Laced By Love

Chapter 2

The two continued to venture on, Amber's phone telling her all of the twists and turns of the forest she had to go through in an attempt to find the place to rent a hot air balloon.
"You know, we could've just gone through Beckley." Boston stated, motioning behind him with his thumb.
"Yeah, but Beckley doesn't have eye opening nature like the woods do! Come on, you have to admit, it is pretty beautiful." She stopped and took a moment to look around at the beauty that surrounded her.
Boston's eyebrows furrowed and he frowned. Something about the forest made him shiver.. It just didn't occur to him what. Could it be memories? Memories of the terrible past he once had to endure? He shook his head hastily, focusing on now and only now. He was usually fine with the forest, and always loved it. He spent most of his time in the woods! But why did it feel so wrong just because he was around a human this time?
"Yeah.. nature is beautiful." He said with a sigh. He truly did believe that, being how he was cooped up in the demon realm for who knows how long with no signs of greenery whatsoever, but yet again. He remembered running away in a deep wood thicket, covered in bruises, thorns, and laak. Laak was the laceys blood, but most commonly it was referred to as magic by the humans. Soon the laceys just took on the term and started to call it magic themselves. Magic was a white viscous substance. Humans probably referred to it as magic because of its luminescence. What Boston hated about magic was that it couldn't change color. Why was that a problem? While sure, he could try his best to look human using the art of shapeshifting, his interior was still the same, meaning that his magic was still white. Every time he got a cut, blushed, or got a bruise, it would show up white instead of red. The good thing about having a fair skinned human disguise, it didn't show up as prominently. It just looked like he was going pale.
He took a deep breath, pushing all that happened behind him. He was in a better place now. He was one with what he feared. Sure, he had to make a few sacrifices on the way, but sometimes that's just how things go.

"You know, Amber.." He started, starting up another friendly conversation. She looked over at him with a light blue gaze. "Personally, from my experience in gardening, I'd say that roses are just the prettiest things. Don't you agree?" He turned to face one of the wild roses he'd seen as they were walking, and knelt down to it.
"I personally like lilacs. They remind me of you! Youthful, pretty and full of life.." She giggled as she trailed off. "Is that silly to think?"
"No, I don't think so." He stood up and walked back to Amber's side. "I don't think I'm exactly pretty though." He began to blush. She smiled and laughed in response.
"Okay, handsome then."
"Not even that." He muttered, burying his face in his hands. Amber forced his hands down.
"We don't have time for shenanigans, come on!" She grabbed one of his hands and went back to walking in the forest to the place where they would rent their hot air balloons.

For the rest of the time, the two spent some time in the air, observing the world around them.
"Well! This is a new experience." He chirped, looking around at the blue sky around them. Amber smiled and nodded.
"This is the kinda stuff you live for, you know?" She looked back up at Boston, their bright eyes locking in place on one another.
"I guess so.. I haven't flown like this in years." He chuckled, reminiscing the times that his friend Denis had let him fly on his back in the deep red sky.

"Scared much?" The white air lacey laughed, plunging higher into the sky. The green lacey shook his head.
"Not really, it just throws me off guard when you randomly-"
"Randomly what? THIIIIIIS?" The white air lacey did a flip in the air, as the green lacey made an attempt to hold on for his life.
"DENIS!" The green lacey screamed, his grip getting tighter on Denis' waist. Denis laughed.
"Chill out Boston, I'm not gonna kill you or anything. Trust me, I've been flying for most of my life." He grinned, diving back onto the ground and placing Boston on his hooves.
"That wasn't too bad, right?" Denis wiped some of the debris he had collected from flying off of his hoodie, as his batlike wings collapsed back into a stealthy position. Boston stumbled, being dizzy from all the times Denis had flipped.
"It was.. Interesting. To say the least.." He regained his balance and stood back up properly, his gaze locking back on his friend.
"Not all laceys get to fly like that, you know. I mean, all the air laceys do and a select few who are lucky enough to be born with wings but still." He mentioned, expanding his wings to reduce the amount of stress on them before collapsing them once again.
"My dad has wings.." Boston started, thinking about his adoptive family at home. He had gotten what he wished for so long ago, a mother, a father, and even an older sister. But something still didn't feel right. It just didn't feel like he belonged in the demon realm with the other laceys.
"So you've been on flights before?" Denis asked, now intrigued. Boston shook his head.
"No, no, my dad is unable to fly- an accident happened a while back in the war and.."
"B.W.B.S." Denis finished. Boston nodded. B.W.B.S stood for Bird With a Broken Wing Syndrome. It meant a lacey with wings lost the ability to fly. B.W.B.S was usually something that occurred at birth, but rarely when the wings were damaged so bad to the point they couldn't heal it could also be obtained.
"That doesn't make him any less of a lacey, right?" Boston smiled softly. He always believed that everyone was special in their own way.. Even humans.
"I guess not. He can't really control that, can he?" Denis asked, a smile starting to grow on his face as well. Boston nodded.
"Speaking of my family, I gotta go home.. See you, man." Boston and Denis exchanged their classic secret handshake and Boston began to head off back home. He still felt like something was missing though.
He had everything he asked for, a family, a best friend, a normal life.. But he still wished for something more. What was it he was missing? What was the final puzzle piece? What was the answer? These questions he asked more and more as the days passed. He hoped to figure it out one day... After all, he had all eternity to ponder about it.