A day later, Penelope overheard an argument between the Sisters. Marmalade had taken Marmot on a venture to the Faewood. Steph was dozing by the fire, and Penelope had crept up the stairs to fetch a sketchbook from her room, intending to draw designs for their ball gowns. Keeping her footsteps light so as to avoid disturbing Steph with the creaking of wood, she paused on the landing when she heard sharp voices carry through from the Sisters’ bedroom. “—don’t like it, Heels. The whole…Continue Reading “Ch 15 – Recovery – Part 2”

The way home was short and direct. The path opened easily, unspooling like ribbon. The trees thinned and the canopy lightened. They passed the threshold of twisted, blackened trees into the more familiar thickets of Faewood far sooner than expected. As they left the shadows of the Darkwood behind, Penelope felt the sharp, aching grasp of the forest’s grief falling away. Penelope felt the barest sense of squeezing, pulling, folding in the forest around them, and then they were tipping out of the woods towards…Continue Reading “Ch 15 – Recovery – Part 1”

“No!” Penelope cried. Sister Rosin dashed forward, dagger drawn. She sawed at the brambles, though more came flying at them, threading the air to form a living cage, pulsing with menace. The forest grew darker, the air cold and thick. The scents of ice and bitter fruits gathered on the stirring breeze, stinging the back of Penelope’s tongue. Time seemed to slow as Steph fell to his knees with a grunt. Penelope rushed forward, kneeling on numb legs as her fingers fumbled against the vine…Continue Reading “Ch 14 – Barbs & Wrath”

This was not the way home. Penelope frowned as the canopy above grew thicker and darker. Gnarled branches twisted overhead as the trail grew invisible. Soon the group was scrambling over snaking roots and rocky crevices, taking care not to crush glowing mushrooms underfoot, wary of poison. “If I didn’t know any better,” Marmalade mused from the rear of the party, “I’d say we were in the Darkwood. But we shouldn’t have travelled near far enough north for that.” “I’ve only been into deepest Darkwood…Continue Reading “Ch 13 – The Rangers of Grimwood”

As the group left the clearing and strode deeper into the forest, Sister Rosin shared a bag of roasted nuts and dried fruits. They munched on these and Penelope tossed the nut shells high above her, which were caught by swooping rain wrens. Steph and Penelope made a game to see how many wrens they could lure from their hidden hollows, trailing tiny sparking storm clouds. Marmot crunched berries, nuts, and shells indiscriminately, leaving a trail of debris in his wake. When they came upon…Continue Reading “Ch 12 – Ghosts & Feathers – Part 2”

Having chosen to stay behind and work on her tinctures, Sister Heely waved from the back porch as Penelope set off for the forest, followed by Sister Rosin, Steph, and Marmalade, with Marmot scampering along behind them. Penelope skipped along in glee, tugging on the straps of her pack as she strode. As they crossed the threshold of the cottage garden into the first copse of dense woods, Penelope felt a fleeting ripple through her chest. A wintery brush of something in her mind that…Continue Reading “Ch 12 – Ghosts & Feathers – Part 1”

Later that evening, Penelope had been relieved to near-tears to see the bags she had left behind on the Grimwood docks, which Steph had returned to the Sisters. Penelope had squealed in delight and given Steph a bone-crunching hug, which he’d endured with grace and flushed cheeks until Sister Heely had coughed and muttered something about propriety. “Like you’re one to talk about propriety,” Sister Rosin had accused with a smug smirk. “Remember that one time when—” “Anyone for more tea?” Sister Heely had asked,…Continue Reading “Ch 11 – Repercussions – Part 3”

After Marmalade and Steph had stepped out into the garden and vanished beyond the treeline in quest of feverthistle—Steph dressed in borrowed coat and winter gloves—Penelope and the sisters settled by the fire with hot mugs of cocoa. Having opted to stay behind where there was the promise of treats, Marmot was curled up by Penelope’s feet crunching on walnuts. There was a terse silence where no-one knew quite what to say, the quiet punctuated by the occasional spark and crackle from the hearth. “So,”…Continue Reading “Ch 11 – Repercussions – Part 2”

Penelope opened her eyes to the chill light of mid-afternoon. She sat up, struggling against the weight of several layered blankets, to find herself on the lounge in the sitting room. She groaned as the movement caused a sharp ache behind her eyes, a pain she’d not felt since Sister Rosin had once allowed Penelope to indulge as much mead as she had wanted. Once had been more than enough for that particular lesson. Penelope stumbled down the hall into the bathing room. Swallowing down…Continue Reading “Ch 11 – Repercussions – Part 1”

The tragic tale of Princess Penelope’s favourite tree. Lightning struck the rocky ridge as the sky flared white, the vicious colour of burning stars. Before the great owl could swallow down the next bolt, it struck her nest. Two of her three eggs she could save. The third turned to stone in the blazing heat of jagged fire. The storm passed by dawn. With feathers of ink and starlight, the owl swept over snow-dusted trees. Downwards her flight melted, down into the wretched, sacred valley…Continue Reading “The Feathered Willow”

The snow felt dry and soft, like sugar dust, beneath her feet as Penelope ran through the wildflowers. The gleaming crescent of the waxing moon hung high in the sky, offering scant light as Penelope danced across the open fields of Marmalade’s sequestered glade and into the thickets of the Faewood. Penelope squealed with glee as she found vines and brambles parting easily before her, revealing paths free of snow amongst the glimmering underbrush. Moonflies clung to the undersides of gold and mauve ferns, illuminating…Continue Reading “Ch 10 – Marmalade’s Love Potion – Part 3”

“It smells so pretty in here, like apricots and roses…” Penelope murmured as Marmalade steered her into a large bedroom. Marmalade guided Penelope by the hand around the curved rail guarding the stairwell and into the circular space beyond. The room seemed to spill over with books, plants, and fragrant, blooming flowers. Penelope spent several long moments spinning in slow, unsteady circles, taking in every detail with growing awe. A wooden staircase continued upwards to the left, following the curve of the tree to further…Continue Reading “Ch 10 – Marmalade’s Love Potion – Pt 2”