“Uh, Devin, I think you fell in a pile of dung,” Logan starts to giggle.

Heath joins him, and so does Sasha. Finally, Raina can’t help herself. As I pull myself out of the smelly muck, I can’t help but let go and laugh at the absurdity of it all too.

Until a package falls from the sky and hits Logan in the head.

Chapter 2

Anywhere But Here

Logan goes down like a tree in a major storm. Lily appears suddenly and scrambles onto his chest. She flicks her tongue at his face as a book lands next to him, narrowly missing his right ear. We all run to his side.

“What just happened? Am I still in the forest? Did a typhira get me?” Logan’s eyes are dazed.

“No, you got hit in the head by a package.” Heath helps him sit up as Sasha unwraps the box. There is a scroll inside. “I think you’ll live.”

A dove flutters to the ground next to me and coos in my direction I look at Lily. “Did you find out anything?” I ask.

Lily flicks her tongue twice.

“Okay,” I say, disappointed. “We’ll have to keep looking.”.

“Demetris!” I extend my arm so the dove can climb onto it. “How did you find us?”

Brynn Haun sent me, Demetris tweets.

“Brynn?” I am startled by the mention of my Royal Academy lady-in-waiting. Brynn may have been the second-to-last girl to be picked for a position at RA, but in my book, she’s aces. She may not have a title, but she carries herself way more regally than I ever will. She’s also back at Royal Academy with Olivina, which makes me nervous. What if Olivina has it in for her because of me? “Drooping dragons, is she okay?”

She’s fine, miss! Demetris says. She’s getting reassigned in your absence.

I clutch my chest. “Thank the fairies.”

“I can’t get used to this ‘talking to animals’ thing she’s doing,” Heath mutters.

“Snow talks to animals all the time,” Raina reminds him.

Demetris continues to twitter. She wrote you a note, miss, explaining everything. She said to make sure you got that book too.

Demetris’s breathing seems a bit labored. That was a heavy load for him to carry.

“Heath, can you fetch Demetris some fresh water?” I ask. “And Lily? Go find Demetris a juicy worm or two. He must be exhausted from his journey.”

I am, miss! But Brynn said getting you that package was of the utmost importance. I couldn’t be seen so I came in the dark.

I stroke the bird’s back. “Thank you, friend.” I unroll the parchment and find not one, but two papers inside. One is a declaration from Headmistress Olivina. Just seeing her signature on the bottom of the page makes me feel as ill as a squirrel who ate too many nuts before the winter season. I read the scroll quickly and am not surprised to learn Olivina banned students at RA from communicating with us. We are officially outcasts. Grimly, I pass the note to Heath who shows it to the others. Raina audibly gasps as she reads it. Next, I open the note from Brynn.