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Waiting for something to burn.

With the numbness and warmth gone, my body feels a thousand times heavier than normal. Every ache and pain feels magnified. I feel empty. My bones hurt, my head is fuzzy, and I’m so thirsty I might have begged for water.

But there’s no begging in this house. Begging gets you nowhere.

I slump to the side and curl into the fetal position, too exhausted to move. Something warm and sticky tracks over my lips, and the smell of copper and iron fills my nose.

Vae is crouched in a defensive position. His beautiful eyes are trained on me and full of accusation.

“What the fuck are you?” He whispers.

Not, ‘What was that?’ Not, ‘What just happened?’ Not, ‘Are you hurt?’

He asks me the one question I’ve been asking myself since I saw the scorch marks on the floor this morning.

What am I?

I smile sadly, my lashes fluttering closed. “I don’t know,” I murmur.

My fingers curl into the hard floor, and distantly, I hear the scrape of his boots over the stone floor. The door squeaks open and slams shut.

I gladly let the darkness take me.

The sun beats down from above, pressing against my closed eyelids. The air is warm and dry, and a breeze flutters through my hair. I can smell the crisp scent of pine, and my heart lifts with hope.

The way the dirt feels under my hands and the way the breeze feels on my skin is so reminiscent of the meadow that I’m sure I’ve found my way back to Caelan.

Please, let me be back with him.

When I open my eyes, I realize quickly that this isn’t the meadow. I’m lying on a path in the woods on a softly sloping hill. There are trees everywhere, the sun shining through the branches and leaves, casting shadows over my skin, the grass, the ground.

Slowly, I sit up, taking stock of my body. I’m still in my clothes. Still barefoot.

Standing, I brush dirt off the back of my pants and spin in a slow circle. A bird chirps on a branch above me, bringing a legit army smile to my face.

It’s been weeks since I’ve been outside.

I peer through the leaves, trying to get a better look at the bird. It’s not quite a bluebird.

It’s smaller, more vivid, with obsidian-black eyes and cobalt feathers that shimmer faintly in the light.

I’ve never seen anything like it.

It flutters to the ground near my feet and chirps again, tilting its head curiously. Its chirp sounds almost like a flute.

“Hello,” I murmur, crouching down.

It hops closer, feathers fluttering, then, without warning, flies up and lands gracefully on my shoulder.

I laugh, startled. “Alright then. I suppose if I did get kicked out, I at least have a friend to keep me company while I try to find a town.”

Nothing looks familiar, but that doesn’t surprise me. I’ve never been off HQ’s grounds before.

I can’t remember anything that happened after I made the beams in the attic explode. It makes sense, I suppose, that they’d throw me out in the woods and be done with me.

It’s the only reason I can think of to explain why I’m out here.

I set out with quiet determination. I don’t know where I am exactly, but I know one thing. I have to figure out how to get back to Caelan.