The Forbidden Forest - A 100 Followers Special

Prologue

|| Prologue ||

Birds chirped all throughout the forest. A group of riders were riding their horses through the forest, they were going on an overnight camp out.

"This'll be so much fun!" One girl said, stroking her bay mare's neck. Behind her rode a boy on a Buckskin gelding. "Yeah, it'll be cool," He said.

"Hey Jackson! How far are we?" A girl in the back asked, she was riding a black stallion she was helping train. She had insisted on bringing the stallion, saying it would be a good experience for him.

"Not too far," The boy at the front called back, he rode a dapple gray mare. "We should be getting there any moment."

The group of riders rode through the forest a bit more until finally, they reached their destination. It was a clearing in the middle of the woods, a perfect spot to set up camp.

"We're here," Jackson told them, dismounting and loosening his saddle before tying up his horse. "Charlotte and Ryder, y'all can start setting up the tents. Ava you can go get some water for the horses, there's a stream not too far from here that you can get water," Jackson explained.

The girl that had been riding the bay mare went off with the other boy and they started setting up tents. Ava, the girl that had ridden the black stallion, grabbed some buckets and headed off into the forest.

She walked through the forest, swinging the empty buckets in her hands. She walked down an incline and stopped at the river. She filled up the buckets and turned to carry them back up the hill.

Once she got up to the top she stopped. She felt like something was watching her. She glanced around but didn't see anything. Weird. She shook her head and headed back through the forest.

Once she got back to camp she set down the buckets and headed over to the others. "What should we do first?" She asks, glancing around camp. The others had gotten it all set up while she was getting the buckets of water.

"We could go for a trail ride," Charlotte said, running a hand through her black hair. "That sounds good," Ryder agreed, standing up from where he sat on a log.

"All right then, let's go for a trail ride!" Ava cheered, walking over to tighten her horse's saddle. She led him away from the tree she had tied him up at and mounted. "Where should we ride to?" She asked as the others joined her.

"There's a field on the other side of the stream, but it is a little ways," Jackson told them. "Let's go there," Charlotte said. Ava and Ryder agreed and Jackson led them into the trees.

Ryder rode behind him, while Charlotte and Ava brought up the rear. "Ava?" Charlotte asked. Ava looked at her. "What is it?" She asked. Charlotte hesitated before asking, "Do you think Ryder likes me?"

Yes! He does! Everyone at school knows he likes you! It's obvious! Ava forced herself not to blurt out her thoughts. "Yeah," she said instead. She looked ahead and saw Ryder glancing back to see what they were doing, his blonde hair falling down over one eye.

"He really likes you," Ava whispered to Charlotte when he had turned back around. Charlotte pushed a strand of hair out of her face. "You really think so?" She asked. Ava nodded.

"Okay, should I talk to him?" Charlotte asked. "Yeah," Ava told her.

"Hey girls! Are y'all coming?" Jackson called back. Ava realized her and Charlotte were falling behind and she trotted after the others.

The group rode through the trees and splashed through the stream. They continued through the trees on the other side of the stream and eventually came to a clearing.