ParvaMigina

  [Self-deprecation, self-doubts, some bigotry]

  [colpse]

  (If you think I o add more CW, please tell me)

  My breath came in ragged gasps—I had been running for the st fifteen minutes.

  “Fuuuck,” I cursed through ched teeth, only nistering the pain. My legs were covered in tless cuts, thin streaks of blood trailing down my skin.

  I gnced around, but the thick fog and dense undergrowth made it nearly impossible to see more than a few feet ahead. The t pines loomed over me, their tangled branches g at the sky, their shadows twisting like grasping hands in the dim light. And then, there was the creeping mist—coiling at my feet, slithering forward like a living thing. A suffog shroud, like a barrier, herding me deeper into this wretched forest. I knew if I stopped, if I hesitated for even a moment, it would swallow me whole.

  And then, there it was agaier of s, the wet rasp of heavy breathing, the unbearable stench of rotting flesh mixed with something… something far sinister.

  “Hennnryyy,” ed that siing, distorted voice. “I know you’re here. e out, I only want to help you~”

  I held my breath, g my hands over my mouth to silence even the smallest sound. The world around me seemed to hold its breath too, muting everything but his approag steps. Every twig that snapped beh his weight, every whisper of disturbed leaves, made it feel as if he was already breathing down my neck. My whole body went rigid. Every fiber of my being screamed at me to run, but I was frozen, paralyzed.

  Tears welled up in my eyes. Just why was I like that? So, so… helpless. Useless.

  I should’ve knower. I should’ve rusted them. I should’ve never dared to believe I ecial, that I could ge anything.

  …

  They were right, I was wrong. In the end, I was nothing more than a misguided freak. A pervert. A bo—

  “LIA!”

  – 7 hours prior –

  Tara pulled me along the hallway, her hand firmly csped around mine, sparking a wave of murmurs and whispers among the students. The chatter rippled through the crowd, and I k wouldn’t stop here—by the end of the day, the whole school would be talking, spreading rumors.

  I was back to being… me. That made everything so much worse.

  I caught ss of hushed versations as we passed. Some girls specuted that this would be my st day, while others whispered about how they had been right about me all along. Whatever that meant, it couldn’t be good.

  The further I ged through the halls, the heavier my chest became. I wao disappear. I o disappear. This attention was suffog. I didn’t like it, it made me feel… dreadful. Their stares burned into me, carving out every fw I already despised within myself and putting them on dispy—the refle I couldn't escape: a boy.

  I didn’t belong here. I wasn’t supposed to exist like this. In the waking world, I was nothing but a joke—a cowardly, unmanly disgrace. I was garbage. I was—No, Henry, don’t cry. Not here. Not now.

  I swallowed my pain, forced it down where no one could see, where it belonged. I let myself retreat into my mind, let the world blur arou was safer there. It was quieter. I barely registered Tara still leading me forward, her presehe only tether keeping me from pletely sinking into the abyss of my mind.

  I had no idea where we were going, and I didn’t care. My life was over anyway. So if I was to be dragged to the end of it all, then at the very least, I wao be with the one person who had ever shown me kindness.

  But was she really?

  From the very beginning, she had made it clear—she sought me out because of how unique I am. That was why she was here. That was why she was with me.

  A quiet, bitter ugh slipped from my thoughts.

  I was a tool. A soldier that had simply switched sides.

  –Present–

  No. What was she doing here? She wasn’t supposed to be here.

  “Ooh? Who do we have here? Looking for your lost asset?” The gargling voice of the whale-fanatic dripped with mockery.

  I heard the other person halt iracks. Her voice was sharp. “Richards. This doesn’t you. Leave. Right. NOW!”

  “ME? LEAVING?” the fanatic bellowed, ughter rasping in his throat. “I’d rather not. This is a family matter. So stay out, demon. You hold no power in the iween.”

  Sileretched betweehick with tension.

  Then, a slow, measured voice. “I see, so that’s how it is. I knew from the first ghat something had tainted her pure form. Did you perform one of your sick experiments on her as well?”

