Justicè was the first to break the family's silence. "Hey Johnathan?"

"Yeah, I know" "it's kind of " "creepy?!!!"

"Yeah..." and with that they continued on pressing a little closer to their parents.

Mother Monroe and Father Monroe shared a quizzical look but continued onward. Rounding the bend and finally out of sight of the searing eyes of the park's patrons the family breathed a collective sigh. Once again comfortable in their own skins they spread-out on the path.

"I do wonder as to what all that was about" pondered Mother Monroe.

"It was probably nothing. No doubt they just wanted to see if more drama was to be had." replied Father Monroe.

While that idea did make sense to Mother Monroe, she couldn't help but feel it had to do with something more. 'Ah well it's probably my imagination' she thought. 'It's so very peaceful here I wonder why we never thought to do this sooner.’

As they continued walking, they were quickly enveloped by the woods their senses seduced. Sounds of birds chirping as they went about their business, the sight of butterflies flitting here and there gave them a sense of spring and newness in the air. Even the sun sprinkling through the tree leaves overhead gave the area a utopia likeness making the tree leaves seem vivaciously alive in the light while creating a mystical timelessness in the shade. It was a heavenly escape one sorely needed after the Forlorn Fields kerfuffle. The Monroe family enjoyed every bit of it, soaking themselves in the hypnotic allure of the woods. As they continued on the winding path to Happy Hills the Monroe family wore wide happy grins that were occasionally interrupted with bursts of giggles at the occasional spooked rabbit and the ‘you can’t see me squirrels.’ As they reached the last bend their footsteps slowed, their breaths quickened, and their hearts soared for they had finally, finally reached their destination for before them lay Happy Hills.

Happy Hills was devoid of the constant crush to be found at Forlorn Fields. Its grass was truly greener than any other that they had before witnessed. The air was sweeter than melting ice cream on a summer day, the trees around the border of Happy Hills together formed inviting nooks and crannies perfect for napping. Indeed, some spots resembled the perfect bed with the tree roots providing the framing. The glowing green grass made up the comforter and the flowers made the most inviting pillows. Ah it was a feast for the long-starved senses of the Monroe family, a place where hypervigilance was no longer a necessity for survival.

As they walked closer it was Mother Monroe who commented on the absence of the constant drone of insects. "Wow do you hear that?" asked Mother Monroe.

"Hear what?" asked Justicè.

"I don't hear anything except the wind" remarked Johnathon puzzled because although he heard the wind not a single blade of grass did, he see sway.

"Exactly, no mosquitoes... no hordes of gnats.... no whopper sized flies..." with the naming of each and every insect that inhabited Forlorn Fields in abundance Mother Monroe's excitement and enthusiasm grew. It wasn't until the absence of these insects that Mother Monroe realized just how much she disliked them.

Father Monroe, Johnathan and Justicè looked around confirming the truth of Mother Monroe's words.

"Whoa Mom you're totally right!" cried Johnathon with a little jump and fist pump in the air. "It's like a bug free zone."

"I don't even see any ant mountains" squealed Justicè with a huge grin on her face. "Finally, finally a picnic with no ant and jelly sandwich!" Sighed Justicè in pure happiness at the thought.

Father Monroe was the only one who abstained from the enthusiasm generated by the rest of his family; Only voicing his concerns as they walked to the opening of the small white gate that encompassed Happy Hills. "But don't you think it's peculiar that there are no insects up here especially with all these flowers, trees and plant life?"

"DDDAAAaddd!!! cried Justicè "it's probably the plants that’s keeping them away. Remember, we watched that documentary last week Plants: Nature's Perfected Weapon" said Justicè in the properly dramatic and theatrical voice.

"Well maybe, but..." started Father Monroe. "Yeah, remember Dad, they said some plants even ward off birds, remember Dad?" said Johnathon wanting to remind his Dad that he was actually paying attention to the movie while simultaneously defeating a major boss on his latest game obsession Crushers of the Night.

"Yes, I remember. However...." began Father Monroe.

"Yes Dear, I do recall that documentary as well quite enlightening. Look that purple flower over there; Yes, it looks quite similar to the one they said that bugs avoid with a vengeance. Look that one over there, that orange one with the white stripes. Apparently, it's really good to keep the deer out of one's garden. And that red one there with the white berries apparently birds truly dislike the smell of it and generally avoid it. We could certainly use some for our garden Dear." Murmured Mother Monroe as she continued to mentally calculate the various usages of the plants and how they would look in her backyard.

