Tie It With a Ribbon

A man approached me on elegant legs, his strides long and powerful. His brilliant, golden eyes struck out at me from the darkness surrounding us, and his black hair barely touched his shoulders as it flowed so fluidly.

“Alena,” he stated simply, his voice deep as it echoed around us. He began to speak more, though I could not catch what he was saying.

“I can’t understand you.” I recognized the syllables from Zanzibar’s threats, which had been uttered the language of the Gryphes—the small amount he knew, at least.

“Yes, you can,” he informed me, shaking his head gently. “You wear my sister’s talon, and you also possess her woven feathers, yet I passed those down unto my children—of which you are not.”

“My husband gave these to me, Merit,” I admitted, clutching at the necklace about which I had forgotten entirely. “Why are you here?”

“If you read those books you have in your possession, I am sure the pages will speak to you. Whether you listen, however, is entirely up to you.”

“But I cannot read it!” I tried to tell him, shaking my head out of frustration. “Only Camille can, and she is trying now.”

“She will not find the answer until it is too late,” he breathed, disappearing before my eyes.

“Wait!” I called, running after him and reaching out, though I only caught air. “I cannot read it!”

I shot awake, entangled in the suffocating sheets as I struggled to free myself.

“What is it?” Zanzibar asked, rushing to release me from my silk prison.

I pushed myself to my feet, hurrying to the door without any regard to him whatsoever. He called after me, chasing me, but I did not dare stop. It could not be too late!

“Camille, I need the books!” I called loudly, rapping sharply on her door.

She emerged in her sleeping clothes, her hair tousled messily.

“What is the matter, Alena?” she asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as I pushed past her, trying to gather every last article.

“What is going on?” Zanzibar demanded, reaching down to pick up the books I dropped.

“I had a dream,” I told him simply, hurrying out into the hall. “Bring those with you!”

I rushed back into the bedroom, placing them carefully on the bed and lighting a candle. Zanzibar dropped his stack, sitting and waiting patiently for an explanation.

“Merit spoke to me, Zanzibar,” I told him, opening a book immediately. “He said Camille would not find our answers soon enough, and that the pages would reveal their secrets to me alone!”

“But you cannot read this,” he reminded me, looking into the book. “Nothing has changed.”

I frowned, furrowing my brow as I scanned over the pages. But I could make sense of it!

“No,” I murmured. Something had changed indeed! “This is a book of city records of our land from long ago… See, this is a relative of mine—Nicola.” I picked up another book, tossing it open. “This is about our trivial creation, a story my people have never accepted as historical truth.”

“How are you reading this?” he asked, trying to no avail. “It is still so foreign to me!”

“You did not speak to him, Zanzibar! He appeared to me, and surely I must heed his advice. But none of these books seem special…” I frowned, scanning from cover to cover. “No, it cannot simply be records and stories… I need something different.”

“Like an account?”

“Yes! A primary source from someone who was there—who went through this as well!”

“Sounds like you want a diary of some sort,” he offered, looking through the text books. “And I do not think any of these will help you.”

“But I’ve raided the library, and there are no more books left on this subject…” I frowned. “I thought we were getting somewhere.”

He placed his finger on his lip, tapping it as if in deep contemplation. “Perhaps…the library is not where we need to look.”

“I cannot search the entire country. Be reasonable.”

He shook his head. “No, maybe it is in here—or in your Nest. Chordia spoke of ‘supposed isolated incidents’ that had not been proven true. If someone had tried, surely their accounts would be either here or there.” He paused. “How long has your Nest been standing?”

“I do not know,” I admitted. “Oh! But perhaps these books are not so useless! Hand me the records again.” He did so, and I skimmed through it. “It has been standing for at least a thousand years. Where are you going with this?”

“You were not the only family to live there, then. I know for a fact that my Den has been reconstructed, and any evidence would have been removed. When we go to the Nest, we will have to search the rooms—those of your mother and siblings. It may be painful to revisit, but there could be secrets hidden in their very chambers.”

I opened my mouth, but he shook his head.

“No, it is far too late to consider a trek there. You will have to wait until the sun rises, for there are plenty of dangers without strangers hiding in shadows. Can you wait until then?”

I nodded eagerly, pushing the books onto the floor.

“I would like to return to sleep then, so I may soon open my eyes.”

He smiled, crawling to the top of the bed. “What say you, then, about not having any more crazy dreams?”

I laughed softly. “But my crazy dreams can be fruitful to our efforts.”

“So long as it is not a wild goose chase.”

“I had forgotten of this talon,” I told him, clutching at the necklace, “but Merit recognized it so easily. It cannot merely be my imagination.”

“I will believe you, because this is the best lead we have at the moment. Just try to close your eyes so the moon may fall from the Heavens.”