So I'm FINALLY continuing the story. I kinda forgot about it and got wrapped up in school, but then I saw some reviews in my email so I decided to continue. I also haven't decided whether I just want to use the characters names or switch between perspectives and use "I" instead. If you guys have a suggestion just write a review and I'll take a look at it. Hope you enjoy!

Ame did his usual tour around the forest, checking the perimeter, searching for any change that could be a danger. He watched animals scurrying around, preparing for the winter. He sighed deeply, knowing that a cold, lonely winter would be ahead of him. There were very few animals that didn't hibernate in the forest so Ame's usual entertainment of watching the animals would be gone. Despite how beautiful winter was, Ame dreaded it because of the complete lack of interaction. It's not that he was lonely, he just happened to miss his mother's warm embrace and his squabbles with his sister more during the winter.

As his thoughts drifted to the topic of his dinner, in the back of his mind he registered a new sound, spurring him out of his day dreaming. He stopped, and pricked his ears, trying to identify the disruption.

It was humming.

The people living nearby rarely ever came into the forest so this was a puzzling, new situation to Ame and he had no idea how to deal with it. He followed the humming, creeping low, and soundless so not to be detected.

He discovered a young girl around his age, she was tall, with long brown hair and a ready smile. Ame noticed she had a camera hanging around her neck and a messenger's bag on her shoulder. He wondered if she was a tourist, or visiting a family member. She seemed to pose no threat so he continued to quietly observe her from behind the trees. She seemed enthralled by the nature around her, she took pictures of everything as quickly as she could as if the forest was about to disappear around her. Definitely a tourist Ame thought.

Then, she suddenly stopped and let her camera hang around her neck. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as if to savor the beautiful forest around her. Ame quietly moved to get a better look of the mysterious girl, and her eyes shot open. She immediately looked in Ame's direction, not seeing him because of the trees, but looking in his exact location, as if she could sense his presence. Ame shivered, getting a chill from the probing gaze.

Unknown to the girl, they locked eyes for a brief moment and he realized her eyes were hazel alight with curiosity and humor. She had a very open face that seemed to communicate every passing thought she had. She seemed to feel uncomfortable at the sense of something moving silently behind the trees, but was curious about what it was. Her curiosity had won out and she began to approach Ame's general direction. Ame panicked not knowing what to do when he heard a peculiar noise that, after a moment of searching his memory, he identified as a cell phone.

The girl opened her bag stuck her hand in, searching blindly for the phone, the mysterious shadow forgotten. After a minute of struggling she grabbed it and pulled it out. Ame watched as she read the text message, got a worried look on her face and then jogged back the way she came. He decided not to follow her and watched her trip over a tree root in her rush. She quickly got up and dusted herself off, paying more attention to her surroundings as she dodged trees. Ame wondered what happened to get her so worried, but quickly dismissed any thoughts of her from his head.

It would do him no good to get involved with her.