Monthly Archives: April 2015

Bird: Chapter 6

“I’m sorry,” I blurt out before I can stop. My eyes start to heat up, and I laugh humorlessly to myself as I turn my head further away from her. “I didn’t expect them to just show up there.”

“Hey.” She gets to her feet and I feel her hands on my shoulders. “It’s just a broken house in the woods. The cabin isn’t a big deal. And the men aren’t either. You’re safe. That’s all that matters.”

That sounds cliche. I meet her eyes and we share a smile.

“You don’t need to worry about them. You got away. And they won’t ever see you again.” She smiles, and I can’t help but remember Bird’s insistence on my meeting others. I try not to furrow my brows. I feel my wings move restlessly at my back.

“Yeah,” I say, not really focusing on her face when I glance back up at her.

“Nobody ever does,” she says, “not if you don’t want them to.”

My wings shift again.

Bird: Chapter 5

I get to my feet, breaking the strange closeness. “Let’s just go home.”

He doesn’t say anything more. He watches me, head turned so that one eye can look directly at me. Then, with an odd little hissing noise, he spreads his wings and takes to the sky in one leap. He curves off through the canopy of the trees, vanishing into the cerulean backdrop.

I pause for a moment, an unfamiliar fear tickling my belly. I find myself gazing off in the direction of the cabin. I didn’t fall far from it. Maybe a few hundred feet.

My stomach ties up in a tight coil. Without another thought, I lift my wings and ascend through the trees, ignoring the strain in my shoulders.

Hidden Remains: Chapter 5: Stolen

It was a path that Nilast knew well, having taken it quite a few times as child. It was left at the corner, right after the old oak tree and another right at the worn cross-section. He cringed at the burned remains of the hut that he had grown up in and he could only guess that the bodies in front belonged to his parents. He slowly made his way around to the back, his heart suddenly in his throat as he spotted the still form of his younger sister.

Her body had gone stiff, a sign that the destruction and death was not recent. Her eyes were open, dried blood trailing along her lips. Her dress had been stained, a gaping hole in her stomach where some weapon had been tore through her. Nilast gently covered her eyes, swallowing thickly before standing. Lightning traced across his fingertips and with a flick of his wrist, the element slammed into the still form. Fire roared to life where his sister lay, her body a fuel to its flames.

Bird: Chapter 4

“Just go.” They bicker for a moment, and I glance down the hallway. I could be out the back in seconds. I take several breaths, half watching them and half the hallway. When Oliver starts to talk again, I turn and start off as quietly as I can.

“Wait, Miss,” Oliver shouts slightly, and then falls very quiet. Even the fire settles a little, dimming the room with the hush. My back is to him.

I hardly even hesitate. I take off down the hallway in a blind run, making for the back room with most of the rear wall missing.

“Wait!” I hear Oliver give chase, and I fumble for half a second with the knob. There are tears in my eyes when I turn and slam the flimsy door shut. I lock it loudly, one hand flat against the wood, and take half a step back. Every feather on my wings stands on end, and I can’t seem to catch my breath.

Bird: Chapter 3

He clicks a few more times, and for a moment I think he’s about to answer. But a sudden hush falls over the cabin, dampening even the warmth of the fire. I freeze, glancing around without moving. The morning has begun spilling into the rooms, but only barely. Bird turns in a little circle, gazing around the room.

There is a sudden crackling outside. It is so abrupt and so loud that my body jerks slightly. I am on my feet within the space of a heartbeat, my wings unfurling just a bit in a flight response.

There is another noise outside now. Like footsteps. My chest cavity freezes over. I turn to look at Bird, and I can sense his fear in the hair along the back of my neck.

And then, too late, the doorknob is turning. Before I can put out the fire, run, or even duck for cover, the door has opened just a crack and a voice shouts far too loudly.

Ten: Chapter 2

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