bumfuckidaho | TEST DRIVE MEME, APRIL 2017.

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TEST DRIVE MEME, APRIL 2017.

TEST DRIVE MEME

There was an accident. That's basically the only thing you know for certain. Maybe a car wreck - metal and broken glass everywhere, and the sirens and the screaming. Or maybe there was an explosion. Maybe your bike hit a rock and you careened uncontrollably off a mountain path. You can't can't quite make out the details, not who was at fault or why. Try as you might, the chaos is all you can remember.

It's also the last thing you remember from before you wake up here.

When you open your eyes, the accident is gone. Instead, you're in a hospital bed – the nursing staff greets you with a cheerful smile.

Welcome to Wayward Pines, they tell you. You'll make a full recovery here.

option one
WELCOME TO WAYWARD PINES

The hospital staff had seemed very friendly, but ultimately unhelpful when it came to answering your questions, insisting you shouldn't worry about such things, and that it was smarter to just rest until you'd fully recovered.

That was some time ago. You've since managed to leave the hospital – either via escape, or simply by waiting patiently and filling out paperwork until they finally agreed to release you. Now you've found yourself in the small but hearty town of Wayward Pines, Idaho. It's a charming little place, and the people there are all friendly enough, more than willing to greet you on the street, or give you directions if you need them.

Unless you're asking for directions out of town, of course.

Some will simply smile and give you a hearty pat on the shoulder and ask why you'd ever want to do a thing like that? Others will get quiet for a moment, and direct you to the nearest sign posted near the doorway of every building.

Don't bother taking the road, either. Whether you walk or get your hands on a vehicle, you won't get anywhere. The road simply takes you away from town for a short while before looping around and bringing you right back in.

There's no use questioning things, and it seems pretty useless to try to leave. So really, why not stay a while? Everyone's convinced that you'll find something to love in Wayward Pines.

(For the purposes of this test drive, you're welcome to handwave the existence of basically any local business or activity.)

option two
INTO THE WOODS

You've just heard a scream from the woods.

I mean, it could've been an animal. There's bound to be some kind of wildlife amongst the trees, right? But then again, it did sound awfully... human.

Though all of the locals nearby conceal a flinch at the sound, they'll assure you it's nothing, if you ask them. Why, you're probably just hearing things! (But with an anxious undertone of stop asking questions.) If you're curious, though, and brave enough to go see, they won't make any move to stop you from going into the wooded area surrounding the town.

The trees are tall, and their branches are thick enough to block out a significant amount of sunlight from breaking through the canopy, leaving the forest floor a little dimmer and cooler than the streets of town.

Whatever the source of the scream was, you won't be able to find it out here. An experienced hunter might notice some signs of a struggle, and a few faint boot prints, but they don't really seem to lead anywhere in particular.

What you will find, if you walk far enough, is a fence. A big one - at least 30 feet tall, made of metal and concrete. It goes on quite a ways in either direction as well; follow the wall far enough, and you'll see that it connects with the steep, sheer cliffs that surround the rest of Wayward Pines, effectively boxing the town in.

In actuality, you'll probably feel it before you see it. A full 500 yards from the wall, when it's hardly a shadowy smudge through the trees, you start to feel a little bit tired, a little bit weak. Trouble is, the closer you get, the weaker you feel - like the wall itself is sapping the strength out of you, and the closer you get, the worse it feels. Any powers you may have had grow weaker in kind as you make your way to the fence, but even ordinary humans will find their strength sapping away. By the time you're close enough to read the signs and to feel the crackle of electricity radiating from the thick wires criss-crossing the wall's metal surface, you're too weak to stand.

Do you crawl closer still and risk electrocution, or do you crawl away and assess the situation once you're far enough from the fence to be able to stand?

option three
PTA BAKE SALE

It's that time of year again. The time when everyone digs into their wallet, ignores their diet, and spends a little time supporting the local school bake fair. You know, for the good of the children. And it doesn't hurt that Linda's Blondie recipe is honestly to die for. The school PTA has pulled out all the stops this year in the hopes of encouraging a good community turn out, posters advertising the sale plastering every street corner and stuffed into every mailbox for a solid week leading up to the event, and today is finally the day.

There's at least two dozen different tables set up with all manner of delectable treats, even one or two offering vegan alternatives for those inclined, not to mention a few others catering to some of the townspeople's more... unique palates.

