In you I feel dirty.

So it was that only silence filled the room after the day had ended. The wind continued to whistle outside and the two moons that floated beyond seemed to be sinking despite the time.

Miraye couldn’t sleep. Her body, however tired as it was, didn’t let her eyes fall weak and tired and her breaths never grew slow and timid. She tried to force herself into slumber but something was nagging inside her. She was restless. She wanted to move. But at the same time she didn’t want to wake Tic who lay at the far edge of the bed they shared. It felt as though many hours had passed has passed when in reality they were only minutes. She wanted the rest of the moons to climb to the highs of the sky so she would have things to do again. But it was silly, she thought. The night had only started.

She had since noticed the change in the boy’s breathing. They came slower, shallow and light. She turned her head slightly. Tic was curled on his side but she knew too well that he was asleep. She envied him of the dreams he would encounter while she stayed awake in a reality of nightmares, past and present. She turned her head again to the window, gazing lazily hoping that a bird would fly by. But all creatures were asleep at the side of the city. She was growing desperately bored. The knot in her even started to choke her lungs even though no pain came.

A sigh fluttered from her lips while she continued to stare out the dark sky. And yet, it didn’t seem as dark anymore. It seemed lighter from the moons and everything that reflected it. She blinked and it kept the same but everything before her changed in a small way. They were insignificant. Dull. All that mattered was her.

Her eyes turned into a crimson orange that shone brightly. A ragged intake of breath and her feet were on the cold floor. No creak echoed in the room, no movement felt on any object but only swift wind. Miraye couldn’t stop staring at the moon even when she took her petit jacket that Moth had given her. She slipped from the bed and to the window where her hands pressed the glass. Cold. She shivered when it cracked open, a winter wind filling the room. Her body floated out with no struggle and the window immediately clicked closed once she was outside, balancing on the ledge of the room.

Miraye flew down and landed with a soft thump. The ground was wet beneath her feet but it only motioned to keep going. Quietly she walked through the small sheds, houses and buildings entranced by the colorful lights that seemed so far away. A smile itched unto her pale face then disappeared again. It felt like a dream to be out during the bitter cold while the rainbow ahead beckoned her to a warm soothing place. She never blinked no matter how bright it was getting, the orange melted with the reds and whites.

And there she was before the towering castle that her fairy godmother had sent to her. She smiled again, a crazed and hunger veil covering her body.

She blinked. She took a step back unaware of how she even got there. Confused and scared, she started to turn back when a familiar emotion filled her that hadn’t been felt in a long time. She looked at Larkin’s castle, the windows filled with hope from a menacing source. She stood there for an eternity. She stood and tears streamed from her eyes.

Miraye was next to Tic again in a matter of minutes.
She stared at his back and fell unconscious.