Hello dear guests! I'm still working on the first part, I just can't get it quite right. So until then, here's a quick intro to our story.

Intro

The day had finally arrived, but guests didn't know it. The Crow Keeper stood in a round, circular clearing, grass springing up beneath his boots. The forest surrounding the clearing was dark in this early morning light, shadowy and mysterious. 

The Crow Keeper wasn't alone in this place however. Eleven elephant sized crows stood in front of him, watching with intelligent black eyes. The Crow Keeper glanced towards the sky and smiled slighty from underneath his hood. "It's time." At his words, the crows lifted off in unison, giant obsidian feathers swirling down to land beside the Crow Keeper. He watched the shapes of the crows until they were out of sight, then turned to face the forest behind him.

"They're coming," He said softly, voice filled with malice. "They're going to help me be rid of you, once and for all." His words hung in the silent air, before they were swallowed by a growl, low and ethereal, strong enough to shake the trees.

And perhaps, bring them all crashing down. 

ELEPHANT SIZED CROWS. WOW.

Hello friends! Your transportation is finally arriving. I'm sorry it took so long, crows can get quite distracted by shiny things laying around. Anyway, your adventure begins: 

                                        Part one, Day one: 

Hawkstar waited outside her house, scuffling her feet impatiently. She'd been waiting for days now, stepping outside occasionally to look around. The note had said that transportation was going to be arranged, but never said when it was arriving. 

It was mildly sunny outside, the soft autumn air fresh and cool. Hawkstar sighed quietly and turned back towards her house. Perhaps this "transportation" wasn't coming after all, perhaps this whole trip was just a scam.

She had her hand on the doorknob when the sun suddenly flickered away, as if a huge cloud had slid in front of it, blocking all light. Hawkstar raised her head to look up and sucked in a breath, stumbling back against the door. That was no cloud, but something solid and glittering black. A giant crow swept down towards her and landed in front of her with a thud, dust billowing from under its wings. Hawkstar held her breath and blinked rapidly, waiting until the dust cleared, before taking a tiny step forward. She watched hesitantly as the crow stretched out one wing and cawed softly.

The crow was certainly big enough to ride and with its wing spread like a ramp, maybe that's what it wanted her to do. "Did the Crow Keeper send you?" She asked slowly. She was almost certain that this was the transportation. After all, you don't see giant crows everyday. It was entirely possible it could understand her too. She wasn't too surprised when it nodded. 

"Okay then. Hold on." She raced back inside her house and retrieved her arrow bag and belongings. Then she hurried back out.

The crow waited patiently as Hawkstar crept up it's wing. It was much more solid than she'd been expecting and she was soon seated near the crow's neck, holding on tightly. The crow let out a mighty, throaty squawk and lifted off. Hawkstar clutched even tighter, but stared out at the view rushing below her.

There wasn't a whole lot to see, they were speeding along unexpectedly fast, the ground below blurred and fuzzy. After a little while, Hawkstar loosened her grip and leaned back slightly. Even though the ground was hurtling by below, it barely felt like they were moving.

And then, after what felt like no time at all, the crow landed. Hawkstar jolted forward at the sudden dive and banged her chest uncomfortably against the crow's neck, her face buried in black feathers that smelled like rain. The crow squawked, a sound half apologetic and half amused.

After taking a deep breath to calm herself, Hawkstar lifted her head and looked around at her surroundings. Forest was all she could see. They seemed to be in a clearing, a small meadow tucked deep in the woods. From what she could see, the clearing was completely empty, no buildings or structures, just a grassy circle in the middle of nowhere.

"The Crowild Woods," Hawkstar whispered to herself. 

The crow had stretched out its wing once more and Hawkstar half walked, half slid down it onto the grass. The crow then flicked its wing back up and stepped to the side, revealing a group of people, a cloaked person standing in the lead.

"Ah, there you are, our last visitor to arrive." Hawkstar blinked in surprise. She was almost certain that when she'd looked around, she hadn't seen anyone anywhere. The cloaked person stepped forward and stood in front of her, while the others stayed back, talking quietly and looking up at the crow.

Hawkstar stared up at who she assumed was the Crow Keeper. They were slightly taller than her and wearing all black. Their cloak covered most of their body and they were wearing black pants and boots as well. The black color of everything had a slightly metallic shine to it, like raven feathers. Their face was covered by the cloak's hood and no matter which way they turned their head, their face was not visible, obscured in darkness.

"Hello Hawkstar. It's wonderful to finally meet you. My name is the Crow Keeper, although you may call me Crow. As Sam kindly pointed out, it's much easier to say. He/him pronouns please." His voice was as smooth as silk and he punctuated his words slowly and carefully. 

