.˚☆ Chapter 1 ☆˚.
⊹ ₊⋆ ☁︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆₊⋆☁︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☁︎⋆⁺₊⋆⁺₊⋆ ☁︎ ⋆₊ ⊹
Milo stood at the edge of the forest and watched the car disappear.
The black vehicle rolled down the empty road without slowing, its taillights shrinking until they vanished behind a bend. A few seconds later, there was nothing left but a stretch of asphalt and silence.
No goodbye.
No final instructions.
Just gone.
Milo adjusted the strap of his backpack and looked around.
Trees.
Lots of trees.
That was it.
Milo - “Well,” he said to nobody. “This isn’t ominous at all.”
The forest did not respond.
Which was probably for the best.
Apparently, he had four half-siblings.
Four.
His entire life, he had thought he was an only child.
Then a few weeks ago, a letter arrived, his mother became unusually quiet, and suddenly he was being sent to live in a giant house with four strangers who all shared the same father.
His father.
A man Milo barely knew.
A man who apparently had children scattered all over the place.
Honestly, Milo wasn’t even angry.
Mostly, he was excited.
He had always wanted siblings.
The only problem was that older siblings usually came with rules.
His mother had more than enough rules already.
Hopefully at least one of them was younger than him.
Milo stepped onto the forest path.
Immediately, his foot caught on a tree root.
Milo - “Whoa—”
He stumbled forward.
Then sighed.
Floating was easier.
His feet lifted from the ground until he hovered a few inches above the path.
Problem solved.
The roots could stay down there where they belonged.
Milo drifted between the trees, weaving through patches of sunlight and shadow. The further he went, the quieter everything became.
No cars.
No people.
Just the occasional rustle of leaves.
Then the trees opened.
And there it was.
A huge house stood in the middle of the forest.
Milo stopped.
Milo -“Okay.”
That was bigger than expected.
The house looked almost untouched.
The lights were already on.
Curtains hung neatly in every window.
The front door stood unlocked.
Everything looked perfect.
Too perfect.
Like someone had spent hours preparing for people to arrive.
Or like the house had been sitting there waiting.
For them.
For a second, a shiver ran down Milo’s spine.
Then excitement won.
He floated toward the front door.
The moment he reached it, he pushed it open slightly and slipped inside.
Warm air greeted him.
The entrance hall was enormous.
Wooden floors.
Tall ceilings.
Neatly arranged furniture.
No people.
No voices.
No movement.
Milo took another step.
Still nothing.
Then—
“YOU DID THAT ON PURPOSE!”
The shout echoed through the house.
Milo blinked.
A second voice laughed.
Then the first voice shouted again.
“STOP LAUGHING!”
Well.
Someone was home.
Curiosity immediately took over.
Milo followed the sound down a hallway.
The shouting grew louder.
He reached an open doorway that led into a side garden.
And stopped.
A guy stood in the middle of the garden, glaring at a thick vine wrapped around his ankle.
The vine tightened.
The guy nearly lost his balance.
“HEY!”
The vine tightened again.
“I DIDN’T EVEN TOUCH IT THAT HARD!”
Milo stared.
The vine seemed unconvinced.
The guy noticed him.
For a moment, they just looked at each other.
Then Milo pointed at the vine.
Milo - “That looks like it disagrees.”
The guy’s eyes narrowed.
“Who are YOU?”
Before Milo could answer, another voice spoke.
“Okay. Stop.”
A young woman walked into the garden.
Unlike the guy, she looked completely calm.
She glanced at the vine.
The vine immediately loosened.
A moment later it retreated into the flowerbed.
The guy stared.
“It listens to you?!”
“Yeah, it does.”
“Why?!”
The woman shrugged.
“Because I asked nicely.”
The guy looked personally offended by that answer.
The woman turned toward Milo.
“You must be Milo.”
Milo blinked.
Milo - “...How do you know that?”
She smiled.
Lily - “I’m Lily.”
Then she pointed at the angry guy.
Lily - “And that’s Rowan.”
Rowan immediately turned.
Rowan - “HOW DO YOU KNOW MY NAME?!”
Lily didn’t even look at him.
Lily - “I have my ways.”
Rowan - “That’s not an answer!”
Lily - “It wasn’t meant to be.”
Rowan looked ready to argue again.
Behind him, a nearby branch smacked the back of his head.
Rowan - “OW!”
Lily ignored him completely.
Lily - “You should go find Adrian.”
Milo - “Who?”
Lily - “The oldest one.”
Lily pointed back toward the hallway.
Lily - “Living room. Keep going straight.”
