"We're here! FINALLY!" Alexander’s voice exploded into the air, making me flinch.

I shivered as the vigilante group and I strolled down the sidewalk, hoods pulled over our heads, which were aimed to the ground. 

"Shut the fuck up, you're too loud!" Terrence, healer of the vigilantes, shot him a glare. "We went this whole way without getting noticed; don't ruin it now!"

Alexander rolled his eyes, but let it go. 

These two had been arguing ever since Alexander and I ran from the shelter, called Kazu and the others, and made a backup plan. 

Apparently,  Lydia knew of a few underground 'superhuman shelters' that had opened up ever since the exposure, so if something ever happened to the vigilantes' base, we could move to one of them temporarily. Before I knew it, we'd spent three weeks journeying to the edges of Arlox City. Three weeks of listening to Alexander and Terrence bicker, while Lydia desperately tried to lead us forward over 

This journey was far from ideal, but at least we finally arrived.

It didn't look like it, though. All that stood to our side was a simple fence blocking off a forest beyond.

"Are… are you sure this is it?" I asked Lydia, who stood at the front of the group.

She nodded. "All we have to do is climb over the fence, and then we should see a trapdoor/ That's the shelter entrance."

"Already on it," Ava called, instantly latching to the fence and clambering up.

"Hey! Don't get started without me!" Alexander sprung forward and raced after her.

The rest of us followed in tow, climbing up one side and descending to the forest floor on the other. 

Sweet petrichor and damp air filled my nose as twigs crunched underneath my shoes. I looked left and right, across the thin trees and ground. There wasn't a single trapdoor in sight.

Lydia made her way to a thick tree that lay to my far right. "The entrance is over here, you guys."

We followed in her steps, and sure enough, behind the tree was a large wooden trapdoor embedded into the flat ground.

Lydia crouched down and rapped thrice on the wood. 

"Hey, Johm. Open up. It's me."

"Johm? You know the people here?" Alexander tilted his head.

Lydia simply placed a finger to her lips and looked back at the silent trapdoor, waiting for a response.

A couple moments later, a voice resounded from below.

"Come in."

"Johm!"

"Lydia!"

The first person to greet us upon arrival was one with shaggy black hair and ratty sweatpants with a gray hoodie  — like an outfit Talia would wear, but filthier — who ran right up to Lydia and shook hands with her.

"Oh, Ava! God, it's been so long since I've seen you!" Johm lifted a hand, and Ava gave it a crisp high-five.

"So you do know each other." Alexander folded his arms over his chest. "Makes sense, I guess."

"These are the other vigilantes, right?" Johm gazed at the rest of us.

"Yup. That's Kazu, that's Terrence, that's Alexander, and…" Lydia paused as she pointed to me. "This is someone that tagged along with us recently. He's not exactly a vigilante, but good company to have around."

Good company? She must have been lying.

"So, guys, this is Johm," Ava added on. "Me and Lydia met them a long while back, and it's been a bit since then."

"Well, nice to meet you." Kazu grinned and stepped forward, shaking Johm's hand. "Thanks for letting us in. Our base got wrecked and we had to move fast…"

"Yeah. A lot of people are losing their homes recently." Johm sighed before looking over their shoulder.

In the small, wood-walled shelter sat a low table and five cushions behind Johm, all occupied by three elder folk and two small children. They stared at us in wonder and confusion, eyebrows raised and heads tilted.

"So, you wanna tell us what's going on?" A middle-aged woman set down her cup. 

"Right, right!" Johm spun around. "We've got new mates joining us!"

"Really? Well, welcome to the club. My name's Vic." She grinned, revealing a golden tooth.

My eyes drifted to hers, and she raised a brow. "Ay, you. What's your name? We still haven't gotten it yet. And take off that hood, there's no need to be shy."

I swallowed, hesitating for a moment. Two moments. Three.

I knew what she would do if she knew my name. But did I lie? Did I hide my monster of a self? No. No, no, that would only make me look worse. That would only make me devious, even worse than I already was.

Kazu's eyes shot towards me, his eyebrows raised.

I swallowed again, lowering my hood with shame and revealing the long white strands of hair flowing down my back. The ones everyone knew. The one thing that gave away my identity more than anything else.

"My name… is Caster. Caster Cessair."

Silence. Pure silence followed, but actions spoke louder than words. Two parents shifted away from me, eyes widened, and their daughter inched behind their backs. Vic slowly set her mug down and exchanged glances with Johm. The little boy right in front of me whimpered, scampering close to his father and sister.

My chest caved in, vines of guilt squeezing my heart as its thorns poked into my flesh. I gulped down the lump in my throat and looked down. Nobody wanted to see my face, annyways,

Johm exhaled slowly. their muscles tense. "So. Now that we've… gotten to know each other, we should let the vigilantes settle in." They pointed to two doors on my left. "We've got plenty of rooms open, and since you guys seem like a big group, you can split those two rooms amongst yourselves. Sound cool?"

"I'll take the second room, alone."

Kazu gaped at me. "Caster, what —?"

I'd already stalked off before he could finish, opening the door to the second room and slamming it shut just as fast.

They didn't deserve to see my face. Nobody deserved to see my monstrous face.

So the best I could do was hide it away from them.