Father Monroe looked around and felt agitated for some reason. It was a peculiar sensation one he had never before experienced and as such was unable to put it into words. All he knew was that something was bothering him, something was wrong but for the life of him he was unable to figure it out. As the family continued to chatter to one another exclaiming about the colors, the lack of insects and the abundance of both space and shade Father Monroe continued to look around certain he was missing something important.

Mother Monroe, Justicè and Johnathon walked through the gate opening not noticing that Father Monroe's steps had slowed and continued to slow as they continued onwards.

As Father Monroe reached the gate opening and he placed one Adidas covered foot across the barrier of Happy Hills he felt as if he had slammed into a barrier one to be sure was invisible but whose effects on his body were clear. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise and his breathing increase compensating for his surging heart rate. His skin broke out in a cold sweat even though the temperature had not changed and the gentle breeze continued onward; Allowing for the air to circulate the pervasive perfumed sweetness of the plants in the glen.

It was a full minute before Mother Monroe and the children realized that Father Monroe was no longer behind them.

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

"Dear?" called Mother Monroe.

"Dad?" asked Johnathon.

"Daddy?" inquired Justicè.

"Is everything alright Dear?" asked Mother Monroe as she came closer to Father Monroe.

"You look positively terrified."

'Terrified that's it' thought Father Monroe 'Terrified I... Am... Terrified!!!' with this epiphany came an immediate rejection, for Father Monroe had never before been terrified and refused to be so now. "Noooo, I'm fine I just was realizing that I forgot to lock the back door." said Father Monroe as he forced himself to move past the invisible banner one slow step at a time.

"But Dad, remember you told me to go lock it before we left," said Johnathon.

"Oh yeah your right. Ha, ha, ha just getting up there in age." said Father Monroe still walking in the slow watchful steps of prey animals who knew they were being stalked.

Mother Monroe, Johnathan and Justicè stared at Father Monroe never before had they seen him so tense, so agitated almost as if he was afraid. But as soon as the thought crossed Johnathan's and Justicè 's mind it was dismissed for they had never before seen their father afraid and could not imagine him as being so now. Besides there was nothing to be afraid of and with the innocence and absolute belief in the strength of their parents that is embedded in young children they set off to explore; The grass blades crunching beneath their shoes. Mother Monroe who had known Father Monroe for much longer and was much wiser to the capabilities of adults paced closer to Father Monroe picking up on his absolute terror that he was unsuccessfully trying to hide.

“Honey, What’s wrong?!!” asked Mother Monroe all her earlier enthusiasm nonexistent.

“I don’t know… I’ve never felt this way before...” muttered Father Monroe still moving forward in the slow stork like fashion. “I, I, I think it’s this place.” offered Father Monroe.

“But there’s nothing here that could possibly harm us” said Mother Monroe looking around at the green grass, the towering trees and the deep inviting bedlike roots and flowers. “It’s beautiful here, the wind is perfect, the shade looks sublime for a picnic, and best of all there are not any boys playing catch with any kind of throwable objects.”

With each word that Mother Monroe spoke Father Monroe became calmer and his gait grew steadily smoother approaching a stride of a normal human being as he walked with Mother Monroe to the largest bed-root system; which happened to be situated under a huge tree of the likes he had never before seen. The grass under their feet crunching beneath each footfall. The children who had already reached the spot were thoroughly enjoying themselves while examining the tree.

“You know what?! Your right; There’s nothing here that can harm us and I especially like the absence of the mini bulldozers.” said Father Monroe his body finally settling into its normal rhythms as the logical human mind overrode the body’s instinctive recognition of danger. As they reached the tree trunk Father Monroe dropped the rest of the items that he had been carrying next to the things that the kids had dumped there and turned to Mother Monroe. Looking down at her as she tilted her head up towards him, they smiled at one another. Pleased to be in each other’s company without the threat of something happening that was ever present at Forlorn Fields.

Mother Monroe went on her tippy toes and Father Monroe bent down and they kissed with the passion that had never waned in their fifteen years of marriage.

“Eeewwww!!!!” exclaimed Justicè and Johnathon as they came around the other side of the massive tree trunk that they had been exploring.