Milo nodded.
Milo - “Thanks.”
As he walked away, Rowan’s voice echoed behind him.
Rowan - “HEY!”
A second later.
Rowan - “STOP HITTING ME!”
Lily started laughing.
Milo grinned.
Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.
As he followed the hallway deeper into the house, one thought kept returning.
They were older than him.
Both of them.
Now, he’s going to the oldest.
That wasn’t a good sign.
He still had one siblings left to meet.
Surely had to be younger.
Right?
...Right?
Milo continued down the hallway, passing door after door.
The house seemed bigger on the inside.
Not in a magical way.
Just in the way that made him wonder if whoever built it had been paid by the hallway.
Every room he passed looked prepared.
A sitting room.
A study.
A storage room with shelves already stocked.
Even the furniture looked arranged with purpose.
Not comfortable.
Not cozy.
Purposeful.
Milo wasn’t sure whether to be impressed or concerned.
Probably both.
At the end of the hallway, voices drifted from an open doorway.
“...Kitchen supplies, cleaning supplies, first aid supplies...”
Milo peeked inside.
A man stood in the middle of what looked like a living room.
Boxes surrounded him.
Several notebooks sat open on a coffee table.
A stack of papers was balanced on one arm while he wrote something down with the other hand.
At first glance, he looked organised.
At second glance, he looked exhausted.
The man glanced up.
Their eyes met.
He immediately put down the papers.
“You’re Milo.”
Not a question.
Milo pointed toward himself.
Milo - “...Yeah?”
The man sighed in obvious relief.
“Good.”
Milo - “Good?”
“That means everyone has arrived.”
The man held out a hand.
Adrian - “Adrian.”
Milo shook it.
Adrian’s grip was firm.
Responsible-person firm.
The kind of handshake that probably paid taxes early.
Milo - “I’m Milo.”
Adrian - “I know.”
Milo was beginning to suspect everyone knew more than they should.
Adrian grabbed one of the notebooks.
Adrian - “Before dinner, a few things.”
Milo immediately regretted walking into this room.
Adrian opened the notebook.
Adrian - “The house has assigned rooms. Yours is upstairs, third door on the right.”
Milo nodded.
Milo - “Okay.”
Adrian - “The forest is off limits.”
Adrian - “...Less cool.”
Adrian ignored that.
Adrian - “If something breaks, tell me.”
Milo looked toward the direction Rowan had been.
Milo - “...How much has already broken?”
Adrian closed his eyes briefly.
Adrian - “A lot.”
Milo - “That’s fair.”
Adrian - “There are emergency supplies in the hallway closet.”
Milo - “Why would we need emergency supplies?”
Adrian - “Because there are five supernatural strangers living together.”
Milo considered that.
Milo - “...Good point.”
Adrian continued.
Milo - “There are also house rules.”
Milo immediately stopped listening.
Not on purpose.
Well.
Mostly not on purpose.
It just happened.
His brain had developed a defense mechanism after sixteen years of living with his mother.
The moment somebody started listing rules, his attention packed its bags and left.
Something about respecting shared spaces.
Something about schedules.
Something about safety.
Something about—
Adrian - “Are you listening?”
Milo blinked.
Milo - “...Absolutely.”
Adrian stared.
Milo smiled.
Adrian sighed.
Adrian - “You weren’t.”
Milo - “No.”
Adrian - “You should listen.”
Milo - “I’ll figure it out.”
Adrian looked like those words physically hurt him.
At that exact moment, Rowan stormed through the room.
Leaves were stuck in his hair.
Rowan - “Your sister’s plant attacked me.”
Adrian didn’t even look up.
Rowan - “Which sister?”
Rowan stopped.
Rowan - “...Good question.”
Then he left again.
A second later they heard.
Rowan - “GET BACK HERE!”
Milo grinned.
Adrian rubbed his forehead.
Adrian - “Please don’t encourage them.”
Milo - “I haven’t done anything.”
Adrian - “You smiled.”
Apparently that counted.
About an hour later, everyone was gathered around the dining table.
Milo took a seat and looked around.
For the first time, all five siblings were in the same room.
Adrian sat at the head of the table.
Lily lounged comfortably in her chair like she owned the place.
Rowan looked annoyed simply to be present.
Across from Milo sat a girl he hadn’t met yet.
Quiet.
Observing everything.
Unlike everyone else, she hadn’t said a word.
Milo waved.
She nodded once.
That was apparently her entire greeting.
The table itself was already set.
Food had been prepared.
Plates arranged.
Everything ready.
As if someone had known exactly when they would arrive.
