I’d never kept anyone prisoner before, so I wasn’t sure on the rules. I offered him water, some snacks even. With Alistair’s strength, we’d managed to get him back to my apartment without drawing too much attention. Except for the odd sight of smoke twisting from his fingers.

Tied up to a chair in my living room, we managed to get a name.

Hao.

I sat on my table, and rolled the amethysts about in the pouch. Alistair sat on my couch, amber eyes boring into our prisoner. He was harmless for the most part, it seemed. The power and fire of Drakes Claws was intense, but quick. He was probably experiencing quite the potion hangover, though.

“Tell us about the Silver Feather.” I said, trying my best to sound tough and commanding. Hao didn’t even glance my way, continuing to stare blankly at the wall. I blew a raspberry at him, fed up with his stubborn silence. In place of the feral anger that had possessed him before, there was a stony silence to him. He was unshaved, with dark, tired rings beneath his eyes and a sickly paleness to him. He had short, messy black hair and hazel eyes that betrayed nothing.

I leant my head back with a groan.

“Don’t you have a spell or something you could use?” Alistair asked, picking at his teeth. I went and made a cup of tea and wrinkled my nose at the idea.

“It’s both unethical and against the rules of Holfast for Witches to use the Craft against one another. Especially a truth spell.” I said, then poured the hot water into my favourite black mug. My phone, charging on the kitchen counter, made a bright piano note, a text flashing on screen.

James: You and Robert ready for a classy double date? ;) Ur fav Korean BBQ place at 8. Cya then!

I heart reacted the message, then stared at the back of Hao’s head.

Balancing life as a human going about her life in Sydney and a Witch had been simple for the most part. Before I became a criminal.

From my fruit bowl I picked up an apple and laid it down in front of Hao.

“I’m going out tonight. I need you to stay here and guard him, okay? I’m casting a Circle of The Hidden around him so if someone comes around they won’t see us both committing a crime. Please give him water and food,” I said. With a piece of chalk I drew a circle around him, with the runes for transparency, silence and sight drawn within. A ripple similar to a ripple of heat emerged around him as the spell worked its magic.

The apple sat on the runes and slowly its life and essence would be drained in exchange for the magic.

“Are you sure?” Alistair asked, a note of concern in his voice. I tossed Robert’s keys from the key bowl over to my new Familiar who caught them with ease.

“Yeah. I won’t be out long.”

**

After some debate as to whether to bring potions with me, I decided to go without. I was only dinner and James knew what I was. I waited outside my apartment block, clutching my purse as I waited for my rideshare to show up. Distracted with thoughts of Hao, the Silver Feather and my brother, I didn’t notice the second person in the rideshare at first.

Then, he whispered my name.

“Damien?” I gasped, flinching away into the corner of the seat. Dressed in a black suit, silver rings gleaming in the flashes street-lights he was a smirk made Sparrow. He rested his arm up on the seat and shuffled a little closer to me.

“You’re an open book, aren’t you?” He chuckled, looking me up and down. I gripped the seat, wrinkling my nose at him.

“Why…Jesus Damien how did you know I’d be in this car?” I groaned, examining the driver. He appeared like a normal ride-share driver, and he was headed towards the restaurant.

Well, at least I don’t think I’m getting kidnapped.

“Black dress, simple silver necklace. Tight, but not too tight. You’re going out, probably seeing friends and want to look nice. But you haven’t gone all out, so it’s not a date. Would you like it to be?” He asked, waiting to gauge my reaction. I gave him a thin-lipped frown and tucked a pink curl behind me ear.

“If you can read me like a book then read the page where it says I’m not interested in whatever web of bullshit you’re trying to draw me into. I’m living my own life, so please stay out of it,” I snapped, refusing to meet his gaze.

“Hey,” Damien said, softly. The gentle note in his voice tugged at my heart, despite the tough front I was trying to put on. When I looked to him, he stroked my jaw with his thumb, just like he used to. I didn’t flinch away this time. It had been…quite a while since I’d been with anyone. The last relationship I’d had, had been with Damien. It’d ended badly enough, so I’d had little to no interest in pursuing anything else for a while. Being so close with him again, his voice soft and soothing me the way it used to and his touch…it felt like a drug was surging through my veins, blocking out all other senses.