"Nice to meet you too," Hawkstar said, trying to hide her slightly unsettled feeling. She hated not being able to see his face.

Crow stepped sideways and opened his arms, addressing the entire group. "Your stay is just about to begin! I must go get something ready, I'll be back in a moment. Feel free to introduce yourselves. Come along Loch." The crow raised its head at its name and lifted off, soaring over their heads and disappearing into the woods. When Hawkstar looked back down, Crow had vanished as well. Hawkstar joined the group of other guests.

"Hi," Perine said softly, her dark eyes wide. "I can't believe we just rode on giant crows, that was incredible."

Celine nodded excitedly. "It was amazing! I can already tell, this trip is going to be awesome."

"We should probably all introduce ourselves," Parody said sensibly. She stepped forward. "My name is Parody, she/her."

Everyone else took a turn telling Hawkstar their name and pronouns, and she quickly committed them to memory, then introduced herself as well.  

"Soo, when do you think Crow's coming back?" Sam asked, tilting their head. "I mean, he just vanished."

Hawkstar turned around to face the forest and gazed around. "I don't see him..." She began, when Crow came striding out of the trees, as if he'd heard them.

"We're all ready." He called over to them. "Please follow me."

Everyone dashed across the clearing to meet up with him and he turned, heading back into the woods. Hawkstar was in front of everyone else and she stepped forward, the trees swallowing Crow in darkness. 

An uneasy feeling swept over her body, a tingle of nerves. There's nothing to be afraid of. She reassured herself, as Sam and Books stepped around her and ventured into the woods. 

Hawkstar entered. The light was dark and diluted, flecks of brighter light scattering the ground.

She'd only taken a few steps when something happened. She wasn't sure if it was the darkness or something else, but suddenly a wave of dizziness washed over her, pressing and cold. Her vision began to black out and her legs crumpled beneath her. The last thing she saw before she hit the dark, mossy dirt was Books collapsing in front of her. Then her vision went as dark as a crow's wing.

Alive: 11

Dead: 0 

Ooooooo this is so good. I hope I'll survive whatever just happened....

Wow, that was so good! The writing is so vivid that I can feel it!

Hello friends! Thank you so much for all of your kind words. I must sincerely apologize for the long pauses between parts. I actually wrote half of this new part only a day after the previous one was posted, then completely forgot for a while. I might as well say that this is my first time writing a ski lodge, but I'm planning to see this to the end and finish the story. There just might be longish pauses between parts, but hopefully I'll get better at this. So thank you so much for your patience! Now, onto the next part...

Part two, Day two

Crow stood in the shadows, guilt clenching his body like a steel trap. He watched as Pangolin and Moon Wolf entered the forest last. He watched as Moon Wolf stopped and clutched at Pangolin's arm weakly. "S-something's wronnnn-" Her words slurred into silence and she collapsed against Pangolin, who fell moments after.

Crow's unseen eyes scanned the guests, all lying in the dirt. He sucked in a breath, sorrow rippling through his body. He had to do this, for them and everyone else. As much as it pained him to hurt them, there was no other way. 

"You must find your gemstones," he whispered to eleven still bodies. "Only then will you make it out."

He paused, a chill tingling up his back. Something was wrong, one of the guests was not right. Their mind wasn't where it was supposed to be.

That person awoke in darkness. "What's g-going on?" They said, staggering to their feet. All they could see was a tiny pinprick of light, as if it was in the far distance. They tried to move their feet, but their body didn't respond.

"Ah, finally." A voice said softly, seeming to come from everywhere all at once. There was something very wrong with this voice. It was like a jumble of people all speaking at once, soft and hard, high and low, with a deep tone after each word that seemed to echo endlessly.

"I need you to do something for me, young one." The voice went on and the person realized with horror that they were the one speaking, the strange words leaving their lips. Their brain felt clogged and empty.

"The Crow Keeper is trying oh so hard to get what he wants. But he's not the only one with magic. So what do you say, friend? Will you do what I ask of you?"

The voice faded away and the person's mind cleared. But something had changed. Something had broken. Their mind and thoughts were different and twisted. Wild and hungry. Feral eyes opened in the dark and they smiled.

"I would love to."

Books jolted awake, rain spattering on her face and into her eyes. For a few moments, she stared up at the dark leaves above her head and the gray clouds peeking through. 

Something was off. Everything was too sharp and chiseled, her vision perfect. Except she couldn't feel her glasses on her face. Tingling feeling shot through her body, chasing away the sleepiness. Her whole body felt off.

