Woozles

- You have arrived at the Hundred Acre Wood, a cozy, inviting forest where living toys make their homes.
You explore the Wood, and find yourself in the deeper, darker part of the forest where the Woozles live. This is not the part of the Wood where you would find Winnie the Pooh and his friends.

You see no one else around, so you decide to check out what's going on here.

As you walk through the woods, you hear a voice behind you.
"I'm sorry, but I can't let you through. The Woozles are watching you."
You turn around to see a small creature with long white hair standing there. It's eyes are big and round, like a baby's.

> It looks like a shaggy plush toy dog of some kind. He stares at you, holding a tree branch as if it were a staff.
"Why can't I go through?" you ask.

The toy creature scoffs. "Because the Woozles wouldn't like it," he says. "They're a very territorial species."

> "Who are you and what makes you think you can tell me what to do?" you say, slightly miffed.

"My name is Toot-Toot and I guard this Wood," he says.

> "What kind of name is that?" you say, chuckling.
"A very grand one, I'll have you know. Now be off with you!" Toot-Toot says, brandishing his stick.

You look around for something else to use as a weapon, but nothing seems to work. The only thing you can think of is your umbrella, which you've been carrying on your back since you got here.

> Toot-Toot charges. You pull out your umbrella and pop it open, whapping the toy creature in the face, sending him flying backwards.
"Hey! That hurt!" he says indignantly.

You stand up and take aim at Toot-Toot. "Now, now, Toot-Toot," you say. "Let's get along."
Toot-Toot smiles and nods. "Yes, yes," he says.
"Very well then," you say.

> Toot-Toot seems intimidated by your umbrella. He stands up and dusts off his plush, grouching.
"Fine then, you've bested me. But be warned, the Scary Woods are dangerous, especially at night," he says.
"Why would I be afraid of Woozles?" you say.

"Because it's a scary place! But I suppose you're too stupid to know that."
"Will you just stop calling me stupid, you little idiot?" you say, annoyed.

> You turn around march off into the Scary Woods. Toot-Toot looks back and forth warily, and quickly follows you.
"I... thought it best I accompany you. No one should go alone," he says.
"Well, that's very thoughtful of you, Toot-Toot. By the way, what does that name mean?" you say.
"Oh! Well," he says, and presses his bellybutton, making a tooting horn noise.

"I was born that way. My mother thought it was so funny, she just called me Toot."
"Ah, yes, I see. Very funny," you say.
You continue walking. "So, how did you come to be guarding the Hundred Acre Wood?" you ask.
"It was my father's idea," Toot-Toot says. "He said there had to be someone who could keep an eye on it."
"That's nice of him," you reply.
"So, what brings you to the Scary Woods anyway? Are you looking for something?" Toot-Toot asks.
"No, just wandering around," you say.

> "Just wandering around?? You'd risk your stuffing just to wander around in the Scary Woods??" he says, shocked.
"I dunno. It seemed like a fun idea," you respond.

"Fun?! This is no way to have fun! You should be out playing with your friends, not wandering around in the Scary Woods!"

> You say "Oh, don't be like that. A brave guardsman like you shouldn't talk that way."

Toot-Toot's eyes widen. "But... but... but..." he stutters.
You turn to him, and give him an annoyed look.
"Hmm, okay," Toot-Toot says. "Come on, let's go."
You follow Toot-Toot deeper into the woods. As you walk, you feel a chill run down your spine. You don't even notice yourself starting to sweat. The trees seem to grow more sinister and ominous, and the wind starts picking up.

> Sinister glowing eyes peek out from the darkness.
"Ah yes. Are we having fun yet?" Toot-Toot says, shivering.
"No, not until I meet a Woozle," you say.
"Meet one?? Why would you want to meet one?" he says.
"Why not?" you reply.

"Woozles are mischievous little creatures. They like to play tricks on people," Toot-Toot says. "They're supposed to be evil, aren't they?"
"Maybe," you say. "But maybe not."
"Hmmm..." Toot-Toot says.

> Nighttime falls and you find yourself surrounded by darkness. You take out a small flashlight and try to figure out where to go next.

"Do you see something?" Toot-Toot asks.
You shine the flashlight ahead of you, but see nothing out of the ordinary.
"No, nothing. I thought I saw something, but..."

> You shine the light of the flashlight in all directions and see a few shadows moving about. A voice calls out to you.

"Oh dear me, someone is here," Toot-Toot says.
You shine the flashlight straight ahead and see a little alcove to your right. You hear the shuffling of feet, as if someone is in the process of stepping out of the shadows.

