"He's not coming. That's final."

Rae sighs, "what if he apologizes?"

"I don't care if he freaking tap dances the entire plot of Hamilton. He's lucky I didn't let Daniel kill him."

She runs a hand over her frizzy curls. "Just think about this for two seconds. He's one of your oldest friends!"

"That would imply we're friends," I growl, shoving my blanket into my pack.

Erick is trying to get back into the camp, but James and Daniel stand guard while Rae argues with me.

Alex is lingering near Izzy, not coming too close, but trying to offer comfort.

Ava holds her hand and whispers to her.

Cat and Nick are cleaning up our camp ground, getting us ready to leave.

Charlie's off scouting for somewhere to rest and restock our supplies.

"Raven," Rae growls as I limp away from her. "He made a mistake."

My shoulders tense. "A mistake? Was what our principal did to you a mistake, Raelynn?"

Rae takes a step back. "He didn't touch her, Raven."

"That makes it better?" I hiss. "He didn't manage to get into my-." I stop myself, panting.

Rae's eyebrows furrow. "Is this about when you broke his nose?"

"I've made my decision."

"I'm older than you."

"Then act like it," I snap.

She grabs my arm and yanks me to a stop. "He's not that man, Raven. Don't you think I would break up with him if he treated me like that?"

"I'd hope you would, Rae. But no. I know how hard it is to get out of an abusive situation."

"Since when?"

I flinch.

Fluorescents glinting off a green gem. Something sharp being dragged down my back. Fingers curled into my hair, holding my face against the floor as I scream.

I shake the quicksand off before I can get sucked into another memory. "It doesn't matter. All I'm saying is even if you were hurt before, it doesn't mean you can't be a victim again, Rae. You're too blind to see it, but Erick's so similar to our principal. I regret ever letting you meeting him."

She sets her jaw. "He's not like that. He's a good man."

"Good men don't threaten to beat helpless girls over nothing."

"Nothing? She almost got you killed."

"She saved my life. If you can't accept that and my decision, you can stay with Erick."

Her eyes widen and she takes a step back. She grabs her cross. "You don't mean that," she whispers.

"From the bottom of my heart, Raelynn, I sure as hell do. He didn't make a mistake, Rae. He almost beat Izzy. He traumatized her. What would he have done to her if we hadn't stopped him? You really want to keep someone like that around?"

She glances at Erick, who is getting impatient.

He's arguing with James and Daniel. He punches a tree next to James's face and Rae flinches.

She won't meet my gaze. "I'll come with you."

I nod. "Good. Once Charlie's back, I'll break the news to Erick."

"Tell him I fought for him," she whispers.

I sigh and close my eyes. "I will."

Charlie returns with news of a village not far from here.

"No!" Those of us that experienced the first village protest.

Charlie's wings droop. "There's no Fae."

"Oh, great," Alex says, stretching. "I hope they have beds."

Charlie's wings droop even further, until they look like they're not a part of him anymore. "You all hate me that much?"

"Not you," Cat says, patting his arm.

"Just my entire species," he grumbles. "We're not all bad, you know?"

"We know, buddy," James says, rubbing the back of his neck.

"You know, I could terrify you all with the stories from my realm. The Fae are peaceful and one of the milder creatures."

"Then why did Thomas bring Fae for this invasion?" Nick asks, slinging his bow onto his back. "Seems kind of dumb."

Charlie rolls his eyes. "Zorcath's borders are closed to most other creatures. Or they're all fighting on the front lines. The Fae are also the majority in Ebony."

"What the hell is 'Zorcath'?" Ava asks.

"Language," Rae warns.

"It's the kingdom I'm from. Ebony is the realm I'm from, but within that realm we have different kingdoms."

"And you're at war," Ava says. It's not a question.

Charlie nods. "It truly started hundreds of years ago and involved dozens of different kingdoms. We would have times of peace, then the war would start again. Many years ago... something happened. Two sister kingdoms, Zorcath and Caraly, went to war. It's been the longest and worst one yet. It started when I was a child, and yet there's no end in sight."

We're all quiet.

What are you supposed to say to that?

Charlie clears his throat and points. "Ah, we're here. There's the gates."

Seemingly human guards point spears at us. "Friend or foe?" They shout.

