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“Animal friends?” I looked at Angel.

She blinked at me, two eyes, very, very slowly.

“Yes, my animal friends,” said Aspen. “They live here, in this place. They found me here, stuck in this tree, and we quickly became friends. They couldn’t free me, but they could go look for help. They found you, Leda Pandora. They came back to tell me all about your exploits, your unique mindset which helps you solve unusual problems.” Aspen’s branches flittered. “My problem is unusual.”

“It definitely is,” I agreed.

“As soon as my friends told me about you, I knew you were the right person to help me.”

“These friends,” said Nero. “You’re speaking of the animals we encountered at Storm Castle. They are interdimensional beings.”

“Yes.”

“And they brought us here?”

“Yes. But they didn’t mean any harm,” she added quickly.

“They attacked us at Storm Castle,” said Nero.

“They weren’t trying to hurt you. That strange machine drew them to your castle. They got scared. They were just looking for a way home. And then they saw her.” One of the branches pointed at me. “They realized she could help set me free.”

“So they ensnared us,” Nero said.

“No!”

“They threw us in a time-and-space dreamworld blender,” I pointed out. “Or at least they enchanted Nero’s pen to do it.”

“They just wanted to help me. Thatblender, as you call it, was the best way to get you here.”

“Ok, so let’s say we believe you.” I looked away from a ripple in the bark that looked like a leg. It was all just so creepy. “What do you expectmeto do about your situation?”

“Free me,” Aspen said serenely. “I know you can. You are a master at fixing weird problems.”

Maybe I should get a t-shirt that said just that:Leda Pandora, Angel of Chaos, a Master at Fixing Weird Problems.

“Well, I guess I could try to help you, as long as you promise you’re not evil.”

“Evil?” Aspen repeated, her trunk crinkling like a furrowed brow. “Why would you think that I’m evil?”

“Because evil people have a knack for finding me and causing all kinds of trouble.”

Nero nodded in agreement.

“I am not evil,” Aspen insisted.

She sounded so sincere that I couldn’t help but believe her.

“Well, ok, then,” I said. “I’ll help you.”

“You will?” Hope crept into her voice, and her apples jingled like bells. “Oh, thank you! Thank you!”

I lifted a warning finger. “Just don’t make me regret it.”

Her apples stopped jingling. Her voice grew quiet, serious. “I won’t. I promise.”

“Okie dokie, how about you tell me how you got stuck in that tree?”

“I already told you. I was taking a magic mirror?—”