The day's last rays of sunlight flooded the cabin's living room as Penelope walked out of the back bedroom, laptop in hand. She had given in and picked one up at the local computer store to edit her videos.

As she flopped down onto the couch, the exposed skin of her legs stuck to the leather upholstery. "Ugh," Penelope muttered, grimacing as she peeled her thighs off the couch. "Shorts and leather do not mix." Even though the sun was setting, it was still plenty hot. Summer had pulled out one last scorcher to send them off into the fall.

Grabbing her favourite hoodie from the back of the couch, she shoved it underneath her legs. It would be enough to save her thighs for now. Besides, she wasn't going to sit here long. There were only a few finishing touches she wanted to make to her video, then it would be ready for upload and she could finally go...

The cabin door opened. "Knock, knock!" Liam called as he leaned in through the gap.

"Uh, excuse me?" Penelope called back. "Aren't you supposed to actually knock before you barge inside?" When she turned to look at him, she was grinning.

Liam grinned back. "Hey, this is my place," he said, stepping inside. He gestured around the cabin with the glass bottle of root beer he had in his hand.

"No, it's mine," she said, opening her laptop. "At least for one more night."

Liam dropped down on the couch next to her. "I still can't believe you're leaving," he said. "Ridgestone is going to feel so weird without you. One summer and it feels like you've always been here."

"I know," Penelope said. After everything that had happened, her dad had agreed to extend their trip to give her enough time to recover. But then he kept extending it and extending it until they had ended up staying for the entire season. "Who knows? Maybe we'll come back next year."

"I'd like that," Liam said, all the teasing gone from his voice. As he realized what he had said, his face went red. "I-I mean, we'd like that. Me and my mom. She and your dad are practically best friends now."

Penelope just nodded, pressing her lips together to fight the smile that was threatening to spread across her face. She turned back to the laptop to spare him.

Liam took a swig from his root beer. "A-Anyway," he began anew, not-so-subtly changing the subject. "What're you doing cooped up in here? I thought you were gonna join us down by the beach."

"I am," Penelope said, "once my video is finished."

"What?" Liam said, sounding aghast. "Why're you doing that now?"

Penelope shrugged. "It only seems right that I post the last video in my series before I leave town..."

"How much do you have left? Can I see what you have so far?"

"Yeah, sure," Penelope said. She made the video editor's preview window full screen and then angled her laptop towards him.

The video began with footage of her sitting on that very couch, though with different clothes and different hair. Once the black dye had faded she had replaced it with a dark, forest green.

"Hi, everyone," on-screen Penelope said. "The summer is almost over and in a few days, I'm going to be leaving Ridgestone—actually, by the time you're probably watching this, I will already be gone. And as my time here ends, so does this series.

"I know this series has been a little, uh, different than my usual stuff. And I know many of you wanted me to keep up my hunt for The Raven, but after what happened during the festival..." She paused and her eyes went wide as if trying to explain the sheer immensity of it all.

The video cut away from Penelope but her voice continued, speaking over a montage of clips. "...continuing our Raven hunt just didn't feel right. And I thought that it was more important to document the truth, instead." The first clips were from the opening night of the festival, when they had returned from the subdivision, limping back into town. They had gone straight to the Police Liaison booth to hand over Daevon and the others.

The chaos that followed, well... Penelope had filmed all of it, or what she could. First, the frenzy of the police as they questioned them while the paramedics checked them for injuries. Next, the media noticed and descended on them, begging for interviews, wondering how she had miraculously found Xander's crew. And finally, the crowd, screaming and pointing and filming her back. Penelope just sat back, panning around the chaos before the paramedics stuffed them into ambulances and shuttled them off to the hospital.

"It's been a real ride, hasn't it? With both ups..."

More clips. Leaving the hospital, Penelope walking alongside Liam as he pushed Henry—now with newly short hair and a large bandage on the back of his head—in a wheelchair to Beth's waiting SUV. Her and Daevon, who still looked drawn and exhausted, hugged as they said goodbye at the airport. The TV crew waving as they got on their small plane. Penelope acting as the impromptu host for the rest of the festival. Finally meeting her fans and posing for photos.

"...and downs."

The music slowed as a greyscale shot of the Raven statue in the middle of town. At its foot was a sea of flowers and cards. In the centre, a large photo of Xander... next to one of Gunnar.

"This summer, Ridgestone has faced more than their fair share of tragedy. First, the disappearance of the Dark Xplorations crew. While we found most of them, Xander remains missing to this day. And then the small town faced even more hardship with the loss of their mayor..."

In the wake of their return, and the chaos that followed, no one had noticed Gunnar was missing until the next day when he didn't show up for a festival event. And because of the festival, the search for him didn't quite get the same focus Xander's did—most people figured he had just holed up somewhere or had a breakdown from the stress of it all. It wasn't until they pulled his body from the river a week later that everyone realized that something truly terrible had happened.

