Dreams had strange ways of showing one’s innermost thoughts. Ash stopped paying attention to them when the visions started. But tonight, her dreams came in the form of falling snow. Each soft snowflake perched on her nose, her hand clutched tight in the larger hands of her father. Her stature was smaller than before, full of life and laughter. A small husky puppy yapped alongside them, flecks of afternoon daylight glistened upon her fur.

  The forest was beautiful covered in snow. Icicles dangled from pine needles while frost left a thin coat upon redwood trees— captivating for younger eyes.

  Ash pulled her father along, pointing at everything they came across. A random pebble, a snow covered bush, a snow angel she made while Flake dove into a nearby pile. There was a magic in childhood innocence that wasn’t easy to recover. Moments like these were the best of her life, all shared with those she loved.

  She pointed to a thick tree line, one that towered over all the others. Branches and trunks so dense she couldn’t make out what lay within.

  “Papa, what’s there?” she asked.

  A firm but gentle hand rested upon her head. Her father crouched down to her level, no higher than his knee. With warm eyes and a small smile, he said, “That, my little Appleseed, is a place we cannot tread. Many dangers lie past those trees.”

  “I thought everything in the forest was pretty?”

  From the smallest bug to the grand eagles that flew overhead, everything had a purpose. Anything that was deemed scary wasn’t as frightening as it first seemed. For a place in the Winter Kingdom to be considered dangerous and unwelcome was unheard of.

  But the king stroked her hair, smile unwavering.

  “Yes. Most things in life have a certain beauty to them,” He lifted her into his arms. His hand never left the back of her head. “But there are unseen perils in this world. Beasts with no mercy, shadows that make off in the night with their latest catch. Unspeakable horrors await the bold and foolish.”

  Ash pouted. “I’m not foolish.”

  Her father chuckled.

  “Of course not,” he said. “However, some places are forbidden for a reason. That’s why we stay on the path. It’s our only means of staying safe.”

  Those words made sense back then. Now, Ash wasn’t sure if she believed them anymore. True danger didn’t have to lurk in the woods, that much she learned. This moment stayed with her for a reason.

  It was a sign of things to come.

☙ ♡ ❧