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Chapter 26

Farewell to the Forest

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“Well, do you have everything?” asked Ava.

“I think so,” the boy answered, packing his bag. He stood up and took one last look just to be sure.

The cave was quiet and empty. He’d spent all morning cleaning it, preparing the ground for whoever might move in next. The only thing he couldn’t scrub off were the paintings.

“Take your time,” said Ava, sitting down next to him. “There’s no rush. A part of you is going to miss it here, isn’t it?”

“ . . . Yeah, maybe.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay just one more night?”

“No, I’m ready.” He picked up his staff and turned around. “Come on. Let’s go.”

As they ascended onto the terrace, he was surprised to find all his friends waiting for him.

“Look! There he is!” cried Lumpy’s father, getting everyone’s attention. All the Brumbledumb apes started beating their chests. The little ones tossed fresh spring flowers into the air. “Three cheers for our hero! The one! The only! The Invisible Hand!”

“The Phantom Ape!” tweeted Sebastian, Dorabella and Edward.

“Robbing HoOoOod!” cooed the pigeons.

“BeEeEe-wolf!” buzzed Madame Bee.

Everyone seemed to call him something different.

“Hip, hip, hurray!” they cheered. “Hip, hip, hurray! Hip, hip, hurray!”

“Golly!” the boy gasped with a big smile. “Hi everyone! It’s great to see you!” But, as usual, it took him a long time to catch on. “Wait a minute,” he said, looking around, confused. “What are you all doing here?” He drew his staff and got ready to fight. “Is there some kind of trouble?”

Everyone started giggling.

“Trouble?” chuckled Lumpy’s father. “Not anymore. Thanks to you, the forest is peaceful!”

“We’ve come to say goodbye!” cheered Mrs. Butterfly.

“Yeah,” croaked old Mr. Turtle. “You slow or something?”

“Really?” our hero gasped. Everyone nodded. “But . . . how did you know I was leaving?”

The animals all looked at Ava.

“I told them,” she answered.

“YOU invited them here?”

Now he began to wonder if he were dreaming. Ava never did things like that. She hated his friends. Even more, she hated parties.

“Sure,” she shrugged. “Hey! Why are you all looking at me like that? So, I wanted to surprise him! You got a problem with that or something!?”

“Oh, Ava!” said the boy, his eyes filling with tears of joy. “It’s perfect! The best surprise ever! Thank you!”

He reached out and hugged her tightly.

“Ugh! Yuck! Get off me!”

Everyone lined up and took turns thanking the boy, often giving him presents and asking questions about his journey.

“So, where are you going?” asked Dorabella, dropping some seeds in his palm.

“I’m not sure,” he answered, petting her.

“Do you think it will be dangerous?”

“Maybe.”

“What do you think you’ll find?” asked Mr. Squirrel, next. Out of his cheeks, he pulled two peanuts.

The boy shrugged.

“I don’t know.”

“What if you don’t find anything?” asked Edward, giving a worm.

The boy thought about it. Though not for too long.

“Hmm . . . I’m not sure. I guess I’ll just have to keep looking, won’t I?”

Then young Sebastian flew down. He landed right on the boy’s shoulder, carrying a lot more than just one gift. In a leaf, he’d bundled all his most precious possessions. A walnut, some cherries and a twig shaped like a spear. It all tumbled out, making a great big mess.

“HELLO!” he exclaimed, interrupting his brother and pushing him aside. “Ahem! Allow me to introduce myself! My name is Sebastian Ploomberry! And I am your BIGGEST FAN!”

“Hi! Pleased to meet you.”

“I SAW YOU FIGHT A HUNDRED APES!”

“A hundred?”

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“It was magnificent! The way you zigged! The way you zagged! The way you pounded their big, fat heads. Pow! Pow! POW!”

“Well, I couldn’t have done it without your help.”

“You mean . . . YOU REMEMBER THAT?”

“Mmmhmm! It was very brave of you.”

The biggest smile spread across Sebastian’s face.

“Oh,” he couldn’t help asking. “Can I please come with you on your next adventure? Please! PLEASE!”

“Well . . .” The boy looked at Dorabella, who seemed worried. “Maybe next time.”

“Aww!”

“But I’ll tell you what. How about you take this?” The boy raised his staff and drove it into the ground. “You can guard it for me while I’m gone.”

The little bird’s eyes lit up.

“Wow! Your stinger? Really?” He flew up and proudly perched himself upon it. “OKAY!”

“Keep it safe, now. I’m counting on you.”

Sebastian puffed up his feathers and stood tall.

“I will!” he promised. “If anyone even looks at it, I shall peck their eyes out! If anyone touches it, I’ll go to the bathroom on their head!”

“Thanks,” the boy replied, gently stroking him.

When the animals were finally finished, Ava started nudging the boy.

“It’s time,” she whispered.

Hopping onto a rock, he addressed all of them at once.

“Well,” he announced. “I better get going. Thanks again for coming, everyone! It means a lot to me. Goodbye! I’ll miss you!”

