‘They just are.’

Right. That’s exactly why you tried to take me when I was just a child.

That thought leaves a sour taste in my mouth as I rummage through my bag, pulling out one of the many necklaces I made over my time here. Playing with the chain attached to the pendant,

I spy the child I knew Red Eyes was talking about. I offer him a sad smile, my eyes watering as I realize just how much I am going to miss it here.

“Hello, love,” I murmur, kneeling in front of him, taking in his confused look as I hold out the necklace. “I want you to have this.”

“Why do you look so sad?” That makes the first tear drop as I try to think of how to explain this.

“I have to go away for a while, love. I don’t know when I’ll be back.” If I’ll ever be back. With the collar I have on, I assume it will be never, and that breaks my heart as I take his little hand in mine, carefully placing the obsidian arrowhead pendant into it.

“But,” his wide little eyes stare into mine for a moment before he looks at Red Eyes. That’s the only reason I look back at him. I don’t care that he can see the single tear track as I tried my best to not let this get the best of me. “Why? Why do you have to go?”

“That’s not something I can explain right now, love,” cupping his face with my hand, I turn it so that he’s looking at me instead of Red Eyes. “But I have something really, really important I need you to do.”

“Anything!”

“Take care of Tereza— make sure she’s not lonely while I’m gone, okay?”

Of course, he agrees, earning another sad smile from me before I give him a kiss on the temple and stand back up. Ruffling his hair while I take a deep breath— willing the tears to disappear as I start walking again.

I’m not going to wait for Red Eyes to follow me. I know that he would catch up. He is taller than I, and his legs could carry him to me easily.

“My apologies,” I roll my eyes as Red Eyes says those words.

“I don’t need platitudes from you, Red Eyes.” I murmur, “I did this to myself.”

“That you did. However, I don’t think you could have let any outcome but this one come to pass.”

“I could have,” I muse, refusing to look at him as I let him take the lead. “Were I the person people make my kind out to be, I would have let you. But despite the things I have done in my life, I’m not the monster people want to make me out to be.”

“We’re all monsters, Miss Cercel…” he mutters. “Some just hide it better than others…”

“I won’t deny that.” I snort, taking in the scenery as we continue through the woods until we reach what looks like a gate. My eyebrows pinching together; I’d never seen it out here in my life. “Where are you taking me, Red Eyes?”

"Back to my home...to Naclall," He looks over his shoulder to see the other two finally catching up to us.

Naclall? My eyebrows are still pinched together as I pull my shawl closer to my body, hating that I couldn’t use my magic to warm myself up like I used to. It made it hard to concentrate on what Red Eyes had to say about going through the gate. All I wanted was to be someplace warm, and the void wasn’t it.

The second I stepped through the gate I felt like any and all warmth I had was stripped from me as the four of us walked through to the other side. My lips sealed shut because I had nothing to say to any of them.

Even when we finally made it to the other side. Though it was beautiful, it wasn’t my home. Didn’t mean I didn’t appreciate the sites as I waited for Red Eyes to lead the way.