CYOP- Glitter Mushroom

     It seems impossible, but I swear this mushroom made a little firecracker sound and exploded in a genuine cloud of glitter. I barely had time to close my eyes and block my breath, in less than a second I was totally covered in glitter and in the middle of a shiny and colorful mist. It would take a while and a lot of washing cycle to clean my clothes. I hoped my shower gel would be enough for my face and hand.

     It didn't seem harmful so I wasn't really scared, but the fact I couldn't even see my own hands in front of me made me anxious enough than I didn't wait for the cloud to abate and I began to carefully stumble backward. I knew the place so I could easily maintain my balance, and keep myself on the deer path.

     I had moved about two meters, it was hard to tell with the mist still everywhere, when I began to feel something in my chest. It was like I had pins and needles in my lungs instead of my legs. It didn't take long for me to realize the mist was poisonous. Now I was scared. I was even terrified!

     I turned around and began to run as fast I I could, ignoring the tree branch trying to keep me and the fallen leaves trying to make me trip. But it was too late.

     The sensation in my lungs moved from pins and needles to a burning feeling. It was harder and harder to breath, I stumbled and began to choke. I couldn't run anymore. I couldn't even scream for help, let alone stand. The burning in my lungs became a searing pain that soon invaded all my body. Each pumping of my heart spread the heat and made the pain more and more unbearable. After my ability to breath I began to loose my ability to think. Black point danced in front of my eyes. With the darkness I felt death calling me. Claiming me.

     But I couldn't give up. Even with all the pain, all the fear, the sheer terror I felt, I couldn't bring myself to give up. I wanted to live! More than anything! I wanted to live!

     I focused all my strength to not pass away, to push past the darkness, to crawl further away from the cursed mushroom despite the pain that echoed in each of my cells. I had to move. To do something! Each centimeter, each second was important! I had to move on!

     I couldn't see anything past the black clouds anymore. Not even the glitter. I couldn't feel my own body through all the pain. Was I still in the mist? Was there someone next to me? I couldn't tell. I had to hang on. I had to continue. I had to...

     Suddenly, everything ceased. My body stopped to ache, my senses cleared, even my fear dissipated. All in one instant.

     It was so sudden I took several seconds to realize the glitter was gone. And I do mean gone. There was no trace of it anywhere, the ground, the trees, my clothes and even my face were spotless. Well, as spotless as a forest and someone crawling in the mud could be. If not for the trench I had done and the mud on me I would have thought it at all been just a dream.

     I went back to the place I first found the mushroom. I don't know how long I spent in that mist but I was actually impressed that I had been able to go this far.

     When I arrived I found my suspicion confirmed: there were no trace of the presence of this mushroom either. It was like it had never existed.

     I began to be scared again. I knew whatever had happened was not normal and I didn't know if it was actually finished. For the first time in my life I was scared of the forest. The very same forest I played with my cousins when they came visiting. The forest where I confessed my love for the first time. The forest where I had my first broken heart.

     I had to find Gramps and leave as fast as possible. He would not be happy but I didn't care. He was probably on the second trail, I had to turn back to find it.

     And I did just that. But as I ran, I noticed something that freaked me out even more: I was clean again. The mud that stained my clothes was nowhere to be seen. I arrived at the trench I had done soon after that I was relived to see it was still there. But not for long: just in front of me it closed up like a zipper.

     The pieces of my mind that had not exploded yet began to consider two explanations. Firstly, something supernatural was erasing all evidence of what had happened to me. It was terrifying but I could live with that. The second explanation was a lot worse, this something was erasing all traces of my very existence.

     I had just survived something I thought would kill me, I didn't want to be erased just after that! I had to find Gramps! It was the only way I could know. It was the only thing on my mind now.

     I began to run again when suddenly I... saw him. He was still far away and more importantly out of sight, but I knew where he was. I even knew he was moving the earth around a cep boletus to pick it. And I saw a shortcut through the woods to him.

     At this point I was too shocked to care anymore. I charged at him and arrived behind him as he stoop up. I barely registered the fact I had barely made a sound in my mad dash, which would have been a feat even for a trained ninja.

     I was still too out of it to speak coherently, but I approached nonetheless. He turned upon hearing my heavy breath. My heart flailed in anticipation for his reaction.


If he remembered his grandchild, click here
If he didn't remember his grandchild, click here