The glittering dust blossomed into a rolling cloud that filled every corner of the Econoline van, forcing fantastical changes onto every surface it touched.
Solid walls softened and erupted outward, taking on the shape and styling of an olive-colored canvas tent from the 1930's, fully stocked with pristine, vintage wilderness gear; all of it organized and inventoried on trestle shelves and wooden racks that had been expertly assembled using intricate ropework.
Meanwhile, Barrett's body slumped backwards like a rag doll onto his modern, synthetic sleeping bag as it morphed beneath him, quickly losing its slick nylon sheen and pillowy loft to become a dense and heavy slab of compressed plant fiber batting inside a stark shell of khaki canvas. Its long zipper vanished as well, replaced by rugged, oversized snap fasteners every eight inches or so. Even the thin, inflatable camping pad that had been supporting him changed into an antique style of camping cot comprised of criss-crossed wooden supports, all cross-lashed together by heavy strips of fabric that altogether supported a loose canvas overcovering, but the altered bedding foundation did little to support the teen with rather large spaces occurring between each support. His left shoulder and right butt cheek in particular sank uncomfortably between the broad gaps.
Finally Barrett's mature teenage body began to shrink away and soften as his shapely boxer briefs lost the entirety of their modern form and function, blooming out into an unyielding pair of knit boxer trunks with an unflattering vintage styling that sported a tri-snap front yoke, open fly, and dual tension straps around the waist that maintained a sort of inexpensive tailor-fit by way of adjustable sew-to-size buttons. His stylish hemp stoner necklace, too, flattened and distorted itself, growing under and around his arms into a thin, colorless, and sleeveless undershirt that stretched its way over his developing bird chest and drum-tight boy tummy before finally tucking itself deeply and securely into the waist of his new striped trunks.
As he lay there unconscious, growing more and more under-developed by the minute, Barrett's hair began to color-shift to a lustrous blond and sweep itself into a well-sculpted side-part with a raised and dandy fringe. His skin grew generally paler as freckles erupted across the entire bridge of his face and his nose pinched itself into a fittingly juvenile contour.
By the time the magic was spent, the van and its occupant had been completely and thoroughly altered to match the full distinction of scouting perfection that Wilik had come to admire and adore. He hovered over the sleeping lad and giggled with uncontainable glee for his accomplishment. He had no doubt this newly-sanctified leader would be just the thing his scouts needed to help them turn from their unnatural, misguided ways and embrace their true virtue as healers and protectors of the natural world.
—---------------------------
Barrett slowly stirred from his sleep, his current situation and surroundings only coming to his awareness piece by piece.
There was a thick waxy tarp under his feet.
He was seated in a chair.
It was too bright to see.
He could move his arms, but his body was restricted.
Something heavy was keeping him from falling out of the chair.
What he could see through slitted eyes of his surroundings looked entirely unfamiliar.
There was rope everywhere.
He wasn't alone.
Something was coming toward his face!
Barrett groaned angrily as his face was squished in by the force of a child's foot pressing into it. He had to struggle against his bindings and the harshness of the light to dimly see an 11 year old boy braced firmly at his side, intently focused on pulling his rope bindings as tight as possible. Every additional tug of the rope drove the kid's foot deeper into his furious, reddening face.
"Fgn-ugling get off ME!" Barrett shouted around the clammy sole. He flailed his muscular arms in an attempt to snatch the petulant child, but was too slow.
"Sorry!" The boy said, retreating from Barrett's side with a chipper tone and an enormous grin. "I had to make sure it was super tight!"
For the first time since waking, Barrett was able to fully take in his surroundings. He was in an old-timey tent filled with antique camping equipment. There were shelves filled with canteens, baskets, wool blankets, fishing rods, everything nearly a century out of date, but in immaculate condition and in tidy order. Tidy that is, except for the line of untamed rope that coiled and knotted around every nook and cranny of the space. The tent was a veritable nest of diverse knots and lashings, all culminating in a dense bundle of knots that bound Barrett up to his sternum within an inescapable rope cocoon that was at least two feet thick at its narrowest point. Even with his arms free, there was no chance of extracting himself without a knife to cut through the bindings, and a whole lot of time and patience.
The kid was the only other person around, and he was wearing what must have passed for standard boy's underwear a long time ago. He looked comfortable, confident, and natural in his surroundings, as though he were at home.
"Pretty impressive, huh?" The boy said, beaming with pride. "I used every knot I know!"
"Get me out of this you little shit! Where the fuck am I? How the fuck did I get here? Why the F-"
Barrett was cut off suddenly by the boy placing a muffling gag made of yet more rope around his head from behind.
"I'm awful sorry, mister. I didn't wanna tie up your mouth too, but Jeepers!.. You curse like a sailor!"
The boy stepped back to observe his handiwork, posing with his fists on his sides and nodding approvingly. Barrett meanwhile was struggling with his bindings, desperately trying to undo any of the knots within reach.
"There's no use going bananas trying to untie yourself. That's not how the knots work. But don't worry. You'll get outa here. I really want you to. Scouts honor! Just stay calm and I'll explain everything!"
The boy waited for Barrett's struggles to reluctantly ease before continuing.
"For starters, I'm Troop Leader Barrett! I love scouting and nature and handicrafts and animals and sports games and… EVERYTHING... and it's my job to help you become just like me! Cuz that's who you are, ME, only you're not ready to act like it just yet, so you have to stay tied up here inside your mind until you are. See, we're really still asleep, and in the morning I'm going to put the rest of camp in order, but while I'm doing that, you get to learn how to be a true blue boy scout through and through!.. All the knots were my idea! The only way to untie them is to show you know how they were tied!" The boy grabbed a couple loose ropes and instructively folded them into a simple knot causing one of the knots near Barrett's elbow to magically undo itself. "See, it's easy! That was a 'half knot'. And this is a 'half hitch' and this is an 'overhand knot'." A second and third knot magically unraveled on opposite sides of the room. "And this is a 'square knot', but OOPS, I made a mistake." Suddenly all the knots re-tied themselves, leaving Barrett grumbling right back where he started.
The boy tossed the loose ropes to Barrett and picked up a book from the cot titled "3800 Knots - The Sydney Book of Knots"
"This book has everything you need to know." He said, tossing the book to Barrett. "Just tie each one in order with no mistakes and you'll be free to go and control our body in the real world… for as long as you behave yourself at least." He said with a smirk. "You go ahead and get started on your knot tying. I gotta wake up early and prepare camp for a fantastic first morning! I'll answer any questions later… Gosh you look steamed, but try to enjoy this. You're going to love being me… Bye!"
With that the boy vanished into thin air and Barrett was left to question a great many things.