The thrill of seeing the dragon was beginning to wear off, and Rose was feeling hungry, tired and sore.

She had never slept on the ground before. She had never even thought of sleeping on the ground. And if she had thought of it, she would have assumed it would be soft and comfortable.

Because she was the Queen, and everything she had ever slept on had been soft and comfortable.

But the ground beneath the tree was littered with stones. And no matter how many Rose had dug out from under her shoulder and her hip and her head, there had always been more.

And even if there hadn’t been stones, the ground itself was unforgiving and cold. There were no pillows. There were no feather quilts.

Rose thought of her enormous bed, which had six pillows and as many quilts as she wanted. And for a moment she was glad she’d be found soon, and taken back to the palace …

But then she remembered the dragon.

All over again, the wonder of it sizzled through her blood. And the same sense of wildness that had driven her to climb out the window made her forget about pillows and quilts.

But she couldn’t forget how hungry she was.

‘Where’s Flax?’ she asked. ‘Why hasn’t she come back yet?’

‘Don’t know,’ answered the pup, who was busy scratching himself with one enormous hind paw.

‘Well then, when is breakfast?’

‘When we find it.’

‘How do you find breakfast? Doesn’t it just – arrive? On a silver tray with silver cutlery, and a napkin tucked into a silver ring?’

The pup stopped scratching and pricked his ears. ‘Flax is good at finding breakfast. But not as good as my parents. If they were here, they’d go hunting and come back with a horned glob.’ He licked his lips. ‘Are you hungry? I’m hungry.’

‘What’s a horned glob?’ asked Rose.

No doubt you are asking yourself the same question.

Not because horned globs are one of the Three Great Secrets, like the Spellhounds. But because they are found only in the Floating Forest.

It is true that, every now and again, one of them wanders too close to the edge and falls down into the World Below.

But no horned glob has ever survived the fall. And if you stumbled upon the carcass, you would probably think it was a dead cow with very short legs.

Or a wild boar that had been caught in a tornado and turned inside out.

Or some sort of fungus. With horns.

And then you would go away and forget about it. Because that’s how horned globs protect themselves.

They are not fierce or clever. They can’t run fast. Their horns are useless in any sort of fight.

But they are very, very forgettable.

Except to Spellhounds, who never forget anything.

‘What’s a horned glob?’ asked Rose.

‘My favourite breakfast,’ said the pup. He looked at her hopefully. ‘Have you got anything to eat? Huh? Huh?’

‘Only green jellybabies,’ said Rose.

She took a paper bag containing her emergency supply from her pocket. She held it out to him - then pulled it back again. ‘I’ll give you a jellybaby if you tell me what sort of dog you are.’

‘I’m not supposed to say,’ said the pup, cocking his head to one side.

Rose waved the bag of jellybabies under his nose.

The pup licked his lips. He looked around for Flax. ‘I’m a Spellhound.’

Rose felt another fizz of excitement. That was the word in Aunt Delilah’s letter!

‘What’s a Spellhound?’ she asked, hoping this time she’d get an answer.

‘Me,’ said the pup. ‘And my mother and father.’ He nosed at her hand. ‘Can I have a jellybaby now?’

‘In a minute,’ said Rose. ‘Um – what makes you a Spellhound? Apart from being able to talk?’

The pup’s brow creased. ‘I think it’s a secret.’

Rose took a jellybaby from the bag and popped it into her mouth. ‘Mm, yummy.’

The pup licked his lips again. He flattened his ears. He said quick and low, ‘We mumble mumble mumble. We mumble thunder and mumble mumble lightning.’

And although she asked him a dozen times, he wouldn’t repeat it.

So in the end she sighed and held out the jellybabies.

The pup’s tongue looped out. He swallowed and wagged his tail. ‘That was nice. Have you got any more?’

Rose stared at her empty hand. ‘You ate all of them. Including the paper bag.’

‘What’s a paper bag?’ asked the pup.