Character Encounter: Lylia

      Hello all! Today I'm participating in Kendra E. Ardnek's Character Encounters. Once a month she gives a location, and you're supposed to encounter one of your characters there. This month we had to encounter our character in their own world.
      Lylia is a character from a short story that I wrote for my English class (we had to write a story including 5 of our vocab words, I'll post it on here someday). I plan to write more about her and Nicholas, and writing this character encounter has given me some ideas, so you'll hopefully be seeing more of her soon! :o)
      So here it is! My encounter with Lylia:

“Begone monster!” I dart forward and slam my sword (aka big stick) against my foe (aka tree).

Naturally, the tree doesn’t retaliate, but I duck and retreat all the same. It’s no use pretending to save the world if you don’t at least pretend your enemies are fighting back. Even if they are trees.

I continue to swing my stick as I advance across the clearing. I’m so wrapped up in the “battle” that I trip over the trunk of a large fallen tree.

“Oof!” I get a mouthful of leaves and dirt as the tree sends me sprawling on the ground. “Oh, eeewww...”

My stick has fallen from my hand. I look around for it as I leap to my feet. I must vanquish this enemy who has bested me!

That’s when I get my first good look around me. This is not the clearing where I was playing, it’s not even a different part of the woods behind my house. This is a different forest altogether. Instead of tall maples with bare, early-spring branches, these are pine trees. Quite a few of them are dead and have fallen over. The ground is spongy from a recent rainstorm, but we’ve had dry weather at home.

A short girl with honey colored hair steps out from behind a tree.

“You don’t look like an elf,” she calls to me, “Are you Linwё?”

“No,” I say, “I’m a friend of hers, though.”

Sort of, I add in my head, Since Linwё is one of my friend’s characters.

“Is she unable to come?” the girl asks, “Did she send you to meet me?”

“No, I think she’ll be here soon.”

The girl shrugs. “Ok.”

She sits down on a fallen log to wait, and I sit down with her. I was warned that I might run into a character of mine soon, but I didn’t expect it to be like this. At least I know who she is. “Lylia?”

“What?”

I hesitate, “Well, I heard about that box Mr. Grant received.”

Lylia grins. “Yeah, that was great! His office stank for a week and the smell even leaked out into the hallways.”

“What did you use to make it?” I ask, wishing I had a notebook to write this all down in.

Lylia glances at me cautiously. “Why do you think it was me?”

Oops. “You’re the only one who would know how to do that. Don’t worry, no one else knows, and I won’t tell.”

“Thanks,” Lylia says slowly. “Was it really that obvious? I mean, you don’t think other people will figure it out too… right?”

I shake my head. “Nope. I don’t think so. Well,” I think for a minute, reconsidering, “I’m not sure. How many people know about your… hobbies?”

Lylia shrugs again, and we’re quiet for a minute. Finally, I speak. “How did you make the box smell like that?”

Lylia laughs. “Sorry, I never give away my secrets.”

“Okay,” I say disappointedly. Well, it was worth a try.

“Oh, it looks like there’s someone over there. It might be Linwё, I should go see,” Lylia stands and picks a small bundle up off of the ground. I hadn’t noticed that before. “Bye. Maybe I’ll see you around.”

“Maybe,” I say noncommittally, since it’s easier than explaining. Then, on the spur of the moment, I add, “Oh, and if you ever get in trouble and need a place to hide, go to the castle ruins. There’s a trapdoor under a rug in the great hall.”

Lylia glances at me quizzically. “Okay… thanks.”

I wave as she hurries away. She probably thinks I’m a little bit crazy. Oh well. I know what to write next for her story.

Now, I survey the woods again, How do I get home?