Milo tried not to think about that.
In the center of the table sat several envelopes.
One larger letter.
Five smaller ones.
Everyone looked at them.
Nobody touched them.
Which somehow made them more noticeable.
Finally Adrian cleared his throat.
Adrian - “I suppose introductions first.”
Nobody objected.
Mostly because nobody knew what else to do.
Adrian - “Adrian. Twenty-five.”
Lily immediately followed.
Lily - “Lily. Twenty-four.”
Rowan crossed his arms.
Rowan - “Rowan. Twenty.”
The quiet girl spoke next.
Isla - “Isla. Eighteen.”
Milo waited.
Then realisation hit.
Slowly.
Terribly.
No.
No, no, no.
That couldn’t be right.
He looked around the table.
Everyone was older.
Every single one.
Milo slumped back in his chair.
Milo - “...Milo. Sixteen.”
Silence.
Then Lily smiled.
Lily - “Oh, we got a kid.”
Milo pointed at her.
Milo - “I’m not a kid.”
Lily - “You are literally sixteen.”
Milo - “I’m old enough.”
Lily - “That’s exactly what children say.”
Rowan snorted.
Milo immediately decided Rowan was no longer his favorite sibling.
Not that he’d had one before.
But still.
Adrian attempted to restore order.
Adrian - “Age doesn’t matter.”
Milo - “It absolutely matters,” he muttered.
Lily laughed.
For some reason, that only made it worse.
The realisation settled heavily in Milo’s chest.
Not one younger sibling.
Not one.
He’d lost the sibling lottery completely.
The universe clearly hated him.
Meanwhile Isla quietly reached for another bread roll and watched the entire conversation like it was a television show.
The conversation died shortly after that.
Not dramatically.
Just awkwardly.
Like everyone had suddenly remembered they were sitting at a table with complete strangers who happened to share the same father.
The only sounds came from cutlery against plates and the occasional creak of a chair.
Milo poked at his food.
The letters sat in the middle of the table.
Waiting.
Every few minutes someone glanced at them.
Even Rowan.
Though he immediately looked away whenever he realises anyone might have noticed.
Lily definitely noticed.
Milo could tell because she looked like she was trying very hard not to smile.
Eventually Adrian set down his fork.
Adrian - “All right.”
Everyone looked up.
Adrian reached for the larger envelope.
Adrian - “I think we’ve avoided these long enough.”
Nobody disagreed.
Nobody volunteered either.
So Adrian opened the letter.
The paper inside crackled as he unfolded it.
The room grew noticeably quieter.
Even Rowan stopped fidgeting.
Adrian began reading.
...
To my children,
By the time you read this, you will all be together.
Some of you may know of one another.
Most of you will not.
I understand that this situation is unfair.
However, it is necessary.
You are not safe.
The house is protected.
The forest beyond the property is not.
Do not leave the property alone.
Do not tell anyone where you live.
Do not trust anyone who comes looking for you.
Stay together.
Stay safe.
I will contact you when it is safe for you to leave.
I am sorry.
Father
...
Silence.
A long silence.
The kind that made the ticking clock on the wall suddenly sound very loud.
Milo looked around the table.
Nobody seemed particularly comforted.
Rowan - “That’s it?” he asked.
Adrian reread the page.
Adrian - “That’s it.”
Rowan - “That’s not an explanation.”
Adrian - “No.”
Rowan - “Fantastic.”
Rowan leaned back in his chair.
Rowan - “This is stupid.”
Lily rested her chin on one hand.
Lily - “I don’t know. I think it’s interesting.”
Rowan looked horrified.
Rowan - “Interesting? We’ve been secretly gathered in a mysterious forest house by an absent father who claims we’re all in danger.”
Lily smiled.
Lily - “That’s objectively interesting.”
Rowan - “You are concerningly okay with this.”
Lily - “Thank you.”
Rowan - “That wasn’t a compliment.”
Lily - “I’ll take it anyway.”
Across the table, Isla raised a hand slightly.
Everyone looked at her.
She blinked.
Isla - “Cool.”
Then she went back to eating.
Milo stared.
That was her contribution?
Just cool?
Meanwhile his own thoughts were racing.
Danger.
Protected house.
Don’t leave.
Stay together.
Honestly?
It sounded amazing.
Maybe not the danger part.
The rest though?
Kind of amazing.
He’d spent years stuck under constant supervision.
Now he was living in a giant forest house with supernatural siblings.
Sure, there was apparently some mysterious threat.
But still.
This was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to him.
Lily suddenly pointed at him.
