When you are avoiding something the worst thing you can do is talk, think or acknowledge it. Because once you do, it gets stuck to you like tree sap. You see it everywhere; all your thoughts are connected to it and you’ll never get it out of your head.  

I made the terrible mistake of admitting my tiny feelings that were focused on a certain male in our group. Now, everything makes me think of him. 

Everything! 

Eating breakfast, for example. I wonder if he likes the meal. It was mostly bread with fruits and vegetables, maybe he wanted more meat in it. Does he like meat? Maybe if he likes meat, I could stomach it. 

Which is a crazy thought, I could never eat a creature.  

That was the worst part. My thoughts aren’t even things I agree with anymore!

I let out a groan, falling back to the cart in despair.  

“Seriously, Yasmin. Could you be any more of an attention queen?” 

I ignored my brother, petting Marakin instead. 

“Everything alright in there?” 

Of course, Arwen was asking about us.  

“Wait a little longer, Sorata. Then you can get out a stretch your wings. The forest will get thicker in a moment or two.” 

He must have smiled or something because Emelina walked away from the cart as Ozani and Aratazz led our small troupe. 

I wanted to go home. 

But no, I have to help get this boy on the throne as I battle my own inner thoughts.  

“Sora, will you hit me or something?” 

“I’m not even going to ask because I’ll end up getting hurt. Still, did you sleep at all last night?” 

“Thank you for pointing out my bags. You are so very kind.” I was too tired to even pretend to be nice. 

He was right though; I didn’t sleep and it showed.  

My hair was tangled and it took forever to pull up into a hair tie, my eyes had bags and I couldn’t even flutter right. I tripped twice before Arwen practically pushed me into the cart and said to rest. That, of course, didn’t help at all because I noticed how he wasn't too strong, but could throw a small fairy like me around. 

“How much further to this secret place Emelina won’t tell us.” 

“Well, if I told you, you could tie me up and attack my camp. Sora is an angel and I totally trust him, but there are rules, you know. Especially something as dangerous as rebelling against the dragons. I gotta keep some things for myself.” 

She was smart, I’ll give that to her. But we were going at a human pace which was so slow. And there wasn’t even anything to do. 

We had talked about birthdays, favorite foods, favorite colors, favorite holidays, childhood friends, and so much more. And, my brain did memorize some information for no special reason. Nineth of Veran, something called plate cakes, blue, Masked Night, Dominic. Though, each of the facts made sense; he was such a Veran child. The green of the leaves were beautiful against his skin. 

I really wanted to hit my head against the cart floor, but that would just make my headache worse; which wouldn’t improve my mood.  

Sorata didn’t even know, I couldn’t talk to him about this stuff. 

I wanted to; because I told him everything. When I couldn’t talk to Chi Chi or Renri, I could always talk to him. 

Except this morning when I opened my mouth to explain why I hadn’t slept, my skin became warm and I ducked my head instead. I ran off instead of talking which I think upset Sora. Oops. 

Then, it decided to rain because my day wasn’t bad enough. 

The wizard robes they had all had a hood so it wasn’t even a problem for them. Sora and I though, had no such thing.  

“We can stop if you want, or try and find shelter...” Aratazz searched the forest but we could only see trees.  

“Here.” I sat up just in time for Arwen to take off his robe, revealing way too much for my brain to keep functioning. “This will protect you from the rain. Sora should stay fairly dry if he stays next to Marakin.” 

Arwen had a blue undershirt but there were no sleeves, his puffy pants tucked into his boots. I didn’t have any thoughts, I just held onto the cloak Arwen had put on me. I could feel my wings bending slightly, but I couldn’t even care. 

Sora gave me a look, but I hid my face inside the cloak. It smelt of last night's fire, but the smell actually fit Arwen’s image. This wasn’t going to help me at all. 

The rain wasn’t that bad, though I felt bad about the water soaking Arwen’s hair and shoulders. He didn’t seem to mind it, though I couldn’t look away. Sora was basically tucked under Marakin’s feathers so no one was really suffering. Even though we were now trudging through mud. 