Maybe you've got your own table set up with your wares, or maybe you were simply lured to the park today by the appetizing scents wafting through the air. Either way it seems like the whole town has come out to show their support today and why wouldn't they? Children are our future, aren't they? Or maybe it's just Linda's Blondie recipe.

Yeah, that's probably it.

option four
ON THE NETWORK

Though it's not as high-tech as you might be used to (or hell, maybe you're ren faire and it's centuries beyond anything you've seen), but Wayward Pines does in fact have a network to accommodate its citizens.

Go ahead, post a network post! Just note that the network currently has two basic functions. The first is audio-only and can be accessed from the telephones in each character's home. If an audio-based medium doesn't suit your needs (or aesthetics), be sure to take advantage of the Wayward Pines Message Board from your brand new laptop for the chance to communicate with your fellow townspeople in a text-based format instead!

( a few notes )

Welcome to our third test drive here in The Pines! Just one important thing to note:

Upon arrival in Wayward Pines, characters find themselves struggling to remember entirely who they were or where they came from. Memories return progressively over the next two weeks. You're welcome to play with this mechanic in any of these prompts, but it's definitely not mandatory! For more details on this temporary memory loss, see our FAQ.

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option one: welcome to wayward pines

Hours had passed since she’d woken up in the hospital, but still she couldn’t remember. Not the accident, not her name, nothing. Well, there were a few things, but nothing that was actually helpful. The nurses had assured her that it was all normal – she’d been in an accident, her memory would return with time. There was something in her that trusted them, that told her to listen when the doctor told her to rest and stay for observation, so she did. It wasn’t until the next day that they released her and she wandered through the foreign town in a pair of borrowed blue nurse scrubs.

She brushed it off when the first person smiled and greeted her by a name she knew was not her own. Katherine. The second person got a look of uncertainty and hesitation before a polite smile. The third person received an irritated glare before she quickened her pace in the opposite direction down Main Street.

I’m not Katherine.

option two: into the woods

It was pure instinct that had Elena running at the sound of that scream, ignoring the discomfort of the locals who seemed content to just stay out of it. She stumbled and slipped on the ground once, twice, but she kept going, unwilling to stop searching even when it became clear that whoever screamed was long gone.

She didn’t notice the tiredness at first, the way her energy seemed to be leaking away as she kept moving. That was natural after sprinting cross-country, right? But when it started to get worse, when she could see something strange in the distance, she wasn’t able to do much more than slump against a tree and try to catch her breath.

What was going on?

option three: pta bake sale

It felt right to be involved in something at the high school. Elena didn’t yet remember going there, but she’d been told by countless people that she’d attended and been an excellent student, always participating in extracurriculars and town activities. Apparently she’d even been a cheerleader? Everything was still a lot fuzzier than she’d like, but just because she didn’t have her memories didn’t mean she couldn’t help sell some cookies.

When she wasn’t manning a table that was overflowing with snickerdoodles and peanut butter chocolate chip delights, she was wandering through the crowd, hoping that the sight of someone there would help spark some recognition.

If only everyone would stop mistaking her for Katherine.

Lurking, ahem living her Wayward Pines life thank you very much, around proved to have its benefits. All the more so on that day.

Katherine just popped out of the general store, brown paper bag held in one hand, when she spotted the doppelganger of herself (the one she'd actually ever seen, though Damon told her of the original one that was around town, at home, for awhile) down the way. Maybe the person who'd just greeted that agitated looking brunette with the godawful hair (do something else with your hair, Elena) had recently spoken to Katherine. She was out shopping, chatting, after all.

She heard the statement, the exchange, and the local parting ways with an uncertain frown. Then was the time to approach. Her feet, in black boots, brought her right up in front of Elena.

"Certainly not Katherine." Her brows popped, starting over, looking her less attractive 'self' up and down, waiting for a response back. Gauge what she knew, see if she fell prey to an 'accident' as wlel. Playing this out with a degree of mystery, why the hell not?

Why be falsely nice? She wasn't happy to see Elena, after all. #sorrynotsorry

She knew she was being rude, these people were just trying to say hello, but it grated on her in a way she didn't understand to be called that name. Every inch of her felt wrong when someone confused her for a woman named Katherine, and she couldn't think of how anyone could possibly look so much like someone else that so many people would make that mistake.

