"It's beautiful out here." I looked up at May. She was perched in the branch of a tree. She wasn't wearing her cat form, but there was still something of the panther about how she sat there, still and watchful.

I looked around the woodland grove. It looked much the same as any other that we had passed through before, a mixture of elms, oaks, pines and holly. I was more concerned with the fact that I hadn't had a square meal in over a day and a half.

"The light, the way it shines through the trees, it's like liquid gold." May's eyes sparkled with wonder. "It's like the whole forest is on fire."

I rolled my eyes, "Never mind the forest fire, May, can you see a path through? Can you see a road?"

May's voice came back, still tinged with that distant edge of wonder, "It's alive, Aelix. The whole forest is alive, and I can feel it. I can feel all of it. From the trees, to the animals, to the rivers and lakes. I can feel them. There's so much life." She breathed deeply. "You can taste it too. Green."

I idly squashed some pine-cones with my foot, breaking the quiet atmosphere with the sound of loud crunching. "Unless it's food you can taste, I'm not that interested May. Can you at least feel your way to the road to Doranelle?"

May gave me an exasperated look. "It's not like that, you stupid. I just never realised the forest was so big." She looked out from the tree, the faraway look returning to her eyes. "I've never been outside for so long."

I frowned at her, "But you run away all the time. And when the court went to Doranelle, we were outside the castle."

She shot me a look again. "Going to Doranelle doesn't count. We were in the wheelhouse the whole time. I never got to see the forest, or the city, or anything, until we were in the palace." She turned away once more. "And when I ran away before, I didn't leave the castle. Not really." She closed her eyes and raised her hands. "I didn't get to feel the air, the wind on my skin, the birds in the sky or the insects in the dirt. I didn't get to feel so much life."

I paused in my crunching for a moment, some of her words sinking in. "I thought you went through the escape tunnel every night. That leads outside. Why didn't you just run away that way?"

May snorted. "The escape tunnel? That was blocked for ages. I only managed to clear that a few days ago."

I thought on that a moment. "Then where did you go?"

May swung her legs over the edge of the bough, staring down at me from the tree. "Did you not see the other passageways?"

I blinked at her. "You mean … the other doorways? I thought they led to other rooms in the castle? Anyway, they were all locked."

I got a glimpse of May's sharp toothed smile in return. "They were." She pulled a small key on a chain from around her neck.

"Where did you get that?" I asked. "You weren't wearing it before."

"I normally keep it hidden. I didn't want Senelle to know I had it. I made it, you see, but she wouldn't be happy if she'd found out." She brushed her long dark hair out of her eyes and tucked the key back under her muddy nightshirt. "I used it to get around. There are tunnels all over the castle. The key unlocks some of them. Others are blocked. They're harder to get past."

"So when you said there was a tunnel that went to the centre of the world?"

May nodded. "Some go real deep. That's where I met the Little People. I sometimes go to watch them dance, or just listen to them sing. They don't seem to mind me being there." May tucked the end of her hair into her mouth and began to suck on it. "You hear all sorts of things down there. Strange things. Weird things. I felt things too. Like a hand touching my face but I couldn't see anyone there. I didn't like that." She turned her face back to the forest, a glint of something in her eye.

I shivered slightly, in spite of the warmth of the sun through the forest leaves. The thought of all those nights, alone in the dark, whilst I had been sleeping in my bed. I couldn't think of what had led her to that, how desperate she must have been to escape. I wondered why she had never tried before.

"I can see it, Aelix. I can see the road."

I snapped out of my reverie and looked up, to see where she was pointing. Towards the sun. Due South.

"How far?"

"Not far. If I was in my proper body, I could be there in an hour or so, I'm sure of it."

I gave an exasperated sigh, "And for us lowly fae, who have to walk everywhere, with nothing but a half-chewed rabbit for breakfast?"

May gave me an apologetic grin, remembering the miserable state of the breakfast she had left me with. "I don't know. Maybe half a day, if we don't get lost."

I trudged between the trees, the dappled sunlight reflecting off the silver bark of birch trees. Here and there, brilliant white wood anemones were bursting into flower, scattered amongst the purple leaves of cyclamen and wild garlic. Occasionally, I would catch a glimpse of a faerie light, flittering through the tree canopy. My stomach growled fiercely and I felt myself growing grumpier and grumpier the further I trudged; trying, and failing, to avoid thinking of fresh baked bread and ripe cheese, juicy grapes and peppermint tea. It would be High Tea back at the castle; all the ladies of the court would be gathered in parlours for the afternoon respite, a far cry from the mangled rabbit that had been dropped into my lap by a self-satisfied panther.

With no fire to cook upon, I had been forced to eat it raw, eating it, more to spare May's feelings, than out hunger. Like all fae, my long canines had easily ripped into the flesh, but the rawness of it, the taste of blood, had made me gag and nearly vomit. If I had paid more attention to Senelle's lessons on horticulture, perhaps I could have harvested some of the copious quantities of mushrooms that grew along the forest floor, or found roots and berries to eat, but I had no idea which were safe to eat and which were poisonous. It felt like too much of a gamble to just guess.