“I’ve missed you; you know. And I owe you an explanation for what happened the other day at Central. It’s the least I owe you, really,” he said, cupping half my face in the warmth of his palm. In the warmth of his touch, memories come rushing like water from a river. After escaping the apartments of the Rook and my mother’s overbearing clutches, I’d quickly found the indulgences of freedom. Damien himself was the embodiment of such freedoms. Nights without sleep, nightlife hidden in the unseeming corners of Sydney, smoke slipping from our lips and faint brush of his wings wrapped around me.

“Alright. Shoot, what happened in Central?” I asked, sliding close enough that our thighs touched. Damien clicked his tongue.

“You’re owed an explanation, but I still need something,” he said, tapping my nose.

I sighed. “And what could you need from me?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Hang out with me tonight.”

I tap his nose in reply.

“Can’t. Got a double date tonight,” I said, thoughts wandering to James.

“Three people isn’t a double date.”

“Then what is it?”

“Embarrassing.”

I felty a little stab in my stomach but realised maybe he was right. Who showed up to a double date all by themselves?

God, maybe I should’ve just called Robert.

“Fine. Just dinner, though. Then you pay for the ride home and explain everything, okay?”

Damien grinned. “A date it is.”

The Korean restaurant was a mix of high heels clicking against tiles, the soft ring of wine glasses glancing off one another, the sizzle of meat and heavy scents of the soups and spices from the kitchens. A soft piano jazz played and as Damien wound an arm around my waist, I couldn’t help but feel transported back to a time before. I tried to ignore the electric buzz that rushed through me as he followed me through the tangle of people and waiters until we found James and his date.

Maybe he’s changed. Maybe I’ve changed enough that things could be different between us.

The buzz dissipated as quickly as it came, and my stomach felt like a stone when I recognised James’ date. The girl with the golden hair. One of those responsible for the fires. The smile on James’ face quickly faded when he saw Damien’s arm around me.

“Hey, Sien,” James said, one arm over the golden hair girl’s shoulders, the other fiddling with his set of with chopsticks. The girl looked to me with a smug look, leaning her head onto James’ shoulder. Panic fluttered in my chest, the looks all three of them were giving me was too much.

What the fuck?

“I, um. I’m going to the bathroom,” I murmured, clutching my purse tightly as I retreated. In the quiet solace of the bathroom, I splashed some water onto my face, taking in some deep breaths. I looked in the mirror, seeing how plain the fear was on my face. I needed to calm down. To focus.

I can’t show them how freaked out I am. I mean I immediately ran away to the bathroom, but still…

“Hey,” A voice whispered in my ear, warm breath rushing over my skin. I jumped a little and spun around. Damien stood over me, his arms locking me against the stone basin. In that moment, with everything coming in to crush me into dust, he was an oasis amongst it all. Because he was a remanent, a memory of everything happy I had before Liam had taken on the curse and plunged us both into chaos. He cupped my face with his hand, brushing a few pink strands back. Damien pressed his forehead against mine, and just like that I felt my walls crumble and I melted into his embrace and kissed him. He kissed me back, victorious in the way he bit my lip and pulled me close with his usual intensity. I curled my hands around his neck, fingers brushing against his dreads as he pulled my hips against his.

When we broke away, I could scarcely catch my breath. I looked up to his depthless brown eyes and stroked his chin.

“You owe me answers, Damien. C’mon,” I said softly. His eyes flicked to the floor, then me.

“Alright, alright. I went about things poorly in Central, I get that. But we’re running out of time so I thought I’d go for the most direct approach I could with the snow-globe. I want to bring you into the fold. There’s a new power growing in Sydney, something that can rival Holfast. And…I’m part of it. I want you to be part of it too.” Damien said, an intensity in his words to match how he kissed.

And just like that, the spell broke.

A new power that could rival Holfast? That could be my only hope, and my only hope for Liam. But it sounds too good to be true. Besides, James’ date isn’t just looking for my brother. She’s hunting him. And now Damien is part of this group too, trying to slide his way back into my life? I’ve walked right into a trap.

Like I’d practiced a million times as a child and teenager in the face of my mother’s wrath, I didn’t let my fear show.

