Ally, Imagined *hiatus

Nostalgia

The scene was perfect.

Sunset.

Deserts.

The people I was with? Not so perfect.

Royal and Court, possible psychopaths that might kill me if I screw anything up.

It kind of makes me miss home; playing softball before school, dealing with annoying teachers, looking for a part-time job after school and forgetting to do homework. The feeling I got wasn't really being homesick, as much as I might describe it, but instead nostalgia. Nostalgia might as well be the same definition as homesick to some people, but to me, it was just remembering things you've never done, but if you were there in the moment, then telling your friends or family and realizing it was either a dream or just your mind playing tricks on you.

I anticipated for the footsteps of Royal and Court to approach, thinking about what the bandits said from earlier. They said something about giving someone back, that they'd be back at dawn, that they'd probably end up hunting us down. Fun times, right?

"Ember," Royal called, his voice ghostly and stiff. "we're leaving."

Court stood behind him, staring down at his feet. I frowned at this, both of them. "Why are you acting like children?" The words slipped from my lips, as if I didn't have any control over my own body.

Court looked back up, fear in his eyes, a warning dancing in his pupils. It was obvious he was telling me that Royal wasn't exactly in the mood, but that didn't give him the right to act so, well, annoying.

"Excuse me?" Royal quirked an eyebrow, taking small but heavy steps towards me. "I'm childish? I'm childish? Are you so shallow that you can't let someone not want to be reminded that of their mother dying in front of their eyes? Did you watch your mother wither in front of you? I don't think you did, Ember." I could feel his cold breath on my cheeks, his nose touching mine. From a glance, anyone would think we were about to kiss.

"No." I said quietly. "But it doesn't give you the right to be so mean. I didn't know that you had any connection to that box. Yeah, I was nosy, but you're overreacting. At least Court tried to be a mediator and solve this issue, reasonably." My voice shook with every sentence, word, syllable. I was slow with my words, like a toddler learning how to speak.

Royal closed his eyes, pressing his forehead against mine. "Why did we ever take you in?" He whispered, loud enough for only me to hear. I wanted to look over his shoulder, at anything else, at Court, at a wall, at the doorframe. It was like Royal was forcing me to look at him, without doing anything else.

I heard Court step towards the scene, his hand appearing on Royal's broad shoulder and pulling him backwards.

"We need to leave," he said.

Royal nodded. The two stood behind me, ushering me out the door.