The Whispering Woods and the Lost Laughter

Previously

…With a final wave to her new friends, Lily turned and began to walk. The path ahead seemed brighter now, less daunting. The woods no longer felt like a place of shadows and whispers, but of rustling leaves and happy echoes. As she took her first steps away, a chorus of farewell giggles followed her, a sound more beautiful than any she had ever heard. The light of her own laughter had guided her through, and in doing so, had illuminated the path for everyone else.