part 1 too long for one section sorry Twig the puppy ran home enthusiastically, wagging his tail. School had just ended, and it was the start of Christmas break. Snow was falling down. After walking some more and being pet by people passing by, Twig returned home, to a cozy brick cottage, in a small suburb. He entered through the doggy door, his owner happy to see him. Immediately, he took a nap on his bed, teddy bear in his small paws. He only woke up when his owner shouted "Dinner!" to which he quickly ran to the living room. "Aww, you're such a good boy!" his owner, a kind, short elderly lady said, petting Twig. He ate his food and then sat in front of the fireplace. A bit later, his owner went to sleep. "Don't get into anything, okay?" she said, while yawning. He then pretended to go to bed, turning on his night light with his paw. A bit later, however, he left through the doggy door. He put on a little green puffball hat, and a thick scarf. He knocked a lamp over while exiting, but thankfully it wasn't damaged. The ground was covered with snow, roughly two feet thick. Twig trudged through, hoping to see what he had heard rumors of, The River of Wishes. He was going to wish he would never have to go to school ever again. He was heading toward the forest. After a trek to the forest, that took him about a hour or two, he was exhausted. He felt like falling asleep. But sheer curiosity propelled him forward, filling him with energy. Snow covered all of the trees. The sky was pitch black except for speckles of stars. Owls and squirrels chattered. No grizzly bears were in sight, as they were hibernating. Wilted leaves covered the ground. He then noticed another puppy, who looked to be sleeping. He poked its head softly with his paw. The puppy barked "Why did you wake me up?" Twig barked nervously "Were ya, by chance, lookin' for the River of Wishes?" "Yes, I was, why?" the puppy responded, crankily. "I am too! Did the walk wear ya out? "Obviously." "What's yer name?" He tilted his head curiously. "Mela." She yawned. "What are ya going to wish for?" "Nothing, really. It was on a dare. A Double-dog-dare. Said she'd give me 5 bucks. Guess I will make a wish, just because." She started to wake up. "Well, since we're goin' to the same place, do you want to travel together?" "Well, I don't see why not..." They walked for hours, chatting about school and hobbies. Twig started to worry, if he would be in trouble. "It's too late to return now," he thought. It was sunrise. "When will we see this river? I better get ten bucks." Mela groaned. "It might be over there!" Twig pointed. He noticed from a far distance what looked to be a river, and some unnaturally bioluminescent, bright pink and purple plants, that stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the green forest. The squirrels and foxes kept away from the path. It looked like a cave, the path beyond them was completely dark. "Are you sure?" Mela barked. "Well, it is supposed ta be a magical river, so..." They walked down this mysterious path. There was no snow. Fireflies swarmed around them. Everything was dark except the fireflies and glowing plants. Caterpillars munched on glowing green leaves. Flowers and mushrooms covered the path, and the grass was tall. It was a scene from a fairytale. After a couple minutes of walking, they saw the river. They both took a bit to rest. It did not look like an ordinary river, but it had pink, blue, and purple swirls, that made it look like liquid fordite. Twig felt uneasy. He was definitely in trouble. "Stupid! Why did you leave?" he thought to himself. It felt unreal, like a dream. Twig didn't know how to feel anymore. He stepped closer to the river. A bright turquoise heron approached them, greeting them. "Welcome!" The heron said, in a human man's voice, staring right at him. This definitely wasn't real. He walked around, feeling a mix of perplexion and amazement. went closer to the river, the heron walked away. staring at his reflection. He put his paw in the river, the water swirling, starting to become a cyan and green. The heron approached him. Twig flinched. "What do you want most? What is your wish?" The bird tilted its head, like a curious cat. "Hey, Mela." Twig barked. She was taking a nap. She opened her eyes and turned towards him, a couple meters away. "Is this re-" "What is your wish?" the bird interruped. " I wish i could go home." Twig yawned. "Sorry, I cannot do that. What is your wish?" "I wanna go-. He was terrified and exhausted, only thinking about returning home to his owner. "WHAT IS YOUR WISH?" Its voice sounded like multiple people now, its feathers turning purple, its tail fanning out like a peacock to reveal glowing cyan eye-like patterns. "I wish I wasn't so tired." he said, not thinking clearly. "Sure, I can do that." Its anger disappeared. And then Twig regained his puppy energy. He ran towards Mela. "IS THIS REAL? ARE YOU REAL?" "Yes, it very much is." The heron interrupted.
part 2 Twig was full of energy, yet all he wanted was to go to bed, in the cozy brick cottage. Why did he leave? The heron stood next to him. "Your eyes... what is happening to them?" Mela barked. Twig's iris kept changing shape. First a circle, then an amoeba, then a star. "Oh, that." the heron said. "That just kind of... happens when you wish at the river. "Nobody said anythin' about that!" Twig barked. "You see, the river is, quite literally, spacetime. Ever noticed it's BRIGHT PINK? That's not water." "I knew tha-" "Knowing we are messing with reality itself, it's impossible to change it with absolutely no consequences." "How was this place created? It's far different from the rest of the forest." Mela asked. "I haven't the best idea, really. There's only legends." The heron sighed. "I do wish I could tell you more." "Oh, and why can't you take Twig home?" "We cannot teleport people without altering reality too much. I tried it once, and I will never do so again." "And, why did you get so mad? Ya turned purple and stuff. Spooky." Twig asked.