Eli stared in the direction of what she would swear had been the sound of wolves howling, mentally debating about what she should do. Frustrated that Tobias had vanished somewhere, yet also hoping he was all right, the teenage girl eventually decided that her priority was to her brother. Glancing in the direction from where she'd heard the noises, still hugging herself, she huffed, "I'm not just going to stand around here, waiting all day," before scooping up her pyjamas, turning and starting in what she hoped was the right direction.
She knew her chances of finding Linus in a forest was somewhere between slim to good luck, but this, she decided, would not deter her from trying. She did wish Tobias was with her, as he seemed good at finding where they were supposed to go. And at one point, she almost stopped and turned around and went back. But then figuring that if he was off doing who knew what, she was going to have to solve the problem of locating her brother herself. A quick glance and weighing her options, she choose a direction and, hoping she was going in the right one, she once again started walking.
Twice she ended up back at the cabin. The first time, she thought it might have been because she accidentally looped around. But on the second time, she wasn't so sure any more, as she was certain she had been paying attention to the direction she'd been going, whilst at the same time making sure she had been going in a straight line. Leerily, she peered at the building and shivered. Something about the cabin still seemed off to her, whilst, at the same time, she had the strangest feeling, like it was calling out to her, inviting her in. Thinking this was silly, she turned away from the building, settled on a new direction and began hiking through the woods, anxious to find her brother and put this all behind them, worried about what her parents might be going through.
Thoughts never that settled on one thing or another chased their way around her mind as she searched for even the faintest hint of her brother. Eventually, as her stomach began to grumble, Eli found herself thinking about breakfast and where she could find something to eat. Wishing that Tobias was still with her, figuring that if he had spent the last several days wandering the forest, he would know what was edible and where someone could find it. Suddenly finding herself back at the cabin, she groaned, then angrily muttered, "Oh course I could get something to eat in there."
But the idea of actually entering the building still did not hold any appeal to her, no matter how hungry she might be. Peering at the building, trying to figure out what about it seemed off and why it seemed to what to draw people to it, certain there was more than simply a curse that turned people into animals, Eli abruptly turned away. Stating, "No. No matter how many times I'm brought here, I will not enter that stupid cabin," and picking a direction, she started walking.
The notion of not to travel in a straight line came to her after some time, and starting to zig-zag every so often, randomly change direction, and some times backtrack a bit before choosing a new course, she scanned the woods as she did so. Keeping an eye out for the first sign of either her brother or Tobias' brother, though she wasn't quite sure what he looked like, the teenage girl was certain that, sooner or later, she would run into them. Yet, they weren't the only things she found herself looking for. For as she slipped amongst the trees, changing the direction she went, hoping she didn't end up back at the cabin, which she decided she wanted to avoid as much as possible, she also kept an eye out for anything that might be edible, "Like berries," she reasoned, and in the process, began to notice something she found odd about the forest.
As she walked, she once and while glanced up, which she figured was when she first noticed it. After some time, and still not finding anything she was sure wouldn't poison her, Eli started to notice that, except for the wolves in Tobias' company, she hadn't seen a single animal. Finding this strange, she felt that by now she had certainly seen birds, a rabbit or two, or at least a deer, all of which she'd seen while camping. Thinking it off-putting, Eli studied some berries that she wasn't sure whether they were blueberries or not, as some had a red tint, whilst a couple looked almost dark purple, she huffed, "Wish I knew where Tobias' got to. He'd be able to tell me whether they were safe to eat," and turning away from the small thicket of fruit, she glanced about, chose a direction, started walking, changed course a couple times, and finally stopped at a stream, where she dropped to her knees and stared into the water, which she noted didn't really cast any sort of reflection, which she figured was due to how shallow it was.
Despair slowly settled over her and after a moment she whispered, "I'm never going to get out of these woods. Find Linus. See mom and dad again," and setting her pyjamas to one side, she leaned forward, cupped her hands, scooped up some of the water and drank deeply.
Her thoughts drifted for a bit before she finally settled on that, in some way, she was cursed, like Tobias. "Only, my curse didn't come from some creepy cabin. It stems from my inability to even do what daddy and mommy told me to do," and still drinking, the water sating her appetite some, she wondered about the forest, the lack of animals and the cabin.
The minutes slipped by and after a bit, she figured that her options where to either sit by the stream, feeling sorry for herself, or find her brother and see if there was a way they could escape together. Deciding the latter was a better option, she collected her pyjamas, stood and began walking in a haphazard manner. Searching for any sign of life, having given up on finding food, as she wasn't sure what might make her sick and what wouldn't, it was completely by accident when she, without giving it another thought, turned, started walking in a new direction and in process stumbled upon what she at first thought was someone's cast of clothes.
Unable to stop herself, Eli shuddered when her mind immediately leapt to the thought that there were others out in the wood, suffering the same fate as Tobias. But then, as she stared at the garments, she began to notice things and as she felt herself starting to grow cold, the teenage girl whispered, "No."
Horrified at what she was seeing, she dropped her own pyjamas and scooped up what she recognised as her brother's favorite sleepwear. Whimpering, "Linus," she hugged the night clothes to her chest and looked about for her brother. Spotting the plush he always insisted on taking everywhere, she sunk to the ground. Remembering how he had been insistent about getting it, the way their father had, at first, not approved, but in the end relented to allowing his son have what he deemed a girl's toy, she gasped and found that for some reason, she was having problems breathing.
Troubled by what was before her, she briefly wondered who the other set of clothes belonged to, then pushed the question from her mind. Gradually getting her breathing under control, Eli whimpered, "Linus," a second time, dropped her brother pyjamas next to hers, stood and picked up the plush. Hugging it close, she buried her nose in the animal's mane, much the same way her brother would and breathed deeply in the trapped scents, including one that reminded her of her brother.
After a bit, she stumbled away from the pile of clothes, her own pyjamas forgotten. Still clutching the plush unicorn, her thoughts on her brother and what might be happening to him, the teenage girl began to wander. Not really paying attention to where she was going, turning away whenever she arrived back at the cabin, Eli felt a sort of tunnel vision settle over her, her attention on one thing, finding Linus.