I stopped now and then, to wait for the twitch of a panther's tail amongst the rooftops, to make sure I didn't get lost. I smiled a little to see May clumsily jump from tree to tree, still getting used to her cat body. It cheered me to see her happy, chasing butterflies and falling leaves, though I felt more than a slight twinge of jealousy at her frolicking.

By nightfall, I was hungry, dirty and grumpy. There was still no sign of the road. I got the distinct impression that May had managed to get distracted from guiding me through the forest, when I came across her lying in a pile of dead leaves, chasing and biting her own tail, scratching at it with her sharp claws.

I plonked myself down next to her, the panther, startled, leapt into the air and shot up a tree, staring at me with wide violet eyes, her tail twitching. I shot her a look of disgust.

"Did you at least find something to eat?" No reply. May merely continued twitching her tail. I lay back against the tree. "I thought not. Are we at least close to the road now?"

The panther seemed to decide that I wasn't going to pursue her further, and slowly slid down the tree again, her claws digging deep into the bark. Once back on the floor, she boffed me with her head and started chuffing and purring. I turned away from her, trying to find a comfortable spot, where there wasn't a tree root digging into my back, ignoring the panther cub as she began digging in the dirt with her oversized paws.

I finally settled, when I saw her grab something from the dirt and trot back to me triumphantly, tossing her prize in my lap and rolling over, showing me her chest, chuffing ferociously, tail twitching. I looked down at the half-chewed remains of some sort of bird with distaste.

"Thanks, May…" I said, picking the mangled carcass up gingerly. It was hard to tell what was feather and dirt from the ground, and what was meat. May purred louder and rubbed herself against my legs. I gave her an absent-minded scratch on her exposed tummy, before picking off the most dubious bits of dirt, cleaning the bird as best I could. If I stayed out here much longer, I was going to end up not much more than a beast myself. I wrinkled my nose and forced myself to swallow a lump of raw meat, my long canines easily shredding the meat. I supposed that, once upon a time, the fae hadn't been much more than feral beasts themselves. That thought didn't make swallowing the cold, slimy meat much easier.

May continued to stare at me, with her wide violet eyes, watching as I ate. Her eyes filled with reproach every time I stopped eating. I shook my head in exasperation. She was so sensitive. The cold meat settled uncomfortably in my stomach. I hoped I wouldn't be sick.

I lay down, watching the faerie lights dance amongst the trees, flitting in and out of hollows and crooks, darting around. I could hear their tiny voices, so quiet, that I couldn't make out the words they were saying. They paid us no heed, never leaving the tree tops. I wondered what they were saying to one another.

A heavy lump landed on me, squashing me into the dirt. I gasped out and gave May a shove, trying to push her off me. She paid me no heed and settled down, kneading my body with her sharp claws. I winced as they bit my flesh slightly.

"I'm glad you're comfortable," I said sarcastically, through a mouthful of fur. May paid me no heed, her ears twitching, and continued to watch the faeries rushing, darting, dancing. Here and there, I heard the shriek of an owl, or the twitter of a bat, sometimes flittering amongst the faeries for a moment, a second of greeting, before flying back out into the night.

I was dreaming. I knew it. I could still feel myself far behind, sleeping under the tree, May quietly snoring her wiffling breath into my ear.

The world sparkled, like looking through a drop of dew, tinged with shades of red and gold. Everything seemed so much bigger, the leaves, the branches, the trees. Even distances seemed further away; as I fluttered away from the tree canopy, the whole world seemed to stretch out forever. The forest a dark continent of trees, stretching from horizon to horizon. It didn't scare me. It seemed unimportant.

I was looking for something. Hunting. I felt the wriggle of hunger within me. I raised my lantern, it's pale blue light a tiny little star in the vast night sky. Soon, I heard the scudder of wings, flickering closer to the light. I felt the tiny heart within me leap with excitement. The prey was close. I dimmed my wings and waited, waiting for the prey to come to my lure.

A large feathery body collided with my lantern. Quick as a hawk, I stuck. The moth's wings fluttered with surprise, struggling to break free. With two bites of my sharp teeth, the moth stopped. I pulled it close in my arms, quickly eating the feathery wings. They were too cumbersome to bring back. I clutched the fat body to myself. I would bring the rest back to share with the others.

I felt the rich ichor nourishing me, a fizzing energy that left me buzzing from my wings to the tip of my pointed ears. My connection to the world grew stronger. I could hear the sleepy groans of the trees, as they whispered to one another, stories of sap and acorn. In the distance, I heard the irate screeching of an owl, as she berated her over-eager chick. Down below, far below the tree-top canopy, I could hear the snoring of a great cat and the awesome green power of the earth. Elemental and dangerous. I could feel it all. The connection to all living things. Everything, throughout the forest. Everywhere, except a dark emptiness to the North.

I sensed the faerie's unease, as my thoughts dwelled upon that darkness, an unwillingness to acknowledge the wrongness. To the faerie, it seemed so far off. A world, a lifetime away. Taken by curiosity, I invaded the creature's memories, searching for the source of that darkness.

Then, I felt it. The hunger. The endless hunger. Anger, hatred, death. Hidden in the dark. Never coming to light. Alien. Unknowable. Teeth that severed rock, flesh and bone. Eyes that watched from the shadows. Always. Seeing all. Seeing me.

I reeled in horror, curling into myself, hurtling away, recoiling deep within myself.