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You felt a little apprehensive as you approach the edge of the forest that borders Kamp, wary of heading so far from the main area of the campground. With the exception of the voices you had heard earlier, the eerie silence and the looming shadows of the treeline makes your hair stand on end. Trying to ignore the gravel path leading into the trees, you manage to swallow down your fear once you realize that the boisterous voices you heard earlier were coming from a pair of counselors standing near the trees. The presence of authority figures eased your worry slightly; after all, surely nothing could go wrong with two responsible adults around!
The voice, you quickly amend in your mind as you observe the two further; only one of them seemed to be speaking, gesturing wildly with his arms as his shorter companion silently listened without any further comments. Advancing further, you managed to pick out the words "forest" and "scary" being spoken by the taller Kalon. (I mean, how could you not, given how loud he was being.) Your unease returns tenfold as you falter in your steps.
Surely he can't mean this forest?
You had heard of the forest near the edge of Kamp being called the Forbidden Forest, but you'd always assumed it was just a myth made up by the counselors to scare new campers. Now, hearing the Kalon speak so openly about it... You weren't so sure anymore. You as you decide to make a silent, hasty escape from this suddenly-unnerving situation.
However, your quick retreat may not have been as silent as you thought as the taller Kalon whirls around suddenly to face you, amber eyes flashing. You freeze in your tracks. Now that you were standing a bit closer to the two, with shadows cast by the quickly-darkening evening sky flitting across their faces, the duo seemed far more intimidating than they had seemed earlier... Just as you were about to turn tail and book it out of there, the taller of the two calls out to you and beckons you over.
"Hey kiddo! C'mere!"
Ah. You were caught. Resigned to your fate, you amble over to the two, sweat prickling the back of your neck your feet led you to a stop in front of the counselors, the two seeming to loom over you.
"What're you doing out here?"
You blurt out a hasty explanation, mumbling something about hearing voices coming from the forest and wanting to explore, and then losing your nerve as it grew darker. You stared at your feet, ready to face whatever punishment was going to be sent your way. Instead, you heard a bark of laughter.
"Well, aren't you a curious kiddo! Don't worry, we can lead you back to camp."
Relief had never felt so sweet. You dutifully followed the two counselors as they headed back to camp, the ominous feeling you felt earlier in the pit of your stomach all but gone with the presence of the duo. Lost in your thoughts, you almost didn't realize it when the taller counselor spoke again.
"I'm Beni, by the way. 'Nd that's Iphis. We're counselors at Kamp, in case you haven't realized it yet. Nice to meet you! We have a night hike coming up in a few days that we've been planning for a while, so check back in a couple of days to sign up if you want to test your courage. It's gonna be spoooooooky."
Beni leans over you at this point, showing his teeth and wiggling his fingers to emphasize exactly how "spoooooooky" the hike was going to be. (Iphis remained silent throughout the entire exchange.) You can't help but choke out a laugh at this, before realizing that you had already made it back to camp. Beni bids you goodbye, punctuated by a firm pat on the back that just about knocks the wind out of you.
"There ya go! Now stay out of trouble, y'hear?"
"Christ, Beni, don't kill the kid."
You catch your breath and bid the two goodbye.
As you head back in the direction of your cabin, you hear a voice call out in reminder:
"We're starting sign-ups for the hike soon, so keep an eye out!"
[Head back to Kamp?]