"Lady Vaelreth!"
"Lady Vaelreth!"
The voice drifted through her dream like a disturbance in a field of sunlight.
Aveline was running through endless meadows where the grass swayed in waves and wildflowers scattered their perfume into the air. The sky above was pale and soft, washed in the color of warm vanilla, so gentle it seemed almost unreal. She laughed as she ran, light on her feet, as if the world had never taught her how to be careful.
Ahead of her, a little fox darted through the flowers.
Its fur was dark as earth after rain, its bright eyes turning back now and then as though to make sure she was still following. There was something mysterious about it, something that drew her forward without fear. It was leading her somewhere darker, somewhere hidden beyond the bright stretch of the fields.
And yet she did not hesitate.
She was not afraid of leaving the light behind.
For some reason she could not explain, she felt as though she would follow that fox anywhere.
