Imogen let Olezhka and me out at the tree-portal to the Magnolia glade.
"I have to return the car." She told me. "It's only a rental. I'll come check on you when I get back?"
"Have fun explaining the scratch marks." I said, waving her off. "We'll see you soon."
Then, I headed through the magic tree with my talking tiger companion in tow. If I could go back in time and share a single fact about my current life with my past self--that one action would probably be it.
We got back to my apartment in the side of the glade, Olezhka sparing remarkably little attention for the magnificent tree. I thought I saw him give it a disinterested glance once, but when I turned to remark on it, he was already focused on a something else.
The interior of my rooms were not designed with a tiger in mind.