She wrenched herself into a sitting position, white wings pressed into the wet ground. Books stared at her clawed talons and stick-like legs.

Am I asleep? In a sudden movement, she jerked her head around, till she was looking almost completely behind herself. What is even happening? How can I be an...owl? She wondered frantically, feeling slightly dizzy. There was another feeling as well. Something she could only describe as instinct. A pull to find something, an urgency she couldn't ignore. It was an uncomfortable feeling. 

Books noticed that she was surrounded by other animals, all lying still and quiet. Crow was nowhere to be seen and all of their bags were neatly stacked against a tree. They weren't at the edge of the forest anymore, but completely surrounded by trees, no clearings to be seen.

A small squirrel suddenly awoke, eyes opening wide. As Books watched, all the other animals woke simultaneously and suddenly, as if they were thrown awake.

A small black bird with sunset colored wings let out a shrill cry. "What's going on?! Why does my body feel so weird?" Books winced slightly. Whatever was going on, it wasn't just her. That bird had just spoken in Artimis's panicked voice. 

Beside Books, a deer stood up easily and shook herself, antlers swaying gently. She stared down at the other animals, soft yellow eyes wide.

"Wait, you're all shapeshifters too?" Parody asked, stamping a hoof in surprise.

"No! I mean, I'm not at least," Peri said nervously. She was still lying on her back, a brown owl staring fearfully up at the sky. Books watched as Parody scrunched up her snout and then relaxed slightly. 

"I can't shape-shift right now," she muttered quietly. Then she cleared her throat. "Nobody panic-" Parody began, when one of the squirrels interrupted her in Celine's accusing voice.

"Did you do this to us? If so, you'd better explain yourself now."

"I don't think that's shape-shifting how works..." Books said quietly.

"It's not," Parody replied in her soothing voice.

"At least we're not hurt, or at least we're all alive," Hawkstar said, a soft brown hawk struggling to sit up.

"Then how are we all animals? Is this a dream or something? Did Crow do this?" Celine demanded, dark eyes blazing.

"I don't believe any of us knows the answers to those questions," Pangolin said gently. They laid on her side, red fox paws clenched nervously. "M-maybe we should listen to Parody. Sounds like she's experienced with transforming."

Parody nodded importantly and stepped delicately over Silver, who was a sleek gray squirrel lying on her back. Parody stopped when she was in the center of mismatched animals and cleared her throat. "I know you're all afraid, but we shouldn't panic yet. Yes, we've all transformed....somehow. And yes, Crow appears to have abandoned us. But we can get through this upsetting matter! I am what some would call a professional shape-shifter. Now listen closely, I'll teach you how to move your bodies." 

Parody separated them into groups of sorts, beginning with the four legged creatures, walking them through their new abilities and bodies. Books was incredibly grateful to have her, otherwise she wasn't sure what they'd do.

When Parody moved on to the birds, the sky was dark gray and the rain was coming down even harder, a thundering ruckus of a thousand tiny footsteps. Parody showed Books, Peri, Artemis, Hawkstar, and Perine how to work their wings, how to walk, and even how to flutter a few feet off the ground. It would take a bit of getting used to, but Books felt massive relief now that she was finally able to move.

"Thank you so much, Parody," she said gratefully, shaking out her wet wings. Everyone else echoed her thanks and Parody bowed her majestic head.

"Does anyone feel kinda weird? Like there's this pull inside of you?" Moon Wolf asked, her brow furrowed in concern. "Like you really have to take care of something, but you just don't know what it is?"

"Yeah, I do actually," Sam said, eyes widening, while Peri nodded anxiously.

"Me too," Books admitted. "Does anyone else?" She was met by everyone nodding.

"Let's think about this later," Hawkstar said, fluttering a few steps forward. "We have to get out of this rain, maybe we'll even find Crow if we go deeper into the forest."

"What about those cabins he mentioned in the invitation?" Perine asked.  

"I'm starting to suspect those were made up," Pangolin said softly.

"Only one way to find out, let's grab our bags and go," Sam said, trotting up to the pile and grabbing their bag in their mouth.

There was a bit of a problem, as the smaller animals couldn't carry their bags, but the bigger creatures such as Moon Wolf and Parody were able to carry a few and eventually they got it all worked out.

"Let's go," Hawkstar said, leading the way deeper into the forest. Everyone followed behind, a caravan of animals. They had no idea what awaited them in these dark, rain-soaked woods.

They had no idea that someone strange and wild walked among them.

Alive: 11

Dead: 0