It took a couple more days, and a couple of extra steps, but Bryony was finally outside the entrance to the Old Forest. The deep voice was much clearer now, beckoning her and asking for aid.
Bryony took a deep breath, clutching her walking stick tightly. Marcus insisted that she should use it, since their da had long since stopped going out for his usual walks. 'He's not going to miss it,' Marcus had told her. 'And he'd want you to have it.'
Peony, along with Dandelion and Milo, had prepared a lovely little satchel for her, bursting to the seams with food, a flask of water, and even more food to go along with it. Bread, cheese, crackers, anything that they could get their little hands on in the pantry, they shoved inside the satchel and handed it to her with beaming smiles. 'For the bravest Puddifoot known to hobbit-kind!' Milo had pronounced quite loudly. Dandelion had tied her largest green bow to her hair. 'It always brought me good luck!' Indeed, her good luck usually meant being able to charm her way to a free biscuit at the market.
Bryony arranged the satchel on her back, taking another deep breath. This was it. This was what she had been aiming for. All these weeks had finally culminated to this one moment.
She took one step forward. She crossed the threshold. She was officially in the Old Forest.
Another step forward. Her hands trembled slightly as she held her walking stick tight in one hand, the other holding onto her satchel.
She took a quick sprint forwards, finding herself laughing. She had done it! Just like all the stories with Mr Baggins and his untoward adventures. Looking at the path beneath her, she cleared her mind, letting the voice slowly guide her deeper into the forest.
After what felt like hours, the voice suddenly stopped. Bryony looked around, realising that the beaten old dirt path she had been following was now gone. How had she not realised she ventured off the path? And what happened to the voice? Why was it not talking to her anymore?
In the quiet, she became much more aware of the sounds around her. The trees creaked and groaned, as if they were moving. Out of the corner of her eye, she swore she saw the old thin roots reaching out from the ground, as if they were trying to make their way towards her.
Click. Click. Click. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She remembered Milo's words. Spiders as big as our house! Her breath started to quicken. In the distance, a lone wolf let out a long howl, which was followed by another.
Oh you silly girl, what have you done? She started slowly walking towards what she hoped was where she had come from, making sure she didn't step on any leaves which would crumble and alert whatever it was to her presence. Small steps, quiet as a mouse, she suddenly felt so small. Small, and hunted.
She stopped in her tracks as the voice suddenly came back, chastising her for trying to leave. Did she not want to help him? Why was she going back? More creaking before a vine lashed out at her, cutting her cheek. Bryony screamed, dropping her walking stick and running through the trees. She hoped she was running back towards Buckland.
Tears were streaming down her face as she tore between the trees, thorns and roots cutting her legs, branches leaving scratches all over her arms.
"Why oh why didn't you listen to grumpy old Petunia?" Bryony screamed, her vision blurred as she tried rubbing at her eyes to clear the tears. She continued to run, and dared to look behind her, expecting to see an army of large trees and spiders chasing after her.
Her foot caught on a root, and she flew to the ground, bashing her head against a rock. Her entire world went black.
