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I was in a forest, the wind whipping around me. Everything seemed grey, as though the colour had seeped out of the world. But I could see something up ahead: a fire. It was burning brightly. I couldn’t feel the heat, but I knew in my mind that it was there, that I could feel it brushing my skin as I moved closer. When I set foot in the clearing, I realised that it wasn’t just a fire. It was hundreds, maybe thousands of candles, burning all around me. There was someone standing among them. I saw the shadow of a tall hat, a long black dress, sinister sharp fingernails. She was chanting words in a language I couldn’t understand. She turned to me and her face was a blur. But it was Ebony. It felt like Ebony. The figure wore Ebony’s boots and had her black and battered suitcase at her feet. The girl’s features shifted like someone was crafting them out of clay, and soon the face was Ebony’s too. She smiled her unnerving smile at me. “Ivy,” she said. “You’re just in time.” The flames roared behind her. “What are you doing?” I asked. She didn’t reply, but reached down towards the suitcase and flicked the catches open. I had no idea what was inside it, but I felt instant dread filling my entire body. I didn’t want to look. I couldn’t. “You really should look more closely,” her voice insisted, singsong and seductive. “Why?” I asked, my feet carrying me nearer, even though I urged them to turn and run. The smile remained. “Because I’m going to do a trick.” And as she said that, black plumes of smoke began rising from the suitcase, until they were enveloping me, filling my lungs, and I was pulled down inside … And I was falling … And falling …
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