  My stomach ed. What was he saying? He art of my family? No, no, no. That wasn’t possible. My parents had no siblings. My father was an only child, and my mother’s brother was… dead.

  I swallowed down the rising his wasn’t happening. This couldn’t be happening. I had to get out. NOW.

  Screaming internally at my own body to move, I forced my legs into a. I turned and ran. They were focused on each other; they wouldn’t chase me right now.

  I didn’t want to hear any more. I didn’t want to know. My vision blurred as fresh tears streamed down my face. My heart pounded, drowning out everything else.

  This was simply too much. A nightmare—through and through.

  –6 hours prior–

  I don’t remember much about the trip. At some point, iled into something that looked like an old hippie bus and drove downtown. I know Tara had been holdiightly, whispering words, but they didn’t stick.

  My mind was in turmoil. An up followed a down. A down follo.

  The moment I heard the Circle was involved, I had wao run. But Tara’s arms had kept me safe, kept me grounded. So I closed my eyes again.

  The hing I knew, I was waking up on a couch, a b draped over me. My body felt heavy, my limbs ag. When I tried to sit up, a wave of dizziness nearly knocked me back down.

  “Careful there, H.” A soft voice reached me through the haze. “You burhrough a lot of mana without realizing it. I’m surprised you’re awake already. The ride here knocked you out good.”

  It took me a moment to pce the voice. Then, I felt a familiar touy hands.

  “T-Tara…” I whispered, exhausted, instinctively leaning into her warmth. My eyes failing again, my body threatening to pull me bato unsciousness.

  Arms ed around me. “I’m here. Everything’s fine. You scared me, you know? After we left the old oak tree, you just… shut down. You were so quiet, so distant. Does this happen often?”

  I closed my eyes and nuzzled into her shoulder, letting her presence drown out the noise in my mind. After a moment, I nodded—just barely.

  Tara stroked my hair gently. “It’s okay. You don’t have to talk if you’re not ready. I ’t imagine what this must feel like for you. I know it’s overwhelming and that you have a ton of questions. But I need you to know something.”

  She pulled back just enough to meet my gaze. “You’re safe here. You’re safe with me. I will not let anything happen to you. I don’t care who they are or what they want—you’re mio protect.”

  She squeezed my hands. “No one will y a finger on you. No one. I promise you that.”

  –Present–

  The moons’ glow was masked behind a drapery curtain of darkened clouds, allowing only slivers of silver light to flicker through, illuminating the already obscured path. Each time the clouds smothered the glow, I lunged into pitch-bck emptiness. And when the light mao break free, it cast twisted silhouettes of gnarled branches and ed trunks, making it seem as though ethereal beings were dang all around me—jeering, sneering, tauntio turn bad give up. They loomed over me, their ughter ringing in my ears but no matter how fast I ran, I tried to escape them, they never faded.

  Then I saw something—and halted.

  In the midst of this waking nightmare, standing right before me, was a mirror. A cheval mirror, its frame wrought from shrouded wood, as if smoke had entwined and solidified into an illustre form, seemingly bending to its own will. It pulled me in, drawing me closer, and with every step I took, the smoky frame quivered—ripples unduting across its surface, f tendrils that reached out to me.

  The moment they made tact, a cacophony of whispering voices thuhrough my mind. A chorus, a choir—weli uninviting. A future certain, a present undefined. My thoughts filled to the brink, about to burst from a stream of knowledge until it felt like my skull would crack beh the weight of it all.

  And then I saw it. Saw them. Saw myself in the mirror.

  No. Th-this couldn’t be right!

  Panic overtook me at what I saw. I tried to look away, but the tendrils coiled tighter, cut into my flesh, f me to face the refle—f me to see. I struggled, but they wouldn’t let go. They made me watch, made me analyze what I saw.

  But this image, it was cruel, unfair. Why did it have to be me? WHY? WHY WAS I SURROUNDED BY CORPSES?!

  –3 hours prior–

  I woke up to the sound of people entering. This time, I was fully awake—and instantly mortified as the memory of how I had acted towards Tara while being him resurfaced. Embarrassment flooded me, and I wanted nothing more than to bury myself bader the b. Sadly, that wasn’t an option.