> The owner of the voice steps into the light and a large, greenish Woozle appears.
"Are you lost?" he says with a mischievous smirk, arms folded behind his back.
"Um, sort of. Are... are you a Woozle?" you ask.
"I am. What brings you here?" he asks in return.
"I... wanted to meet one of you," you answer.
"Is that so? Well, here I am!" the Woozle says.

"You're a... real one, I mean," you say.
"Of course," the Woozle says, beginning to walk towards you. "What do you think?"
"I think you're pretty cool," you say.
"Yeah, I agree," he says. "Okay, can I tell you a secret?"
"Sure."
"I think you look pretty cute when you're scared," he says.

> The Woozle grips your shoulders, and starts to giggle, grinning wider. Slowly he starts to grow bigger. You stare up at him, fear welling up inside you. You try to tell yourself not to be scared, but soon the Woozle towers over you. You yell and tear off in the opposite direction, leaving the Woozle behind as he rolls on the ground laughing.

You run as fast as you can and arrive at a clearing. In the middle of the clearing is a large tree, covered in leaves. Leaning against the tree is a large, black Woozle. He stares at you, and gives a grin.

> You jump backward, startled.
"Let me guess. You met Wybert," he says.
You gulp. "Um, I don't know. I guess?" you say.
The black Woozle looks away, flexing his fingers nonchalantly. "Yeah, don't mind him. He's really just a little kid, but he's fulla surprises," he says.
Toot-Toot leaps forward, brandishing his stick. "What do you think you're doing, scaring a body like that??" he demands.

"It's okay, it's okay!" the black Woozle says. "He was just having a little joke."
"You scared us, you big jerk!" Toot-Toot says.

> "Hey, it's what Woozles do. We steal honey and scare people. What else did you expect?" the black Woozle says, shrugging. "Hey, Wybert! These blokes didn't care for your little show!"
The greenish Woozle from before suddenly appears, peering over the top of the tree, as tall as before. This one must be Wybert.
"Aww, you're no fun!" he complains.

"Hey, you guys want to hear something funny? I chased this one all the way from Honey Island Swamp!"
"No way!" the black one, Bertrand, says.
"Come on, let's get outta here!" Toot-Toot says.

> "Now, wait a minute, Toot-Toot. I said I wanted to meet a Woozle, and that's what I'm gonna do," you say.
"Yes, well, now you've met one. Let's go!" Toot-Toot insists. But you stubbornly remain put.

Bertrand sits down in the dirt, shaking his head.
"I'm Bertrand, by the way," he says. "That's Wybert."
"Nice to meet you," you say, reaching out to shake his hand.
Suddenly, a bright flash illuminates the entire forest. The Woozles turn around, and run off in different directions. You try to follow after them, but Bertrand disappears into the shadows.

> Eventually you stop, exhausted. Bertrand is gone, leaving you and Toot-Toot with Wybert again, who's shrunk back to normal size.
"What was that??" you ask, panting.
"Lightning?" Toot-Toot says.
"I don't think so. I didn't hear any thunder," you say.

You look up at the sky. No clouds. No lightning. Nothing.
"Maybe it wasn't lightning, maybe it was something else. Maybe we should check our surroundings." Toot-Toot says, marching away.
"Oh come on, Toot-Toot, you're not going to go exploring alone."

> "I think it was... the Mysterious Thing," Wybert says significantly, squeezing into a hollow log.
"Mysterious Thing? More mysterious than Woozles?" you say.
"Of course," he says, shrinking down to almost nothing.

"We need to find someplace safe to hide, and I think this place might be safe enough," he continues.

> "Wybert, if there really is a Mysterious Thing, we need to find out what it is, not hide in logs," you say.
"Um... okay," Wybert says, changing back to normal size again and accidentally getting stuck.

You hear a rustle in the leaves nearby.
"There's something out there," Wybert says, shaking. "I'll just stay here, but I want you guys to find somewhere safe to hide too. And if there's any other Woozles, we need to warn 'em."

> "Come on," you say, reaching down and pulling on Wybert's paw, trying to get him out of the log. The Woozle is stuck in there good and tight, and it takes some effort to free him.

"Don't worry, I'm not leaving you alone. Now come on out of there, before something comes to get us," you say.
Wybert slowly crawls out of the log, eyes darting back and forth. "Alright, alright, I'll help you guys," he says.

> Wybert dusts himself off. "I don't see how we're going to find the Mysterious Thing if we don't know what it is or what it looks like," he says.
"Well what sort of things does it do?" you ask.

