Dear Reese,
Monday is a bit sour. You’re upset when I leave you at daycare, and then I’m upset at work and call MorMor. Later, over some comfort mac & cheese for dinner, I remind you that it’s always okay to call your mama — I’m so grateful I can call mine.
You mostly want to be held this evening and I do my best to cook one-handed. We listen to some Wicked and Billy Elliot and dance our way through the kitchen, and the day doesn’t seem so lost after all.
Love,
Mama
The Knight & The Cursed Forest, Part 1
Our story resumes with a little green knight and her little duck squire walking through the forest on a rainy day. The duck, singing still, is happy to be on an adventure. The knight, you, thinking of home and the curse you have to confront when you get there.
It’s raining, and as you get further away from the pond kingdom, the rain gets thicker and the path darker. With the rain and the singing, you almost miss what’s right in front of you. A row of tall, thick trees — but one of the branches is moving!
That’s not a tree, but a troll blending in with the foliage! You duck just in time as the troll’s gnarled hand swipes out at you.
“Oh no,” the troll’s deep voice says. “Stay still, it’s dinner time. And look, a little duck. I so do love duck for dessert.”
“Fly away!” you cry at the duck and he takes off into the air, but before he can get out of reach, the troll snatches him by his tail feathers.
“Don’t eat me! Don’t eat me!” the duck says, flapping his wings furiously.
You move fast, climbing the troll like the tree he pretended to be and pushing your foot off his face to scale the arm holding your duck squire. You do what you do best and bite down on his hand. He instantly lets go of the duck, who flies forward.
The troll roars in frustration, but you leap off his spasming hand and roll onto the ground into a sprint. Quickly, you look for a place to hide and disappear behind another tree just in time as the troll gets his bearings and passes you by on the path.
With the troll still up ahead, you will have to find another route.
To be continued.