himself.

What the shadow did not know was that instead of running off and tormenting his subjects like he thought she would, Hat Kid was still very close by.

She was climbing the tree he lived in.

Now Hat Kid had what most would call an adventurous spirit. She enjoyed exploring new places and loved running around. She was active and loved to be challenged when facing new obstacles.

The first time she had climbed this tree she had fallen multiple times, her umbrella being the only thing that saved her from a painful landing. She never got discouraged and kept trying, and eventually she managed to make it to the top.

And it was worth the bumps and bruises. Everything looked so beautiful up there.

But now with the snow and ice it was like the tree was challenging her once again, presenting new obstacles for her to overcome. It was taunting her! And the view would be so much better this time!

She had to get to the top once again, no matter what!

So Hat Kid had grit her teeth, rolled up her sleeves, and started climbing and jumping up to the top of the tree. She jumped to higher branches, bounced off of mushrooms, and used her hookshot when she had to.

Higher and higher the girl climbed, ignoring the cold sting of the wind on her face as she steadily began to reach the top of the tree. She noticed that her goal was getting closer and she began to move faster in an effort to conquer this challenge sooner.

But there was something Hat Kid did not notice as she continued to get higher up. It was something small and would have seemed very insignificant in other situations, but it would prove to be deadly in this moment.

There was a patch of ice on the branch.

The girl was so caught up in trying to get to the top of the tree as quickly as possible, she had forgotten to bring gloves so her hands were freezing, that she did not notice the danger until it was too late.

She stepped on the ice and slipped backwards, letting out a shout as she began to fall off the branch. The shock of slipping made her grip on her umbrella loosen for just a moment, but that was all the item needed as it flew from her grasp.

No!

And then she fell.

A startled scream escape Hat Kid as she fell, no umbrella to catch her this time! As she plummeted closer and closer to the earth her screaming only got louder. This was the end, she was going to-

Wait, was that Snatcher?!

Indeed it was! Snatcher, who had heard the initial shout, was just exiting his house to see what was going on when the screaming made him look up and catch sight of the falling child. "What the-"