Overwhelmed, the boy snapped his head in Winter's direction and erupted from his seat. When Forest saw that she was sincere, he stared at her expectantly.

Autumn stood up and slowly folded her arms. "Brother, we were taken. All of us were."

Forest gave her a double-take. "You, Winter, and Holly?" His frown only deepened when she nodded. "You said a lot has happened, but I wasn't ready for this..."

"We told you to brace yourself many times and you kept insisting that we should just tell you," Winter said, her voice heavy.

"How was I supposed to be ready for-"

"Can I continue?" Autumn straightened up when she earned her brother's attention. "I was grouped with Holly and Jake, remember? We were looking for the missing people in the woods. Anyway, things quickly escalated and we were soon looking behind us over and over. It was as though we just knew that we were being watched."

Forest gave a stiff nod. "I felt the same way when Winter and I left that night..."

"Let her finish! Stop interrupting," Winter said, irritated. She looked back at her sister when he quieted down. "Go ahead."

"Well, unfortunately, we were right. Out of nowhere, Holly and I were tackled to the ground and knocked out. But not Jake. He wasn't captured, somehow; though it was certainly a close one." Autumn let out a soft chuckle. "That man's a fighter."

The boy resisted the urge to look at Winter. She hadn't told her sister the truth. Jake was the least lucky of them all.

"The next thing I knew" -Autumn averted her gaze- "I woke up in a room with Holly and the doors - they were locked from the outside. We had no way of escaping."

"What did they want?" Forest pressed.

"They wanted information. They wanted to know the location of this farmhouse so that they could take it over," she answered, her words grave. "They want to kill us and believe me when I say that they easily have over thirty people. Easily."

"Thirty?" The boy exclaimed in disbelief.

"Forest," Autumn continued, eyes narrowed, "Winter came not long after that. They had captured her too, which is why she hadn't come home sooner."

"H-how'd you guys escape? And where's Holly?" His eyes grew hard when they shared a hesitant glance. "Answer me!"

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"Someone let us out. If it weren't for him" -Winter gave a heavy sigh- "we wouldn't be here right now. Maybe even dead."

"As for Holly, she escaped too, but we had lost each other at some point," Autumn added, her words carrying much grief. She shifted on her feet, uneasy. "She's out there somewhere, but we can't go out again. Not only have we already lost so much, but I don't think we're supposed to."

Forest watched her wipe at her eyes. "What if she doesn't find her way back?"

"Then she doesn't. I can't afford to lose any more. I've already lost my arm!" Winter said, hurt, and kicked at a stray can of beans on the floor. "Holly will have to find her own way back."

After a long and delicate moment, he cleared his throat and offered a weak smile. "At least some of us are home." The gesture was halfheartedly returned. With a soft sigh, he wandered across the room and looked at the ladder. He just couldn't take the intense atmosphere anymore.

Upon reaching the attic, its air was thick and heavy; but he didn't mind. At least it was quiet and he could think to himself.

On shaky feet, he stepped over to one of the beds and sank down. All the while, he avoided looking at the gun in the corner of the room. It was the same one that was covered in blood and held too many dark memories. He just couldn't bear the sight of it.

Instead, he set his gaze on the window, as he often did, and observed the woodlands. Written across the sky was a layer of dusk that was only beginning to take effect. Shouldn't they be back by now? Deciding he had enough to worry about, however, the boy put the thought aside.

As he watched the world go by beyond the farmhouse, Forest couldn't hold it back any longer. After the first tear fell, others quickly followed. One moment, he was embraced by the silence; in the next, he heard footsteps from downstairs coming to the ladder. Suddenly fearful, he wiped at his eyes but it was too late.

"Forest?"

The boy ignored them as he continued cleaning his face.

The owner of the voice came closer. "It's me. It's Autumn."

He felt the bedspread sink beside him. "Can you please leave? I need to think," he asked bitterly.

"I will once you look at me."

With reluctance, the boy obeyed and his eyes were immediately trapped in her gaze.

"Holly's vision was a warning. I have a feeling they will come too but don't worry. We'll be prepared. One person can't be so unfortunate, right?" Autumn paused, placing a hand on his shoulder. "When the others come back, I'll tell them what we told you. We'll be ready."

Shaking his head, Forest averted his eyes. "Can you leave now? Please?" When she nodded, her expression unreadable, the boy softened. "You're probably right."

"Don't lose hope, Forest. If you do that, we've already lost." She stepped over to the ladder and gave her brother a light smile. "The vision was not to cause fear, but to give us a chance to be prepared." With that, she climbed down, leaving the boy to himself once more.

In less than a day, he was given more information than he knew what to do with. For far too many weeks, the hours came and went without anything happening. But not anymore. He knew those days were over and that the ones ahead were going to be much more eventful. That vision - it was a warning of the great hardships to come. And he knew they were going to be ready. Forest couldn't allow himself to think otherwise. All his life he had always been so negative, but for once in his life, he wished to be like Autumn. What he needed was hope.

Lost in his thoughts, the boy suddenly caught something moving in the corner of his eye and smiled softly when he realized who it was. It was them.

They were finally home.