The Back Woods

Author's note/Disclaimer: Ever wonder where my pen name came from? Here's a story that I wrote for my Modern Lit. class that may explain. Of course, it's a revamped version of my Mod. Lit. story, but still, it's basically the same story. It's fiction, of course. But I figured that someone out there might like it. And as always, don't use without my permission. Enjoy! ^_^

The Back Woods

By: Nentikobe

There was always something about the backwoods that interested me. They seemed so magical and mysterious. But I never went out there. I was driven away by fear, simple child hood fear of creepy cawlies and things that go bump in the night. I would remember seeing bear tracks in the ice of the pond in the winter, and hearing coyote's converse with each other on warm summer nights. No way in hell was I going out there, not alone.

Yet here I was, in the woods all by myself. Why was I here? I was bored, simple as that. I was sixteen now, and very determined to not be the same person I was when I was a child. Screw the creepy crawlies, to hell with the things that go bump in the night. If they chose to confront me in the woods I'd more than likely enjoy their presence. At least I'd have something to do.

The back woods were beautiful; I had to admit that. I was angry with myself for being too much of a coward to come out here before. Experiencing things from a child's perspective is one of the greatest experiences in the world. I admired the tall trees (despite the fact that it was early spring and they were bare), the tall grass, everything that was there. But I frowned at the highway, which was close enough so that cars and trucks could disturb me.

I was staring up at the cloudy sky as I walked. The clouds looked rather odd, and they made me loose all sense of where I was going. But I was soon woken up by the lack of ground under my foot. I felt myself fall, I screamed, my arms flew everywhere, and then I suddenly felt myself stop. I opened my eyes, which I had shut tightly, and found myself hanging from a branch that I had distinctively grabbed onto. I was hanging from a tree that was sitting on the edge of a thirty-foot cliff. Well, it was almost a cliff, more like a really steep hill. But still, it was steep enough to where I would have fallen and gotten seriously hurt.

I was able to pull myself back up. I leaned over the side and looked down. I was looking into a small area with high steep hills, more like walls, on every side. It appeared to be an old gravel pit. I got up and looked around. There was a hill (a much less steep hill) that led down next to the pit, and that at the bottom of the hill, there was a path that led into the pit. I ran. I wanted to get down into the pit as soon as I could.

I stood in the middle and looked up at the walls that surrounded me. I couldn't believe that I had never known about this place. There was only one thought that went through my head; party! This would be the perfect spot to have a party!

I wanted to know what else was out here, so I headed over to one of the shorter and less steep walls. This one was only about seven feet high, and it had bumps on it, so it was relatively easy to climb. I smiled at what lie before me; more woods. I started walking and went far into the trees. I couldn't even see the pit anymore. I wanted to cancel all my plans, just to have more time to explore. What if I was no longer a little kid, I surely felt like one.

I came across a fallen tree. It was very long and very wide. I decided to lay down on it and rest. It was actually a really comfortable tree, and it felt good to take a rest after walking for so long. An idea popped into my head as I lay on the log. I stood up on top of the log and pulled out an air guitar. The woods were suddenly very crowded. Be it stick, rock, animal or tree, they were all fans. I was Jewel.

"I'd just like to thank you all for coming out today!" I said. Everyone cheered. I performed "Down So Long," my favorite Jewel song. Then, I decided that I would perform my most favorite song in the whole world, so I became John Rzeznik of the Goo Goo Dolls in order to perform "Broadway."

"Hmm, what I think we need is a good head banging song," I said. I jumped off the tree and grabbed a long stick off the ground to serve as a microphone. I then returned to my so-called "stage" as Jonathan Davis of KoRn.

Then I heard it. Just as Sheryl Crow was about to take center stage, there was a noise from somewhere in the woods. The stick fell from my hands. What was that? Where was it coming from? Surely it was a deer or something. But I was being so loud that any animal would be scared away. Was it a person?

"Hello?" I called. There was no answer. But the noise came again, this time closer. I stood there, silent and listening. The noises kept coming closer, and closer. I didn't want to find out what it was, so, as silently as I could, I got down from the log and headed back to the gravel pit. But the noises kept coming. The faster I went, the faster it went, whatever it was.

I broke into a run, and there came a galloping behind me. I got to the pit, literally jumped down the hill, and headed for the path. I stopped, staring in horror at what was there. It was white, but it was hard to tell what it was, exactly. There were too many branches in the way. But the galloping had stopped.

The creature started walking down the path toward me. What was it? I didn't want to find out. I turned around and made a break for the highest wall, the one I almost fell down. There were bushes, rocks, little bumps of dirt, and grass to serve as a means for climbing up it. I climbed as fast as I could, never looking down. The creature was at the foot of the hill, pawing the ground. Then it whinnied. It whinnied?

I grabbed a hold of the tree that saved me from falling earlier. I collapsed under it and looked down into the gravel pit. The creature was gone. There was no site of it.

It's coming up the hill! I thought to myself. I managed to get myself into a sitting position, but it was too late.

