Lorand's POV

Harriet approaches me as I’m washing clothes.  I smile at her and notice that she’s holding something behind her back.

“What’s that?”

“It’s a gift for Dane,” she whispers.  “I can show you, but we’d have to go far away.”

“How far?”

“The forest.  He knows every part of the castle grounds, so he’d be able to find us.”

She makes a good point.  Dane does know everything around the castle, maybe even more than I do, and he could find us if he really wanted to.  He’s found us discussing his birthday before.  Every surprise we had planned for him was ruined.

Harriet and I sneak out of the castle and into the trees.

“It’s really good,” she says as we walk.

“Is it paper and pencils for drawing?”

“Maybe, maybe not.  Wait and see.”

There’s less and less light as we keep going, and the castle gets increasingly further away.  I’m starting to feel uncomfortable.  “Harriet…”

“Just a little further.”

After a few more paces, she stops.  “Turn around.  I’ll open the box.”

“I’m starting to think that maybe the gift is another one for me and not Dane.”

“Maybe it is.  Turn around.”

I turn around.  Harriet is brandishing a large dagger.  My heart immediately speeds up.  I laugh nervously.  “You’re joking, right?  You wouldn’t hurt me.”

She backs me up against a tree.  The edge of the dagger touches my throat.  I start to panic.

“Harriet, please!”

She stares right into my eyes.  This will be the last thing I’ll ever see.  She’s going to kill me.  I’m going to die!

But instead of slicing my throat, she drops the dagger.  “I can’t do this!”

I’m confused, but angry more than anything.  “Why did you do that?” I yell at her.  “Why did you want to kill me?”

“I didn’t want to kill you, it was King Morden!  He wanted you dead, and he told me to do it!” she sobs.

My stepfather.  He’s always been horrible to me, but wanting to murder me?  Why?

“I could never hurt you, Lorand,” Harriet whimpers.  “You’re like a brother to me.”  She wraps me in a tight hug.  “So I need you to run.”

“What?”

“Run, Lorand.  Run as far away as possible, and don’t you dare come back!  He’ll kill you if you do!”

She releases me, and I stare at her in confusion.

“Run!” she yells.

I understand now.  I turn and take off through the trees.

This is the scariest moment of my life.  One of my best friends almost killed me, and turns out it was under orders from my own stepfather.  Nothing is safe anymore.  I can't trust anyone.  The trees are surrounding me, chasing me, screaming at me.  I can’t escape the darkness.  My heart is beating faster than it ever has before.  My lungs are on fire.  I hear owls hooting and wings flapping, creatures running and coming ever closer.  There is no escape!

I trip on a root and fall onto the forest floor, gasping for breath.  I tuck my knees up to my chest and shield my face, trembling and silently pleading for my life.

A soft nose gently touches my back.  I inhale nervously.  I will not move.  Something paws at my arm.  I won't look to see what it is.  So I wait for the animals to leave, but they don't.  Regardless, I keep waiting, and I wait myself to sleep.

I'm running through an endless forest, voices echoing through the trees.

“Where’s Lorand?” Aveline asks.

“Lorand is dead.”  My stepfather laughs.

I hear Aveline sobbing, and my heart breaks.  I don't want her to cry.  Suddenly I fall, and Harriet leans over me, dagger in hand.

“Run!”

I get up and keep going.  My stepfather jumps in front of me, trapping me.  There's no escape.  He grabs me and smiles evilly as he holds the dagger to my throat.

“Goodbye, Lorand…”

I wake up with a scream.  Is he here?  No.  Thank goodness!

The animals surround me, and I realize that they're nothing to be afraid of - deer and birds and bunnies that probably have never seen a human before.  They're probably just as confused as I am.

“Hello,” I whisper.  “I'm Lorand.”

They all look at me, intrigued.  They really haven't seen a human before, have they?  I stand up slowly and brush myself off.  One of the deer nudges me.

“Hey, what are you doing?” I ask playfully.

The deer nudges me again.  More creatures start to crowd around me.  Then they start to make a path and look at me expectantly.

These are harmless little animals.  I should follow them.  Perhaps they'll bring me to a stream or a berry bush.  So I let them lead me through the forest, taking care not to accidentally step on one of them.  As we walk, I start to see something through the trees.  I go toward it.

In front of me is a cozy-looking cottage with a thatched roof.  There's a small garden and a chicken coop next to it.  I dart to the door and knock on it.

No answer.

I knock some more, but the cottage seems to be abandoned.  I open the door.  Inside is the biggest mess I've ever seen in my life.  The floor is covered in dirt and dust, there are piles of dirty plates on the table, and there are cobwebs in every corner.  I start on the dishes, then find a broom and take care of the floor and corners.  After that, I go upstairs.  To my surprise, there are seven small beds lined up against one wall.  I sweep the floor and make the beds, then put the broom back where I found it.

Even though I took a nap earlier, I'm exhausted again now.  The residents of this place will be home soon.  Hopefully they'll like what I've done with the place.  And hopefully they'll be okay with me taking a little rest.

I curl up on one of the tiny beds and fall into a deep sleep.