"That's a good question. I guess we should think of the things it's done to us." Wybert thinks for a moment. "Uh... it scares people, I think. Like when we play games, and it would make strange noises. Or we would see weird stuff, like that light."

> "That sounds an awful lot like a Woozle," Toot-Toot says, frowning.
"Yeah, but at least Woozles have a shape. The Mysterious Thing doesn't have a shape," Wybert says.
"I guess we just look for anything unusual," you say.

"Let's go!" Toot-Toot says, bounding off into the woods.
You walk through the trees, looking for anything that could give you an idea of what the Mysterious Thing is. After a while, you find a small, round rock sitting on a branch.

> "Well, that's certainly unusual," you say.
"Oh no, that's just Rock. I put him there because it's his time-out," Wybert explains.
"Never mind then," you say, disappointed. You decide to keep searching.

You go for a while longer, but you still haven't found anything. You've been walking around all night, and you're starting to feel tired. The sun is high in the sky, and you're no closer to solving the mystery. You sit down on a fallen tree, thinking.
You almost fall asleep when you notice a large, black object lying on the ground. It seems to be made from stone, and has a hole in the middle of it.

> You pick up the object and look at it closely. You hand it to Wybert who also inspects it. "Any idea what it is?" you ask.

"No, but it looks pretty old. Probably something that they used to hunt with thousands of years ago," Wybert says.

> "It's definitely mysterious, but I'm not sure if it's the Mysterious Thing itself," he says.
You sigh and wonder if you're going to find anything at all.

"Let's move on," you say. "Where are we going?"
"Anywhere," Wybert replies.
The three of you continue on your way, walking through the trees for quite some time until you reach a clearing. A little stream runs beside the clearing, an old wooden bridge stretching across it. The bridge looks like it has always existed in some form or another, but never used. You also notice has a couple of rocks sticking out of the water.

> You have a feeling that this place is a good spot to make an Important Discovery. You step onto the bridge and dig into your rucksack, pulling out a pair of binoculars.

Staring through them, you scan the forest.
"Anything interesting?" Toot-Toot asks.

> "I'm not sure. Lots of trees," you reply.

"We're going to have to be lucky eventually. There's gotta be something out there."
Suddenly, Toot-Toot points out a small tree in the distance. "There! That's the Mysterious Thing!"

> You turn your head in the direction he's pointing. The tree seems oddly bright compared to the others, but it's hard to tell at this distance, even through the binoculars.

"Let's have a look," you say.
You walk towards the tree, stepping onto the bridge and over to it. The closer you get, the brighter it seems to get. You notice a strange, glowing light emanating from it.

> Wybert shivers in the light's presence. There's something about it that sets him on edge.

"We should turn back," he says nervously.
"No point, we've come this far," you reply.
Toot-Toot, however, is having none of it.

> "My dear fellow, if this really is the Mysterious Thing, shouldn't we... leave it alone?" Toot-Toot tries to suggest.

"It could be dangerous," Wybert points out.

> "I need to know what it is!" you insist- but you pull out your umbrella and raise it defensively, just in case.

Wybert and Toot-Toot look at each other, and shrug.
The three of you draw near the glowing object. It grows brighter, as if it's aware of your presence.

> "Hello?" you say uncertainly. "Are you the Mysterious Thing?"

Suddenly, the object bursts towards you. You barely have time to raise your umbrella before it hits you in the chest, knocking you off your feet.
You fly through the air and slam into the bridge behind you.

> "Well, that wasn't very polite," you say, dizzily standing to your feet.
Wybert and Toot-Toot rush towards you. "Are you okay?" Toot-Toot exclaims.
"Where did the Thing go?" Wybert asks, peering up at the sky.

"I don't know. It... disappeared into the sky, I guess."
"Good riddance," Toot-Toot remarks.

> You sigh, dusting yourself off. "I guess the Mysterious Thing will remain mysterious," you say, disappointed.

You walk back to the bridge, picking up your umbrella along the way.
"Do you think we'll ever find out what it is?" Toot-Toot asks hopefully.
"Doubt it," Wybert remarks.

> Wybert grins widely, bouncing on his feet. "Come to think of it, maybe it's more fun that way," he says.

"Keeps things interesting, you know?"
You can't help but laugh.

> "Well, we may not have solved the mystery, but we did have quite an experience, eh?" he says.
"And I met you two," you add.

Wybert and Toot-Toot look at each other and smile, nodding.
Wybert smiles and takes your hand, bringing it to his lips. Toot-Toot smiles warmly at you as well before hopping onto your shoulder.

> You smile back, feeling like this is a good place to end Chapter One.

THE END

> ...Perhaps.