A-Plus Cassiopeia: Yeah, the ghost had already been introduced at that point.

(Darnells's POV)

I awoke in the afternoon to Damion and Devlin poking and prodding my cheek with their claws, something they did to wake me up. I flashed my red eyes in their face to silently warn them to stop doing that. As I studied their expressions, I saw that they both looked just as tired as I was. Damion had very dark rings around his eyes and Devlin was practically leaning on his shoulder.

I was annoyed that they had no respect for my rest, but at the same time, I was intrigued. They were obviously tired, so why would they bother to wake me up unless it was important?

"Mom wants to talk to you," Devlin yawned out.

Now that got my attention. No matter what the case, if Aristodemos wanted to discuss something with anyone, they had to listen. Child or adult, it didn't matter, and it was just about always important.

I got off my bed. I was very tired, but Bogeyman can move quickly even when they're at a stage of weakness. Sprinting out the door, I rushed to Aristodemos' branch.

Sure enough, my mother was half-lying, half-sitting on her own bed, facing the door once I came in. I brushed the strands of hair out of my face and forced a smile as I slowly entered through.

For a moment, I stood at the door, awaiting what Aristodemos had to say.

"Were you at the human village?" She asked bluntly. For a few seconds, I didn't fully hear what she had asked due to my drowsiness. But, the question soon sunk in, and I felt like Aristodemos had stabbed me with her index claw.

Has there ever been a time when someone asks you a question or says something that warrants a reply, but you're too nervous to actually say something in response. That described what I was going through perfectly. If I told the truth, then she'd chastise me for going to the village so early, or do something else. If I lied, and said I hadn't gone there...well, then I'd have lied to my mother. And she can tell whenever I lie.

It appeared Aristodemos wasn't content with my silence, as she repeated, "Were you at the human village?"

I began to scrape my arms with my claws as I struggled to find an answer to her question, but my head felt empty. When I failed to respond once more, Aristodemos said, with a hint of anger in her tone, "Killed a rabbit, you said. If you'd actually done that, rather than do what I know you did, then you wouldn't be acting like a human cut out your tongue, would you?"

"I was only there for a few seconds," I said, feeling like a spider was creeping up my spine.

My mother didn't buy it, as I could tell from her frustrated glare. "Few seconds?" She said. "Do you go into a wolf den, and then come out with the excuse you were only there for a 'few seconds'."

I could tell she was getting angrier with me, and I didn't know what to do to calm her. However, I definitely didn't help when I blurted out, "Humans aren't wolves, mother."

The glare Aristodemos flashed at me made me feel like I'd rather be in a wolf den.

"Darnell, I've gone to the human village at times," Aristodemos said as she moved to a corner of the branch. There were three cellar spiders there.

"When you have to pick one of, you pick one of," She continued, and proceeded to pick one of the spiders out of the corner and crush it between her claws. "It's like sticking a finger into a bee nest. You only stay there for as long as you can without getting stung."

"Mother-"

"Hold you tongue, child!" Aristodemos snapped at me, raising her voice unexpectedly. Then, continuing as if she hadn't yelled, Aristodemos continued.

"It's dangerous to stick your finger into a bee nest," Aristodemos said. "However, what do you think would happen if you jammed your whole hand into that bee nest?" She raised her open palm up to her face.

"You'd get stung," I answered.

"Exactly," Aristodemos said, and she finally smiled. I was relieved, until she added, "Don't think I didn't notice that scar and your lacerated hair."

The relief evaporated, and was once more replaced with anxiety.

"You're getting clumsy, Darnell," My mother scolded. "And if one of those humans catches you, don't think I'll be there to come get you out of trouble."

Feeling like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders, I exited the room and closed the door behind me. Slowly, I slid down next to the door and slumped down, feeling exhausted; then confused.

I scratched my head as I wondered about something. There were two people in the village who gave me advise; one of them was my mother. The problem was, the other person usually gave advise that conflicted that of my mother.

At this point, I felt like I needed some advise from that other person.

"I know it's weird that I should be asking you this, especially since I just received advise from my mother," I said once I reached his tree. "Well, there's this boy in the village, and I talked to him. He talked almost like a Bogeyman, and he had a similar thought process to us. My mother says the humans are dangerous, but I'm not sure about him. What do you think, Mustachio?"

Mustachio sat on his chair, a serious look on his face as he tried to figure out how to answer my question.

Of course, Mustachio wasn't his real name. His true name was Asthik Vanguard, but I call him Mustachio because of his long mustache that graced his face. He doesn't seem to mind. Mustachio was a close friend to my mother when they were my age, but nowadays, they've separated. He's like a father to me, especially since my real father is dead. Whenever I need advise, he's there to provide it, like now.

"Darnell, when your mother thinks of humans, she thinks of a rabid beast that should be killed," Mustachio explained to me. "But, there's an element to a human that is like us. And you may have found it."

I pulled at a few strands of my hair. "I did?" I asked, confused.

"Humans are a very mysterious thing on this Earth," Mustachio continued. "They are capable of such evil acts, but they are capable of good things too."

Normally, I listen to what Mustachio says respectfully, but once I heard that, I scoffed.

"Good thing?" I asked. "What good thing could come from them?"

"Maybe they're wondering that about us," Mustachio replied. Unlike my mother, he never raised his voice at me, even if I made a rude comment.

I folded my arms at his statement. "Are you saying that they think of us what we think of them?" I asked. Mustachio nodded.

I came here for answers, but now I was just more confused. However, I think I knew how to solve my predicament now. "Okay, I'll think about it," I said as I got up and began to leave. "By, Mustachio."

I closed the door and flew up into the sky. As I did, I wondered if it was a bad thing that I was now headed right to the place my mother had advised me not to go to.

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