Yay! This is my first story that isn't a one-shot! *confetti* I hope you all like it

Chapter Two: Guilt

Willow pouted as she buried her face deep into her pillow. Even though she had lied about going into the tunnel, her parents believed her about going to the river and had still gotten mad. She was sent to her room for the rest of the evening without being able to go back outside until tomorrow. It was really a reasonable punishment, but Willow was still a bit childishly cross.

She had taken a quick bath to cleanse her scrapes and wash the sweat and dirt from her skin. Her dark, auburn hair was still damp as she twirled a few strands of it between her fingers. With a heavy sigh, she rolled onto her back and stared boredly at the ceiling through half closed eyes. She let go of her hair and fidgeted with her oversized white tee-shirt, which served as a makeshift nightgown. It was a hard task for her to sit completely still…something she was often scolded for. She always had to be doing something or fiddling with something.

She took a deep breath and let it out in a controlled hiss. The sun was already gone below the horizon; the eager moon rising to take its place in the spotlight. As Willow peeked out her window, she felt her skin crawl. She quickly got up and locked the window; closing the curtains too.

She felt incredibly stupid as she caught herself checking inside her closet and under her bed. These were stupid little rituals other scardy-cat kids did! Not her! What was she becoming? Had her ordeal earlier that evening freaked her out enough to make her partake in such ludicrous behavior?

"Yes…" she thought sheepishly.

Every time she caught a shadow in the corner of her room, she gasped and half expected it to sprout eyes and mouths. Of course it didn't, and she went right back from being scared to feeling like an idiot.

"I need to calm down…whatever monster I saw back there, is still in the tunnel. If I don't go back, then I never have to see it again!" Willow told herself. If she just tried her best to forget about the whole thing and ditch the idea of investigating, everything was sure to be peachy keen.

But doubt consumed what little resolve she had at the thought. She was Willow Summers for goodness sake! No matter how hard she tried…she wouldn't be able to skip out on the exploration of the tunnel. Scary shadow monster or not, she just had to go down there again to get a better look. She would just have to be more careful; and use the sharp wit she had always possessed.

Willow nervously licked her dry lips as she wandered into the hallway to say good night to her parents. After she did, she brushed her teeth and brushed her hair before returning to her room and crawling under the thin sheets. It was a warm summer's night, and she wouldn't need many blankets to stay comfortable. If she had too many, she might over heat; and she had never liked the suffocating feeling of a mountain of covers bearing down on her small form. She was a happy and healthy nine and a half year old…but she remained small for her age. She didn't really mind; she had easily proved many times before that size didn't matter and she was still a force to be reckoned with.

She tried her best to shut the monster out of her mind and get some rest. If she was going to try and check out the tunnel more in the morning, she would have to make sure she was well rested and ready to make another alarming escape if need be.

Willow forced herself to shut her eyes and believe that everything was fine. She had always been good at taking a scary situation and calming herself down by imagining a good outcome in the end. She soon drifted off to sleep, eager thoughts of the next adventure to come the last things to cross her mind before she floated away into dream land.

The next morning, Willow groggily opened her eyes to see sunlight pouring in from the cracks in her rumpled curtains. She rubbed her eyes and quickly sat up; remembering her plans from the night before. A grin spread across her face, half of it in nervousness and the other in anticipation, as she threw off the covers and padded, barefoot, across the wood floor of her room.

She quickly undressed and pulled on a black tank top with cargo shorts and her trusty pair of black flip flops. The foamy shoes had been through a lot with her…and sadly, she would probably have to get new ones soon since they were falling apart.

Willow hastily brushed her teeth to purge her morning breath and grinned at herself in the mirror. "I'm ready!" she said quietly as she hopped downstairs to greet her parents.

They all exchanged good mornings as they ate breakfast. Soon after the table was cleared, her father bid farewell as he went out to check on their cows. Willow was thankful that her parents didn't eat meat either so that her beloved bovine friends were safe. She had been able to name them when her dad had first brought them home as mere calves. She named one Betsy, and the other Marcy. Sometimes when she was relaxing she would go and sit with them in the pasture and write.

After her father was out the door, Willow's mother informed her that she would be upstairs working on a new painting. Willow nodded and smiled at the thought. She was so proud to be the daughter of the town artist. Her mother was an amazing painter…and often went to other towns to sell her works at festivals.

"Mom! I'm going out for a bit, okay?" Willow called after her as she began to ascend the stairs. She bit her lip as she waited for a response; itching to get to the tunnel again.

"Alright…but stay away from the river, okay? I don't want you coming home all scraped up again. You worry me sometimes Willow…but I know you aren't easily tamed. You have a wild spirit just like I did at your age. I guess it's my fault for passing it on to you." Her mother called back.

Willow was happy to be let out again…but a twinge of guilt pulled at her insides. Her mother was so laid back and trusting of her…and she had lied about where she had been. She hesitated a moment before shaking off her regret. She would come back okay…and no one would have to worry! It would all be fine…

"Okay, thanks mom! I'll see you later, good luck with your painting!" she said as she got to the door. She looked up the staircase to see her mom standing at the top and smiling down at her. Her wavy blonde hair was shining in the sunlight like an angel's halo as she stood in front of one of the upstairs windows. She was really pretty…but Willow had only inherited personality from her. Her straight auburn hair, hazel eyes and freckles had all been courtesy of her father's genes. Not that she minded, really. Though she did wish she had her mother's blue eyes…

"Okay, just be careful sweetie; I love you." She said.

Willow nearly gave in at that point but forced herself not to. "I love you too mom, don't worry! I'll be fine! You know me."

Her mother chuckled and shook her head. "You're right…you're a toughie!"

Willow pretended to flex her arms as she giggled and waved before letting herself out the door.

As she walked down the dirt path away from her house, she saw her dad out back. He looked up and motioned her to come closer. She trotted to the fence and climbed up on it.

"Hey dad! What is it?" she asked, wanting to hurry up and get going.

"Where are you going in such a hurry, Will?" he asked in that suspicious fatherly way. "You're not going to the river again are you? Your mother and I were very worried about you last night." He walked up to the fence and rested his hands atop the wooden structure.

Willow swallowed hard and shook her head. "No, I'm just going for a walk since it's such a nice day."

She wasn't lying… In truth she wasn't going to the river; she was going somewhere much worse. Even though she had done a lot of reckless adventuring before…she had barely ever lied to her parents. She wanted to keep the trust between them, but she also wanted to continue her exploration of the tunnel! She felt horrible for keeping secrets but…she had to. Once again, she told herself that it was no big deal and nothing was hurting them. What they didn't know wouldn't kill them, right?

She swallowed the guilty lump in her throat as she pictured everything being okay in her mind. She would be fine…and so would her parents. End of story.

"Okay, just be careful and don't do anything reckless. Let's keep the perilous adventure to a minimum for a while." He said with a small smile. A bit of his short, messy auburn hair stuck out from underneath the brim of his straw hat. His glasses glinted in the bright summer sun as he leaned forward and placed a kiss on his daughter's forehead. "Have fun!" he said as he patted her on the back and began to get back to work.

Willow hopped down from the fence and nodded. "Okay dad…I will!"

They waved to each other and went their separate ways; one wearily into the barn and the other eagerly towards a monster inhabited tunnel.

Not the most eventful chapter but…hey, events and stuff need to be tied together. The next one will be more action-y; I promise!