In the year 1971, astronomy student and aspiring guitarist Brian May's ill-fated camping trip may have more consequences than he first realized. Small but unexplainable things start to happen to him after he is bit by a dog in Humpy Bong Forest. His...
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Brian was absolutely pumped to see Tim. They've been planning a weekend camping trip for over a month and Brian hoped that visiting the great outdoors would help him relieve some stress from an upcoming physics exam.
When they first met, Brian and Tim were inseparable. They both had dark brown hair and were taller than their peers, so many thought that they were cousins. The only thing that would cue anyone otherwise was Brian's characteristic curly mane that was in stark contrast to Tim's hair that laid flat against his head.
The two started a band together; Tim played bass and Brian played on his beloved homemade guitar, the Red Special. They called themselves Smile, but as Tim said, the band wasn't really going anywhere.
Brian and Tim hadn't seen each other in person for a whole semester after Tim moved to Humpy Bong Village to pursue a career in studio animation and to take care of his aging aunt. Humpy Bong was located in east Leicestershire and right in the center of the middle of nowhere with trees and meadows swallowing the village in a medieval paradise. It had a small-town charm with its everybody knows everybody atmosphere and a thriving rumour mill never short of drama.
Tim practically begged for Brian to come and visit him.
"It'll do you some good to get some fresh air and away from the busy city," Tim told him over the phone.
"I know," Brian replied.
"You know? Why don't you come down for a long weekend to get you away from some of that stress before your exam?" Tim offered.
Brian sighed. "Okay," he said, "I'll come up."
———∞◊∞———
"You've got to reel it in quick as soon as the bobber goes down otherwise you won't catch the fish!" Tim shouted at Brian for what felt like the millionth time.
"Interesting," Brian mumbled in response. He hated fishing and felt terrible about using hooks on the poor fish, so he just opted to let the fish nibble on the bait.
Brian slowly reeled in the hook to put more food on it for his little aquatic friends. Besides Tim's occasional frustrated swearing, the scene on the lake was peaceful. The trees on the other side reflected brilliantly with the clear sky on the surface of the water. A curious turtle swam up to the pair earlier in the day (they named it Robert after Robert Plant,) and a crane swooped down in the middle of the lake to hunt a school of fish. Brain inhaled the crisp wooded air and relaxed.
There was a clamour beside him and Tim yelled, "Oi! Get the net, get the net!"
Brian scrambled to his feet and grabbed the fishing net. Tim reeled in a small trout, just over eight inches long.
"What a beauty!" Tim marveled as he placed the fish in the net, "He's gonna grow up big someday, I just know it!"
Brian winced at the sight of the poor fish gasping for air in the net with a painful hook sticking out of its lip.
