Jonah lifted the witch boy out of the trash and dusted him off. “You’ll love Master!” He dragged the witch boy out of the alley, past the dark buildings.

“Wait up, Jonah,” Marcia huffed. “You’re being rude. We don’t know if the kid wants to come with us. We don’t even know his name.”

Jonah laughed nervously, “Well, kid, what do you say? Want to come with us?” The boy shook his head up and down enthusiastically. “Good, so what’s your name, kid?”

“N-name?”

“Yeah, what do other people call you? Like how my name is Marcia, and he is Jonah.” Marcia looked at the young boy with a twinkle in her eyes.

“I guess my name’s… witch boy.” Marcia frowned, “That’s not a name.”

The witch boy bit his lower lip. Jonah began pacing back and forth while rubbing his chin. “I got it,” his smile grew two times larger. We’ll call you Gruff because it sounds like tuff!”

Gruff’s heart beat loudly as he looked up at the pale teenager. He then puffed out his chest and flexed his arms. The teenagers burst into laughter.

Jonah wiped a tear from his eye. “I like you. I think we’ll get along just fine.”

Jonah and Marcia held Gruff’s hands as they led him through the dark, lonely streets. Gruff looked up at them, and his breath caught in his throat. He tightened his grip on their hands as tears filled his eyes. They held his hand just as his mother did all those years ago.

The forest grew closer, and the trees covered the ground with a darkness that made Gruff halt. He looked back at the village and released his grip on the teenager's hands.

His heart pounded in his ears, and he gripped his chest.

Air refused to fill his lungs as he backed away from Marcia and Jonah. The two teens walked up to the forest with no hesitation. The morning sun rose behind the small boy as he watched the teens get further away. He wanted to call out for them, but his voice was trapped inside his throat.

Suddenly, Gruff’s frozen legs thawed, and something warm pushed him forward. Looking back, Gruff saw the little hut he once lived in with his mother. It sat in the middle of a growth of flowers right outside the village.

Jonah and Marcia looked back at the boy, holding their hands out. Gruff held tightly to them as they led him into the forest.

Light flooded through the trees, and the forest invited Gruff in.