Until she saw her. The woman who could only be Katherine.

Eyes going wide, she opened her mouth to say something, but the words caught in her throat. What the hell was going on? Were they... related? That was usually how people had such similar appearances, right? They had to be family. She swallowed thickly before hesitantly asking, "Do you know me?"

Please say yes.

The days of insisiting she was Elena are long, long gone. Katherine's first two weeks there were confusing, and with a scan of her eyes of the other girl after she asked that question, she sighed. Eyes almost rolling up to the sky. Was that a surge of empathy she felt? For Elena.

"Yes. But. You don't know you. Do you?"

What kind of game was she playing?! Elena may have started to want to talk instead to those strangers mistaking her for Katherine, if those vague replies were to keep up...

She came over because there was no other choice. Any kindness extended? That's straight from wanting to remain allies with Damon and Stefan. As if anyone would think she'd be nicey nice to Elena, right?

There was something in the way the other woman was reacting that did not help the agitation she'd been feeling, and it was combining with the anxiety of not knowing who or where she was. The result? One very uncomfortable amnesiac who was perhaps a tiny bit snappy.

"No, I don't," she informed her look-alike, gesturing in her direction and then at the people around them. "I'm guessing you're Katherine, though? Everyone keeps thinking I'm you." A pause, then she decided to bite the bullet and just ask. "Who am I? How do you know me?"

Elena with a fighting spirit? Now wasn't that something.

Awareness maintained in Katherine's eyes at the initial answer, head tilting and brows lifting as her first answer as that indeed being who she was. Then that question. Anyone with any common sense would ask questions, and the home-life situation (a memo: no one's gonna dare kick her out of her house!) and overall peace between herself, Stefan, and Damon led Katherine toward giving information.

"The one and only. And, your name? Is Elena Gilbert. How we know each other...let's say we've run in the same circles for awhile now." One step forward, voice dropping, eyes intense as she held eye contact. "Did you happen to see any of the notices, signs of warning, around, Elena? The sheriff of our town here -- he's a little...touchy about those first amendment rights we all love." A sigh; okay, if Elena forgot her own name, then her knowledge of the Bill of Rights was probably low on the totem pole of priorities.

"Walk with me. And I'll," she started to move, intention to lead Elena toward the forest. Not to go in, necessarily. But, putting their backs to town. "Fill you in."

Was she really helping Elena Gilbert? Really?

Randel's there, for all reasons, to take home donations: anything that doesn't sell is going to be featured at the next cafe at the animal shelter. When he spots her, he recognizes her.

Not at all as Katherine.

Because that is clearly Elena. His cheeks turn more than a little red at a sensation that's entirely alien to him swells up in his chest, a feeling that he'd thought was literally impossible for him since his memories had started coming back to him. And these memories, they don't match with those; they're the memories from this place, the ones he hardly recognizes, the ones that give him all the things and people he's wanted, either because he never had them or because he'd lost them.

A girl who always made his heart skip a beat.

A girl he never approached because, well...

He'd say the wrong things. He'd muck everything up, clumsy and awkward and awful as he is with things like this. He'd trip over his own lackluster words and he'd either make her feel sorry for him or he'd make her upset or he'd say something. He manages, though, to reach up a hand and kind of half-flutter his fingers her way.

Whenever Elena did remember something from the life she was supposed to have had in the strange town no one could leave, it was usually prompted by seeing something related to the memories. Whether they were across the street or standing right next to her, the result was the same - images, impressions, feelings rising to the surface like they were emerging from the deep ocean, becoming clearer the closer they got. It seemed like not everything would come back, some of the memories still caught in the underwater current, but each one helped her gain better footing in the life she'd found herself in.

Seeing Randel was like that. Before her gaze settled on him, Elena had absolutely no recollection of the man who towered over the crowd of people, but once she'd caught sight of that little wave of greeting, it all bubbling up. Randel Oland, who had been Katherine's friend for the longest time, was kind and sweet, and worked at the animal shelter. She found nothing but fondness in her for him, so she smiled brightly and lifted her hand to wave him over to her table seconds before a mother and young child stepped up to make a purchase.

In the memories that he had of Elena, he'd never actually approached her. They'd existed in the same universe, this strange situation that his more cognizant memories could hardly parse, but she was a distant star to his own little patch of earth. Occasionally, her light had fallen on him or their two ships had passed in the night, but there'd never been any meaningful conversation because Randel was an idiot but not that much of an idiot.

