My eyes fluttered open and slowly took in my surroundings. I was still in the woods because I saw shades of green and brown everywhere. Good, that meant I wasn't in heaven yet. Wait…..then where was the killer dog. I quickly sat up and looked around. Yeah, I was still in the woods, but those kind of trees didn't grow in Minnesota.
I stood up, picked up my backpack, and brushed the dirt and leaves off of me. I walked a few paces to the nearest tree and studied it. I circled it as if looking for an answer hidden in its wrinkled bark. What I found on the other side nearly jumpstarted my heart.
There was the demon dog, lying at the base of the tree. From the looks of him, he was hurt. I slowly crept over to him knowing I might be putting my life on the line. I crouched down a few feet away from him and saw that he was just slightly dazed and disoriented. He slowly got onto his feet and studied my carefully. I squeezed my eyes shut and waited to feel his teeth tearing into me.
Nothing happened. I slowly opened them and saw the "demon dog" sitting there and wagging his tail with his tongue lolled out the side of his mouth. Naturally, I was cautious because this dog might just be a great actor. I slowly approached the dog with my hand in a fist, holding my knuckles out for him to sniff. He wagged his tail even harder and leaned his head forward to sniff, no lick my hand. Hmm, maybe this dog wasn't as bad as he seemed. Or maybe that jolt made him lose his marbles. Whatever.
"Bruiser, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore. What do you think?" I asked him, surveying our surroundings. But suddenly, Bruiser went on high alert. His back bristled, tail went straight up, ears perked, and nose sniffing the air. We weren't alone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bruiser put his nose to the ground and began following a scent. I didn't want to be left in an unfamiliar place along, so I had no other choice, but to follow this dog that I didn't even fully trust the rest of the forest. I was exhausted by that time, and sat down to lean against a tree and recover my strength. Bruiser came and sat next to me, as if knowing that I couldn't go any farther without catching my breath. I slowly petted him and he wagged his tail in appreciation. Wow, wait until my friends hear about this at home, where ever that was at the moment.
I must have drifted off, because when I woke up, it was already getting dark. I was terrified and very hungry. The dog was still by my side, but I still didn't feel safe. I stood up and looked over the forest. What I saw made my heart soar; I saw a pinprick of light, far below me. I wanted to go on, but my stomach rumbling made me stop. I reached into my backpack, and took out my lunchbox. I ate half my sandwich and some chips, but saved the rest because I didn't know when the next time I would be eating. I left my backpack, not thinking that I'd be needing my math book anytime soon.
"C'mon, Bruiser! We might just find salvation," I said, motioning with my hand toward the light. As if on cue, Bruiser jumped up, put his nose to the ground, and began following a scent. I sure hope this leads to the light, I thought. We went down into the forest as the light became steadily larger and brighter. We walked for quite some time until we came to a clearing, with a small campfire burning in the center. No one was there. Suddenly I heard a noise in the woods behind and before I had time to turn around, a blade was held against my throat.
