Disclaimer: I don't own Don't Starve or any of the characters
"Look… I'm all for lighting stuff on fire, but are you sure this is a good idea?"
Wilson had to suppress a sigh. He'd already gone over the plan several times, but no matter how well he explained it Willow held on to an edge of hesitation. Not that he could really blame her all things considered.
"It'll be perfectly safe." He assured for the umpteenth time. "We just need to get the smoldering bundle close to the hive, and the smoke will do the rest. The bees inside will become placid, and we'll be able to get at the honey without getting attacked."
The plan was something he'd seen done multiple times in the past. Of course, back then it had been done on ordinary honey bees. The kind that were small and fat. These ones however, were significantly larger just like the hounds had been. The smallest was about the size of his hand. Still, if they had roughly the same biological structure as regular bees (which he desperately hoped they did) then smoking them out of their hive should work.
In theory.
Willow seemed to sense his lack of surety, and gave him a questioning frown. Her love of starting fire was fighting against her love of not being stung to death by ferocious insects.
"And if it doesn't work?" She questioned.
"In the unlikely event that something goes wrong, you should be able to outrun them." Wilson replied, gesturing towards several of the bees. Sure enough, the massive creatures were buzzing around at a leisurely pace that could have been out-sped by a mildly distressed toddler. On top of that, their considerable weight meant that they had to pause every now and then to rest up.
"Besides." He added. "Wouldn't a bit of honey make for an excellent change of flavor? I happen to remember a few old recipes involving honey, a couple cuts of meat, and some added vegetables."
"Fine." She conceded at last, striking her lighter to ignite the torch that would act as their smoker. "But if anything goes wrong, you are SO dead."
"Trust me. Nothing will go wrong."
As it turns out, the hive had been more flammable than they had originally anticipated. Nor did the smoke from a burning pile of honeycombs seem to pacify the bees. If anything, it seemed to whip them into a frenzy.
"Well…" Wilson started awkwardly, "On the bright side, I managed to get some of the honey while you kept them distracted…"
The only answer he received from the limping young woman was a glare promising death and destruction on an unimaginable scale if he kept talking.
Deciding discretion was the better part of valor, he shut up.
It had been three weeks since they had set forth out of the forest. In that time the four survivors had successfully established a sort of base camp in the grasslands. And, thanks in no small part to Wilson's ingenuity; they were starting to do fairly well for themselves.
Wolfgang proved to be second to none when it came to gathering tough resources like logs and rocks. His boundless strength and energy made him the ideal choice. At first it had been somewhat challenging seeing as the only tools they had were his hammer and Wendy's ax, but Wilson soon remedied that. It was amazing what you could make with sticks, sharp rocks, and a bit of tightly woven grass. The makeshift tools weren't durable but they were functional.
Wendy had wanted to be part of the hunting group, but the gentleman scientist was having none of that. Killing animals was a gruesome task, and despite her previous lack of concern for the deaths of the hounds, it still felt terribly wrong to expose such a young girl to an activity like that if it could be avoided. Maybe he was being a bit dramatic, but still.
Instead, she had taken up weaving. What had started out as a mildly amusing way to pass the time quickly became an incredible benefit. Turning grass into rope, crafting useful items like packs for the two in the group who lacked them, and creating traps that they used to snare bunnies and small birds was a wonderful aid. On top of that, while it was repetitive work it gave her something to focus her restless energy on. More and more, she'd become devoted to watching the flower of hers at all times of day. This allowed her to distract herself at least for a time.
Early on, Willow had been the only gatherer since Wilson was in charge of directing the group and ensuring everything was working smoothly. That changed once they got into the hang of things. With more free time, he had elected to accompany her both to provide aid and to get a better idea of the world they were living in.
Her infatuation with burning things quickly became apparent. At first it had been somewhat terrifying, fire being one of the most dangerous things to them in such a grass-laden area, but he soon realized how helpful her quirk was. When night snuck up on them and there was no time to build a flame by rubbing two sticks together, she and her lighter were there to save the day. Wilson had no idea how much fuel was left in the object, but as long as it kept them safe he was happy to encourage her slight pyromania.