"Friend!" I answer, holding my hands up in surrender.

One of them jabs their spear towards Charlie. "What about that thing?"

Charlie hangs his head. "I do not require entrance. I can stay out here until-."

"No," I snap.

Charlie blinks at me. "What?"

"He's my friend," I argue with the soldiers. "We aren't here for trouble. We need a safe place to rest for a bit and restock our supplies."

"Humans are permitted to enter," they reply.

A hot fire of fury blasts through my veins.

Charlie touches my shoulder. "It's fine, Raven. I'll stay outside the walls."

I shrug him off and jab my finger in one of the guard's faces. "That's racist," I snap.

"They've invaded our villages!" They shout. "They've killed our people."

"We've killed theirs too! At least this one is helping us to try and kill the man responsible! Without him, we would be dead! Will you really turn your back on all these humans that need your help because of one man?"

They start to nod.

"No," A voice calls.

The guards look up at a man standing on a platform above the gates.

He studies the group, his eyes settling on me. "You vouch for the creature?"

I put a hand to my heart. "Yes, sir. He's been nothing but kind to us. He does not fight with the others."

The man shifts his gaze to Charlie. "And what's your reasoning? Why have you sided with a bunch of humans?"

Charlie clears his throat and shifts from foot to foot. "It's a long, complicated story. The gist is, I disagree with our mission. I wish to repair the damage we've caused."

He studies Charlie, then me. "I would love to hear more of this story. Let them in."

The guards gape at him. "But-but sir!"

"No buts. Let them in. That's an order."

The guards stare in confusion and awe as they open the gates to let us in.

We hurry inside, before they can change their minds.

The man saunters down from a stairway and comes to join us. He spreads his arms. "Welcome to my village. I am Mayor Winston. It's a pleasure to meet you."

I can feel the excitement building in me. "How long have you lived out here? Why don't you use electronics? How do you communicate with the other-?"

Charlie puts his arm in front of me. "Forgive our friend, sir. She's very passionate about... being nosy."

I smack his arm away. "I've never been outside the dome! It's interesting."

"To no one but you," Ava giggles.

James snorts and covers it with a cough.

The man smiles at me, then nods to my friends. "We have a motel you all are welcome to find rooms in. We haven't had many visitors since this whole thing started, so I'm sure we have plenty of room for you. Tell the front desk I sent you and they'll help you with whatever you need."

Ava doesn't hesitate, so I don't protest as my friends hurry off.

I start to follow, but the mayor steps in front of me. I tense, narrowing my eyes at him.

He puts his hands out. "I only wish to speak with you. And your friend." He nods at Charlie.

Charlie's wings tighten. He gulps. "I can leave, if I make you uncomfortable."

The man laughs, "I do not fear you, my boy. Both of you, come with me." We follow him through the village.

It seems so peaceful here. There's children playing in the courtyard fountain with paper boats. They laugh and splash each other.

Women walk through the village with clothes baskets on their hips. They stop in the streets to talk to each other.

The men have spears or axes, but they look at ease. They don't scan the skies for Fae or constantly check over their shoulders for the Chameleon.

Charlie's jaw hangs open. "How have you managed this?" He asks.

Winston glances over his shoulder at our stunned expressions. "What do you mean?"

"Every other village we've come across has been overrun by-." I hesitate, glancing at Charlie.

"My kind," he rasps, wings drooping.

Winston smiles. "We have very good defenses. Ah, here we are." He unlocks a door and leads us inside.

The room we're ushered into is a small office built into the side of a community center.

Papers are scattered all over the desk and an old half-full coffee mug is leaving rings on the desk.

Winston settles in behind it and nods to two chairs for us.

We settle down, Charlie struggling to get his wings to rest over the arms.

Winston smiles, as if Charlie's struggling is amusing. He turns his attention to me. "You must be Raven Black."

Charlie's arm snaps out in front of me. "How do you know-?"

"Please, you've got quite the impressive rap sheet, I must say. Head councilwoman's kid, second hand to one of the major leaders of the rebellion, the person Thomas is searching for."

Charlie snaps to his feet and reaches for his sword. "You will never hand Raven over to Thomas. I would sooner die."

"Charlie," I warn.

Winston puts his hands up, calmly. "I don't wish to hand her over to anyone. Least of all Thomas Black."