[The Hedge]

He sighs, leaning his bat against his sittin' log as he rubs his temples.

"This isn't all some kind of dream, is it? This is actually real," he mutters as his eyes stray toward one of the shallow gouges in his arms.

Those thorns...

The wounds feel a lot deeper than they look.

Almost as if they were cutting more than just flesh...

He touches a finger to the scratch, only to wince in pain.

Yep.

Much deeper than it looks.

"Do the usual fantasy rules apply?" he asks absently. "If I tell someone my name I'm in trouble?"