Brambles were clinging to her skirts as Maria made her way through the trees. It was noon and the forest was lazily humming to itself, bees landing daintily upon the buttercups and finches dancing within the flora. Despite the serenity, the woods felt foreign to Maria, as if she had stepped across the woodland threshold and found herself in a faerie otherworld. It had been months since she had ventured into the trees, as her uncle and Loveday had kept a keen eye on her after the mysteries of Moonacre began unfolding. In spite of this, she continued through the undergrowth, driven on by her faded memory of the forest path, as well as the heavy footsteps treading closely at her heel. As fast as she tried to hop over tree roots and dodge behind berry bushes, frustratingly, Robin always seemed two steps behind her. They had not spoken since leaving the manor, yet Maria felt his eyes unwaveringly set upon her back.

The previous night had been a restless one. After spending the majority of the evening discussing the question of the Moonacre mists and shortening days, Maria had felt exhausted. The agitation she had experienced suddenly sitting within arms length of Robin de Noir had set her nerves alight, which only served to increase her disquiet at finding the young man was to stay in the room directly below her own. She had lain in bed for hours, tossing and turning over the prospect of having to spend the foreseeable future in his company. Her imagination was running wild as she finally fell into a fitful sleep, replaying the night of the wedding over and over in her mind.

Consequently, she overslept. After dressing and roughly pulling a comb through her hair she had raced down to breakfast, only to be met by the telltale smirk of Robin de Noir. He had watched her take breakfast, responding shortly to her small talk as his eyes travelled restlessly across her face. They had agreed that the best course of action for them today was to head into the forest, the root of the enigma. It had been difficult to persuade Benjamin, but Robin had sworn to protect Maria, standing resolutely at her side as they proposed their journey into the woods.

Now they found themselves within the bracken, searching for any sign of oddity between the trees or across the streams.

"I wouldn't head too far that way if I were you, Princess."

Maria jumped at the sudden sound of Robin's rough voice. It was contrastingly deep within the tranquil forest, pitched lower than she remembered. A shudder played across her skin as she felt his steady hand over her hip, pulling her back towards him.

"What exactly do you think you're doing, Robin?" Maria questioned, blushing furiously as she stumbled away from him.

"Well, do excuse me, Princess, for saving you from a twisted ankle," Robin grinned, using his boot to push aside the nettles ahead of them.

There was, in fact, a decline in the land, the soil sliding down a meter or so. Maria lowered her gaze, the rocky earth at the bottom of the fall not looking too accommodating. She nodded briefly at him, avoiding his eyes as the corners of Robin's mouth turned up once again. Perhaps her clouded memory of the forest wasn't too reliable after all.

Looking about the dense foliage, Maria realised that none of her surroundings were particularly familiar. They had been walking for at least an hour, yet had made little progress and discovered no clues regarding their mystery. However, a gloom had settled within the branches. The more she noticed it, the more it seemed to press in on Maria, the brittle leaves and sombre setting. The once peaceful woodland now felt claustrophobic and menacing.

Maria suppressed a shiver as Robin made his way through the branches, looking across at her rooted figure.

"I'm not sure we're finding anything, Princess, perhaps it would be better to head back. There's already a chill in the air and if we find ourselves too deep between the trees before sundown, well, even I might not be able to retrace our steps," Robin shot her brash smile, but Maria could detect a trouble hidden within his eyes.

She nodded slowly, then paused. It was true that going deeper into the forest was not the safest of plans, but that didn't mean it was not impenetrable. Before Robin could react, she had hoisted herself into the branches of a nearby oak. If she could scale it then it would be like killing two birds with one stone, she could see further into the heart of the forest while simultaneously escaping the ominously gloomy atmosphere below.

"Princess!" cried Robin, scrambling over to the trunk of the tree. He knew the forest well, to be sure, and thusly knew how to climb. However, this far into the forest the branches grew closely and thinly, clambering into the tree would not go well for a man of his stature, he doubted he could reach a few feet up without something snapping under him.

None the less, Maria continued her ascent through the leaves, occasionally risking a glance down at the boy below her, his unease obvious on his face.

"How exactly am I meant to protect you from down here, Princess?!" Robin called up, restlessly pacing around the tree in long strides.

"Aren't you a bird boy?" Maria replied, unable to stop the teasing smile from appearing on her lips, "I'm sure you'll think of something!"

There was an unintelligible grumbling coming from the base of the tree as Maria broke through the foliage. Due to the decline into the centre of the woods, Maria was able to look down into its depths from her vantage point.

The heart of the forest seemed to seethe and writhe with some unseen force. The dark branches twisted over one another, deteriorating the wildlife as a sinister energy gave life to the contorting timber. At the very centre stood a tree greater in growth and size than any other. A fog appeared to trail from all of its limbs, like a cloak billowing from a gnarled body. Maria could hardly bear to look, her vision distorted as if she were looking at a painting made to trick your eyes and perception.

She was several meters up in the air, but her foot desperately tried to find a hold in order to get back onto solid ground. Holding onto the truck, she stepped down, only to miss a branch and slip through the leaves, hands grasping at the passing bark.

The air rushed out of her lungs as she made contact. Her arms reaching for stability and her fingers clutching at cool leather.

"You don't make things easy for me, do you, Princess?" panted Robin, having stumbled back into the mossy trunk after catching Maria in his outstretched arms.

Gradually looking up at him, Maria found her breath once again, her pulse newly racing from their close proximity. Robin had her pressed into his chest as he leant against the tree, his hands solidly at her shoulder and beneath her knees. Their shallow breathing was mingling together, their faces mere centimetres apart.

Maria gasped and attempted to move, struggling out of his grasp. But he held steadfast, resisting Maria's efforts and tightening his grip. He moved his head closer to hers, his eyes locked upon her own and the air caught in Maria's chest.

"Never attempt anything as reckless as that again," Robin whispered in her ear, his voice harsh as his lips moved the hair trapped against her cheek.

All of a sudden, she was on her feet. Maria let out a squeak at abruptly being righted, swaying slightly from his absence. But he was already stalking off through the trees, roughly kicking nettles aside as he trampled the undergrowth.

"Well, are you coming or not?" Robin called back to her, turning his head slightly towards her motionless body.

Through the patchwork of leaves and branches, Maria could just make out the tops of his ears turning a dusky pink. She let an impish smile play across her lips as she rushed to catch up to his side.