The animals all cheered one last time.

“WeEeEe’ll miss you too! Snort, snort!”

“Wisely and slow now, sonny!”

“Farewell, neighHhHhbor!”

“BeEeEe careful!”

“Avoir un rafale, monsieur!”

“See you later, alligator!”

“Brekekekex! Koax! Koax!”

“Ooh Ahh! Ooh Ahh!”

Waving, our hero and his companion turned toward the sun and began their journey. The first stop would be the Wood of the Willows.

“Golly, it sure was fun seeing everyone again,” sighed the boy, kneeling down on the mossy forest floor. “I hope they’ll be safe while I’m gone.”

“You mean, you really plan on returning?” asked Ava.

“I’d like to.” He realized he needed a new spear. When he found a stick he liked, he began sharpening the tip. “Just to visit . . . check up on things.”

“You really do love them, don’t you?”

“Of course.”

The boy stood up. He gave his new weapon a few test swings. “Hi-ya! Hi-ya!” It was even better than his last one. “HI-YA!” With hardly any effort at all, he pierced it right through an old tree stump. “Wow! Did you see that? Now THAT’S a strong stick!”

Ava rolled her eyes.

“Don’t you get it?” she sighed. “It isn’t the stick. It’s you. You’re stronger now. Much stronger. I can tell.”

“Really?”

Then something else caught his attention.

“Hey, wait a minute . . . didn’t this stump used to be taller? He crouched down and patted around the base for quicksand. “Hmm . . . maybe it’s sinking.”

“It’s called a growth spirt, genius,” she answered. “The stump isn’t shorter. You’re taller.”

He looked up, trying to see the top of his head, but couldn’t. So he went to a tree instead. He made a little mark on it and stepped back.

“You know what? I think you’re right!”

All of it made him wonder what else had changed. Gripping his spear, he felt like seeing how far he could throw it.

“There will be plenty of time for that later,” said Ava. “Do not think our journey will be easy. Many new foes await us. You can test your new skills out then. For now, let’s focus on moving.”

“Right!”

The Wood of the Willows was silent and peaceful, a place so dreamy that even the birds couldn’t help whispering. You could hear the sound of a stream a mile away and rarely came upon a spot that wasn’t perfect for a nap. As the boy and Ava walked, they remembered all the fun times they had together.

“Hey, isn’t this the first place you took me exploring? Look, there’s the first tree I climbed! And over there! The first time I tasted blueberries!”

Of course, Ava’s idea of fun had always been very different from his.

“And there was the first beating I gave you! And there was where you got your first scar! Aw, look!” she sighed sweetly. “The first tooth I knocked out. You can still see the blood.”

The boy didn’t recall those memories nearly as fondly as she did, but couldn’t help laughing along with her.

Soon, they came to the old obstacle course she had made for him. Just for fun, he ran it again. Proudly, Ava watched as he bounded over every pit, rolled under every log and smashed through every barrier. He found his old boomerang and slingshot. Even more memories came flooding back. All those hours he’d spent practicing! All those disastrous experiments! All those frustrating disappointments and failures until he’d finally succeeded! How wildly he remembered celebrating! However, there was one memory that made him happier than all the others. It came to him just as he was sitting down next to a spring, after he heard some rustling in the bushes.

“Hello?” he asked curiously.

A pretty doe emerged and glanced at him, batting her eyelashes.

“Greetings,” she sighed gently.

Too stunned by her beauty to respond, all he could do was sit there, gazing at her.

“Hey,” whispered Ava, nudging him. “Who is that? One of your friends? I don’t remember her.”

“I’m not sure.”

At first, the boy didn’t recognize her. But the closer he looked, the more familiar she seemed.

“Sorry, do I know you?”

Her voice sounded even more familiar.

“You weren’t going to leave without saying goodbye to me, were you?” she giggled. “Don’t you remember? Well, I suppose it’s been quite a long time since you saw me. I was only a fawn . . .”

Suddenly, it started to drizzle rain. Far in the distance, he heard thunder gently rumbling. What remained of the sunlight gleamed on her pretty coat. She smiled and, like a flood, it all started coming back to him.

“W-w-wait . . . wait!” he cried, excitedly. “Is it . . . is it really you?”

The doe batted her eyelashes and giggled some more.

“Yes. It’s me. I just wanted to come and wish you farewell on your journey . . . and to thank you one last time for saving me all those years ago.” Then, after one last giggle, she bounded away into the mist where two fawns of her own were waiting for her.

“Who was that?” asked Ava. “Saving her? I don’t remember that. Hey, are you listening?” He stared dreamily as the happy family frolicked away together. “Hello?”

“No, I don’t think you would,” he finally responded. “You weren’t there. It happened the night before I told you I was going to be the forest guardian. She was the first one I rescued.”

“I don’t believe I’ve heard that story.”

“I guess I forgot to tell you.”

“Well, we’ve got a very long journey ahead of us. So, you can tell it to me now.”