Lily - “You look way too happy.”
Milo froze.
Milo - “No I don’t.”
Lily - “You do.”
Rowan - “He does,” he agreed.
Milo looked betrayed.
Milo - “You don’t even know me.”
Lily - “I know that face.”
Milo - “What face?”
Lily - “The face of someone who’s already planning something stupid.”
Milo opened his mouth.
Closed it.
Opened it again.
Milo - “...I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Nobody believed him.
Not even a little.
Adrian sighed heavily.
The sigh of a man who had already accepted defeat despite only knowing these people for a few hours.
Then he folded the letter.
Adrian - “We can discuss this later.”
Rowan - “Can we?” he asked.
Adrian - “Yes.”
Rowan - “Why?”
Adrian - “Because arguing won’t change anything.”
Rowan crossed his arms.
Rowan - “I could still argue.”
Adrian - “I’m aware.”
That earned the smallest hint of a smile from Isla.
The first expression Milo had seen from her all evening.
Then Adrian reached for the smaller envelopes.
The personal letters.
The atmosphere changed instantly.
The jokes vanished.
Even Lily stopped smiling.
One by one, Adrian handed them out.
Milo accepted his carefully.
His name was written on the front.
Simple.
Neat.
Like someone had taken their time.
The same father who hadn’t been around.
Nobody moved at first.
Then Rowan ripped his open.
His eyes scanned the page.
Once.
His jaw tightened.
He stood up immediately.
The chair scraped loudly against the floor.
Nobody stopped him.
Nobody asked what it said.
Rowan walked straight out of the room.
A door slammed somewhere in the house.
A few moments later, faintly from outside—
WHOOSH
Milo blinked.
Milo - “Was that fire?”
No one answered.
Which felt suspiciously like a yes.
The table became even quieter.
Isla glanced at her unopened letter.
Looked at the hallway Rowan had disappeared into.
Then calmly stood up.
She picked up the envelope.
Never opened it.
And walked away.
Second person gone.
Lily watched them leave.
Then finally opened hers.
Her eyes moved across the page.
For a brief second—
Just a second—
Something changed in her expression.
Gone almost immediately.
She folded the letter neatly.
Then folded it again.
And again.
Until it looked less like a letter and more like something else.
Milo narrowed his eyes.
She was making a paper airplane.
Of course she was.
Lily - “Goodnight,” Lily announced cheerfully.
Then she launched the paper airplane toward the staircase.
It glided upward.
Lily stood.
Lily - “Race you.”
And chased after it.
A few seconds later her footsteps disappeared upstairs.
Milo stared after her.
Milo - “...She’s weird.”
Adrian - “Yes,” he said.
Without hesitation.
Without looking up.
Just immediate agreement.
Milo decided Adrian might actually be funny.
Accidentally.
The room fell quiet once more.
Only two of them remained at the table.
Adrian.
And Milo.
Adrian unfolded his own letter again.
Reading silently.
Carefully.
Meanwhile Milo looked down at his.
Curiosity won immediately.
He opened it.
Milo unfolded the letter carefully.
For a moment, he just stared at it.
This was the first thing his father had ever written directly to him.
At least, the first thing he could remember.
The paper felt strangely heavy in his hands.
Across the table, Adrian was pretending to read his own letter.
Milo was fairly certain Adrian was actually making sure Rowan didn’t accidentally set something on fire, run into the forest, or fall through a wall.
Possibly all three.
Milo looked down and began reading.
...
Milo,
If you are reading this, then you arrived safely.
I am glad.
I know you have spent most of your life feeling trapped.
I know you believe freedom will solve most of your problems.
Be careful.
Freedom and recklessness are often mistaken for one another.
Listen to Adrian.
He will not enjoy me saying that.
Try not to cause too much trouble.
And please stay away from the forest.
More importantly, stay with your siblings.
Whether they realise it yet or not, they will need one another.
I am sorry.
Father
...
Milo stared.
Then reread the letter.
Then reread it again.
His eyebrows slowly rose.
Across the table, Adrian glanced up.
Adrian - “Bad?”
Milo looked at him.
Milo - “I don’t know.”
Adrian - “Helpful?”
Milo - “...Also don’t know.”
That seemed to summarise the entire situation nicely.
Milo looked back down at the paper.
The thing that bothered him wasn’t the warning.
Or the apology.
It was the fact that parts of it were accurate.
Far too accurate.
Feeling trapped.
Wanting freedom.
His mother’s constant supervision.
The frustration.
The arguments.
How did he know that?
The question settled uncomfortably in his stomach.
Because if his father knew all that...