The day passed quietly and we were blessed to have the rain stop long before we made camp. We were able to find a clearing that wasn’t too wet or muddy. 

The second night was worse than the first. Arwen never took his robe back so when I went to bed it was my pillow. A pillow that wasn’t used for my head, I may or may not have been cuddling it as I finally fell asleep.  

Day three was better. 

Emelina began singing, sometimes in Volarian and other times in Angel Grace. The ancient songs were my favorite, they reminded me of Chi Chi. They also had a different spirit as she sang. The songs were full of childhood joys, playing with Koko and Sora as we slid down the tree branches. Warm food in Invern while enjoying Sweet Grass in Veran.  

I leaned on Sora as she sang, eyes closed as peace flowed through me. Even Arwen and Ozani were smiling; Aratazz was skipping along with us.  

It was around noon when I saw it. A large spire sticking up beyond the trees. It was pure white, with blue tiles on the roof. More towers were by the spire, a white light among the trees. 

“Is that?” 

“Yup! That is Seraphim Castle, where the angels used to rule all the islands. Now, Zinuth sits on a bloody throne.” 

“Tazz, chill with the drama.” 

“But it’s true. He may not have killed the angels but his father did and his father before him.” 

“Woah, tells us how you really feel.” 

Ozani and Aratazz squabbled while I stared at the castle.  

It was beautiful. The white was like Sora’s wings, which made sense. Angels built the castle so they could base the colors after their wings. The blue was beautiful, like Sora’s eyes.  

I glanced back; Sora was staring at the castle also. His face though, he was frowning with his eyebrows furrowed.

The castle was a symbol for a life he didn’t know. His parents hid it from him, a whole family that he could never know. And there was no way for me to find those answers for him. 

“Sora,” 

“Don’t, Yasmin, please.” 

My hand froze over his shoulder and he pushed past me. He jumped out of the cart, walking beside Arwen. He left me in the cart; fumbling for words.  

Here I was, the mentor, speechless.  

The Writer had obviously picked the perfect person to help Sora. Please note the sarcasm.  

Marakin began to shift, letting out soft honks and flapping her wings. Emelina stopped; holding up her hand. 

“I feel something, wait a moment.”  

She dropped to her knees, hands digging into the grass and dirt. Before she could shout in warning, goblins spilled from the forest.  

Goblins weren’t that big or dangerous, but they had numbers on their side. My body froze as I watched them attack. Three jumped on Arwen while a group pulled Emelina to the floor. They carried clubs or rocks; they weren’t here to kill.  

Ozani and Aratazz were in the back and had the time to so some sort of shield around the cart as Arwen threw off the goblins on his back. 

“What,” Sora punched another before stepping back into the shield. “What are these things!” 

Right, Sora never liked the children’s books Chi Chi read to us. I loved learning about goblins, ogres, gargoyles, and all sorts of creatures from Brighster.  

The wizards continued firing off spells, flinging groups of goblins away and keeping a barrier. Emelina used the grass to finally kick off her group of goblins. She stood tall, the grass growing with her. Blades of grass wove around the area, weaving together until went all the way around the cart. 

“Goblins, nasty little things.” 

Thuds could be heard as they banged and knocked on the grass. The weaving was strong, the blades didn’t even move as the goblins hit them.  

“Nice job on the quick basket weaving, but how are we supposed to get out now?” 

“Goblins aren’t warriors, they are hired soldiers that are famous for being lazy.” Arwen walked along, fingers brushing the weaves. “We should be able to wait them out, though I don’t like us waiting.” 

A thump echoed through the forest, shaking the trees and sending birds flying.  

“What, what was that?” 

“I don’t know, Zani, and I don’t think I want to know.” 

There was another thump, followed by more. The trees shook and a bit grew in my stomach. 

“Guys, I don’t know if we want to find out.” 

At that moment, an Ogre ripped the grass and let out a roar.