Lyla woke up in a strange room, and it took a minute for her to remember where she was and everything that had happened. Her eyes roved over the room. It was simple, not much thought had gone into decorating it, though it had all that was needed: a queen-sized bed, a closet, and a door on the right corner, which she assumed led to a bathroom.
Large windows stood to the left, covered by pale blue curtains etched with beautiful designs. She would have wanted to go and look through those windows to see this new world if her situation were different, but thinking of how she came here and what was revealed made her curl up on the bed
She wasn't dumb. Even if they hadn't told her the words directly, what had happened in that room, the vision she saw, was enough of an answer. She was who they were waiting for, their chosen and supposed savior
Had her whole life been a lie? Was she never human? What about her mother? Had she ever suspected she was different? Did she ever feel something strange about her? How would she react if she knew this truth? Would she be terrified of her?
After what happened in that room, she supposed anyone who knew her from her world would be shocked and petrified. Her world…would she ever go back? What if she never saw her loved ones again? She supposed that it was perhaps for the best, even though she felt selfish enough to want to forget everything and go back to her life. She wished she would wake up and find out that this was all a dream, a horrible, terrible dream
How was she even to live here? How could she be their savior? She was young and didn't know anything about magic or this world. How was she to help them before the said threat came
Lyla thought of the plans she had made; she was taking a gap year to explore and live. She had already come up with a travel plan that was supposed to commence right after her birthday. Her birthday isn't it in three weeks? Was she to spend it in this foreign land? She had spent all her birthdays with her family, then her friends, but now, now she wouldn't ever see them
Silent tears escaped her eyes, and she did nothing to stop them. She felt as though her life had been stolen from her, and she hated it; hated them for bringing her here and making that stupid discovery, hated the heavens for pushing such a burden onto her.
She cursed the day she met Anson and his brother, cursed the moment she decided to trust them, but most of all, she hated herself for the curiosity that dragged her to spy on the two brothers, because perhaps if she didn't, she wouldn't have seen those wings and ended up here
She cried and cried till there were no more tears left, and fell back to sleep
*
Lyla had the door to the room open, but she chose to ignore it. heard small steps approaching before stopping right next to her and smelt the lovely scent of different flowers that blended into a sweet and wild symphony, but chose not to open her eyes, especially since she knew who bore that scent
"I know you're awake, little one," the woman said, but she kept her eyes closed
She heard a huff of annoyance before the woman said, "Dinner is ready, you should eat," but she didn't care for food, didn't care for anything, all she needed was to stay in bed, drowning in her misery until…until…she didn't know until what
Another huff, retreating footsteps, a slam of the door before quiet swallowed her again. Good.
*
Lyla didn't know how long it had been since the keeper left, but she had been drifting in and out of sleep. Her stomach rumbled, but she did not bother to go and seek some food; no, she just curled up, pulling the covers closer and forcing herself back to sleep
*
*
"It has been a day and two nights since, and she has not moved from that bed," the Keeper said, pacing
"Calm down, you should understand her, she is going through a hard time," the Paisios replied, still looking out the window
"What of her training? She needs to start as soon as possible. We don't know when the threat is coming, not to mention who brings it."
"What use is it training her if she is unwilling or in a good state of mind? She must first find peace within herself, then everything else will be easy to follow."
Without waiting for another word, the old man turned and left, leaving the Keeper frustrated
*
*
Anson was nervous as he walked towards the room Lyla was supposedly in. he had not seen her since that day her power erupted, and knowing she hadn't gotten out of the room or even bothered to eat made him worried
The Keeper had summoned him; she needed him to try and make her act. How he was to do so, he didn't know yet
He approached the door and took a deep breath before knocking twice, but received no response. He knocked again before declaring he was getting in
Inside the curtains were all closed, and on the bed, he saw her curled frame. From the rhythm of her breaths, he knew she was not asleep, so he walked closer and stopped at the head of the bed, her back to him
"Lyla?"
She gave no response, nor did she even move or make any signs to acknowledge his presence
"You must be hungry. Should I bring you some food?" No response
"I…I'm sorry, Lyla, for everything. I know we went about it the wrong way, but I…I'm really sorry."
Anson looked to her, hoping for anything, even if it was to cuss or shout at him, he didn't mind, but she just lay there unmoving. He sat at the foot of her bed, even if she wasn't going to talk to him, he wanted her to know that he was there, that he was truly sorry, and wanted to make amends for what he had done
So he sat there in silence, waiting for her
It had been an hour since he got here and in that time she hadn't made even the slightest movement, if it weren't for her breathing he would have assumed the worst but then he felt her shift and move before she removed the covers and stood completely ignoring his presence but he sucked in a shuddering breath
She looked awful; her normally bright green eyes were now dull and hollow, her cheeks slightly thinner. She looked weak and frail as though she would snap at any moment. Her steps were slow as she disappeared to the bathroom. Anson's heart sank at the sight.
It had been four days since she ate or drank anything, four days since she had unleashed a huge amount of magic that had surely drained her; how she could even walk was a surprise to him
The bathroom door opened, and she came back, crawling into the bed, even her skin looked dull and pale. He couldn't stop the guilt that rushed through him so heavily that he quickly stood and left. He couldn't bear to look at her. It wasn't only about how she looked, but her eyes.
Those eyes that he liked so much were deprived of all life and hope, and what was left was a dark kind of emptiness that made his stomach twist into knots. The girl he knew seemed lost, and he didn't know how to bring her back or if they could ever bring her back