What, exactly, was one truth Penelope wasn't willing to share.

Penelope reappeared on the screen. "My heart goes out to the people of Ridgestone," she continued, placing her hand on her chest. "But the town has fortunately bounced back, better than ever. And though it's been hard, things have also been, well, good."

The clips continued. Her dad barbecuing on their cabin patio, wearing a cheap Hawaiian shirt and a pair of ridiculous sunglasses. Her and Liam racing to the end of the dock and jumping into the perfect crystalline lake. Hiking the beautiful woods with Beth and Lyla. And even one final clip of Henry, placidly staring out at the lake as he fished, glancing at her now and then to smile.

"I know the end of this series kinda turned into more vlog than a documentary, but what can I say? Things got slow. And after..." Her voice trailed away and she sighed. She shook her dark-green hair out before starting again. "After everything, slow is good.

"So, anyway, I just wanted to say thank you for watching. And sticking with me despite," she laughed, "all the drama. I'm still not sure what I'm going to do with this channel in the future, but I will be back. Soon." She smiled at the camera and then waved.

The video ended.

"Uh, so what else do you need to do?" Liam asked. "That seems pretty perfect."

"I need to trim some of the clips in the middle so they don't drag, and—"

Liam groaned and slumped against the couch cushions, rolling his eyes back into his head as if he had just died of boredom. "Oh. My. God. Ever since you got that laptop you've been a total perfectionist."

She frowned at him. "I just want it to be good!"

"But it is good! I'm just saying, it doesn't need to be perfect."

"I just need to do a little more trimming—"

"Just let it be good, Penelope," Liam said. "Isn't trying so hard for 'perfect' what got your channel into trouble in the first place?"

Penelope narrowed her eyes at him. He was right, just a little bit, but she didn't want to give him the satisfaction of saying it.

"Besides, no video is worth missing your last night here," he said, nudging the laptop back towards her and standing up from the couch. "Post your video, or don't—your choice. But just know that if you take too long I'm gonna eat all the cheddar smokies and save none for you."

Penelope shook her head. It was a credible threat. She had seen him do it before.

With a sigh, she hit save and exported the video. He was right—no video was worth wasting her last night. It was fortunate that her new laptop was fast because it didn't take long. Opening up YouTube, she selected the file, copied in the description she had written earlier, and hit Publish. The video began to upload...

"There," she said, putting her laptop down on the coffee table. She pulled its power cable over and plugged it in. "I don't need to watch it upload. It'll post on its own when it's done."

"Great!" Liam said, grabbing her hand and pulling her off the couch. "Then let's go!"

Penelope had just enough time to grab her favourite hoodie before he dragged her out of the cabin.

It was even hotter outside. It was golden hour, the short and magical period of time of day when the sun was just about to sink below the horizon, the last of its light saturating the world in golds and reds. It was thought to be the ideal time for photographers and cinematographers, with just the right kind of light to set the perfect scene.

It was the perfect time for Penelope to say her goodbyes.

The campground was mostly empty, with only a couple of tents spotted around where once had been massive RVs. The camping season was officially over and now only the hardcore types came out, the ones who kept quiet. They pretty much had the place to themselves.

They walked across the grassy lawn, towards the path that led to the neat little forest path. It took Liam a second to realize he was still holding her hand.

When he did, he went bright red and quickly dropped it. "Sorry, uh, I-I..."

Penelope rolled her eyes. They had been doing this all summer. They kept coming up to the edge of something, but as soon as they got there, Liam would take a step back.

Screw it, she thought. It was now or never. She reached out and took his hand back. "Sorry for what?"

Liam just went redder, staring down at their joined hands. "N-Nothing." He smiled and didn't let go.

They took their time walking the secret path—the actual entrance was just a few feet off from the manicured one, barely noticeable unless you knew what you were looking for or where to look for it—not wanting to break their little spell. The woods were quiet, the breeze gentle. Liam's hand was comforting and warm. A little bird chirped at them from a tree branch as they walked by. Penelope smiled at it and thought of the ravens that used to follow her...

They hadn't bothered her much since that fateful night. And they definitely hadn't spoken to her. It was as if their own spell had been broken and they had gone back to being regular birds. Penelope didn't mind. That meant that The Raven was gone, and that was a good thing. She hoped it had found its way back to where it had come from... wherever that was.

As Liam and Penelope reached the stone beach, everyone looked up. The whole gang was there—her dad, Beth and Lyla, and even Henry. Both Beth and her dad's gazes dropped to Penelope and Liam's joined hands and their eyebrows launched into their hair. Like two gossiping grannies, they turned to smirk at each other. Beth whispered something to Penelope's dad that sounded something like, "you owe me ten bucks."