There was a stomping noise behind me. The creature was there; it was pawing the ground again. I shut my eyes, waiting for the end. Waiting for it to kill me. But it didn't.

The thing just stood there. It was staring at me; I could feel its eyes burning into me. I didn't want to turn around for fear that it might attack if I did. But how long would it keep me hear like this? Until I died of hunger, or hypothermia? I had to face it. Swallowing hard, I turned around.

"What the…………!?" I said aloud, partially startling the creature. For there, right in front of me, stood something that I had only seen in dreams. Something that I had stopped believing in a long time ago, for only children believed in such things.

A nentikobe, as a book I once read referred to it as. It was about the size of a horse. Contrary to popular opinion, it was not muscular and romantic looking, but thin, and almost cartoonish. But it was beautiful; there was no doubt about that.

I had always been attracted to these creatures. There was just something about them. They were mysterious, misunderstood. Everyone thought that they knew everything there was to know about these things, but they didn't even know the half of if. Which makes the nentikobe very much like me.

I sat there in awe, just staring at the creature in front of me. It stared right back. I admired its long, silky mane and tail. They flowed softly in the breeze. It was a pure, blinding white. Almost glowing, as if there was a light shining on it from above.

Its eyes were the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen. The irises were a dark blue, and the pupils were very large. They seemed to say, "Stay calm, everything will be all right."

"No! Things won't be all right!" I screamed, "I'm going crazy! You don't exist!" That was a mistake. It appeared hurt after that, but it was the truth. I thought it was anyway.

"I do," it said. It never spoke, but it seemed to communicate with its eyes.

"No you don't! I stopped believing in you a long fucking time ago!"

"Well, then it's time you started to again."

"No it's not!" I buried my face in my hands. "What's wrong with me? I'm going insane. I'm going crazy!"

"No, you're not."

"You're right, I'm not. I'm not going crazy, because I already am crazy!"

I looked up at the nentikobe. It seemed like it was about to cry, if animals did cry, that is. It bent its head down the ground and started to walk toward me. I backed up into the tree and just sat there, watching as it came closer. What's wrong with it walking toward me? Did I happen to mention that it had a horn? Yeah, a single spiraled horn in the middle of its forehead.

"What are you doing? I'm sorry! I didn't mean it! Go away!" The nentikobe aimed it's horn for my heart. I tried to grabbed the horn and push it away, but I was paralyzed. I closed my eyes tight. This was it; I was about to die.

"Answer me!" There was no answer. "Please! Don't kill me! I'm sorry! So sorry!"

It stopped the tip of the horn just inches from my chest. Was it going to listen to me? No, it wasn't. With one hard thrust, it stabbed it's horn through my heart. I screamed louder then I had ever screamed before. It was very painful. Yet, I almost enjoyed the feeling at the same time.

I opened my eyes, and visions flashed in front of them. This creature, there were more of it's kind. I saw them. I saw what they were forced to go through. They were hunted, ridiculed, pushed away, forgotten. I saw them dying out before my very eyes.

I finally understood. They where afraid of becoming extinct. They needed someone to know that they were still alive, that was all. No one else could know. If the wrong people knew, it would be the end of them. Having at least one person know the truth was enough though. They chose me because I understood. I understood them and what they were going through.

I understood because I've been there. I know what it's like to be persecuted, hunted down for no good reason. I know what it's like to just want to survive. I'm a teenage girl, remember? And one that is particularly different from everyone else.

That's all I remembered.

"Hey! I found her!"

"Where?"

"Where are you?"

"Over here! Come! Come quickly!"

Voices. Many voices. I heard them shouting everywhere. I felt strong hand grip me by the arms and shake me violently. "Wake up!" The person cried. "Oh please, wake up!"

"What?" I asked as I opened my eyes. A crowd had gathered around me. They were all the familiar faces of my friends. "Where am I?"

"You're in the middle of the woods!" one of them said.

"What happened to you?"

I didn't really know what to say. "I guess I uh, must have fallen asleep."

"We were really worried!"

"Did you forget about our plans tonight or something?

"No, I didn't forget. I just, fell asleep." I said.

"Hey, let's get outta here."

My friends helped me to my feet. We walked back to my house and left to go out and party and have fun like we had planned.

Later on, after the night's festivities were over, I drove my best friend home.

"You seemed really distant tonight. Is there something wrong with you?" she asked.

"No, I'm fine," I said.

We got to her house and she got out. Before I drove off, she motioned for me to roll down the window. "Now, you can be completely honest with me. What's wrong with you? Did something happen to you in the woods?"

"You want the truth? OK, here it is. I had a run-in with a nentikobe."

"A what?"

"Goodnight" I smiled and rolled up the window. She didn't know what nentikobe meant. She never read the book.

My thoughts fell on the events of the day. I didn't feel different, but I knew I wasn't the same. I would never be the same. I knew a truth that was too big to keep to my self, yet I wasn't allowed to share, for risk of it falling into the wrong hands.

Who knew that a little white horse with a spiral horn could make such an impact in someone's life?