Broken Wings [Completed!]

Chapter 3

Evira was sprawled across her bed, tangled in her sheets. The council had an hour to arrive, and Evira wasn't the one to be patient. She thought about calling Remy, but she was busy preparing for the arrival of the council along with Katarina. Adeline and her brother Jasper were in the training room, and Tae was reading poetry upstairs.

It had only been two years since Evira had arrived at the institute, but even the environment in the Adamaris Institute was homier than her previous house. She supposed it was because she never had parents, and her sister Alyssa took the form of her sister, friend and carer. And when she was mysteriously taken away... Evira shut her eyes and forced herself to take even breaths. The loss of her sister had also taken away part of her soul — she felt empty, sometimes, and weak. Without the strength of her sister, she was nothing but a being meant to be forgotten.

"Hey, stupid," said a voice from the door. She'd always left the door open, even at night; it was a small reminder of her childhood — sometimes her sister was late home from work, and Evira was too scared to be alone in an enclosed space.

Evira sat up with a grin. "Hey, idiot. Did you miss me?"

Logan sat next to her on the bed, his brown curls now reaching down past his ears. He was tanned and much darker, and Evira never knew how deep blue his eyes were, like the blue you find in the deep sea, lost and longing. He had lost his chubbiness from the last time they'd seen each other, and it was replaced by sharp cheekbones and a more angular face. It revealed his jawbone more clearly, like a brother of his collarbone peeking out from under his T-shirt. Everyone had always said he was handsome.

"Miss you?" He laughed, and it sounded as rich as gold. Logan placed his arms around Evira's neck, his breath close to her ears.

Rolling her eyes, Evira smacked his arm away. "You stink. Go take a shower." As if to prove her point, she pinched her shirt. "Ew, microorganisms are crawling on me. Must've been touched by something horrible." She screwed up her face and Logan laughed again, walking out of her bedroom to probably shower. It was lucky his back was turned on her, or otherwise, he would've seen her face flush when he said, "sexy microorganisms."

Evira felt the tension in her chest easing. She'd always been grateful to Logan for having that calming aura about him, even if they'd been enemies the first time they'd met. Calling Logan 'idiot' was an old joke they'd had that had started on Evira's first morning in the institute, where they had been fighting over who got the first Nutella spread on their toast. It was the first label she'd given Logan, and she found it suited him pretty well.

Logan popped his head back around her door, smirking. "Thinking about me? There's an 'I LOVE LOGAN' message on your forehead."

Evira hit him with a pillow. "I'm serious. Hurry it up. The council's coming."

Logan's eyebrows furrowed. "Council?" The bathroom door opened and cool air came rushing in, tickling Evira's bare toes.

"Last time I checked, the Council's the government of the Underworld. Surely living in the mortal realm for a few weeks didn't damage your brain?" Evira teased, hearing the shuffling of clothes and the turning of the faucet. Although the door was closed, it was thin and sound travelled through easily.

"Really, Evira," he sighed, and Evira could hear the scowl in his voice. It was a deeper voice than how she'd remembered it to be, but his large ego was still there — if not, larger than before.

So Evira told him everything, information easing out like a river. The sky outside seemed to flinch as she spoke, lighting up her room with a dark blue tinge. She even explained the girl she'd seen in the alleyway, shivering as she recalled the hollow face, empty eyes, devoid of all humanity. The water had stopped and the bathroom door opened. Logan's hair was wet, the weight of the droplets stretching his curls.

"Were you not glamoured? How did she see you?"

Evira eyes widened in horror as she recalled the girl looking directly at her. "We - we were definitely glamoured." How could she not have remembered? Hellions could only be seen if they wanted to be seen, and Evira didn't recall wanting the poor girl to be able to notice her.

She intertwined her fingers together, knotting them tightly as if one were her soul and the other her body, never wanting them to separate. Logan frowned, a crease forming near his eyebrows. "Maybe she was another one of those demon-thingy things," she breathed, the only sound that was able to weave around the lump in her throat.

Logan nodded, slumping down next to her, smelling of cucumber shampoo. "That does make sense. But why did she have the number on her chest?"

"1098," she whispered. It wasn't a name, but it was something she could remember the girl by. She knew the feeling of never wanting to be forgotten, of wanting to have a secure place in the memory of the world.

"Evira," Katarina called, her voice echoing in the hall. "The guests have arrived! Come - oh, Logan!" she cried, wrapping her skinny arms around Logan's neck. Evira blinked twice, but the same image was reflected in her irises: as the fingers of evening grasped Hell, they were both ghosts, both with a physical appearance, but it was wavering, never whole.

"Good to see you all," the Council said, bowing his bald head at Katarina and leaning his ebony hands flat against the table. He was flanked by two Callopian warriors; Evira had instantly recognised it by the badges they wore on their metallic uniforms, worn by pride and honour. Next to him was an empty seat for Katarina and on the other side of the table sat Jasper and his sister Adeline. They looked incredibly similar - Adeline had a young, round face, freckled with light brown and her thick, wavy brown hair curtained around it. Jasper, who was ten years older, was a broad-shouldered, dark-haired male, his arms muscular gifted by years of training.

On the way to her seat next to Remy, Evira patted Adeline's head affectionately whilst casting a smile to Jasper. Logan pulled out a chair next to a smaller male named Tae, whose blonde hair was messy and uncombed, his green eyes glassy, delicate like the whispers of the grass in spring.