Chapter Text
Lindsay took a deep breath and just stared at the forest, full of more trees than she'd ever seen before. Craggy oaks, tall sycamores, slender ashes, stately maples. Varying shades of green and gold washed over her, while the warmth of the forest engulfed her, wiping away her anger and her disappointment of having to get married. Even the warnings of running off into the woods fell to the wayside. In the back of her mind she knew she'd have to return and face the repercussions this little rebellion would bring, but for now she could breathe free one last time before she had to return. For as much as she might have wanted it to be different, she knew that she had to return to the gilded cage that was the castle. So unfair.
She was so caught up in thinking about how unfair her life was that she didn't notice at first how silent the forest had grown. Not a single bird sung, nor did any of the small furry creatures scurry about. The only noise was the rustling of the trees' leaves. A crow cawed a warning, loud and harsh, snapping her out of her revelry. She was suddenly acutely aware of how alone she was, without any sort of weapon, in a dress. Not her greatest plan.
As she turned back toward the direction she thought the castle was, he felt the prickling of eyes on the back of her head. She twirled around to face the perceived source, but her dress caught on the thick undergrowth and fell to the ground, skidding down a small incline before coming coming to a rest against a sun-warmed boulder in a small hollow. Scraped and bruised and covered in mud, she rested against the boulder to insure that nothing could sneak up on her while she caught her breath and scanned the forest for potential threats. Seeing nothing, she allowed herself to relax and rest her head against the boulder.
The boulder moved.
Scrambling to her feet, Lindsay lunged away from it, cursing how her dress caught on yet more undergrowth, sending her all but crawling on her hands and feet. She grabbed at a sapling at the edge of the hollow to propel herself even further, but the loose soil and bendy nature of saplings sent her tumbling back into the hollow once more. The not-boulder had moved, so she fell further into the greenery. Rolling back onto her feet once more, she raised her hands into a defensive stance and began scanning the forest for whatever the not-boulder was.
“Looking for me, little princess?” a voice, filled with amusement asked as its owner emerged from the thick underbrush. Lindsay's mouth went dry. A dragon.