Which was not to ever say that Katherine was some sort of substitute or in any way someone he didn't care for. No, despite their resemblance, in his mind, they're so vastly different that to compare the two would be like apples and apple trees; connected, obviously, but the thought processes entirely different for each. He wouldn't try to take a bite of the tree any more than he'd be tempted to enjoy a cool afternoon underneath the shade of the fruit.

He loved Katherine, he really truly did. Her fire and her spirit, her cleverness and her will, her playfulness and even her occasional fickleness, were all parts of his dear friend. But Elena smiling and waving at him almost made him trip over his own feet, did in fact make him do just that, and it was only by the grace of a strong grip on one of the sturdy park benches that he didn't go rolling in her direction like a graceless oaf. As it is, his cheeks are pink and his eyes are down as he makes his way over to her.

...he should probably say something instead of looming over her but even something as simple and inconsequential as 'hi' keeps coming up as insufficient and nothing else wants to present itself.

Damon finds any moment he can with Elena, when not keeping a close eye on her. Unfortunately, for the both of them, the reality of living in Pines means in public they can never be more than family-in-laws of sorts, and that gets old. Speaking in code is one thing, even pretending to be married is something, but pretending to not want to kiss this woman all day, every day, that gets exhausting. He finds smaller, private moments they can steal.

He could bring her the baked goods he was contributing for the bake sale (the PTA bake sale for which he has no kid, god he hopes a kid doesn't materialize), but instead he waits patiently for her to take someone's money. He nods to that person, waits for them to depart. When she turns to him, she'll see him smiling, innocently, just happy to have her in this town.

"I have something for you."

There have been little memories surfacing since Elena had woken up at the hospital, glimpses of a life that didn't fit with the one she was supposed to have here. A life full of lost loved ones and people constantly trying to kill her, but also a life full of Damon. Someone she'd began by hating and then completely fallen in love with. She didn't remember everything about their eventful relationship just yet, but she remembered that love, and it made her want to wring Katherine's neck every time she thought of this charade they had to follow.

She didn't hear him approach the way she would have before, didn't know he was there until she turned and saw that amazing smile - but she was okay with that. A human life was the one she'd wanted, and she wasn't going to regret that decision.

Tilting her head at him with a teasing smile, she replied skeptically, "You bake? This I've gotta see."

It was the most maddening part of living here now, pretending to not be head over heels in love with Elena Gilbert. But, it was still better than it was. It made everything easier. All the strange discoveries, secret affairs (that he'd all killed), all of them were worth it because his girl was here now. And not before. He needed to make that clear. They couldn't have all grown up in this town. New people cropped up every week as if they were off screen entirely until they weren't. Like Elena, and everything else that came with her arrival.

Including the Shakespearean discovery of who his brother ended up with.

But, Elena was nothing if not resilient. Going from the blank slate who loved Damon Salvatore (which Damon did not like one bit, she was so much more than what she was to him. yes, she was everything, but she was herself) and as much as it reminded him of her first year in college, with every day she gained something else. Another facet to the personality he could never get enough of, a clearer picture of woman he'd gotten to know. And had always loved.

"I resent that. You don't think, oh, in the decades of years I lived, that I haven't perfect dozens of skills?" Not that baking was one of them. Baking was precise and it required a patience Damon didn't have. Cooking, however, he had perfected. When it mattered. Stuck in 1994 for those few months definitely impacted his cooking ability. Bonnie did need to be fed. Lagomarchino's had donated. Damon and Stefan were quite the patrons there. "Can anyone else mind the table?"

He implied everything with his eyes, but to an onlooker, he was being friendly. Dropping off the next round of baked goods that would be sold. But, this was Damon Salvatore and this was Damon Salvatore's secret girlfriend/soon-to-be fiancee because he knew when she did gain everything back, he'd propose. Somehow. He never once doubted this was who he'd wanted to live his life with. She'd wake up, he'd take the cure and they'd live their human life together. But, now they were here. And it wouldn't behoove any of them to give up their gifts so easily. Not when their biggest weapon against the unseen enemy is an ability he'd lose.

