Hidden Forest | Teen Ink

Hidden Forest

May 26, 2021
By Anonymous

“Hazel, honey are you ready?” said the voice on the intercom in her room. It was her maid Bertha. She had practically raised her since her parents are the King and Queen of  Vienna. They had their own responsibilities that just made it hard to parent.

“Yea, i'm coming down!” She said into her intercom. She ran down the stairs carrying her pink heels in one hand and held her dress up with the other.

“Beautiful honey, you look absolutely perfect,” Bertha said at the bottom of the stairs waiting for her. “Come on now we don't wanna make your parents mad” 

It was Hazel's 16th birthday party. Her parents threw a huge ball party every year since it made them look good. Hazel however hated the ball. She just wanted to spend time with her parents and have some alone time with them. 

“Well let's get this over with I guess” Hazel said as she looked down to the floor.

Bertha handed her a birthday present. It was in a small brown box. “I know this isnt alot but I think it's something you'll love.”

Opening the box it was a gold bracelet with blue pendants all over. “I love it, it's beautiful, Thank you so much” Hazel started putting the bracelet on. It matched her dress perfectly. She loved the gifts Bertha gave her each year. They meant so much to her since her parents usually forgot about presents. 

It was time for the guests to arrive in the ballroom of their house. Hazel hated being the center of attention but she had no choice since everyone in the town knew her parents. 

“Hazel honey, you look stunning” said one girl

“I love that color on you” said another. 

Hazel never really had friends because everyone was focused on her royalty and how they could become popular. She gave up when she was little, and now spends most of her time in the backyard reading a book. She values her alone time.

The party was getting a little too much. People she had never even met would come up to her and try to talk to her like they've known her their whole lives. She took her book and ran out to the back garden. She sat on the bench and read her book. 

Ten minutes pass and Hazel is still reading. No one even noticed she was gone. She continued to read in order to get her mind off of things. She looked up and there was a dog in the forest. She leaned in closer to get a better look and there was no dog to be seen. Hazel set her book down and walked towards the forest. There the dog was. He wouldn't stop running. Hazel kept chasing, and the dog kept running. 

“Stop running.” a little squeaky voice said. 

“Who said that?” Hazel said as she was turning around in circles. A little colorful butterfly started circling her. Hazel fell to the ground. “Did you just talk?” Hazel said as she got up. 

“I'm here to help you, whatever you do don't follow that dog, he is bad news!” the fairy said then she disappeared. 

“Wai-, where did you go?” the fairy was completely gone. Was hazel imagining stuff? The dog ran right back up to her. He started circling her feet. Hazel turned around and started running back home. 

“Follow me.” a deep voice said. Hazel turned around. “You will be punished if you leave the forest!” The dog was talking. Except it wasn't a dog anymore, it was a tall man. He looked normal to Hazel. 

“Who are you!?” Hazel said as she slowly started backing up. “What is going on right now?” 

“The fairy is evil, don't listen to her, you must follow me. We need your help!’ the man said as he started running into the forest. Hazel began to follow him if she had no other choice. She couldn't leave and she had no idea where that fairy went. 

Running for what seemed like miles, the man wasn't a man anymore, he was a dog again. How was he transforming? Hazel was so confused. The fairy began circling her again. 

“Don't follow the man,” the fairy whispered in her ear. “He will kill you!”

Who was she supposed to listen to? They were both saying different things. She couldn't leave or she would die, but she also couldn't stay because she didn't know what could happen to her. She realized she knew she would die if she left but she could possibly live if she went with him. Hazel decided to keep running. The fairy again disappeared. 

 The dog made it to this huge castle. It was like a white palace. 

“Hello, I'm Theo.” said the dog as he transformed into a man. “Come this way, we need your help.” Theo started walking towards the stairs of the palance going up the stairs.

“What am I supposed to help you with?” Hazel said as she was turning her head all around trying to figure out what this place could possibly be. She's lived in her house her whole life and has never seen or heard of this place. 

They made it up the stairs and Theo went to open the door. “Be careful” Behind the door was a huge bear. It was bigger than anything she's ever seen and was a light brown color. It was also tied down to the wall. The bear started growling at her, almost escaping the rope. 

Hazel went to the door. “Let me out of here!” 

“You're stuck here until you figure out how to turn my friend back into a human,” Theo said as he was leaving the room. He shut and locked the door.

“This is crazy! I didn't even know animals could talk until a few hours ago. How am I supposed to know how to turn you into a human?” Hazel said as she was walking around the room. “ I should have listened to the fairy” The fairy appeared. 

“I told you so.” Fairy said as she was circling around the bear. “I would help but you wouldn't listen to me. Figure it out on your own. Think of everything that has changed today that might have caused this world to appear.”

Hazel thought long and hard about what she meant. She looked down at her wrist. The bracelet. She immediately tore it off. She opened her eyes and she was in her bedroom. 

“Happy birthday honey.” Bertha said as she walked into her room. The day has restarted and Hazel has no memory of the day before. Maybe it was just a dream. Hazel had loving parents and an annoying maid that she absolutely hated. 

“Get out!!” Hazel said as she put the cover over her head. She was in a different universe and couldn't get out. 


 


The author's comments:

This piece is about a girl that figures out what the world is actually about. She finds out what she never knew was possible. 


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