The brave child

Previously

…As Clara left Elder Maeve’s cottage, the moon had climbed higher, casting a silvery sheen over the sleeping village. The parchment, warm against her skin, felt like a living thing, a promise of adventure and a desperate hope. The Whispering Woods, a dark, imposing silhouette at the edge of their valley, no longer seemed like a mere collection of trees. It was a gateway, a challenge, a place where legends stirred and where a brave child’s love would soon be put to the ultimate test. The path lay before her, etched in faded ink and whispered warnings, a path she was determined to tread, no matter the cost.