  "You must be our little rogue demoness I've been hearing so much about," a smooth, anding voice said. "You've certainly stirred up quite a bit of trouble in the short time you've been aware of our world."

  With a smile on her lips, she took a step forward, “I’m Asteria Oneiro de Fyl, Kaya’s mother, Matriarch of this , and a Marquess—though only in title these days."

  She was tall—easily 6’3” or 6’4”, t over the others. Her face was celestial perfe: high cheekbones, delicate features, and lips set in a ghostly expression. But her eyes—endless and cold blue, like frozen starlight framed by long, ash-colored shes—held something unfathomable. Something mythical. Something dark.

  Her white hair, long and silken, cascaded down to the floor. The skin, fwless and por, seemed almost ethereal, untouched by time. She was draped in what I could only describe as an a Greek robe… I think I heard people calling it a peplos. The flowing fabrily added to the effortless grace of her movements. I was stunned and an uling feeling crept inside of me that outside of waking, she would appear even more otherworldly. Somethiiful, untouchable… eternal.

  Kaya's chuckle snapped me out of my trance. Feeling caught staring. my eyes darted downward in embarrassment.

  A round of ughter filled the room.

  "Don't worry, H," Kaya said, amused. "She has this effe everyohe first time they meet her. Mom’s pretty famous for her looks, after all. We e from a royal lineage, even if she decided to step down from her position."

  That made me look up again, and only now, I noticed how different the two of them looked from each other. Asteria must have caught my questioning expression because she answered before I could even ask.

  "My dear daughter takes mostly after my wife," she said, a wistful uone in her voice. "She’s away at the moment—otherwise, the resembnce would be unmistakable."

  Something about the way she said it felt off, grim, but I pushed the thought aside.

  Instead, I let my gaze wahrough the room. It was a strange mix of old-fashioned and modern—Victorian style blended with porary amehe furniture and décor seemed to belong to another era yet eerily new whilst the lighting was built with LEDs. The trast was oddly mesmerizing.

  Finally, my eyes returo Kaya and her mother. Besides them, Maria resent—as well as someone I had never seen before.

  She was short but strikingly well-toned, her build highlighted by a tight bck shirt tucked into equally dark, high-waisted denim shorts. She had a pixie cut, nose and ear piergs, and subtle yet goth-like makeup. Chewing gum, she met my gaze with a casual nod as if to say ’sup. Her expression was totally unreadable but carrying an air of effortless fidence.

  "That's Lunaria," Maria said. "She goes to the same college as your brother and is our best, well… spy, for ck of a better word."

  The mention of my brother sent my mood plummeting. My stomach twisted as the weight of my situation pressed down on me again. Without thinking, my hands slid to the hem of my shirt, tugging at the fabriervous habit I had never been able to shake. My father used to reprimand me for it. A ma fidget. A man is strong-willed.

  But I wasn’t a man. I wasn’t anything at all…

  “W-where’s Tara?” The words slipped from my lips before I even fully registered what I was asking. As soon as I did, I braced myself fhter. But no one ughed. Their expressions softened instead, seemed… sympathetic.

  Maria took a small step forward. "She actually went out with Ashley to get food for everyone. Most of the that lives in town isn’t here today—including Iris, who normally cooks. She’s an expert, but she had other duties. So, while those twrabbing dinner, we figured we could answer some of your questions."

  Before I could respond, Asteria cpped her hands together.

  "Thank you for expining, Maria," she said smoothly. "I was just about to do so myself. However, this isn’t the best pce for that versation. I thought I’d e a you now that I’m here."

  Her voice was friendly, but the way Maria fli the mention of her name made it clear that something was off.

  I hesitated.

  But eventually, I shoved the rest of the b off and forced myself to stand.

  The moment I did, I felt wrong again. This body. This skin. It was unfamiliar. Unnatural. I ged. Just why did I have to be Henry in the waking world?

  Asteria turned ahe way, Kaya and Lunaria following closely behind. Maria walked up to me and gave me a small o move. I exhaled slowly, then followed.

