Alex

The Forbidden Forest was right behind my house. There was a fence separating it from my yard. It was an old fence, built before I was even born. I had no idea what was in the woods. No one in our village did. People who went in the forest never came out. The woods had taken my father and brother, leaving me to take care of my mother. That was seven years ago. I had to become independent at fourteen, having to leave my childhood behind me. The last person to disappear left two years after my father. Some girl whose name I forgot. I wanted to search for my missing family, but I couldn't leave Mother. She had already suffered the loss of her husband and son. But my fascination with the Forbidden Forest would not fade. I often spent my time on my back porch watching the woods. I would watch the birds and see the occasional deer. But I felt like something else made its home there. In my dreams I faced my fears and ran into the trees to live in the wild. I'd build a treehouse and watch for strangers in my woods. I would imagine that I was a witch, mixing ingredients from my new home. I'd live with multiple animals and be the Lady of the Woods. It was a nice dream and I couldn't help but sigh.

I sat on the back porch swing with Hazuki, one of my best friends. Her father had died of old age last year and her mother had been one of the ones to disappear. She lived with me and helped care for my mother. We had bonded from the first day we met, her white hair a contrast from my head of orange. With her pale skin and pink eyes she had fascinated me as a child.

"Do you ever wanna see what's in there?" I pointed at the trees.

"Are you insane?" she shook her head. "Way too dangerous."

"I know that. But you can't help but be curious, right?"

"Now you sound like Nina. You want to have a wolf as a pet as well?"

"Just saying," I shrugged.

Our friend Nina was obsessed with animals, especially wolves. Her mother did not want to have any pets as she was scared that they would escape into the forest to never return. She would constantly beg for one, but to no avail. She had suggested that we get an animal so that she could go over and visit it. I would get a dog, but Mother was highly allergic. I didn't know if cats affected her too but I couldn't afford to find out.

"I swear you'd adopt every animal in the woods if you could," Hazuki nudged my arm. "Like your own little farm."

"I've always wanted my own farm," I sighed. "It's a shame that Father and Brice had gone missing. They took that dream with them."

"We can afford it if we save up enough from the inn," she rubbed her chin in thought. "Maybe we should ask to work for more hours."

"That'd leave us no time to do anything." Our village's inn was open twenty-four hours. Hazuki, Nina, and I worked from ten to six everyday except for Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. We had quite a lot of tourists now that people had stopped vanishing. There had been a time where the Forbidden Forest had ruined our reputation. It had taken a while to restore it. So many employers in town barely refused to hire someone. Some shops had closed when their owners disappeared, quickly being overtaken by whoever could get their hands on them.

"I've never let that stop me," she placed her hands on her hips. "You have too much free time, Alex. Don't think I didn't see you almost climb the fence last Tuesday."

"There was a baby deer," I explained. "I wanted a closer look. I swear I wasn't trying to go into the woods."

"Thank the Goddess for that! I've already lost my parents, Alex. I don't wanna lose you too."

"You won't lose me, Hazuki," I gave her a tight hug. "You're like a sister to me. You don't have to worry abut a thing. I have no plans to go into the woods."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

"We hope to see you again," I gave a bright smile to the newlywed couple who had spent a week in the inn, satisfied with how happy they looked as they shuffled out together, hands clasped together.

Gray was the local blacksmith and had quite the temper. So it was nice to see him settle down with Mary, the shy librarian. I almost envied the way he looked at her as if she was the Harvest Goddess reincarnated. It would be nice to have a guy glance at me like that. To be able to settle down with a great husband and children.

"Yo, Al."

"Huh?" I jumped back as a slender finger poked me in the side.

"You're spacing out again," Nina waved a hand in front of my face. "You sure are lucky that I'm working with you at the front." She placed her hands on the counter and gave me a mischievous look. "Or are you thinking about a certain chicken boy?"

"I'm not thinking about Rick." I frowned at her. Everyone in town knew that the animal shop owner had a huge crush on me. Even Mother said I should give him a chance. But I didn't feel the same way. He was just a friend. Not to mention the death glares that I got from Karen, the town's heaviest drinker. We really didn't get along that much at the start and the guy she likes falling for me didn't help things either. I was pretty sure that she would throw me into the Forbidden Forest if she could. But I got along really well with Popuri, the pink-haired maiden much easier to deal with than her brother and his childhood friend. I knew that she was seeing Kai while he stayed in the inn, keeping a small secret from her brother. She wanted to run away with him once summer ended. I had no desire to get dragged into that mess.

"You two would be so cute together," Nina squealed with a small smirk. "I've seen the way he looks at you, even if you don't."

"And I'm not talking about this," I lightly slapped her arm. "Now get back to work."