The fresh, crisp smell of the air was Connors's favorite thing about fall. He realized this about himself as he walked through a thickly wooded forest, surrounded by the orange, red, and yellow colors of fall. He was alone and peaceful. The only sounds he heard were the crunching of leaves below him and the ruffling of creatures watching him from the bushes. He was on his way to a spot that he considered his own in this thickly wooded forest. A spot where the trees dispersed and you could watch the sky laying on your back. 

He went there every day that he possibly could, mostly just to get away from the city. His normal life was bustling with chores, errands, work, and people. It was his life, but Connor felt empty in it. He felt that no matter how many things he accomplished or how many conversations he had, he wasn’t happy. In the clearing in the woods, though, all by himself in the quiet of nature, he was happy. He lay in his thoughts, watching the sky.

As he approached the clearing, he noticed that something had changed from last time. Not the trees or the leaves, but a large black stone sitting right in the middle of the open space. He walked over to it and began to notice that it wasn’t a stone, after all, it was an egg. Connor has seen plenty of wildlife and eggs in the forest before, but nothing like this. He had no idea what it was, but it took hold of his curiosity. It was a Friday night, and he had nothing to do, so Connor decided to wait with the egg. The afternoon turned into evening, evening into night, and the egg still hadn’t hatched, but Connor still sat waiting. By 2 in the morning, Connor was slumped against a tree, silently sleeping. All of a sudden a blue light illuminated the clearing, waking Connor. He was taken by surprise at first but then realized that the blue light was coming from the egg. It was hatching! Connor stayed frozen in his place, frightened of what might emerge from the egg. He watched as the walls cracked and broke off from the egg, the light getting brighter as it went on. Finally the egg broke completely open and a flash of light blinded Connor for a moment. The light died down quickly, and standing in the middle of the clearing was a creature that Connor had never seen before.

The creature looked catlike, but with a large feathery tail. Her fur was midnight black, making it hard for Connor to completely make it out. She had sharp fangs poking out from under her mouth, and her ears were so large that they looked like they would tip her over. Even though the creature had just hatched and there was no mother in sight, she didn’t look lost. She immediately started prancing around the clearing taking in her surroundings. When she saw Connor she confidently walked up and started nuzzling her head on his leg. 

Connor was completely shocked. He had never seen a creature like this before, and now it was right next to him. He watched the creature at his feet in disbelief for a moment, but he saw how friendly she was and so he worked up the courage to reach down and pet her. As soon as he did the creature started barking profusely and running into the woods, and then back to Connor. She was trying to lead him somewhere. With a bit of hesitation, Connor began to follow behind the creature. They walked for what felt like hours through the trees until Connor started noticing flashes of the blue light coming from deep in the woods. It was the same blue light that came from the egg when it was hatching. As they walked on the flashes started to get brighter and longer. At last one final flash of the blue light blinded Connor once again and he fell into a deep sleep.

As Connor slipped back into consciousness he noticed the sounds of birds chirping. He felt cool grass beneath him and a warm sun beating down on him. He opened his eyes to a bright blue sky and sat up to see a wonderland. A place that he had never seen before, a place that had luscious green grass and trees and rushing waterfalls falling from a tall red rock cliff. There were berry bushes and fruit trees in great numbers all around. He had never seen something so beautiful. He then noticed right beside him sat the creature, cuddled up and quietly sleeping. He felt an overwhelming feeling of happiness. In the mysterious world, everything felt right. Connor didn’t even think about his life back in the city because he knew from the second that he opened his eyes, he would stay here. He lay back down on the grass, closed his eyes, and took in the fresh, crisp smell of the air.