5

The day started in a cruel, cold forest. The trees seemed to have evil sneers on their faces, their sharp branch arms scratched me as I tried to escape this place. Cold sweat dripped down my forehead and ran into my eyes. I couldn't see where I was going. Brushing the sweat out of my eyes, I blindly tripped through the messy forest floor.

Sweat continued seeping into my eyes –– I couldn't stop it. Soon I was drenched. It felt as though I was swimming through the forest, still torn apart by the trees even through the water. I couldn't breathe, I was so tired. I stopped running to catch my breath and the trees attacked me...

A pool of sweat surrounded me when I woke up, like the kind of sweat in my dream. This strange place (I deduced it was a forest) had been my home for goodness knows how many weeks. My ride with Captain Gloonkk and the Maballms had left completely dazed and utterly unaware of where I was. I didn't even know if I was still near the Castle Apartments or my dancing partner.

I hadn't moved since the pickup/drop off. I was afraid to run into something (or worse, OFF of something) so I generally stayed where the Captain dropped me.

Today though, I decided I needed to move. I had to try to find my way back or find help. I couldn't very well die sitting here in this god forsaken forest.

I spent most of the morning rolling over, trying to stand up. By the time I finally lifted my behind from the soggy floor, I guessed it was about midday. After walking for several minutes, I concluded that the ground was covered in snow. It must be wintertime. I must have been here in this forest for longer than I thought.

The rest of the day I spent walking around, feeling my way through this strange forest –– trying to feel anything familiar. With no luck. What I estimated to be several hours later, a huge rumble escaped my stomach and I decided to find something to eat. Unless I was going to kill something, the only things that I knew for sure to be edible here were leaves and moss. Nothing fancy, but I'd been living off of stale cereal and bruised apples for the last 43 years. I think I could choke down a few leaves.

After my meal, I settled down to rest again, thinking of Felix who was probably more starving than I was right now. Poor Felix.

Just as I was closing my eyes for sleep and inevitable dreaming, I heard a faint neighing. Like a horse or a bull. I froze. Horses would leave me alone, but a bull might charge. And there's no way I could defend myself against 2000 pounds and horns.

The first neigh was soon followed by a second. And a third, fourth, and fifth. I counted nine total. Although one sounded much higher than the others. The baby bull perhaps?

Before I could decide whether I should run and hide or move closer, I heard sleigh bells ringing and tinging –– like the bulls were lining up to do something or go somewhere. A grunt came from somewhere behind the bulls and what sounded like two big boots beat down on hard wood.

The neighing became more frequent. The bulls' hooves pawed at the ground and the bells jittered with every stomp. I could tell they were about to move. And fast. I had to get out of the way or they would hit me.

I tried to stand up so I could move, but couldn't find anything to grab onto for support. The tree I was leaning on was too think. I heard the bulls move. They were trotting. I was rolling around on the ground like a fish. The clomping of the bulls' feet picked up speed. They were running. The bells became louder and louder. These beasts were getting closer! And I was still on the wet ground!

At the last possible second, I managed to swing my body weight forward and stand up. The bells and the neighing and the clomping were screaming in my ears –– they were so close now! I limped forward, trying to get out of the way when the sounds of the bulls and their owner shifted from beside me to above me. My ears were surely playing tricks on me, bulls cannot fly. In my confusion, I forgot to keep moving and something metal, hard, and cold hit my square in the face. I fell to the ground and tasted blood in my mouth.

"Woah there! Touch back down, Rudolph, I think we hit something," a deep, concerned voice said. "To the right, everybody, head for the right and down!"

The man steered his flying bulls to the ground and his two heavy boots swung out of whatever he was riding in and hit the ground.

"Oh my goodness, we've hit a woman!" he shouted to his cattle. "Donner, grab an empty bag from the back. Vixen! Comet! Help me put her on the sleigh."

I must have fainted while all of this happened though because the next I know, I'm sitting up in a cold, metal vehicle next to a man and his nine bulls.

"How are you feeling, little lady?" the man asked.

"Fine, thank you," I said. "What exactly happened?"

"I'm ashamed to say my reindeer and I hit you straight in the noggin. I just feel terrible, ma'am. Would you believe that in the millions of years I've been driving that sleigh, this is the third accident I've had?" He sounded pained.

"Millions of years? What do you mean?"

"Well you see ma'am, my reindeer and I drive the sleigh so long as people believe in us," he said. "They started believing millions of years ago and haven't stopped since."

"Believe in you? So you're some magic elf or something?"

"Oh, no I'm not an elf!" He chuckled. "But I know a couple hundred of them back home," he said.

"I must be losing my mind."

He laughed out loud at that. I still couldn't tell if he was joking or if I was going crazy.

"How about this. To prove it to you, I'll grant you the one wish you've always wanted. Look deep inside your heart. Now tell me, what's the one thing you desire above all else?"

I didn't say anything.

"No matter," he said. "I know what you want anyway. I've always known. You've been a good girl, Sile. You'll get your wish."

And with that, he smiled and snapped his fingers. I sat up in my bed, in my apartment, with Felix curled up at my feet, for once not knowing what was real and what was fantasy.