You decide to shrug off your misgivings and start the fire. It takes quiet a while, but eventually you get a nice fire going. You remove your shoes and warm your aching feet and lean against the tree. You smile satisfactorily as you close your eyes and listen to each snap and pop of the campfire. Your misgivings evaporating. As you get warmer, you shed your water-logged old cloak and lay it down next to your shoes. You curl up next to the fire and close your eyes. You're just about ready to close your eyes and fall asleep when a large collection of water and wet leaves showers down from above, drenching you and putting out your fire. You sit up gasping and panting.
"What was that?" you say staring up at the trees
"It was me. Fires are dangerous. We tried to warn you, but you wouldn't listen." a voice says. The voice doesn't really come from outside, it's more like someone is thinking with your mind. You're not even convinced you really heard it. In answer, the voice speaks again.
"You heard me alright. I like speaking with your language, but it appears to be the only way you humans pay attention. Wasn't always like that. You humans used to be so much closer to nature. You used to listen. Now you don't." the voice says.
"Uh...hello?" you say out loud. You stand up and begin looking around. As you step away from the tree you feel your bare feet sink into the mud slightly. You wiggle your toes a bit. You're not used to sinking your naked feet into mud. It feels strange, cold, but not entirely unpleasant. You stand still listening for the voice again.
"Are you still there?" you ask.
"I'm always here." the voice says in your head again. Your heel digs deeper into the mud. At first you though it was a reflex, but no it was something else. You're heel dug itself into the earth without you moving your feet. You wiggle your toes again squishing mud between your toes. It feels nice, and warmer somehow. The more you wiggle them however the slower they move. They you slowly become aware that they also feel like they're growing.
"I won't start anymore fires tonight. I'm sorry, whoever you are." you say.
"No more fires ever." the voice says. You try to lift your feet from the mud, but they're stuck. You can feel them growing even faster now. You look down at them and see that your toes have become roots and are holding you fast. Your heart beats faster and you begin panting with panic as your feet grow thick and brown with bark, new roots sprouting and digging deeply into the soil. Your heels, now you realize were growing and still grow forming a thick root that plunges into the ground deeper and deeper into the ground. Your feel bark crawling up yours legs and you can feel them getting thicker and thicker.
"Please, no!" you shout "I'll leave. I'll leave the forest and never come back. I promise." you say pleading your pant legs burst as your legs thicken and merge into each other lifting you up in the air slightly.
"you won't leave," the voices says as your legs completely disappear into a thick oaken trunk "can't leave the forest, you are the forest." the voice says unemotionally. The bark continue itching its way up your midsection and your fingers begin to lengthen. Bringing them before you you feel a sensation that is a cross between an itch and a tingle as leaves sprout from them. You feel the same feeling from your hair. As the bark reaches your underarms your arms are pushed into a raised position. Bark crawls up them and straightens your elbows causing you to reach out to the sky. Your roots by now are spread out deeply into the soil.
"Please stop. Please stop. Please stop." you say this over and over but receive no further communication save a vague feeling that this is probably for the best. You know full well, though, that it's not your feeling, but them speaking to you in their language. You keep muttering until the bark covers your face and the thickness covers it up. Your eyes become knots which then push out into branches, another branch sprouts in back of your head. Your hands and arms are unrecognizable now. So many new branches have sprung from them that you can't remember which arms were originally yours. With no sight or hearing you can only feel branch continue to spring and roots continue to dig. Finally it stops.
"Okay...stopped." the voice says. "Now you're not dangerous." You've stopped panicking now. You can feel the rest of them, the trees pushing emotions of acceptance and peace on you. You reject them at first, but really what choice do you have? You have no lungs, but you somehow almost feel like you've just heaved a great sigh and with it inhaled joy and peace. You accept it and the feelings become your own. The roots, the branches and the bark all become yours as well. This becomes the final step, you realize, and you know that you'll never walk on two legs again. Nor do you wish to.