During times like this however, he was painfully aware of how flammable the human body could be.
The thick silence stretched on as they walked.
Maybe he should try saying something to soothe the tension. Sure she'd looked about ready to kill him the last time he spoke up, but if he approached the conversation from a different angle, things might go better.
He really didn't want her to stay mad at him. Mostly because he had a tendency of falling asleep before she did, and dearly wanted to be able to wake up again.
Bracing himself for possible backlash, he opened his mouth to try again. He didn't get far. No sooner had the first syllable of his sentence been formed than a piercing, and disturbingly high pitched, scream echoed throughout the landscape.
Both of them stopped dead in their tracks. The fire starter and the scientist locked eyes for a brief moment before taking off sprinting towards their base camp. Their previous gripes were forgotten in the face of the terrified noise.
Wilson's breath rushed in and out of his lungs as he pushed himself to move faster. Even after having been here for well over a month, physical exertion of this kind still took its toll on his body.
He pushed on regardless, one thought burning through his mind. The scream could only have come from Wendy. In all the time that the group had been together, he'd never seen her frightened once. If she was scared enough to be yelling then something terrible must have happened.
The pack thudded uncomfortably against his back as he ran. Pulling his knife out, he made ready to face whatever unnatural horror had been sent to torment them now. Willow did much the same with her lighter. While it may be an unconventional weapon, he'd seen it used to terrifying effect against a nest of monstrously large spiders.
Their campsite soon came into view. From this distance it was hard to tell, but he couldn't see anything wrong with it immediately.
"Wendy! Wolfgang!" Wilson shouted, putting on an extra burst of speed now that they were so close. "What's happening!? We heard… we… what…"
His words trailed off into nothingness as he caught sight of the highly unsettling image that was waiting for them.
Wendy wasn't frightened. In fact, she was smiling. The upturn of her mouth seemed so out of place on the normally morbid child that he had to do a double take.
That was when he saw the flower.
The ruby red plant that had proven so downright creepy to be around had apparently decided to step things up a notch. Literally. As Wilson stared in open-mouthed shock, Abigail's flower hovered in place around half a foot off the ground.
"Hello there." Wendy greeted, the almost unnatural smile never leaving her face. "Have you heard the good news? Abigail is almost here! We just need to help her find the way back!"
He couldn't speak. What was there to say? Up to this point, he'd seen a fair amount of things that contradicted beliefs he'd held sacred, but each of them had at least some basis in fact. Large animals were still animals. A floating flower however…
"How are you doing that?" Willow questioned, significantly less traumatized by the impossibility of it than he was. "That's incredible! Can you make other things hover also?"
"I'm not doing anything." The girl explained. "That's Abigail telling me that she's ready to come out and play."
The young woman was about to say something else, but Wilson cut her off.
"Hold on a minute!" He demanded, trying to salvage some level of believability from the situation. "Was this what all the screaming was about?"
Wendy frowned for a moment before realizing what he was asking.
"Oh, that wasn't me." She said, gesturing to the far end of the camp. "It was him."
Sure enough there was a trembling figure that had gone previously unnoticed by the two foragers. Wolfgang was attempting to hide himself behind a small boulder in the perimeter of their camp with minimal success.
"He made that noise?" Willow asked in disbelief. She got a small nod in response from the girl who was too busy cradling her flower to give any other indications.
"Evil flower is scary!" Wolfgang defended from his hiding spot, sensing the threat to his honor.
"Evil is a matter of perception." Wendy shot back. Her smile was replaced by a glare after the strongman insulted her precious item. "I'm sure the rabbits would consider you to be the devil."
As amusing as the following argument no doubt would have been, Wilson stepped in before it could take off.
"Everyone stop for a minute!" He demanded, stamping on the ground to emphasize his point. "Now someone PLEASE tell me what in the world is happening? One at a time!" He added before the two of them could both start barraging him with duel explanations.
At his gesture, Wendy gave him the details.
"The flower belongs to Abigail." She reminded him. Not that he could have forgotten such a detail even if he tried. "It gains power the closer she is to this world. The floating means that she's ready to come back!"
