A small dark cloud moved toward them, and suddenly the cloud revealed its true form as bats scattered, filling the air. Tension gripped Donan.
He tried to maintain control, but fear mingled with confusion. The buzzing sound of bat wings grew louder, forcing him to back away, running in any direction. The problem was, as soon as he distanced himself from Luna, he realized he was lost.
The fear of shouting for her, worried about attracting more bats, made him hesitate. And the pressure in his bladder wasn't helping at all.
"I can't believe this..." Donan muttered, crossing his legs and trying to control the urgent need to relieve himself. Suddenly, he stopped beside a tree, the shadows around him thickening, and he failed to notice he was sinking.
It wasn't until the ground beneath him began to shift, as though swallowing him whole, that Donan realized the danger. His feet were being sucked into the mud, sending his mind spiraling into panic. He struggled to free himself, but the mud seemed stronger. Worse yet, fear overtook him so completely that he accidentally "relieved" himself, soaking his pants.
"Luna!" he cried out desperately, trying in vain to break free from the muddy trap. "Luna! Help me, please! I'm stuck here, help!"
The sound of his voice, mixed with desperation, sounded like an invitation to the bats, but Donan no longer cared. The embarrassment of being soaked in urine made him scream even louder, torn between fearing the bats' return and desperately wanting to be saved.
Luna, hearing his cry, immediately ran toward him. When she spotted him from afar, she had no trouble figuring out where he was. Donan's panic and awkward situation made her quicken her pace. She stopped in front of him, trying to stifle a laugh at the sight.
"You... you're... completely soaked!" Luna said, attempting to hold back her laughter. She looked at him with an expression caught between surprise and amusement.
Donan, his face red with shame, stammered, "I... I didn't mean to... I was just trying... to get out of this, but the mud got me, and..."
Luna, wearing a mischievous grin, extended a hand to him, helping him out of the mud. "Wow, man, I can't take you seriously. You're soaked, and were you really that scared? Unbelievable."
Donan looked at his feet, still half-buried in the mud, and finally realized how ridiculous he must seem. He didn't know whether to laugh or feel mortified, but when Luna pulled him up, he felt relief.
"You know that, right?" she said, now laughing openly. "This won't be forgotten anytime soon. Now we're lost, dirty, and you... you peed yourself!"
Donan, his head lowered, stayed silent for a moment before finally laughing too, relieved by her help and the humor she brought to the situation.
Luna, with a sly smile, looked at him as she extended her hand. "I can help you," she said, and without him noticing, she pulled out a small pouch hidden under her clothes.
With a swift motion, she brought it out and waved it in front of Donan like a magician revealing a trick.
Donan, still embarrassed, eyed the pouch suspiciously and asked, "What do you have in there? Don't tell me you're about to pull out some kind of... magic potion to clean me up or something."
Luna, her eyes gleaming mischievously, opened the pouch and, with an exaggerated flourish, pulled out a package of wet wipes, pausing dramatically to add suspense.
"That's right," she said with a broad smile. "Wet wipes. The solution to everything: for your body, your face, anything... except your dignity!"
Donan's eyes widened, incredulous that the solution to his embarrassing predicament was something so simple—and unexpected. "Wipes? Seriously? That's not going to help me get out of the mud, is it?"
Luna looked at him, still wearing that playful grin. "You underestimate the power of wet wipes. Now stand still and let me sort you out, because clearly, you have no idea how to save yourself."
She began cleaning what she could, laughing as he struggled to free himself from the mud and his embarrassment. "I knew you were a bit soft about some things, but this? It's too much."
Meanwhile, she pulled something else from her pouch—something Donan certainly didn't want but, in the moment, couldn't refuse.
"You're kidding me, right?"
Donan, feeling completely disarmed, couldn't help but laugh too. "You leave me speechless, Luna. You're really... something else."
She gave his face one last wipe and struck a "tada" pose, as if she'd accomplished something monumental. "So, how do you feel? Back to your 'shameless' self? Or will you thank me later for saving your life... and your dignity?"
Donan, half-laughing and half-embarrassed, replied, "I just hope you never let me end up in the same situation again."
As the forest seemed to stretch endlessly around them, Donan, wearing a transparent skirt and the expression of someone resigned to his fate, walked with hesitant steps. He felt the mud clinging to his feet, the skirt dragging through dry leaves, but at least he was far from the "filth."
Every movement was uncomfortable, yet Luna couldn't stop looking at him with a mischievous smile, as if she'd won an important battle—which, for her, she had.
"You know, Donan, you actually pull off the skirt quite well," Luna teased, turning to him with a playful look as the breeze from the trees danced around them.
Donan grumbled, avoiding her gaze. "Seriously? I look like a... a clown!" He was starting to accept the absurdity of the situation, but that didn't ease his embarrassment.
Luna laughed, already moving a little ahead of him, observing him with amusement. "Don't worry, you're the classiest clown I've ever seen walking."
He sighed, but deep down, he began to realize she had a unique way of making things seem... easier. Even though the ridiculousness of it all left him speechless, he couldn't deny that Luna somehow made the situation a bit more bearable.
"Don't you think we're walking in circles?" he asked suddenly, trying to change the subject as the sting of embarrassment was beginning to gnaw at him.
Luna looked around, not dropping her provocative demeanor, though she was starting to realize that, yes, they were getting lost again. "Well, if we are, at least we're lost together, right?"
Donan grimaced but couldn't suppress a faint smile. "Fair enough, though I think one of us could be better dressed for the occasion."
"Oh, please, don't bring up clothing," Luna said with a shrug. "This place is driving me nuts. What we really need is a plan. And, please, no more yelling. I don't know about you, but I'm not in the mood to be attacked by another swarm of bats."
As they kept walking, still aimlessly, Donan suddenly stopped, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu. He glanced around, trying to spot a landmark that might guide them out of this endless loop, but what he saw only made him more confused.
"Luna, are you sure we're going the right way?" he asked, beginning to suspect that the forest was toying with them.
Luna, meanwhile, was leaning casually against a tree, her expression almost playful, as if she knew something he didn't. "Of course... But do you really think the forest is going to let us out that easily? That's not how these things work, Donan. The forest loves to play with those who dare to enter."
Donan sighed, though he couldn't shake the odd feeling that, no matter what, he was with someone who might know more about this world than she let on.
"Okay, I get that we're a little lost... but what if we try to stay calm? Like, actually pay attention to where we're going and not get dizzy every time we see the same tree again?" he suggested awkwardly.
Luna looked at him, her smile fading slightly, and stepped closer. "Maybe... but if we don't get out of here soon, you're going to stay stuck in that skirt, my friend."
Donan's eyes widened. "Was that... a warning?"
She just smiled, grabbing his arm and pulling him along to continue walking. "Don't worry, Donan, we're closer to the end of this forest than you think. But for now, maybe I should keep an eye on your legs so you don't trip over anything."
He chuckled softly, though deep down, something in his chest felt different. It was as if he was starting to trust her, even though he wasn't sure how or why it had happened.
The forest continued to unfold before them, but now, at least, they were walking together. The joke about the skirt no longer seemed as ridiculous, and the feeling of being lost in a strange place was beginning to fade... or at least, he preferred to believe it was.