Hey everyone! I think I'm going to experiment a bit with this series. I'm taking suggestions for how this story should go, so let me know in the reviews! I hope you like it :)
-Snowfuzz-
The boys' voices drifted, echoing and shimmering in the still winter air. The snow floated gently from the sky, a definite contrast to the dark woods surrounding them. Together, they made their way along a simple dirt trail that supposedly led to nowhere. Greg hovered by his older brother's arm, clutching the blue cape.
"Hey Greg," Wirt's reassuring voice pulled Greg out of his temporary misery. Although it's only been a month, the boys had drastically changed. Greg, once always happy and oblivious to the bad things around him, became more aware and worked to make everyone smile, especially his big brother. Wirt, on the other hand, had become more assertive and bolder, but also more secluded, always caught daydreaming about who knows what. The two stuck together, never leaving each other's sides. Although their parents were happy with them behaving better, they also worried. What had happened that night they were found in the lake? Wirt's silence bothered them, and Greg's health caused them to constantly fret.
The little boy shivered from the breeze picking up, causing the frog on the teapot atop his head to croak. Wirt unsnapped his cape, glad for the layers he wore below, and draped it over Greg's shoulders.
"Gee, thanks Wirt!" Greg exclaimed, his glumness dissipating. He wrapped the cloak around him, and proceeded ahead of the older brother. Wirt smiled, then heard a rustle in the bushes behind him. He instantly thought of the Beast, and flashed his torch in the direction of where the noise emerged. He cautiously made his way toward it, and pushed past the scratchy thorns that pressed against his skin...
"Woof!"
Startled, Wirt fell back, a dog leaping forward to lick his face. Laughing, he pat the dog's head then rolled over and sat up. Greg had arrived, and smiled at the appearance of a new companion.
"Doggy!" he exclaimed.
The brown dog bounded over to the smaller figure and licked his face. Wirt chuckled, but stopped as he heard another noise behind him.
His senses sharpened as he turned and saw the bush shudder then become still.
"Hello?" Wirt called out, Greg and the dog oblivious to what was happening behind them.
Wirt moved forward, toward the bush. It shuddered again, and from it fell a girl in a blue cloak, her face hidden and her dress muddied and torn by the ankles. She held her head down, and Wirt knelt by her, holding out his gloved hand.
"Are you okay?"
No response. The girl stood quickly, and whistled. The dog turned his head and sprang toward the girl. She turned and began running, the dog sprinting after her.
"GREG!" Wirt called out, the smaller boy rode the dog's back. Wirt sighed and had no choice but to pursue the three. He held his torch up and rushed after the three into the dark tangle of trees.
His boots were splattered with mud, his scarf stuffed into his bag. His red hat was replaced with a black beanie, and the boy panted heavily as he approached a house where the three ahead of him had disappeared. The windows glowed, and smoke drifted lazily out of the chimney, beckoning him towards the warmth that was awaiting him. Perhaps he should ask for directions... he nodded his head and walked up to the house and tapped on the wooden door.
The door creaked open, revealing a small boy with a round face staring up at him.
"Ah, hel-"
THUD.
The door was slammed shut, Wirt staring down at a silver handle and wondering what just happened. Suddenly, he heard commotion break out on the other side of the door. The words were jumbled and he could pick out certain words, "Mother... strange boy... the normal world... Beatrice..."
Had he imagined it? The name... was this...?
The door flew open, Wirt jumping back in surprise. An older woman, round, short, and cheery, beamed up at him.
"Why hello dear!" She smiled. She indicated for him to come in. "It's not proper to let a young gentleman such as yourself to wander out in the cold."
He nodded thanks, tapping his boots as to not track the snow in. The door gently shut behind him, and he pulled them off, placing them by the door. Wirt glanced down at the rows of shoes then suddenly noticed a pair unlike the others- Greg's boots!
"Excuse me, ma'am," Wirt said, turning quickly to look at the plump woman. "But is there a young boy here, someone with a dog? He's wearing a teapot and has a frog."
The woman laughed, then nodded her head.
"Beatrice brought him here, and they're over sitting by the fire. Do you want me to take you to them?"
Wirt nodded quickly, and followed the woman to a nearby room. Beatrice...
"Wirt!"
The boy looked up, and saw his younger brother waving his cape while sitting near the fire. Next to him was the hooded girl, her back turned so her face was still hidden.
Greg stood up and pulled over his brother. He yanked him to the floor, so that the little boy was sitting between the two older kids. The girl snuck a glance of the boy, catching his eye, then quickly turning her head. The hood slipped off her head, revealing her brown hair, and her cheeks flushed.
"B-Beatrice..."
The girl flushed, then spun to look at the boy. She gasped. He really hadn't changed. No, he really had returned.
"Wirt," she smiled, tears welling in her eyes. "You've returned."