Oh, she had absolutely no doubt that Damon Salvatore had so many hidden talents that it would take years for her to uncover them all, but she very much doubted that baking was one of them. He could cook, she'd seen that in action and heard about it from Bonnie, but baking? That was something entirely different. Patience had never been one of his virtues, of that she was all too aware, and probably the only thing he'd ever be able to properly bake would be one of those mug cakes you popped in the microwave. (And even that might be giving him too much credit.)

Narrowing her eyes at him suspiciously, playing up the part of a woman who was fond of her brother-in-law but didn't actually want to jump his bones right there in the middle of the very public park, she studied him for a moment before shaking her head and smile. "Fine," she agreed, turning away to tap an older woman on the shoulder, asking Mrs. Hanson to watch the table for a few minutes. Relieved from her duties, she gestured for Damon to lead the way and informed him, "I'm expecting some sort of miracle pastry now, I hope you know. You'd better not be getting me excited for nothing."

It was said in a completely innocent tone, but of course the words were anything but. She knew exactly why he was luring her away from the crowd, and she was looking forward to the stolen moments where they could just be themselves, with each other. They wouldn't be enough, nowhere close, but they would be better than none at all. It made her physically ache that she couldn't be close to him whenever she wanted, because that was what helped her more than anything when she started thinking about this place and her missing memories. Even just sitting beside him made her feel calmer, more settled. It's where she was supposed to be. But she couldn't. Not yet.

"For the record, if the tape is played back, all I said was that I had something for you. You surmised it was a miracle pastry." He looked back to her, speaking, as he led them further away from the bake sale, rounding the corner of the building. "How goes the non-parent to parent bonding. Did you bake anything?" Elena Gilbert, selling her baking wares. He wouldn't wish that on his worst enemy. Sorry, Elena. But, he remembered your chili. And everything else you've attempted. You were always pretty, and forthright and loyal! Wasn't that something?

He fought the urge to link arms, to put his arm around her neck, to get any closer to her as he eyed the final camera pointing away from the back of the school. He and Stefan had spent weeks scoping out the town. Stefan had found this parking space smack in the middle of the edges of two vantage points. If he parked at the perfect angle, then once he rounded the car and led her to the driver's side back seat, he was out of dodge.

They both were.

Turning back toward, he rested an arm on the top of the car.

"Courtesy of, whomever is working at Lagomarchino's this morning. I didn't catch their name." Inside, through the window, she'd see a covered box - brownies, and a few clear trays with various cookies, including snickerdoodles. Sue him, the name made him snicker. "I was told they had to cool down. They came right out from the oven."

Oh, so that's how he was gonna be. Playing dirty by asking about her own contributions when everyone in Mystic Falls had known she couldn't bake to save her life. Or cook. But she hadn't had a century and a half to learn those skills, thanks very much. Give her a few decades, her chili might be edible by the time they were grandparents.

She took note of the cameras as they passed, still finding it extremely unsettling that they were always being watched. Even in their home, they were being recorded - there were no closed doors to hide behind where they could talk or even just hold each other without someone knowing about it. But places like this, the in-between spots that perhaps no one had yet realized existed, gave them the moments they needed to make it through everything else. At least, that's how she chose to look at it, focusing on what they had so she could concentrate on getting herself back together.

"You know, this might count as cheating," she pointed out, leaning her hip against the door and peering inside at the various goodies. "Since you didn't actually bake them yourself. But I suppose I can let it slide this time, since you know I didn't bake anything." The first step to making friends with people in a creepy town was not to give them all food poisoning.

Glancing back to him, a small smile crept onto her lips as she inquired, "How long does it take cookies to cool down, again?" Since she obviously had no idea what she was doing in the kitchen, she'd just have to defer to his good judgment on the matter.

"Since I know you shouldn't?" he teased. "I could lie and say your skill in the kitchen will come back," he half-offered out of the side of his mouth.

"I just picked them up. Benefits of small town life." He leaned in. "Even smaller than a certain town you can't remember." Leaning close, like this, reminded what it should be like. "How lucky am I that of the things you remember, I made it up there." He hand came up, fingers lightly touching her forehead, moving into her hair, thumb grazing near her ear. He moved from leaning down, to leaning in, bringing his lips close to hers. "To answer your question from before," he said quietly. "Not long."

She gave him a comically offended drop of her jaw at that, but she couldn't hold the expression for long when he moved in closer. With each inch of space closed between them, her heartbeat sped up and she knew he'd be able to hear it. Knew he'd hear the breath hitching in her throat when he touched her, brushes of his fingers that were not enough and too much all at once.