“We can’t leave them alone for a moment" said Johnathon as he shook his head in the typical grossed out young boy fashion, his arms crossed and face demonstrating his extreme disappointment.

Justicè not to be outdone by her older brother was also looking at her parents with disappointment, while shaking her head, making noises of disapproval at her parents conduct “Uhn unh unh”. Then as if they had practiced ahead of time the siblings looked at one another and giggled which quickly transformed into boisterous laughter.

Father and Mother Monroe looked on as they held onto one another taking in the joy that their children provided them and that they provided each other. Sighing in happiness Father and Mother Monroe headed towards the tree and began once again the process of setting up a picnic area with the family. All the while the grass crunched underfoot.

Mother Monroe with Justicè's help unfolded the blanket for the picnic spreading it as thoroughly as feasible over the bed-roots. The purple flowers strategically placed beneath where their heads would rest. Father Monroe and Johnathon gathered the rest of their items and secured the blanket to the ground with a picnic basket at one end. A jug of sweet tea at the other end and a cooler filled with need to keep cool items at the other end and a large rock found right by the tree trunk. It was the one-of-a-kind type of rock, the perfect weight to keep the blanket down without being too heavy to move or edged to cut up one's hands. The family completing their preparations commenced to sit down and prepare to eat. Ignoring the ever present

“crackle, crunch, crackle”

of the grass underneath.

Once the family had each settled into surprisingly comfortable positions, Father Monroe led the family in prayer over the food. Each family member reached for the closet family member's hand as they had done so many times before bowing their heads and closing their eyes as Father Monroe began the familial blessing.

"Father, we thank you for allowing us to partake in this gorgeous day, and for the food that Mother Monroe has prepared for us. Lord, we thank you that Mother Monroe was not as seriously injured as she could have been when that young man hit her in the fields. I ask that she be fully healed lord with no side effects. I ask that you continue to bless this family as you have done so many times over the years. God thank you for everything but most of all Lord thank you for my family. Amen" ended Father Monroe.

"Amen" echoed his family with that they all started to spread the food.

It was a picnic just like any other except there were no food thieves to concern oneself about, no ant and jelly sandwiches much to Justicè's delight. No bulldozers or flying objects; it was just the family, their food and nature. It was a bliss never before known to the Monroe family and they soaked it in as deep as they possibly could, wanting to imprint the feeling of peace and safety of complete and utter serenity. Once everyone was full and the leftover food and cutlery had been put in its proper place the family as one stretched out with their heads on the pillowy flowers. The rest of their bodies were supported by the bed-root system. The crackle, crunch of the grass and soft rustle of the flowers were the only accompaniment to the sleep filled voices of the Monroe family.

Mother Monroe was on one outer side with Johnathon beside her already sleeping the deep sleep of a child who knew his parents would protect him. Whistling lightly with each exhalation of breath Mother Monroe ran her hands lightly through his hair remembering when he was still a babe who could fit into the crock of her arm. Wishing that he was still that young and that innocent and easy to protect yet at the same time accepting that he was turning into a fine young man, one who would be great at whatever he decided to do.

Beside Johnathon, Justicè lay on her back her head resting on her father’s outstretched arm continuing to look at the underside of the leaves against the backdrop of the light blue of the sky wondering as to how they could be so complex yet at the same time simple valiantly fighting sleep as she contemplated that mystery.

Beside her Father Monroe lay on his side, his head also resting on his outstretched arm. As his family either drifted willingly, and thoughtfully into sleep. He too felt the need to sleep, weighing heavily on his body yet his mind refused to be silent. His body however was relaxed to a state he had never before known. "hmmm" sighed Father Monroe and as he opened his eyes one more time to check on his family, he noticed movement out of the corner of his eyes. 'huh what is that?' thought Father Monroe as he willed his body to move the movement that at first was barely noticeable seemed to be increasing. But much to his horror he found that he was unable to move his body; indeed, it was becoming harder to even keep his eyes open. The only thing preventing them from fully closing was the sheer terror that had been repressed coming once more into the fore of his mind. As he continued to try and get his body to move the movement came closer, gaining in speed. Until it came into focus and Father Monroe felt true horror because it wasn't an animal and it wasn't just one thing it was.... an army of grass.