Narissa was silent for a moment, observing the Marshal as he gave his report. She felt a surge of anger about the fact that Dorothea was still not in a cage. Blasted girl. It had been most satisfying to cast the enchantment and watch as her pretty stepdaughter was transformed in front of her. The satisfaction hadn't lasted long, however. She had been furious when Dorothea had escaped for the first time, slipping right through the mirror at the precise moment. The gateway was a tricky thing, only open for a limited time based upon the size of the moon in the World-On-The-Other-Side, which was made trickier due to the fact that in their world, in the land of Adosia, time moved faster. A month on the other side was a year in Adosia. By now the full moon in that world had set and the sun was rising and the mirror was just a mirror again. Dorothea had needed to disappear but not into the World-On-The-Other-Side. Narissa still needed her. She hadn't raised her voice at the Marshal, but her anger had been perfectly clear. Go through the mirror. Bring the princess back. Or do not come back at all. And here he was, back in the flesh. But her stepdaughter was still missing. On this side, yes. But here she could slip back to Eldonia, to the palace. Even in the animal form Narissa had trapped her in Dorothea could send her plan crumbling to the floor.

"See that she is, Marshal." He was a good man to have on her side, despite these recent events. Mostly efficient and as loyal as he had once been to her husband. Before she had swayed him. It had been a victory for her, when she had persuaded her husband's most loyal man and confidant to turn on him and serve her instead. Ordering him to help her capture the princess had been one of the last of several tests of loyalty, to see if he had truly turned away from the people he had once served. Having him watch as she cast the transformation spell on Dorothea had been another. This blunder of his, letting her slip through his fingers and escape, was most unfortunate. Though he still had this one last chance to fix everything. She looked him in the eyes and the smile slipped for a moment. "The prince isn't expecting her in Itelia until tomorrow, so no one knows she is missing yet. If she slips back to her father, everything I've worked for will fall apart. Find her." Her tone softened dangerously as she titled her head slightly to one side. "Do not fail me again, August." She didn't need to threaten anything. 

Narissa turned from her guardsmen, looking at her shelves of vials and books as though searching for something of interest. "Were there any problems?" she asked, looking back over her shoulder past her curtain of gold hair. "On the other side? That world is so unlike our own."

~~~

Sam came to a halt when the cat stopped, She was panting, not so much from the running itself but from everything. The being grabbed and dragged into this place, the escape, the jump. Her heart was racing as she tried to catch her breath and the cat was speaking again. It made her wince, even though she had been expecting it. The cat said that the doorway was closed by now and that she was stuck here. Sam felt a chill rush through her and she closed her eyes. "What?" she asked, even though she had heard every word. "What do you mean stuck?" The cat was still speaking (how could she do that?) and Sam knew she was right, about the men and the danger. The thought of the Marshal's icy eyes and the hard grip on her chin made her shiver again. But despite the eminent danger of being hunted down by the men who had abducted her, including the man she had given a broken nose, she was still unable to get past the fact that she was stuck here. And she had no idea where here was.

She opened her eyes when the cat leaped up onto her shoulder. Sam turned her head to look at the furry thing just sitting there and directing her towards a castle. Of course this place had castles. Even at the promise of finding a way back home when they got there, she hesitated. "No," Sam suddenly said, shaking her head as she reached up and pulled the cat off of her shoulder. "No," she repeated as she strode over to a tree and set the cat down on a branch at eye level. "No!" Sam clenched her hands into fists to stop them shaking. "You want me to take you to this castle? Fine but first I need some answers. Like why you can talk, who those men were, why they brought me here, how they brought me here, and, oh yeah, where here is!" She stopped to take a very shaky breath and closed her eyes. Her voice had been on the verge of becoming hysterical and her hands had became knotted in her red hair, as though she were in danger of ripping it out. "And you better talk quickly," Sam added through gritted teeth, opening her eyes to gaze at the cat. "Please."