Liam and Penelope dropped each other's hands and took a step apart. With a quick glance at each other, they knew they both felt the same—whatever their feelings, neither of them wanted to suffer through the questions and the teasing.

And anyway, they could always pick up again later tonight...

The two of them went their separate ways. Lyla was busy setting out the fixings for their hot dog feast and Liam went over to help her.

Penelope glanced around, wondering where to distract herself. Beth was busy tending the fire with Penelope's dad at her side, the two of them chatting away. Liam had been right about that—they had become something of best friends over the summer, bonding over their love of fishing.

They weren't the only ones. There was another fish-mad member of Liam's family. Henry's idea of celebrating the end of the season was to be wader-deep in the lake, casting a line. His hair had started to grow out again, but Penelope could still see the vivid-pink slash of scar that ran along the back of his head.

Penelope wanted to call out to him, but she didn't want to bother him. Henry's wound had healed easily but the recovery from the concussion that came with it had taken much longer. Loud noises and bright lights still had the potential to trigger a migraine and it had made him even more of a hermit. She had hardly seen him for the rest of the summer. He was often gone, retreating to the forest or the lake for calm and quiet.

She let him be. He'd come to shore when he was ready.

With no other choices for company, she retreated to the fireside. She took a seat on a log, a few feet away from her dad and Beth, hoping that they wouldn't start ribbing her about holding hands with Liam...

Thankfully, Beth already had other things on her mind. "Penelope," she said with a roll of her eyes, as she poked at her perfect pyramid of flaming logs. "Will you please tell your father that he's crazy?"

"Sure," Penelope said, sighing with relief as she scooched closer. She gave her dad a nudge with her elbow. "He definitely is, but what was it this time?"

Her dad made a dramatic show of rubbing his arm where her elbow had hit. "I was just saying that now there aren't any more Christensens," he looked down at his daughter, "maybe Beth should run for mayor..."

"Oh," Penelope said, her eyes going wide. "Well, actually, that's not so crazy. I think you'd make a great mayor, Beth. You should run."

"Great," Beth said, throwing her arms up. "You're both nuts!" She shook her head and then smiled. "And I'm definitely going to miss you two." Before they had a chance to react, she had leaned in and wrapped her arms around both their necks, pulling them into one big awkward hug.

"We'll miss you too, Beth!" her dad said, patting her shoulder. "Come and visit us in the city, any time."

"Actually," Penelope squeaked through her half-crushed windpipe, "I was just telling your son that maybe we'll come back next summer..."

"Really?" Beth said, releasing them at last. "Oh, that'd be so wonderful!"

"Yeah, that's a great idea!" her dad echoed. "It could be like a tradition... Summers in Ridgestone."

"Oh please, yes! The sooner you let me know for sure, the better," Beth continued to her dad, "So I can save you Cabin 1 again!"

"I will!" her dad replied. "Should we come earlier or later? Depends when the fishing is best, I guess—"

Penelope let them chatter over the details, just glad they were talking about anything other than Liam and her. She turned away, looking over to the food table where Liam was still helping Lyla. Everything had been laid out—compostable paper plates, artisanal hot dogs and condiments, and at least ten bags of different chips. Liam was already preparing his bun. He looked up and noticed her staring. She smiled at him before turning away before anyone caught them looking.

Her phone pinged from the back pocket of her jeans and she pulled it out. It was a notice from YouTube that her video had finished uploading and had just gone live. Without thinking, she pulled up the video to check on it. It already had several hundred views and even a few comments. Her thumb hesitated over the screen as she debated reading them... But old habits die hard. She scrolled down.

The very first comment made her regret it.

she's hiding something... anyone else think that it was the raven that killed the mayor? i think the town and PARANELOPE are covering it up!

A chill ran down her spine that had nothing to do with the breeze blowing off the lake. That rumour had been dogging her comments ever since Gunnar's body had been pulled from the river after he went missing during the festival. She had half a mind to delete it, but she knew that would just make it worse. Deleting it would make it seem like there was truth to the rumour, and even if there was, it was better to ignore it otherwise—

A hot dog bun—prepared with hot mustard and chopped onions, just the way she liked it—blocked her view of her phone.

"Put that away," Liam said, offering her the plate with the bun. "Or do you want to add another phone to the bottom of the lake?" He grinned mischievously. "At least put it on mute first, so it doesn't disturb the fish."

"I'll do you one better," she said. She held down the power button and switched her phone completely off before stuffing it back into her pocket. "Not because you told me to," she quickly added. She didn't want him to think she'd do whatever he said now that they... "I promised myself I'd unplug more and this is me keeping that promise."

"Good," Liam said, pushing the bun towards her again. He had two cheese smokies already skewered on a metal campfire stick, ready for roasting.

She took the bun and he sat down next to her, closer than usual. He held the stick out, over to the roaring fire...