  At least Maria had always been kind to me. Even back at school, she was the only one who had reated me cruelly, even though no one would have batted an eye if she had. That thought alone was enough to let me put one foot in front of the other.

  “Here we go,” I whispered under my breath.

  –Present–

  The image burself into my mind—the mangled bodies lying there, lifeless, only to suddenly reae. Hands grasped my legs, my arms, my body. I k wasn’t real. But it felt real. The horror of it, the weight of their stares, the cold, cmmy grip of death pulling me down.

  Their voices rang in my head:

  "H-heLp Us..."

  "Why did you betray us?"

  "A bOy DiSgUiSiNg As A gIrL."

  "yOu WeRe NeVeR sUpPosSeD tO bE."

  “SHUT UP!”I cwed at the mirror, my breath ragged, my tears hot as they streamed down my face. I didn’t want to hear them. I was Lia here. I AM Lia here. This was my dream. My world!

  Enraged, I tried to free myself again. The tendrils tightened, embedding themselves deeper into my flesh. I could feel my own violet blood trig down, poolih me, yet I refused to stop. The pain was excruciating, but I kept going. Inch by inch. My body screamed at me to give in, but I refused.

  Then, I felt it. The tendrils faltered—ag, breaking.

  With a sharp snap, my right arm tore free. And without hesitation, without a sed thought, I drove my fist into the mirror.

  The first crack sent a shockwave through me—a jagged, splintering sound that was satisfying beyond words. My breath hitched, my mind fogging as something primal took over. My hand moved on its own, smming against the gss, this bsted mirror, over and ain. Again.

  Crack after crack spread across its surface, the refle dist, dying. And with one final, furious punch the mirror shattered.

  For a moment, the world stood still.

  Then—a blinding light. An explosion. My ears rang, my vision blurred. For a terrifying sed, I thought I had died. But as my sight returned, I was astounded.

  The shards—thousands of them—were frozen mid-air, suspended around me like a shattered reality. Each fragment reflected something different. A life. A future. A past. I couldn't prehend it, couldn't make sense of what I was seeing. The voices were still there, but they no longer called to me. Instead, they whispered to each other, weaving echoes of things that had never happened—yet somehow had.

  I reached for a shard. The moment my fingers brushed against it, a sharp pain tore through me. And then… uanding. It ossibility. A future never lived, an oute never reached. A path diverging from my own.

  Then the shard imploded, dissolving into a swirl of smoke that drifted toward the ter, ref part of the mirror.

  I touched ahis time, warmth flooded my body. An image pyed before me—a girl winning a test, a cheering crowd, arms embrag her, ughter filling the air. Happiness. Love. Belonging.

  It was beautiful, pure.

  Like the first, it shattered into mist moments after, weaving itself bato the broken mirror.

  One by ohe shards reversed their shattering, drawn back to their inal pce. Piece by piece, the mirror reassembled, its surface whole once more.

  But this time, as I gazed into it there was no chaos. No corpses. No voices. Just me.

  I hesitated.

  Then, slowly, I reached out curiously… and touched it.

  –2 hours and 30 minutes prior–

  My eyes widened as I stepped through the door, catg sight of… well, something straight out of a fantasy novel. I stood inside what could only be described as the hollowed interior of a massive, gnarled darkwood tree, its structure twisting and expanding beyond what seemed physically possible. If I hadn’t knower, I would have thought I was inside an elven home yered with an eclectic mix of architectural styles, each woven seamlessly into the living wood. It was breathtaking.

  "Where are we?" I asked, my mouth agape.

  "Below the town," snickered Maria, clearly amused. "It's amazing, isn't it? I still remember my first time. Kaya said I looked like I turo stone for ten whole mio be ho, I’ve never even been all the way down. I’m not allowed yet."

  "Wait… what’s down there?" I asked, ing my o look over the railing—only to be yanked back by an unseen force. Fuck, that went deep.

  "I wouldn’t try that if I were you. A lot of the stuff here is ented," Maria warned. "As for what’s at the bottom… no idea, to be ho. Even Kaya doesn’t know. But this pce is enormous. Each floor is ected by portals, or stairs if you feel like taking a very long walk. Wouldn’t reend it, though. We’re pretty far down, and climbing back up would take forever."

