Alexis woke with the morning light on her face. She muttered and sat up. Rubbing her eyes, she made a mental note to talk to Miette about leaving the curtains open. She rolled over and found herself looking into the wide eyes of a russet-colored squirrel.
“Ahh!” Alexis jumped to her feet.
The squirrel darted into the trees as she spun around, staring at her surroundings. She was in a small clearing. Closely packed trees loomed over her, boughs gently swaying and leaves rustling in the morning breeze. Cadmus sat a short distance away, pondering a mulberry bush. Alexis reached for her pack to discover it was missing. In its place was a ring of mushrooms.
“What? Where is my pack?” Alexis stood.
“You do not require such things here.”
“Where am I? Who are you?” Alexis searched for the s
