“Celia.”
The voice drifted through soft sunlight, warm and familiar. It wrapped around her like a blanket and pulled her toward it.
“Celia. Sweetheart. Where are you hiding?”
Celia giggled, her small legs darting through a bright forest glade. Sunlight shimmered through the leafy canopy, scattering gold across the mossy ground. The air smelled of pine and honeysuckle. Tiny motes of dust floated lazily in the beams of light, drifting like glitter around her.
“There you are.”
A woman stepped between the trees, smiling so brightly it lit the entire clearing. Her long blond hair spilled in soft waves over her shoulders, shining almost white in the sunlight. Her eyes were the same vivid blue Celia saw in her own reflection. For a moment, the world felt perfect.
“I found you!” Her mother s
