The Haunted Stump

The Client

My Client today is Old Man Forest. I don’t know what Old Man Forest’s real name is. Everyone just calls him Old Man Forest. He lives even deeper in the Forest Primeval than I do. As you might have guessed from his name, he is a man and he is very old, and he lives in a forest. The man part and the forest part are easy. But as for the old part, I would say that Old Man Forest is at least 200 years old. When a bear once swallowed Maximillian, it was Old Man Forest who helped us save him—the bear, I mean. So, of course, when Old Man Forest told me about his haunted stump, by sending me a note on a carrier pigeon, I hiked to his house at once.

The Assistant

Since I knew I would be investigating a stump that was or wasn’t haunted, I decided, of course, to bring Tom Tita. Obviously this is because this is because Tom Tita loves to lay on stumps. Especially if the stump is in the sun. In his note, Old Man Forest said that the stump he likes to sit on every morning has been moving to different places in his yard, all by itself! Tom Tita is also good at chasing things and so he is perfect for this investigation.

The Sniff

I’m so glad you’ve come. I made chicory coffee to warm you up,” said Old Man Forest as soon as I got there. “I don’t even know where my stump is today.” But after five cups of chicory coffee, I knew I could find anything. In a super-charged chicory coffee blur, I dashed around Old Man Forest’s yard. Tom Tita was tucked in the hood of my rainbow hoodie, so he could keep up with me. We finally tackled the stump as it was emerging from a blackberry bush. I took a moment to eat several of the blackberries before I confronted the stump.

“Why are you moving around?” I asked firmly, giving the stump a deep sniff.

“I’m tired of staying in one place all the time,” answered the stump in a grumbly voice.

“You’re not being very helpful to Old Man Forest,” I scolded the stump.

“Old Man Forest is my best friend. I just want us to travel the forest together.”

“Hmm,” I said. Tom Tita meowed.

The Scent

As you may have guessed, any stump that can speak in a grumbly voice, or any voice for that matter is absolutely a Sniff. Old Man Forest was actually thrilled at the idea at getting to ride his stump around the forest every morning. I got him a travel mug, so his chicory coffee wouldn’t spill on him, and he and Grumbles the Stump were off on their first adventure. Now, in the mornings, if the wind is just right, I can hear Old Man Forest through the trees, “Yeeeeeehaaaa!”

This investigation was Scented. Kinda woodsy smelling.

The End