After a single day Norbert become the talk of the town, or that’s what it felt like.
All eyes were looking at him, snickers going down the hallway as he passed, with his backpack full of gear and his second backpack of class equipment slung over the front, and in all seriousness, Norbert could understand the strange looks and whispers that he had lost his mind. Because really, why else would someone do what he is currently doing, walking around with two backpacks with climbing gear in one at all times, there wasn’t even a mountain in the walking distance, let alone being in a uni building attending IT classes.
But alone, Norbert still would not care, for it would save him from risking his life once more, climbing from branch to branch, making his way down to the bottom.
And with his patience once more done, another day had ended for Norbert; sighing in relief that he would not make a complete fool of himself. Norbert once more entered apartment seventeen, dropping his uni bag off at the doorway, the habit of keeping the other backpack on him at all times still nestling deep within. As he finally relaxed again, taking off his shoes, the apartment filled with light, under him was the circle.
Quickly grabbing the backpack on the ground, he clasped it and felt it in his fingers as he was once more encased in darkness. As he waited again, he still felt his shoes and bag clasped around each hand, relief going through him, knowing he would not need to go again with no protective gear from branch to branch.
As light once more filled his eyes, Norbert looked around at the birds once more surrounding him, looking at his little black friend fly off. Pulling his phone out of his pocket he tried to unlock it, only showing the time he left and not updating any further.
Annoyed, he put it back in his pocket, hoping the device was not broken. Placing the backpack on the tree branch, retrieving the harness from the top and securing it around himself, and putting on the shoes he had just discarded, chosen and worn at nearly all times to allow him to get some purchase on the branches so as not to fall off, otherwise known as sneakers. Still being cheap enough that if they were lost in this strange forest they were able to be easily replaced when he made it back.
Removing the rope he bought, twirling half around the branch he was on, making a highway knot to allow him to keep it and continue climbing down. When he did not have enough rope, he started abseiling down after wearing his backpack.
Looking over the edge, Norbert once more checked the line, going over it one more time as he had practised recently. With a quick prayer for luck that he would reach the bottom this time, he stepped off the branch.
Looking around, he slowly lowered himself, surrounded by the birds, feeling like he was one of them himself. After a short drop, he made it to the next branch, only slightly off to the side. After landing on the branch, he took the other half of the rope and pulled on it, releasing the knot from above.
With that, it started to fall down towards him, a circle of blue rope falling and going off the branch below him. Catching as much as he could, he balled it back up towards him, splitting the rope in half again and tying it around the tree, looking up at the distance covered it would have taken him tens of minutes climbing in only one.
With a smile at his leap in progress, he looked down to see how far he would need to drop until he reached the next branch. Estimating that it was the same, he once more jumped off.
Down and down, Norbert coming closer and closer to the ground, sometimes losing his grip when landing or missing the rope as it went over the edge when he released it, but the progress compared to free climbing was exhilarating. Norbert thought back to all the looks he had gotten, the stares, whispers, and snickers for countless days, even of his roommate. Still, all was worth it for this easy progress he was making, hoping to be at the bottom before his time in the mystical land ended and he would be swept back through the circle into the ordinary world.
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As he neared further and further to the bottom, still surrounded by the birds, his little friend once more landed beside him. With it being as good a time for a break as any, he positioned his rope once more around the branch under him and confirmed that there was another, attached to his harness so in case he did fall off, he wouldn’t be going the quick way down and opened his pack up.
Ruffling inside, Norbert pulled out his prize, a granola bar and the water bottle.
He opened the packet with a smile, breaking off a piece for the bird sitting next to him.
“It’s all good little guy, just some food.” Norbert looked down towards the bird, still reaching out with the crumbs. As it hopped down towards him on the branch once more, flapping its wings, alighting onto his knee, staring out towards his hand with the finger, and pecked at the bar attached.
With a whirl of its wings, it pecked more and more at it until everything in Norbert’s hand was eaten.
Looking down, the smile not escaping his face, he broke off a piece of the bar and placed it on the ground, eating the rest himself. With that, the bird started pecking and nibbling at it, causing it to be half covered in crumbs; it brushed itself off before chasing around afterwards. A laugh escaped his mouth, cackling throughout the forest, bouncing off the branches and trees around him, making it seem that a laughing and jeering crowd surrounded him.
Norbert looked around silently, hoping not to disturb anyone or anything that could be out there. With a tense breath, he relaxed, nothing being alarmed. With the break over, Norbert took a swig from his bottle, wetting his palate once again before packing his things and putting the wrapper back in his backpack before making his descent, leaving his little friend above.
When he was halfway down to the next branch, he looked up and saw the little guy poking his head down before fluttering down and landing on Norbert’s head.
There it scuffled around and sat down, content with its portable elevator ride down the tree.
And so the brave pair continued down the giant tree with the purple veins, one branch at a time.
With what felt like two hours passing and both having breaks between their treacherous journey, the forest floor was visible again for Norbert. Sadly due to the more significant distance from the top, the branches were getting smaller each time, thinner and thinner and a greater distance between each one he could land on.
He started to need to go further out to the side to reach the branches until now when he looked below, and there was nothing seen.
Looking to the left and right, no more branches that could hold his weight were seen.
With a commitment to reaching the bottom once more on his final leg of the journey, Norbert changed the knot so the rope would not be able to be retrieved, needing the greatest amount of rope possible.
He tied his knife to the end to weigh it down before dropping the rope off the end to see how far below the single rope would allow him to reach. With hope, he saw the rope uncoil more and more from the top until it finally stopped.
Looking off the side of the branch, Norbert looked down at the knife hovering above the ground; knowing that it was close, Norbert once more retrieved the rest of the line, not wanting to fall and end up impaling himself on his knife and bleeding out in a strange land, hoping for the circle to pick him up before needing to make his way to a hospital in the middle of the night.
As Norbert made his way down the last bit, about ten meters from the ground, he saw a gash in the tree as wide as he was down the trunk. Looking around, Norbert saw that any branches had been smashed off the trees, and the neighbouring trees also had similar gashes at varying heights.
Looking down at the plants below him, he saw the vast size of them, some of the leaves taller than him, with vines growing up the sides of the trees with little pink flowers sprinkled throughout it, only being stopping when they hit the gashes, but even those slowly being covered over.
No insects buzzed in the air, with the remaining birds way up except for the small obsidian one still resting on Norbert’s head.
With a bit of trepidation at what was to come, Norbert slid down his rope the rest of the way, finally landing on the forest floor and feeling solid ground upon his feet.