Then why hadn’t he done anything?
Milo folded the letter.
Carefully this time.
Not into a paper airplane.
Though the idea was tempting.
Across from him, Adrian stood.
Adrian - “I should clean up.”
Milo blinked.
Milo - “Now?”
Adrian - “The dishes won’t wash themselves.”
Milo - “Have you considered making Rowan do them?”
Adrian laughed.
Actually laughed.
A short surprised sound.
Like he hadn’t expected it.
Adrian - “That’s not going to happen.”
Milo - “Why not?”
Adrian - “Because I enjoy having dishes.”
Fair point.
Adrian began collecting plates left behind by everyone else.
One stack.
Then another.
Then another.
Milo watched.
Milo - “You’re really doing all of them?”
Adrian - “Someone has to.”
Milo - “You met us six hours ago.”
Adrian - “Yes.”
Milo - “You already sound tired.”
Adrian - “I am tired.”
That seemed fair too.
Milo stood.
Milo - “Need help?”
Adrian looked genuinely surprised.
Then suspicious.
Adrian - “Why?”
Milo shrugged.
Milo - “Seemed like the nice thing to do.”
Adrian narrowed his eyes.
Adrian - “What’s your plan?”
Milo - “I don’t have a plan.”
Adrian - “That’s somehow worse.”
Milo grinned.
Adrian pointed toward the stairs.
Adrian - “Go unpack.”
Milo - “You’re no fun.”
Adrian - “I’m aware.”
Milo headed toward the staircase.
As he climbed, he could hear movement elsewhere in the house.
A door closing upstairs.
Footsteps.
Someone laughing.
Then—
“OW!”
Rowan.
Definitely Rowan.
A few seconds later.
Rowan - “STOP THROWING THINGS AT ME!”
Lily’s laughter echoed through the hallway.
Milo smiled.
They’d known each other for less than a day.
And somehow everyone already had enemies.
Or friends.
Possibly both.
The line seemed blurry.
At the top of the stairs, he found his room.
A small wooden sign hung on the door.
MILO
That was unsettling.
Not because his name was there.
Because someone had put it there before he arrived.
He pushed the door open.
And stopped.
The room was ready.
A bed sat against one wall.
A desk near the window.
A chair tucked neatly underneath.
Bookshelves.
Storage boxes.
Clothes already folded.
Everything looked normal.
Until he realised it wasn’t.
The room wasn’t generic.
It was specific.
Specifically for him.
Milo walked inside slowly.
His backpack slipped from one shoulder.
A notebook sat on the desk.
The exact type he preferred.
The chair was the height he liked.
The blanket on the bed was dark blue.
His favorite color.
The room wasn’t guessing.
It knew.
A chill ran down his spine.
For the first time all day, the excitement faded slightly.
Someone had prepared this.
Someone who knew things.
Too many things.
Milo crossed to the dresser and pulled open a drawer.
Inside—
A toothbrush.
Toothpaste.
Spare clothes.
Even socks in the right size.
He opened another.
School supplies.
Pens.
Notebooks.
Folders.
Everything he would need.
Nothing extra.
Nothing missing.
Milo slowly closed the drawer.
Milo - “This isn’t random.”
The room remained silent.
Outside his door—
CRASH
A loud thud echoed through the house.
Followed immediately by Adrian’s voice from downstairs.
Adrian - “STOP BREAKING THINGS!”
Lily laughed.
Rowan shouted something unintelligible.
Then another crash followed.
Milo couldn’t help smiling.
Maybe living with strangers was going to be interesting after all.
He dropped onto the bed.
The mattress bounced slightly beneath him.
Comfortable.
He glanced toward the desk.
Something caught his eye.
A small envelope.
He was certain it hadn’t been there before.
Milo sat up.
The envelope was plain.
No stamp.
No name.
Just a folded piece of paper inside.
He opened it.
A single sentence was written in neat handwriting.
...
If you hear your name in the forest, do not answer.
...
Milo frowned.
That was... oddly specific.
Slowly, he looked toward the window.
Beyond the glass, the forest stood perfectly still.
No wind.
No movement.
No sound.
Just endless dark trees watching from the edge of the clearing.
For the first time since arriving, Milo felt something that wasn’t excitement.
Unease.
Only a little.
But enough.
He folded the note.
Set it on the desk.
And looked back at the forest.
It remained completely still.
Almost as if it were waiting.
⊹ ₊⋆ ☁︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆₊⋆☁︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☁︎⋆⁺₊⋆⁺₊⋆ ☁︎ ⋆₊ ⊹
