Puppet

can you keep a secret?

I woke up the morning after the whole fiasco with Keefe buried in blankets and sheets. It was nice to not be woken up by a screeching alarm clock.

I realize as I get out of bed that I have no stuff here. No toothbrush, hair brush, change of clothes, nothing. Weirdly, I miss my consistent Neverseen clothes. I actually liked the plain black clothes I wore every day.

A timid knock interrupted my thoughts. "Come in," I say and the person peeks the door open and stands halfway in and halfway out of the room like she's afraid to enter.

I recognize the girl from yesterday, with bright teal eyes and long, styled brunette hair. Now that I'm really looking at her, she looks even more familiar, but I can't put my finger on why.

"Hey Sophie," she says almost shyly, which I didn't expect from her. She seems more of an outgoing kind of girl, but maybe it's just because I'm a deadly Neverseen agent.

"My name's Biana. My mom and I made a little bag for you with some toiletries and clothes since we know you don't have anything here," she continues, as she fully steps into the room. I can now see the stuffed duffel bag she has in her other hand. I notice how her fingernails are polished and her hands are decorated with rings and bracelets. It doesn't seem as though these Black Swan agents are much fighters. I'm sure I could take down every one of them in a fight.

I didn't realize the girl was reaching out the bag to hand to me until she cleared her throat. I look down at the bag and take it, hoping the clothes in here aren't even close to the way hers looks. The girl is wearing a purple dress, casual by Elvin standards but still, I prefer my shirt and shorts.

"Thank you," I say, hoping that will be enough for her to leave me alone.

She grins, like me thanking her made us best friends. "Of course! Also, breakfast is ready downstairs for when you're ready to join us. Do you need help picking out something to wear? Or doing your hair? Or I could-"

"I'm good, thanks," I cut her off and she looks kind of dejected. These people are very easily trusting, which is good for me.

I think the easiest way to get out of here is to play the long game. I should act like I'm getting close to them until they give me more freedom, like being able to leave this place alone. Maybe I could even get them to trust me enough to gather intel for the Neverseen. Surely they would take me back if I had some good Black Swan secrets.

But that also means I probably shouldn't just shut this girl out with minimal words if I want us to become "friends."

As she turns to leave like a kicked puppy I can't help but grumble under my breath before I call out, "Well...actually, I could use some help with this hair."

Biana turns and I already regret my decision when I see her grin. Right away, she gets to work, taking my hand and leading me into the bathroom.

"See, I knew you weren't the evil, heartless Neverseen agent everyone said you were. It must have been so hard, staying over there. I mean, of course, because the Neverseen is awful and the living conditions were crap but also there are no girls over there. I can't even imagine, never being able to talk to someone my own age," she rambles as she sits me down in front of the huge mirror in the bathroom and gets to work on the impossible task of brushing my bed head.

I don't think the spoiled princess fully understands what life with the Neverseen is like, and honestly, I'm finding it hard to understand what life in the Black Swan is like. Do they never train? Are they always just hanging out and having fun? Are they not worried about what the Neverseen's next strike will be?

It's not hard to fake the beginning of a friendship with Biana because all she does is talk and talk and talk and talk as she braids my hair. All I do is just sit and nod along to her words, even though I'm not really sure what she's saying.

I take this time to try and figure out where I know her from but I still haven't figured it out by the time she's done with my hair. To her credit, she did do an amazing job. She twisted my hair into a pretty Dutch braid and for once, my hair wasn't in my face or bothering me. This style would be great for fighting and going on missions.

"Wow," I say as I look at it in the mirror, "it looks great, thank you."

"Anytime. Now, how about your outfit?" Biana rummages through the bag she came in with until she takes out a green dress.

I cringe and go over to her. "Is there anything more... casual? Like a lot more casual?"

"Hmm... let me check. She digs some more and then comes up with a red tunic, black leggings, and a white undershirt. It's something I would never ever wear if I were with the Neverseen, but I know I have to blend in here, so I take the clothes with a smile and go to change in the bathroom.

As I peel off my clothes, I wince at the bruise that still took over half my body from when I fell out of that window. Scars cover my body, my biggest separation from everyone else here. They will never know what it is like, to train every day to win this war. But that's just another reason the Black Swan is going to lose because as long as they're sitting around here playing dress up and joking around, the Neverseen will grow stronger.

When I'm finished putting on the clothes, I can't tell how I feel. I look just like one of them. My hair is neat, my clothes aren't the regular black training clothes I always wear, and I look almost...softer. I'm horrified and content at the same time with the new look.

As I walk out of the bathroom, Biana is waiting for me and squeals when she sees the clothes on me. "They look amazing on you! Come on now, we're late to breakfast."

Biana led me down the grand staircase and through so many halls that it made me dizzy until we finally arrive at the biggest kitchen I've ever been in.

there's an island that seems to be made of white crystal in the middle of it with a large assortment of food, none of which I can name since they're all special Elvin food.

"Mom and Dad wanted to make today's breakfast special since it's your first full day with us," Biana explained as she handed me a plate and began gathering food herself.

I got something that resembled a muffin, some type of purple mush, and pieces of what I hope is fruit. I followed Biana into a room connected to the kitchen, where an enormous table was with plenty of people sitting at it. I could recognize almost all of them from yesterday.

I sat in one of the only two seats available which, of course, had to be right next to Keefe.

He cleared his throat as I set down my plate and sat down. "Sleep well?" He asked as he ate his mush.

"Mhm," I reply, not wanting to talk to him any more than I had to.

Thankfully, the woman sitting across from me saved either of us from having to say anything. I recognized her from last night. "Hi Sophie," I still cringe at the name, "Sorry I never introduced myself yesterday, I'm Della, Biana and Fitz's mom. I have another son but it seems as though his work trip is taking longer than expected, so you'll have to meet him later."

"Alvar's usually on trips so you probably won't see much of him anyways," a man whom I'm assuming is Della's husband adds.

And then it clicks. That's where I know Biana from. She's Alvars sister.

Holy shit. This is Alvar's family. I should have put it together sooner, I knew Alvar had a younger brother and sister and some other details of his life, but I never knew what any of them looked like.

So... this means I'm living in the same house as Alvar. And now I have to somehow find a way to keep it a secret that the brother of the family who is letting me stay in their house is one of the Neverseen's best agents.

I realize too late that Keefes sitting right next to me and can most definitely feel my heart racing.

How the hell am I going to get out of this one?