Her eyes closed for a moment as she savored that closeness, wishing they could stay like this instead of having to go back to pretending they were other people, but she was wasting the precious time they had. So she looked into those blue eyes that she saw in her dreams and whispered, "I'll always find my way back to you, Damon."

Vivid memories of dancing in the street, the street where they'd first met, the street he'd compelled away fought memories he had of her here, but nothing could tamp down how he felt about her. Nothing could eradicate that. His heart hurt, knowing these moments were all they had until they came up with something. The group needed to come together. With Elena here, they were one step closer to being with who they were meant to be with. His brother still loved Caroline. Sure, that left Katherine in the cold. But, then again, neither Caroline nor Stefan had made moves in either direction. Stefan was up for grabs. How would the town handle a wive swap? Bringing his lips to hers, his eyes closed too, erasing everything else around them, breathing in everything he'd missed for months.

That she remembered that street as well was a miracle, one of many in her life. It was a memory she'd thought lost forever, her stupidity in grief having cost her their past. It was a miracle that she'd let herself find her way back to him the first time, letting go of the hate and disgust long enough to listen to her heart. But then the cure had given it all back, had given them hope for a perfect future, and it was a hope that she was clinging to in this place. She would fight for that future, whatever the odds, and through whatever this place threw at them.

The kiss lasted seconds that felt like hours, but even hours wouldn't have been enough. She wanted to drown herself in him but she couldn't be gone long, someone would come looking for her. So she broke the kiss, her heart breaking with it, and pulled back just enough to wrap her arms around him, desperately needing to remember what it felt like to be held by him.

His arms wrapped around her, holding her close, knowing they had moments to steal. Moments.

"We'll get through this." He kissed the top of her head, before resting his head on hers. Breathing her in for another moment longer, he made himself let go, disentangling himself from her grasp. Giving her a bittersweet smile, pushing back tears that he wouldn't let emerge, he opened the driver's side passenger door for her. "Like I promised."

It wasn't enough. These stolen moments would never be enough. But they had to be for now.

Fighting back her own tears, she gave him a brighter smile than the one he'd managed, because they both had to be strong. They would get through it, and they would do it together. "Our alma mater thanks you," she pronounced, preparing herself to play her part again, before leaning in to grab some of the trays from the backseat.

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Seeing her and her table of incredible food, Merlin smiled, waving a hand. He was the maintenance man who worked at the school, too. Worked... somehow, everywhere? he shook his head and waved anyway.

"I'd like... well, a bunch of those thing. How are you doing?" She looked vaguely familiar, like he should know her.

The woods were somewhere safe for Alec to train without prying eyes wondering why he knew so many forms of self-defense and could almost climb the walls if he needed to. It was also a good place to run, someplace quiet where he could try to gather his thoughts while losing himself in the motion that carried him forward.

At least it had been calming until he heard the scream. Sprinting toward the sound, it doesn't take long for Alec to realize something's wrong. He shouldn't be tiring. This was an easy workout compared to what he was used to.

Slowing when he caught sight of someone near a tree, he jogged over to her, scanning the area for whatever had caused her to scream. "Are you hurt?"

Elena was breathing too heavily to notice as he approached, the sound of it covering the footsteps she might otherwise have heard. These were the times that she missed being a vampire, but she still wouldn't trade her humanity for one second.

A little bit startled, her brown eyes were wide as she lifted her head to look at the new arrival, someone she didn't recognize but who had managed to sneak up on her. Great job, Elena, don't let Damon find out you let your guard down.

"I'm fine," she assured him once she'd realized what he'd asked, and gave a shake of her head. "I wasn't the one who screamed."

Noticing how she was breathing, Alec wasn't sure if he really believed her. Something was going on even if she wasn't the one that screamed. As he moved closer, he looked up through the branches above them for some sing of what might have caused the scream before starting to study the ground.

It looked like there had been a scuffle of some kind, but the tracks didn't make sense. Neither did the way Alec's lungs burned when he knew that his rush through the forest shouldn't have winded him. Magic or something worse was effecting him. No, them, if she was having trouble breathing too, then it wasn't just attacking him. "I'm not going to hurt you, but we need to get out of here. There's something wrong with this place."

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