“Will you just hear me out?” he asks quietly.
He’s so strong. Physically he’s twice my size. If a guy his size is worried about something I should probably listen.
I nod, finally conceding to hear him out.
A sigh of pure relief slips from his lips.
“Good. I was really starting to worry you were just completely insane—”
It’s the last thing I hear him say before I leap.
The wind catches at my limbs, whipping my shirt and hair back. For a second, I close my eyes to the feeling of freedom. The feeling of nothing holding me in place in this world. My breath halts, when my eyes open, seeing the ground slamming into my vision. It all happens so quickly. One second, I’m on a roof, arguing with Ryder, the next I’m free falling into the unknown.
Because it is unknown.
The outcomes are endless.
But I refuse to allow the alternatives to cross my mind.
“Please,” I whisper against the thrashing winds.
My plea carries on those winds. In my mind that plea sweeps up past my meager existence and right into a realm I haven’t really thought about since my father died.
The Realm of the Gods.
“Please,” I whisper again.
I feel my magic tingling to life within me, soaring through my veins, pushing against my skin to release. I shove at it. Shove hard, trying to force it out.
Coax it out.
The words echo through my mind and I let the anxious tension leave my body. My shoulders relax, letting the wind swaddle my body and letting my eyes close once more.
I don’t demand the magic within me to surface. I listen to it. I focus on where it’s settling in my hands and I relax each finger, each nerve.
When my eyes open once more, the sound of cloth tearing accompanies my sight. My wings spread wide just as I fully open my eyes.
Ryder’s going to have to get me a bulk order of shirts, I suppose.
A smile pulls at my lips as I begin to coast through the cool winds. The feel of the air slipping over my feathers has a bubbling laugh filling my chest.
Gods above, I fucking did it.
Faintly, a whooping cheer can be heard. It’s the sound of accomplishment and pride and relief.
With ease, I glide over the sharp points of the gate, my boots kicking off from the metal in a triumphant way.
Softly, my feet hit the ground without stumbling as if I’ve been soaring my entire life. I feel … like a total fucking badass.
With a swift movement, my wings tuck in against my back. Thin blades of grass tickle the ends of my feathers and I can’t stop smiling.
Shadows dance around me, swooping and soaring. My attention rises to the heavens to find two ravens circling oddly above. I feel their dark eyes on me. Watching me with intensity.
They’re knowing little creatures.
Godly little things.
A flicking image shudders in front of my face and a screech pulls from my throat. It’s like an ominous shadow at first. I’m still gaping at him as Ryder’s form slowly becomes solid.
