Chapter 3

                                  Maia: 6 years old

I wake up and yawn, stretching my arms high above my head. I’m sitting in a large hollow tree trunk. I have no idea why I’m here or how I got here. I feel soft moss under my feet and crawl out from the tree. Animals and critters in the forest gather around and approach me. They gently nuzzle their noses against my legs, and when I sit down on the grass, they curl up on my lap. There are rabbits, foxes, squirrels, deer, elk, birds, and mice. They follow me around and do not leave my side. I feel safe and loved in this forest, and I want to live here forever. The forest is my home, my safe place, my everything.

I play a game of hide and seek with my new friend, a fox I name Ember. I introduce myself to him. ‘I’m Maia,’ I tell him. Ember nudges my head playfully with his and then runs in circles. He leaps at me and falls on my chest, and as we both roll backwards, we notice the entrance to a cave hidden by a curtain of vines. 

In awe at its magnificence and beauty, thousands of glow worms illuminate the cave. It’s mesmerising and magical to view. The cave's walls are overgrown with green vines and purple flowers. The cave is filled with a sweet floral scent.

Ember and I follow the trail of glow worms through the cave until we can go no further and must turn right, where the cave ends. Sunlight shines through a rectangle-shaped hole in the wall. It is a perfect window that lights up this part of the cave.

I approach the hole to look at the water flowing over it outside. It’s like a waterfall. I let the water fill my cupped hands and drink it. It’s cold, delicious and refreshing.

‘Ember, I think this cave will be our new home,’ I say, smiling, and look down at Ember, who rubs his head against my leg, agreeing.

Collecting moss, bark, and leaves, I make a soft bed from the materials. Next, I roll three tree stumps into the cave and make a table with the large stump and two stools to sit on with the two smaller stumps. ‘This will do just fine,’ I say, proud of myself.

It feels like home. Ember approaches me with a violet flower in his mouth and drops it on my lap.

‘Thank you, Ember. It’s such a pretty flower. It's the same colour as my eyes,’ I smile and look down at Ember's sweet furry face.

Lying on my bed with Ember snuggled up next to me, I listen to the sound of the waterfall, the birds singing, and the breeze blowing through the trees before drifting off to sleep.

Maia: 18 years old

It’s rare to see other humans in the forest, and when I do see them, I follow them quietly, without making my presence known. I sit up high in a tree and listen to their conversations to learn what I can about the world outside the forest.

They speak about werewolves and how much they loathe them, that they are unnatural beings who should be eradicated. They say werewolves are ferocious and dangerous, that they kill their own young.  

After hearing these conversations, I fear werewolves, and I wouldn't dare approach one if I ever came across one.

My forest is the only land neither king rules. It’s neutral land between two opposing kingdoms, and most people do not dare to enter.

The humans say it’s only a matter of time until war breaks out between the two kingdoms: West Wallow, the human realm, ruled by King Fenris, and Moon Crest Valley, the werewolf realm, ruled by Alpha King Damon.

They speak about how Alpha King Damon still hasn't found his mate and Luna of his kingdom. Werewolves are blessed with a soul mate the Moon Goddess selects. Upon one’s eighteenth birthday, they can sense their mate if they’re nearby.

At twenty-four, being mateless is rare, and Alpha King Damon may not find his fated mate. The humans speculate that perhaps his mate has passed away before he has had a chance to meet her, or maybe the Moon Goddess has cursed him, and he will be mateless indefinitely. A mate by his side would increase his strength and the power of his pack. They discuss King Fenris' intentions to conquer Moon Crest Valley by slaughtering the werewolves.

Everyone is eager for King Fenris to marry, so they will have a queen and heirs to the throne. Without heirs, the people of West Wallow worry about what will happen to them if something happens to their king.

 Until now, I have survived on the forest’s offerings my whole life. But lately, villagers and soldiers have come into my forest for food, gathering enormous harvests of fruit, herbs and mushrooms, depleting my food supply dry.

It’s becoming harder to find food, and I worry there won’t be enough left for me to eat. The animals are hunted, killed, and used for meat and fur. It’s heartbreaking finding my friends’ bodies scattered through the forest. They’re creatures I have lived with my whole life.

Ember and I go to his old den to find the remains of other foxes. I’m devastated and inconsolable. Ember looks at me, and his eyes glaze over. I see and feel the hurt in his eyes. I collapse to the ground, hold Ember close to my chest, and cry into the warmth of his neck.

‘I'm so sorry, Ember,’ I cry.

Grey clouds darken the sky, and heavy rain begins to pour down on us. The raindrops roll down my cheeks and merge with my tears.

‘The sky is crying with us,’ I say. When I manage to stop crying, the rain settles.

Humming and singing a sorrowful song, I feel like my heart brims with a pain that will never go away.

My home has been gradually destroyed, my friends have been killed, and I’m no longer safe in this forest. I look down at my hands and see a soft glow coming from my palms. I hear rustling in the bushes in front of me.

Shocked by my presence, two men and a woman can't believe what they’re seeing. Both men wear tunics and breeches and have knives in their belts. The woman, who wears a dress and a shawl, carries a long, thick stick with dead rabbits tied to it.

The anger inside me builds, and I feel an all-consuming, all-powerful energy course through my veins. A force of energy expels from my palms in the form of a gust of wind as I unknowingly manipulate the wind and yell at the human invaders.

‘Get out of my forest and never come back!’ I scream. The gust of wind almost knocks them over. They run away quickly and out of sight.

‘Did I just do that?’ I ask Ember.

***

Arriving at their village, panting and out of breath, John sits down on a bench and looks at Fay and Ed. Fay rests the stick with rabbits against a stone wall and sits beside John and Ed.

‘Did you see that? I’ve never seen such a beautiful girl. Her voice was so angelic, her skin glowed, and her eyes were violet. She was scary, but boy, was she beautiful.’ John says. Fay nods and agrees with him.

‘She summoned the wind and almost blew us away,’ Ed

says.

‘She did. She must be a Goddess or a Princess. Why would she tell us to get out of her forest? She doesn’t own it.’ Fay says.

‘Maybe she lives there? I’ve never seen her in any of the villages. I’d remember a face as enchanting as hers.’ Ed says.

They tell everyone in the village about what they have heard and seen, and a few of their neighbours believe them. A few of the villagers have heard her beautiful singing voice many times in the forest while harvesting food and hunting.

All the villagers refer to Maia as the Forest Princess, and children beg their parents to tell them the story of the Enchanted Forest Princess.