“It’s fresh,” he assured them.
They stooped down to drink themselves. It was while this was happening that Taylor made a discovery.
“Hey look, there’s a path.”
And so there was. But unlike other paths that go through forests, this one was actually a distinctive path. It had straight edges and there wasn’t any grass growing on it, even though it was all dirt. There were a few dead leaves lying on it though.
“Well, lets see where it goes,” Zac said.
They walked down the path. They hadn’t gone far before they came to a great tree house.
“Wow,” Isaac breathed. “This place is awesome!”
“Do you think someone already lives here?” asked Zac.
“Maybe, I guess we won’t know if we don’t look.”
They climbed up the ladder to the main platform, and walked into the room situated on it.
“Hello?” Taylor asked.
There was no answer, and they looked around the room. Taylor noticed a book on the table.
“Hey guys, look at this,” he said. “It’s a guest book for the tree house. Guess what it says on the cover?”
“What?” asked Isaac.
“It says: ‘Welcome to The Tree House. You are the twenty-eighth castaway/group of castaways to be shipwrecked on this island and have had the pleasure of staying here. Feel free to stay as long as you want, just don’t forget to sign the guest book and change the number on this cover for the next castaway/group of castaways before you leave.’ Can you believe it?” Taylor laughed.
“It really says that?” asked Zac, then, after a quick look, “You’re not kidding!”
“Nope.”
“Why should he? Everything has gotten weird since, umm… that day Fred got us lost in the woods,” Isaac commented.
Fred declined to say anything to that. The four boys explored the tree house and they all picked a room. Fred, of course, was stuck with the worse of the rooms. After picking their rooms, they met back in the main room, and raided the kitchen for food.
“I saw a tower from my window,” Isaac commented. “Maybe we should go check it out tomorrow.”
Taylor and Zac agreed. They ate their dinner and went to bed. Then, in the morning, they ate breakfast and started on their trip to the tower.
They had been walking for about an hour when they came to a bridge. It was rickety and there was only enough room for one person. One person at a time was the rate at which they figured they should cross, anyway.
Taylor decided to cross first. He got to the middle of the bridge when the head of a great big troll peeked up from the side.
“Who dares to cross my bridge?” he demanded. “And without paying the toll either?”
“Umm, I do. I didn’t know there was a toll.”
“Well, there is. And since you didn’t pay it, I’m going to have to eat you.”
“Oh, you don’t want to eat me. I’m too skinny. There’s no meat on me, it wouldn’t be worth it.”
And while the troll considered this, Taylor ran as fast as he could to the other side of the bridge. Isaac was next and when the troll informed him that he would have to eat him, as he didn’t pay the toll, Isaac too, remarked that he wouldn’t be worth the effort of eating, as he was so skinny.
“You’re bigger than the other boy that went past,” the troll commented.
“But that doesn’t mean I’m any more appetising.”
And while the troll considered this, Isaac ran and joined Taylor on the other side of the bridge. It was Zac’s turn then.
“I have to eat you,” the troll informed him. “You didn’t pay the toll. And you would most definitely be worth the effort. You’re so meaty!”
“Umm, well, yeah, but I’m also sick,” Zac replied, faking a sneeze. “If you eat me, you might get sick too.”
And he ran the other end of the bridge while the troll considered the matter. So then it was Fred’s turn, and when the troll confronted him, Fred asked what the toll was.
“Umm, I don’t know.”
“So how can I be expected to pay a toll, if you don’t even know what it is? Or where to pay it?”
“Hmm…”
“Maybe you should decide what the toll is and put up some signs and stuff.”
“Hmm… I suppose that’s a good idea.”
And the troll let Fred pass.