  I tilted my head back again, eyes following the seemingly endless levels above us. I ’t evehe top…

  "So what floor are we on?" I asked.

  Maria grinned. "The on floor. See that big wooden door over there—the oh the Viking-style carvings? That’s the main hall, basically a giant living room. We use it fer social gatherings when more of our is present. You might be surprised, but there’s a lot of us, and not everyoays on this side of reality, you know?"

  I blinked. "That’s… actually really cool. How many of you are there exactly?"

  "Hmm, hard to say. I’ve never seen all of us together, but we’re well over a thousand. Only a small pertage live here permaly, though. Most have homes elsewhere, and even those who do live here are stantly traveling. Our is big pared to most, but in the grand scheme of things, we rank in the upper middle bracket." She paused, then added with a smirk, "Power-wise, though? We’re very high up."

  "Huh," I muttered, still trying to process everything. I had expected… well, something, but not this. Not aire hidden world beh the town. Not a sprawling, a structure teeming with life. Especially not when, just this m, I had still believed my dreams were nothing more than that—just dreams. But now…

  "Could you two please hurry up?" Kaya’s voice called from ahead. I looked up and realized that she and the others had moved much farther ahead than us.

  "We’re ing!" Maria answered before tapping my back. "Let’s go."

  The rest of the trip was mostly uful. The only real iion was between Kaya and Maria, who were locked in some kind of stant flirtation. Or, more accurately, Kaya was relentlessly teasing Maria, turning her into a blushy mess.

  Asteria remained silent, barely paying them any mind. Lunaria, oher hand, kept rolling her eyes, clearly so doh their antics. Apparently, this was a on occurrence.

  But while they were lost in their own dynamic, my thoughts were elsewhere. No matter how stunning this pce was, I couldn’t appreciate it. My mind was too tangled, my emotions too raw.

  My worries and guilt kept piling up. How was I even allowed here? Why did they all act so friendly and normal, as if my presence wasn’t an issue? I was a male, an intruder in a safe zone—a sacred, magical pce—existing in this form that didn’t belong.

  Worse yet, they had made it clear they were enemies of the Circle. But… wasn’t I one of them?

  I didn't know what to think anymore. To them, was I a threat? An ally? The keeper of some legendary relic they he puzzle pieces didn’t fit. People don’t just wele strangers with open arms—especially not ohey had sidered an enemy only ho.

  My stomach twisted unfortably. I wished Tara was here…

  Finally, after passing through a door and traversing a long hallway, we arrived at the portal room. It was nothing like what I had imagined a portal within a tree would look like. Typically, I would have expected an oval or regur frame of iwined branches, cradling a shimmering magical gateway at its core.

  But this… this was somethiirely different. In the ter of the room cradled an open flower, its petals unfurled in a perfect, almost unnatural symmetry. The stamens and pistil stood upright. The flower reminding me of a peony in full bloom. Its sheer size and presence made it feel less like a pnt and more like a struct of a magic, alive yet unmoving. Without hesitation, Asteria and the others stepped onto it, as if this was the most natural thing in the world—I, however, faltered.

  What kind of portal is this? I thought skeptically.

  I swallowed slightly and followed them onto the petals. They felt firm yet oddly estieath my feet. As I reached the ter, standing at the flower’s base, I looked to the others for some kind of expnation.

  Kaya grinned. "Be prepared to be amazed."

  Before I could ask what she meant, Asteria spoke a string of words in a nguage I didn’t uand.

  Instantly, the petals began to vibrate. The stamens vibrated, glowing with ahereal light as the flower slowly closed around us.

  A gentle hum filled the air as pollen spread, dang like silver fireflies before tg onto the pistil. The more pollen gathered, the more translut the flower became, losing its vibrant pink hue until it was as clear as gss.

  The once-bright petals now resembled a skeletal flower—fragile, translut, yet hauntingly beautiful.

  Then the pollen-covered pistil pulsed, releasing a waves of silvery light that slowly illumihe whole room. A moment of weightlessness. And when my vision cleared. We were somewhere else.

