Free Write

nervously and hopped from one foot to another. “You know, I really have to get going-“ “Really, I have three names! My first name is Autumn my middle name is Anna and my last name is… My last name is, well, let’s forget that!”

“Can I please go! I’m late for my meeting at the Grandfather Oak already and the council leader, Liserd, L-I-S-E-R-D, doesn’t like having to delay the meeting.”

“This council of yours, do you meet in here?”

“No, of course not! Like I just said, ‘I’m late for my meeting at the Grandfather Oak.’ I was just coming down here to look for some small bugs in the moss!”

“I suppose that would explain things… If you have the council up there,” I say gesturing up towards the opening, “Then would it be possible for you to somehow help me get up there?”

“That might be possible…”

“Oh please! I’ve been waiting here hoping someone might accidentally stumble upon me and save-“ “No one just stumbles upon these tunnels. Everyone who enters, enters for a reason,” Sparro said gravely.

“I… well…”

“The person may not always know the reason, sometimes the reason is the reason.”

“That makes no sense at all!”

“It may not now, but it soon will. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a VIM, very important meeting, to get to.”

“Will you bring help? To get me out of here I mean,” I ask desperately. Then closing my eyes slowly I await the answer.

“No.” “No?” “No. If you were put in here, you were put in here for a reason; that means you will only be able to get out if you were destined to.

Fiddling with destinies is not a good idea, and not my sport, for sure.”

“But, but…”

Before I could finish my sentence he was gone just, like, that. I look around me, the walls covered with soaking wet moss stare back.

In the stony silence my brain begins to whir.

“Moss. Walls. Water. Moss. Walls. Moss. Moss. Moss!”

I grab a handful of moss from a rock nearby and hold it in my hand slowly squeezing the water out.

“It might work…”

I grab a handful of thick moss on one wall and tug at it hard. It doesn’t come off. I put my full body weight on it; it still doesn’t come off. I begin pulling myself up bit by bit. Before I know it I have reached the top. Using all my strength I heave myself up and out into the sunshine. I lay there a while soaking up the rays of light when a question hits me out of nowhere.