There was darkness all around as I followed a grunting thug through a passageway. The air was damp and I could feel moistness on my exposed cheekbones. The man in front paid no attention to me; he held a flaming torch at arm's length, and it cast wavering shadows along tattooed arms. After several minutes walking, we reached the end of the passageway, and then descended down circular steps. Still, the man did not even notice me following him, my toes slapping bare on the old, worn stone, my fingers grappling for a hold against the smooth walls. The man must have walked this way a hundred times or more; he knew each uneven step that caused me to wobble, and he stepped surely, rarely looking at his feet.

The descent was short, and then we were on even ground once more. Cold, wet tiles were flooded with a slime I didn't want to place. The underground cavern was not large, but larger than needed for a single, cramped cell, lit only by the torch in the man's hands. Keys rattled as he fished into his pocket, pulling out a chain of brass. I squinted through the gloom, to where the light threw itself onto a corner of the cell for a few seconds, before shadows replaced it. Like a strobe light, I saw flashes of a human huddled there.

The man stepped towards the cell, placing the torch in the bracket whilst he unlocked the hatch. I wasn't watching him, however. Like a silent spectre, I stepped eerily towards the bars of the cage, pale in the torchlight. And I gaped through the bars at the rotting girl there.

She looked battered and ill. Sunken cheeks, once plump, marked a sudden weight loss. Her golden curls were matted and flat. A black eye had shut one eye completely, and the other looked nervously at the man unlocking the door. Her hands, wrapped around her knees, shook as she tried to curl tighter into a ball. I watched in alarm as the cell door opened, and the man grabbed her by her hair, dragging her out.

Reia cried out, sobbing. Her wings fluttered weakly in protest. Like her hair, they were now stained with grime, and clumps of feathers had fallen out.

The man let go of her and said something in a low voice. Reia shook.

'Get up!' the man roared. 'The King wishes to see you!'

'No...' sobbed Reia, 'please...leave me here...'

I stared in horror as the man grabbed her hair and pulled her out of the cell. Reia's voice faltered as her cry faded. Neither paid any attention to me, and I had lost my own voice, numbed by the pain of my beloved sister.

As Reia crawled to avoid being pulled by her hair, she passed by my knees. She stood shakily up, and I reached to help her. Her eyes came up to meet mine, and they opened in surprise.

'I'll save you!' I tried to say, but no words came from my mouth. I was truly a spectre.

Reia mouthed something back at me, her expression pained.

She was saying, 'Run!'

I woke up panting, something sticking into my back and the fear from my nightmare still gripping me. It took me a few seconds to recall that I was safe, until pieces began to fall into place, and things were not, not okay. I had seen Reia in a dark cell, presumably captured by the King— her father— and treated appallingly.

I frowned down at my hands, bunching the sheets up. I was back in my room, and from the darkness outside, I figured I must have slept all day. I wondered what time it was, and how I'd gotten back into my own room. I was certain that being next to Fabian hadn't been a fabrication.

Gradually, I relaxed, and the tension in my fingers disappeared. I had no proof that the dream about Reia had been real. But could Reia have sent me the vision? That would make it true, and she would be in trouble. Could I have Seen it myself— did I have that kind of power?

No, I thought sullenly, it doesn't make sense because Reia's wings are gold and mine are black.

Black.

Shoot, I have wings!

I yelped and desperately twisted to see my back properly. My neck just ached, and I couldn't see anything. Huffing, I jumped from the bed, realising in that instant that I was, thankfully, dressed. Who had dressed me, I didn't know. Either way, questions could wait— I had major aesthetic issues to address, for the first time in my life.

Luckily, the previous Lumina had so many mirrors that I only had to leap in one direction to find myself facing a full-length one.

I gasped, turning, admiring my back.

Whoever had dressed me, had dressed me in the typical angel attire. Bindings made of coloured navy cloth wrapped around my breasts, the material looping around my neck and around my new found wings.

I stared. And I carried on staring.

I had wings.

They were flexed, and were a mass of fluffy black feathers, like a baby duck's before it develops into an adult. I focused, and I found trying to move them was like trying to co-ordinate moving just one toe— it was like I couldn't sense the way to move it.

After a few minutes, one of them twitched, and I jumped in surprise. Maybe it would take some time. Relieved, I pattered over to the dresser to brush through my knotted hair. As I combed, I contemplated on how I should behave towards Fabian. Part of me was glad I hadn't woken up next to him; part of me felt unreasonably stood up.

I shrieked as my fingers met what seemed like a difficult tangle, but met a scaly bump instead.

As I smoothed my hair out, I shrieked again.

I had been so preoccupied with having wings that I had forgotten the fact Angels also had horns; and two tiny pointed horns had formed just beyond my temples. The scales were a greyish purple, which matched well with my eyes.

As I stared at my reflection, I felt my eyes well up once more. I wondered how Reia would react if she were here.

I could imagine her jealously wishing she had black wings.

'Gold is so tacky,' I could almost hear her saying, and smiled bleakly.

But then I pictured her as I had in my dream; cold, alone and bruised. My smile vanished, and I sobered.

My stomach grumbled, and I stood and crossed the room. It was time to face Fabian.

I crossed the hallway, and knocked on his door. I heard voices inside, then a pause, before the door flung open. I was surprised to find myself facing Scarlett.