  The flower slowly began to reopen, its petals regaining color—this time, a deep, striking blue remi of flowers.

  Kaya leaned in, her breath brushing against my ear.

  "And?" she whispered. "Amazed?"

  I jolted at her proximity, letting out an involuntary ‘eep’.

  Kaya chuckled and said teasingly, "Cute~"

  My face burned, heat rushing up to my cheeks, and this time, it wasn’t the petals that ged.

  Then, with a teasing wink, she walked off to follow her mother and Lunaria. Maria gave me a small, apologetic smile before trailing after them.

  I barely had time to breathe and sank my fato my hands before Asteria’s voice called out.

  "Move along, child."

  Still red-faced, I quickly hurried after them.

  –Present–

  Just where did I end up? The pce felt weirdly futuristic. If I didn’t know aer, I’d say I was inside some kind of geometric alien structure—endless bck granite cubes veined with green, strung together in an impossible pattern. It was as if someone had grown a building out of pyrite, h cubes suspended over a bottomless abyss.

  I had to admit, I was lost. But at least I wasn’t in that forest anymore, running for my life from that monster. A shiver ran down my spi the thought of how close he had been. And then anger repced my fear—Asteria. Why was I so stupid and listened? I really thought I…

  Oh, my little mb, please stop doubting yourself, a whisper, dista intimate, coiled through my mind.

  “H-Hello?” I stammered. A sweet giggle filled my head. O mine own little mb, st thou at st hearest me?

  “Y-Yes? Who are you?” I asked, shyly.

  A warmth spread through me, familiar and soothing. Thou k who I am. Thus, prithee, speak mine own name.

  I wao deny it, to question it. But this voice… this feeling. Oh, she was—

  "My journal," I murmured, the realization hitting me.

  A pink shimmer burst ience before me, and there it was—my journal.

  Thou hast called me? it echoed, its presehrumming in my mind.

  “B-But she took you away! How are you—” I started totally fbbergasted, but the journal cut me off.

  I am thine, and thine alone. No matter how she doth covet ao wield me, ne'er shall she prevail. Thus is mine decree. Thus is mine w.

  Happiness filled me, one I didn’t realized I craved. I wasn’t alone. Even if everyone else abandoned me, my journal would never leave.

  'Tis time to depart, mitle mb. This pce beareth no safety for thee. Thou hast waoo far into the wilds, the journal urged.

  My heart sank. “But… where?

  Dost thou pce thy faith ihey asked.

  I hesitated for only a sed before nodding. The journal vibrated with joy, nding in my hands before it shimmered brightly. The glow grew until it ed everything, f my eyes shut. When the light faded, I was standing in a room I didn’t reize—but the walls… I khis material. I was ba the tree.

  A sharp gasp came from behind me. I spun around. There she was—Tara. She stood frozen, tears welling in her eyes.

  "L-Lia!"

  –2 hours prior–

  "What is this pce?" I asked, my voice cautious.

  Asteria mustered me for a moment before responding. "My upper study. Please, sit down."

  Something was off. She was colder than before. Even Kaya, who had been rexed earlier, now seemed tense.

  "Mom?" Kaya's voice held an edge of uainty.

  "Quiet, child," Asteria snapped.

  Okay, what the fuck!? I took a step back, but before I could react, Lunaria shifted behind me, blog the way.

  "Sit down," Asteria repeated. This time, it was no longer a request.

  I looked at Maria, silently pleading for an expnation, but she quickly averted her gaze, shame flickering across her face. My stomach twisted. I turo Kaya, but she, too, avoided my eyes.

  A lump formed in my throat as I hesitantly lowered myself onto the couch—alone. Asteria sat across from me, her presenanding. The others stood behind her like a wall, unmoving.

  I felt alone. I felt betrayed.

  "You are a child of the Circle, are you not?" Asteria's voice was calm but sharp.

  "I-I was born into a fami—"

  "Yes or no answers only," she interrupted, her tone like cold iron. "Uood?"

  I ched my fists, rage simmerih my skin.

  I nodded.

  "Don’t look at me like that," she warned. "Just ahe questions. So, are you a child of the Circle?"

  "Yes."