"Oh, is it time to eat?" Beth asked, noticing the smokies suspended over her fire. "I'll go get Henry." She got up and went to the lake's edge. Instead of calling his name—that'd be too loud—she went and got a small stone and expertly skipped it towards him.

As the stone went skipping past, Henry turned. Dark sunglasses hid half his face, but his beard twitched and Penelope knew he was smiling. He began to wade back to shore.

"You kids want a drink?" Beth asked, stopping by the cooler on her way back to the fire.

"Got any more ice in there?" Henry said, joining his sister by the cooler. He shrugged off the boxy cooler bag that had been hanging around his shoulders. "I want to keep my catch cool before I have to head back."

"More fish?" Lyla said with a sigh. "Henry, we have so much trout in our freezer, it'd choke a grizzly!"

"Don't worry, they won't go to waste," Henry said with a small laugh, dumping the cup of ice Beth had handed him on top of his plentiful catch. He zipped his cooler bag closed. "I can give some away, and if not, well, fish make some great fertiliser..."

"Great," Lyla said, her nose scrunching up as if she could already smell it. "Just don't make your fertilizer close to the house, okay?"

"Will do," Henry said with another laugh and left to join the others by the fire.

As night fell, the sky only got more beautiful. There wasn't a cloud in sight and it was like Penelope could see every star that had ever existed. She felt absolutely content. She leaned her head against Liam's shoulder, not caring who saw it, and wished this perfect and peaceful moment could stretch on forever...

Fortunately, no one was really paying attention to them. Beth was sitting on a cushion on the rocks, her back against Lyla's legs as her wife absentmindedly ran her fingers through her hair. Her dad was on the verge of dozing off, his head lolling down to his chest as he reclined in a camp chair. Henry, who was sitting next to him, was alert, but his gaze was turned upwards, to the perfect sky.

A black bird fluttered gently out of the woods, landing on the rocks near the fire's edge, right next to Penelope. It was a pudgy little raven, and Penelope thought it might even be the same one from her first clandestine visit to the beach.

"Hello again," Penelope muttered, greeting the bird. They hadn't spoken to her since The Raven had been freed, but she knew it was still better to be polite. After all, ravens remembered...

The bird made a rumbling croak at her through its closed beak.

Liam had noticed it now, too. "I think it has something in its mouth," he pointed out.

He was right. Something bright and small hung over the lower half of its black beak.

"What is that?" Penelope wondered, leaning towards it. It was a loop of something, something shiny... It glinted in the light of the fire. "Is it stuck?"

The bird took her lean forward as encouragement. It hopped closer and bobbed its head at her before opening its beak and letting the little shiny treasure slip free. It made a delicate ting as it bounced off the rocks, settling into a crevice just a few inches from Penelope's feet. The bird gave a tiny little squawk and flew off, leaving it there.

Penelope bent over and picked it up. It was a small ring, a silver band with a little opalescent moonstone. It was a little tarnished but with a little cleaning, it'd be very nice.

"Oooh," Lyla cooed. She had perked up. "That's pretty! Where'd you get that?"

"Uh," was all Penelope managed, not sure how to explain that a bird had brought it to her...

"I think it's a gift," Henry answered for her.

"Oh? From who?" Lyla asked, her eyes flicking over to Liam.

Penelope felt her face heat up. She hoped it'd be hidden by the warm light of the fire. She didn't want this to turn into something it wasn't—

"No, I think it was from, uh, someone in town. More of a going away present," Henry continued. "Seems someone was thankful for all the good Penelope's done this summer."

"Ah, that's fair," Lyla said with a nod, though she seemed a little disappointed. "You deserve it, Penelope—you've been a real boon to the town."

"T-Thanks," Penelope said, her face warming more.

When Lyla moved on, getting up to fetch more drinks for Beth and Penelope's dad, Henry leaned in, closer to Penelope. "Ravens sometimes do that—bring trinkets and shiny things—as a return of kindness." He smirked, the private joke glinting in his eyes. "You haven't been feeding them, have you?"

"Not recently," Penelope said, thinking guiltily of the scraps she had fed the fat little raven at the beginning of the summer.

"Be careful," Henry said, chuckling. "If they really like you, they'll start following you."

Penelope exchanged a glance with Liam, whose mouth had stretched into a line of concern. She didn't have to ask—she knew he was thinking the same thing as she was. She tucked the little ring away and looked towards the forest where the bird had long since disappeared...

"I hope not."

THANK YOU FOR READING CRYPTID!

This story has personal meaning to me, and bringing it to Wattpad was somewhat fraught, so I'm glad that it's finally out there to be read and enjoyed.

And this isn't quite the end. There may be an epilogue coming and maybe a bonus chapter or two. Plus, there's some fun bonus content in the following chapters.

But for now, that's all, folks!

And again, thank you for reading.

~Yvette