9th February—late
Well! Shadow and I have spent the day alone, and now night closes in again. We will depart tomorrow morning, I think; there seems little point in lingering in this desolate wood any longer. Perhaps neither the King nor his servants visit the tree anymore. It may be some bogle or brownie who makes off with the villagers' offerings.
I confess, practical considerations are not the only reason I wish to leave. This is an unpleasant place to linger alone. The air carries a heaviness that, as the hours pass, I find increasingly easy to associate with malice. I am frequently reminded that the Hidden King was trapped here for centuries—has the tree somehow retained a memory of his fury and despair? Increasingly, its trunk seems to resemble a gaping maw frozen in an eternal scream.
Beyond that, I grow increasingly convinced that there are voices coming from the tree. I cannot make out what they are saying, for they speak in echoing whispers, as if their words have travelled a great distance, but I am certain it is Faie. I even spoke to the tree—because why not? The thing is uncanny enough—explaining that I am the Snow King's former fiancée—God!—come to seek a favour. Naturally, I also paid him many compliments, explaining that I would not have presumed to trespass upon his domain had I not been certain of his kindness and magnanimity. I am not at all convinced this will suffice to save me from meeting an unpleasant end. After all, the King was told I was dead, and few faerie lords respond well to being tricked.
Enough of these ruminations! I have done too much thinking today, not to mention fretting over Wendell being upset with me, something I don't recall ever paying much attention to before. I have read his letters perhaps a dozen times—well, what else is there to do in this haunted place?
Perhaps I should scratch that out. He would never stop teasing me.
I will attempt to sleep. I can only hope the bloody tree allows it—I hear it now, whispering within its shadowy recesses. God knows what it is saying.