  "Did you know what they were doing to my daughter?"

  "No."

  A force struck me i like an unseen fist. My breath hitched.

  "Liar," she hissed.

  "I-I didn't—" Another blow. I coughed violently.

  "Don't talk back. And don’t lie. Those are the only rules here."

  This was unfair. I didn't do anything wrong! I didn't know what the Circle had pnned. I could have guessed, sure—given what I knew about my father—but that wasn't the same as knowing.

  Another wave of pressure. My lungs screamed.

  "Yes!" I gasped.

  Asteria exhaled, satisfied. "Good. Did you know how evil the Circle is?"

  "Yes."

  "Did you attend their meetings?"

  "Yes."

  "Did you know about the supernatural world before today?"

  "No."

  A slow nod. "Did you ever harm someone of your own free will to aid the Circle?"

  "No."

  "Do you love your family?"

  "Yes," I answered holy.

  Asteria's gaze sharpened. "Lie."

  My mind stuttered. Wait… what?

  I did love them. Right? My family. I— Why ’t I remember? Wh-what is it that I feel for them? If not love… then what is love then supposed to be?

  Before I could piece it together, she spoke again. "Do your beliefs align with the Circle?"

  "No," I answered without hesitation.

  I heard the smallest breath of relief from her. "Good. Would you have followed their orders?"

  I didn't respond.

  The weight in the air pressed against my chest.

  "Would. You. Have. Followed. Their. Orders?" Her voice was edged with rising fury.

  I looked down. Shame burhrough me.

  If today hadn't happened… if everything had gone as pnned…

  "ANSWER ME!"

  The entire room trembled uhe force of her and.

  Tears blurred my vision as I whispered, "Yes."

  Asteria’s lips curled. A wicked, knowing smile. "Would you have hurt us if they ordered you to?"

  "Yes."

  "Would you have killed us?"

  "I—I don't know."

  "Lie!" She smmed her hands down on the armrests. "Tell me the truth! Would you have hurt my daughter, my , if those bastards ordered you to?"

  Something inside me snapped. My tail shed wildly, my emotions spiraling into a storm.

  "I REFUSE!" I roared, my voice raw with rage. "You have no idea what I went through. What they did to me! I was helpless! I was trapped! They locked me away! They broke me! And when I finally, finally saw a ce at freedom—you—YOU’RE JUST LIKE THEM! You don’t care about me! You just want to use me, just like they did!"

  I could feel the weight of my own energy g violently with hers. My vision swam. I searched her eyes for anything—any sign ret, of uanding.

  But all I saw was greed.

  No.

  I could taste it in the air.

  This was a mistake. I shouldn’t have trusted them. I shouldn’t have—

  As thou wishest.

  A voice, soft yet absolute, rang in my mind.

  A burst of light.

  A flicker of violet neblua.

  My journal appeared before me, glowing like a dying star. The air around me shifted.

  I reached for it, desperately—only to watch Asteria’s hands snatch it away in the final moment with a knowing smile.

  Everything shattered.

  Darkness swallowed me whole.

  Then—chaos.

  I was being pulled, flung in every direy body twisting and wreng through spad time. Lights and shapes blurred together, rearranging themselves like a fractured kaleidoscope. My mind couldn’t process it.

  Then—impact.

  I hit the ground hard, breath knocked from my lungs.

  The world aroueadied, and I found myself… somewhere else.

  I staggered to my feet, heart hammering as my vision properly returned and a dark forest opened up to me.

  "Where… am I?"

  "A rather fitting pce," a voice drawled.

  Instinctively, I evaded—something. In a fluid motion, I pivoted, my body reag before my mind could catch up. A hand had reached into the void, grasping at the space where I had stood just moments before. I turned, eyes widening in horror.

  Him.

  The same thing as my dreams. The whale-like rotting creature with his grotesque woodeer mask and the impossibly long, fin-like tail. Only that I knew now that he was indeed real.

  "The Professor," I spat.

  "Oh? You know who I am? How delightful!" His voice oozed mockery, poison filling the air. "And I know who you are, Henry~"

  "I'm not Henry!" I snarled.

