The queen has returned...

As soon as I saw her, I stopped in my tracks. Then, as slowly as possible, I lowered myself into the tall grass and tried to make myself invisible. She was turned so her back was to me but my body reacted to her presence immediately, the same way I would imagine I would react to stumbling on a rabid bear. Instinct took over and the adrenaline started pumping, but I stayed still and so did she.

With her back to me, I could see three things, but these were enough to give me a chill as if someone had walked over my grave. She was wearing a long red cloak with a dirty train that was billowed out behind her as if she had been dragging it along like a broken ankle. It was faded in spots and looked well worn. Her black hair fell past her midsection and was a bit scraggly at the ends as well. There were pieces of the tall grass caught in it and it fell on either side of her face to hide her features from me.

The part that terrified me more than anything was the crown that sat on her down-turned head. Even from this distance and even though it was tarnished, the gems showed like new. Over all, she looked like an exiled queen from a very sad fairytale.

My first thought was that my first thought should have been that she was an escaped inmate from a mental hospital, but I didn't even go there. Somewhere deep inside of me, I knew who she was. I knew why she was here. And I knew I couldn't let her see me.