Once upon a time…

The sleepy village of Merribelle nestled in the bliss of an autumnal morning. Nothing untoward ever happened in Merribelle. It was as idyllic a place as any idyll would want to be. A kitten named Clover tumbled from the wicker basket where she had been napping. She stretched her tiny paws as she blinked up at the golden sun spilling across the cobblestone street. Curiosity stirred in her small heart as she padded excitedly after a fluttering leaf that danced on the breeze, piquing her curiosity. Clover, being only a tiny, fluffy little kitten, was unaware of the dangers that might lay ahead.

Clover, who was no bigger than a teacup, playfully chased the leaf to the edge of the village and out into the lane beyond, and then on to where Eldenwood began. Clover, of course, had no idea what Eldenwood might be but it was a place well known to the villagers as somewhere of whispered legends and forgotten paths. A deep, dark, dank forest that you would be wisest to avoid. As soon as Clover’s soft paws crossed the threshold of gnarled roots and mossy shadows, the world shifted. The air grew thick, and the rustle of leaves became a chanting of whispers.

The leaf disappeared. Clover was lost.

She mewed pitifully, her small cries swallowed by the vastness of the forest. Her coat, a patchwork of orange and cream, glimmered faintly as the forest gloom settled. Hunger began to gnaw at her tiny belly, and fear, something she had not known before, pressed heavily upon her. Her wide green eyes glistened as she curled up beneath the shelter of a luminous mushroom. All she wanted was to be back in the warm, safe lap of her human, the girl with ribbons in her hair who had once promised, “I’ll always protect you.”

But the girl was not here. And she didn’t know how to find her.

Then, Clover heard a sound, a soft, chiming melody. She got up and followed it, stepping and stumbling over roots and leaves that glowed faintly under her tiny, trembling paws. The music led her to a glade with trees all around it, and at the centre stood a figure cloaked in a flowing robe of glimmering starlight: the Queen of Eldenwood.

“Who comes to my court, so small and alone?” the queen asked, her voice both gentle and terrible.

Clover mewed softly, her ears flattened with fear. “I’m lost,” she meowed, her tiny form quivering. She nudged her nose against the queen’s shimmering cloak, seeking comfort.

The queen knelt, her otherworldly beauty softening as she gazed at the fragile creature. “A soul so pure does not belong here,” she murmured. “Your heart aches for home.”

Raising her hand, the queen summoned a wisp of light, which transformed into a glowing thread that wound gently around Clover. “Follow this,” she said, her voice tinged with sorrow as she put the kitten back on the ground.

The thread tugged Clover forward, guiding her back through the trees. Just as the evening sun kissed the distant horizon, she stumbled into Merribelle once more. The girl was there, her tear-streaked face alight with joy as she scooped Clover into her arms. “Oh, Clover, I thought I’d lost you forever!” she sobbed, cradling the kitten close.

And everyone lived happily ever after.