Chapter 30 - A mysterious new acquaintance ...

Thankfully, Lorenzo understood that I didn’t want to be there and didn’t want to relive the experience. The queen was so preoccupied in the early hours of the morning that she didn’t notice as I sneaked out of her morning room and made my way outside. I crossed the clearing without thinking of who might be seeing me and ran into the forest.

I felt as if I wasn’t able to breathe. The dress was strangling me and I started to rip at it while I ran. I had lost my shoes somewhere along the way. I couldn’t even remember shifting, but as I did, it felt as if a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. My paws dug deep into the soft ground of the forest as the wind caressed my fur.

I ran and ran, not looking which way I was going and honestly not caring until I caught a strange scent and before I could figure out what it was, a sparkling creature appeared in front of me. Trying to stop so I wouldn’t run her over, I came to a halt just a short distance from where she was standing.

I sniffed the