“How about we talk more about it after dinner? Honestly anything that could stand up to my mother and her precious Council sounds promising to me,” I said, giving him my most mischievous smile. After a moment, he smiled back and gave me a kiss on my forehead.

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

When we returned to the table and ordered our food, the awkwardness seemed to dissipate like morning mist. Especially when the alcohol began to flow. At first, James introduced the golden haired as Jiao and ordered her a cocktail, followed by Damien ordering himself a beer. While on the outside I laughed, flirted with Damien and let his hand circle my back, I felt my fear and instincts writhe within. Jiao acted as though she didn’t know me, as though this were a game of cat and mouse. Instead, she looked to James dreamily and they described their first meeting.

“She kind of saved my whole presentation. I was missing half my slides when she came in, went off-script and told the class about proper chrysanthemum breeding. Basically she saved me from eternal embarrassment in every class for the next two years,” James chuckled, hugging Jiao a little closer. She grinned and took a long drink of her cocktail.

“Would’ve been cruel to let you flail like that in front of everyone,” Jiao giggled.

As we ate and continued to drink, my fingers itched to text Alistair and reach out for help, but it’d be impossible to do without Damien noticing. Anxiety flickered beneath my skin, but I kept still, focusing on James. He didn’t seem spelled. My friend kept his focus, never appearing confused as to why he was saying what he was saying, gazing into the distance desperate to figure out what was on the tip of his tongue. His eyes weren’t glassy, either. He was focused entirely on his gorgeous date.

But he was still in danger. He was trapped between a rebel Witch and a rogue Sparrow, whop intended to hunt down my brother for the curse that was slowly killing him, bit by bit. For every sip of the countless line of cocktails Damien insisted he buy for me, I drank half a cup of water and twice as much food as I usually would.

Before I could sense how much time had truly passed, we were all whisked into a rideshare and arriving at James’ house. My fingers itched to reach for my phone countless times over, but I ignored it. Instead, I kept an eye on James with an exaggerated smile and drunken slur to my words. Damien kept an arm around my shoulders, guiding me. James and Jiao slumped on the couch together, cuddling as they scrolled through James’ phone together.

“Where’re we going?” I asked, emphasising my giddiness with a giggle. Damien didn’t say anything. He just smiled. On the second floor we went and stood on the balcony from which we could catch a glimpse of the water in the harbour.

“I think you’d bring a lot to the Silver Feather, Sien. You’re a lot more powerful than you realise,” Damien said, leaning on the railing. He gazed out to the harbour, his voice distant.

He seems distracted…maybe I can use this…

“I um, need to use the bathroom real quick,” I slurred, making for the sliding door. Before I could reach the handle door, he grabbed my wrist. Fear shot through me and in that moment I knew the alarm on my face was obvious. I looked to his eyes and saw a darkness had shadowed them.

“It’s simple, Sien. You’re with us or against us.’ His grip grew tighter. I yelped, struggling to get away. Within the blink of an eye, his grey wings appeared, stirring the cold night air around us.

“Damien!” I plead, tears quickly forming in my eyes. His face remained stony, unmoved.

“You’re with us, or against us,” Damien repeated, unfurling his wings to their full span, blocking the stars and the light of the moon. In that moment, all I could was cower, my legs shaking. But before Damien could force an answer from me, it was his turn to yelp with pain. Above him, standing atop the railings with the balance of a feline, Alistair stood over him, snarling. A powerful rumbling growl of a lion sounded from his chest, a hand crushing Damien’s shoulder. Like a lion tossing a hyena aside, Alistair shoved Damien out of the way. Like a strong, silent shadow, my new Familiar swept me up into his arms and made the jump from the balcony down onto James’ patio.

I clutched Alistair’s sweater, burying my head into the warmth of his chest.

“What about James?” I murmured, trying to look over his shoulder. Alistair walked us out the gate and headed down the street.

“He’ll be okay. They won’t touch him, his brother is always protecting him,” Alistair said, his voice still carrying the rumble of the lion’s growl. I clutched him tighter.

“I’m gonna get you home, okay?” He murmured, his voice low.

As he carried me home, I felt safe in his arms in a way I hadn’t ever before.