Wilson's mind was racing as he processed the information. The dead couldn't influence such a phenomenon, unless it was some kind of mag- NO! He would not use the M word! The moment he did that, all hopes of a scientific explanation would go out the window.
He could find out what was going on if he tried hard enough.
"May I see it for a moment?" He asked, making sure his tone was as considerate as possible. He knew this item was precious to her, and wanted to ensure she knew he would treat it well.
Wendy looked down, biting her lip. Like any child, she was hesitant to trust anyone else with an item so close to her heart. Eventually she let out a small sigh and nodded.
The girl held out the flower and Wilson accepted it, cupping his hands under hers so that it would only fall a short distance. The moment she pulled back, his breath left him in a rush.
It was one thing to observe the object when it was held by its owner. To hold it in his hands was something else entirely. A not altogether unpleasant tingling sensation ran up and down his arms. A vague memory of standing in a graveyard at night as a boy surfaced in his mind. In that moment, he was back there. Terrified and drawn closer at the same time.
"Uh, Wilson? Are you feeling all right?"
Willow's voice brought the scientist back to reality. He had been so absorbed by the raw feeling that he hadn't realized how intensely he'd been staring down at the flower.
"I-I'm fine." He mumbled, feeling anything but. "Here, why don't you have this back?" There was no way he could think of a scientific answer to his question while holding it. With one smooth motion, Wendy plucked the flower from his palms and brought it back to her chest. He had to suppress a noise of mixed relief and regret as it left.
An expectant silence descended on the group as they all settled around Wendy, with the exception of Wolfgang who only ventured slightly closer. Sure he'd seen Wilson hold the flower and not be torn into pieces, but he still didn't trust it.
"So, what happens now?" Willow asked, unsure of what to make of the situation. "I mean… I'm all for meeting new people, but you said she was dead didn't you? Can she actually come back from that?"
The young girl's smile became much more unsettling as she heard that.
"Oh yes." She said. "You just sit back and watch. Soon, I'll be able to introduce you to her."
It had been a long time since she felt this way before. Excited, filled with nervous anticipation. It reminded her of the times when she was very young and would wake up early on her birthday, Abigail by her side as the two of them would run to their parents' sides.
Back before the cruelty of the world had taught her that such things never lasted.
That didn't matter now though. The other three all watched her in silence as she got to her feet. Rummaging through her pack, she brought out an object she'd been saving for quite some time now.
A tiny grass case she had woven held a red butterfly inside. For days, she'd devoted all of her free time to ensuring that the small insect was healthy and alive. Capturing and looking after it had been very time consuming, but it would all be worth it in a moment.
A muffled 'awwww' sounded from behind her as Willow and Wilson had soft smiles on their faces. Even Wolfgang looked significantly less afraid upon seeing the cute little thing.
Carefully, Wendy set the tiny trap down next to Abigail's flower. The others all crowded in to get a better look as she made her final preparations.
It was time.
Without word or warning, the girl lifted her right foot up high, before bringing it crashing down on creature she had looked over so diligently. The holding case smashed in on itself as the butterfly's life was extinguished with an audible crunch.
The smile vanished from Willow's face, and Wilson looked like he was about to be sick.
"What was that!?" He asked, his face the image of horrified shock. "Why did you-"
A chilling wind cut through the plains, its unexpected presence cutting off his complaints. Wisp-like threads and whispers filled the air as the sky turned several degrees darker. Letting out another wail, Wolfgang dove back behind the rock he'd taken shelter under before. The other two both recoiled from the flower as the strands of ethereal substance shot towards it.
"Wendy! Get away from it!" Willow shouted, her voice nearly being drowned out by the rushing wind. The girl however, ignored her warnings. She alone stood in the eye of the storm as a miniature hurricane swirled around her.
Very slowly, the threads formed together into a being she'd become very familiar with. The wind reached a frantic peak as the image took shape, nearly blowing her off her feet before cutting off entirely.
Silence returned. Nobody dared to make even the slightest sound as they all watched the new arrival. Every expression from terror, to denial, to awe lay bare on their faces. Wendy ignored them all.
Instead, she turned to the ghostly apparition that floated gently in front of her.
"Hello Abigail."