'Good morning, Lumina,' she said, cheerily. 'It's good to see you awake.'

I gave her a puzzled look.

'It's been three days,' she said, gesturing towards my wings. My mouth fell open.

'It's been that long?' I said.

'You stayed unconscious for a long time,' a gentle voice added. Fabian watched me from where I entered. He was stood near his balcony, his wings stretched out. His hair had grown longer already; he had tied it into a short, rough ponytail at the nape of his neck.

I tried to quell the storm of redness that grew over my cheeks, and avoided looking at Fabian. Instead, my eyes found the floor.

'You look better,' he said.

My heart skipped, and I prayed the emotion didn't show on my face.

'I have to look better than I did the other night,' I said as dully as possible, 'if I didn't...'

Fabian smiled wickedly.

'It's a marginal difference,' he remarked.

'Nice hair,' I said coolly, 'You're not growing it out on my behalf, I hope?'

I was pleased at the scowl that came across Fabian's face. Scarlett smoothly intervened.

'It's a mark of how much Fabian likes you that he's willing to argue,' Scarlett said, as if trying to explain the situation, 'he's so falsely nice to everyone else.'

'I didn't realise his character was so complex.'

'I'm glad she hasn't found the weapons Lumina had stashed in her bedroom,' Fabian said, 'I may have been their target practice.'

'Maybe I have found them,' I said.

'Did you...did you remember?' he asked, hopefully.

The warmth in my stomach quickly dissolved, turning to an odd numb feeling that extended down to my legs. Fabian wanted to know if I'd suddenly remembered my past life; perhaps he thought his Lumina was about to return.

'Don't worry; Fabian has corrected me on what I walked in on the other day,' Scarlett said, and she winked as my head shot up in embarrassment.

So I hadn't been imagining Scarlett walking in on Fabian and me. The horror showed on my face, and she smirked.

'I heard it was painful,' she said, 'We didn't know it would be like that. Angel children are born with wings. You're the first to grow a pair.'

'Wonderful,' I murmured darkly, and I heard Fabian chuckle.

'I see you've also grown horns,' he added. Scarlett, who had been examining my wings with scrutiny, now placed the same emphasis on grabbing the horns on my head and prodding them.

I blushed again. 'Let go,' I said stubbornly. 'I came to ask about Arianna.'

Scarlett stopped playing immediately, conscious that the last time we'd seen each other, she had been riding away on a horse to help the girl that had saved my life. A serious look crossed her face for a fleeting moment, and then she smiled.

'She's alright,' she said, 'we're going to get her back soon.'

'Where is she?' I asked.

'She crashed her plane in the Ruby fields,' Scarlett said gently. 'Did you see the two large trees at the front of the island? Their entrance leads into the Ruby district. She crashed not far from there, and some soldiers picked her up.'

I nodded, but I sensed tension in the air. Fabian looked away from us, and Scarlett watched me a little too eagerly.

'What are you not telling me?'

I saw Fabian tense.

He was an awful liar.

'If you want me to co-operate with you, what's the point in hiding the truth from me?'

Scarlett hesitated. 'She won't tell them anything, and they haven't got anything to convict her.'

'Convict her?'

'She's being put on trial,' Scarlett said quickly.

'What?'

I stared at Scarlett, wondering how she had thought to hide such an important thing from me.

'They've got nothing to convict her with,' Scarlett repeated, and I realised she was saying it for herself as much as to me.

I stared at her, and then I looked at Fabian. He was extremely still, with only the faintest hint of a breeze stirring the strands of his hair.

'From what I've heard, they don't need anything to convict her with if this King wants her dead,' I said quietly. 'When do you plan on getting her out?'

Scarlett looked at the floor.

'They have her closely guarded,' she said, 'and they have powerful Angels guarding the prison. It makes it near impossible to get near her.'

'Is that normal?' I said.

'No,' Fabian said gravely, 'We have to assume the worst, and that they know who she was with. They could be looking for you, Lumina.'

'If they look for me, they're going to look here first,' I said.

'We hope not yet,' Scarlett said. 'It's too soon. You haven't developed any Power yet. It was going to take us months to teach you and prepare you.'

I raised an eyebrow. 'Locked within this tower? Sounds like I'd be just the same princess as when I left.'

'We have our own spies,' Fabian cut over me. 'We'll know if they're coming for you. We'll hide you.'

'We still haven't decided how to rescue Arianna,' I said pointedly.

'There's no we,' Fabian growled, 'We can't risk you.'

'I want to help! I can't stay locked up here,' I said, dumbfounded. But from Fabian and Scarlett's disapproving looks, they didn't agree.

'Now is even more dangerous for us to take you outside,' Fabian growled, 'They will be watching me and Scarlett, now that they're tracing what happened with Arianna. You won't be able to go out without risking everything.'

'But...what will I do?'

'You can learn the history of our country,' Scarlett said encouragingly, 'And we'll have someone teach you how to behave like a Queen, and how to rule. Government things. So you'll be ready.'

I stared at her, my stomach roiling in outrage. I couldn't read, let alone study government. Scarlett was lying to me.

I stepped back, a suspicion creeping over me, filling my insides with ice and anger.

'You never meant me to leave here, did you? You two are going to do all the fighting and winning of the throne, whilst I sit pretty and become your puppet.'

Neither spoke.

Taking their silence as all I needed, I turned and fled.