Dawn blinked in the bright light. She was in a wood. A beautiful, old wood. Dawn ran her hand down a tree. So old, so wonderful. Silence reigned. And then a shout shattered it.
“Hullo! Anyone there?” A familiar voice called.
Dawn peeked out from behind the tree and saw the back of a person. “Manalive? Is that you?”
Manalive spun around, then relaxed as he saw Dawn. “Oh, hey Dawn,” he said, “Do you have any idea where that weirdo sent us?”
Dawn scanned the area again, her hand resting on the tree. “I don’t believe so?” she queried, “For some reason, this feels familiar.” Dawn glowed a satisfied yellow, and ran her hand down the tree. “Like I’ve been here before.”
A wood thrush began to sing a song of pure silver. “Yeah, I get the same feeling too.” Manalive agreed, his eyebrows scrunched together. “It’s disconcerting.”
Dawn strode over to some nearby bushes, and lifted her hand to touch them. “Look at these. They almost look like an…entrance.”
“Well, an entrance is meant to be walked through, isn’t it?” Manalive delivered matter-of-factly, “Let’s go in.” Manalive pushed the bushes back, strode through, and vanished.
Dawn flared a bright purple, shocked and frightened. Then she berated herself at her novice-like shock. With a deep, steadying breath, Dawn calmed herself. Then she faced the bushes and walked through.