  The Professhed, "You pretend all you want, but that thing you're wearing—it's not you. It's a corruption. A seed of betrayal they pnted in your soul. You’re a puppet, Henry. Just waiting for them to pull the strings."

  I froze. No. No, that wasn’t true. Was it? Did they know about the relic beforehand? Did Tara pn this? Did she… was she using me all along?

  The Professor extended a hand, his voice dripping with false kindness. "e here, Henry. I’m a friend. I help you. Free you. Just trust me~"

  My thoughts were drifting. Could he? Was this all a lie? Were they the ones who betrayed me? Maybe my father was right. Maybe I should just— No. A pulse. A ripple through my thoughts. Something was wrong, something wao influence me.

  "The voice of a siren… " I muttered

  The Professor clicked his tosk. Worth a try." His expression darkened. "Useless boy." His gaze flicked to something unseen. "But you…" he drooled, rubbing his hands.

  A chill ran down my spine and before he could react, I ran. Ran for my life, ran from the people who wao use me, to betray me.

  I was alone, I was hurting… a… I wao be with Tara. But I couldn’t.

  She was like them, wasn’t she?

  –Present–

  I pushed Tara away just as she reached for me.

  "LIAR!" My voice cracked, my throat raw, tears running down my face.

  Tara froze, her expression shifting from shoething far worse—uanding. My chest ached at the sight and my heart seemed to break.

  "So it was true," I whispered, my voice barely holding together. "You used me. Yht me here for this. To steal from me, to betray me. All this time we spent together… fake."

  "No!" Tara’s protest came sharp and desperate cry. "I didn’t know she would do this! I trusted her! I—I thought you were safe! I shouldn’t have left. But they all… they all—"

  Her words broke apart into a strangled sob. And suddenly, I could taste her mess of emotions—chaotic, tangled, a refle of my own. Anger. Betrayal. Grief.

  Ah it all… happiness.

  Why? Why would she feel happiness?

  "You… didn’t know?" I repeated her, my voice trembling.

  "Of course not!" Tara responded angrily. "I would have stopped her! What she did was fucked up! And no one—NO Oried to stop her! Asking you th-those questions—those accusations! She knew what they would do to you! She knew you wouldn’t be able to answer in a way that made you look i!"

  My breath hitched, ears welling up. "You’re… you’re telling the truth," I muttered.

  Tara didn’t hesitate. She leaped forward, pullio a tight hug, nearly crushing me.

  "Yes," she breathed. "Yes, my Lia. I’m telling the truth."

  "W-why?" I barely mao whisper against her shoulder.

  Tara tightened her hold, burying her fato my neck. "Because I care about you. Because I care about you so so freaking much. Do you really think all the time we spent together in our dreams meant nothing to me? All the things we did? The jokes we cracked, the dumb versations, the nights we stayed up too te?"

  I blushed. A strange warmth spread through me, something I couldn’t name, something unfamiliar—but good. It made me feel safe. Whole.

  Tara pulled back just enough to meet my eyes. Her hand cupped my cheek, her thumb brushing away my tears.

  "I would never betray you. Never," she smiled.

  A small smile also appeared on my lips. Her eyes… goddess, they were so beautiful. I could get lost in them forever.

  I leaned into her touch. My tail flicked—

  "Uh?"

  Tara tilted her head, her expression soft. "Yes, Lia?"

  I blinked, suddenly aware of something off.

  "Why am I in my demon form… and you’re not?" I asked, slowly.

  "Oh, I… didn’t notice," she started. Then, carefully, "Why? Does it feel wrong?"

  "N-no," I admitted, shifting under her gaze. "It feels… right. It makes me feel… good."

  Tara’s lips curved into a smirk. "You also look good~" she teased.

  I made an unintelligible noise—"Ah. Ah. Ah."

  She giggled. "Oh no, did I break you?"

  "I—"

  "Ooh, to be young again," came a voice from behind me.

  Tara’s entire posture ged. She shoved me behind her in an instant, her stance shifting into something defensive.

  "Matriarch," she hissed.

  Asteria’s eyes gleamed with something unreadable.

  "We o talk."