"Okay! So take that rock, right? And move it over there."

Thomas complied, holding back his smile and failing horribly. As if on command, the rock quickly yet steadily rose off of the ground of the park and moved over to where I was pointing before being set down carefully.

"Anything else?"

"Yes! Take that rock, and put it over there!"

Thomas added the newcomer to my growing pile of rocks stacking up into the sky.

"I can do more than move rocks you know," he said teasingly, his eyes alight with a playful humor.

"Baby steps, Thomas. Baby steps. This whole magic thingy takes some getting used to, and I personally think moving rocks should be a sought after talent."

Thomas mock-sighed and continued to move the rocks I continued to tell him to move. Finally, the mock-sighs began to turn into real ones as boredom replaced his humor. The boredom, however, soon disappeared as one of his stupid birds landed on his shoulder.

Thomas ignored it at first, which seemed to really anger the creature. It grasped a curl of Thomas' hair in its beak and pulled on it, earning itself the attention it so desperately craved.

"What?" Thomas snapped, holding out his hand palm up. The bird landed in it and let out a series of chirps, which were unintelligible to me but no doubt communication for Thomas.

When the bird finished, Thomas nodded thoughtfully.

"What? What is it?"

He shook his head as the bird—Amica, I'm pretty sure—flew off into the sky, disappearing behind a cluster of trees.

"Thomas?"

"I have to go to Perriterra to take care of something." He paused and looked at me, adopting an unsure expression. "Would...would you like to come with me?"

"To Perriterra?"

"Yeah!"

"Absolutely not." I grinned at my own reference and began to sing the rest of the song while Thomas watched me impatiently.

"Are you done yet? Wait, shit! I—Alexander, focus, please!

I laughed. "Do you really dislike my singing that much?"

"No! I just asked you a really important question and you responded with Dear Evan Hansen." He sighed and picked up one of the rocks from the growing tower before rising to his feet and dusting off the dirt and grass that accumulated on his jeans. "Come with me just this once? You saw the worst part of Perriterra. You haven't seen the scenery, the culture, the magic! Plus, there are some people I really need you to meet. Or, uh, re-meet, rather."

"Re-meet?" I asked. "What do you mean?"

"You'll find out. If you really don't like it, I'll leave you alone and you'll never have to worry about it again."

"Why can't you just tell me these things? Fine. I'll go with you if you tell me what you mean by 're-meet'."

Thomas sighed. "You aren't who you think you are."

"Can I ever get a straight answer from you?"

"That makes life boring. Just come with me. Please? I'll never ask anything else from you ever again, I promise. Please? For me?"

"Don't do that," I said, glaring at him as I stood up. "Lead the way."

Thomas smiled, a sight that made me smile as well, in spite of myself. "C'mon. It'll be fun, I promise."

~•~

"I'm never going to get used to that," I murmured as I rubbed my temples gently. Thomas, who had landed with grace and ease, smiled at me in an understanding way and held out his hand. I accepted it, and he swiftly pulled me to my feet.

"Want to fly there?"

"What?"

Thomas was back in his magenta tailcoat and his feathered wings. He gestured to the things that set him apart from the rest of normal society. Or at least, what I perceive as 'normal society'. "Fly. It's the fastest—and most fun—way to get there. You've never lived until you've tried flying before."

"I'd rather not," I returned, eyeing his wings. "Isn't there like... teleportation... as an option?"

"Pleeeease?"

"What happened to never asking for anything else from me ever again?"

Thomas bit his lip in defeat. "You've got me there. But I will take you flying one day. You'll love it! The rush of adrenaline, the feeling of wind against your skin, nothing but open sky for miles and miles! It's wonderful! I've never met a person who didn't love flying! Granted, I've never met a person who could fly who wasn't an Avion, but my point remains!"

"Avion?"

"My people," he returned, frustration lacing his tone. "From Avioneta. Can we go now? This really can't wait."

"Maybe I'll try flying some other time. But for now, can we just take the fastest and least harmful way to get there?"

Thomas sighed. "Fine. If you insist." He held out his hand. "Grab on. Don't let go, no matter what." I did as he instructed. "We'll go slow," he said in a reassuring tone, smiling. He must have sensed the unease I had tried to hide as I grasped his arm as firmly as I could. "Ready?"

I nodded and clamped my eyes shut as I clung to him.

Seconds passed before the nausea started, but it wasn't as bad as it usually was. It stayed for a lot longer however. I was vaguely aware of Thomas sucking in his breath as I dug my fingers into the sleeve of his coat, and most likely the skin of his arm, but he didn't complain.

"You can open your eyes now, Alex. We're here."

I let my eyes fall open, and was sorely disappointed by what I was met with.

"What do you mean? There's nothing here, Thomas."

"Wha—oh! I forgot, you can't see it. Well, we have a spell on our base preventing outside magic from getting in. Therefore, I cannot teleport inside of it."

"Like Hogwarts!"

"Yes, like Hogwarts. It's also hidden to anyone who shouldn't be able to see it, and I guess that includes you. You can also let go of me if you want to."

"Oh," I said, releasing his arm. "Sorry. I didn't mean—"

"No! No, I didn't mean it like th—alright, c'mon." He offered me his hand again, and I stared at it for a few seconds before accepting it. When I did, he smiled and began to walk forwards, pulling me in tow.

Nothing happened at first, but soon, a strange tingling sensation exploded through my body. Suddenly, a magnificent castle appeared in front of me.

Thomas looked pleased with himself.

"Do you live here?" I said with awe.

"Well, sorta? Technically, yes, but it isn't my home. If that makes any sense."

He led me inside, and I was utterly fascinated by the architecture and style of the palace.

"If you like this, wait until you see Avioneta! You'd love it."

"You're very proud of your homeland, aren't you?"

"Well, isn't everyone? And it certainly helps that my homeland just so happens to be the best place in any dimension ever conceived!"

I grinned and let go of his hand to admire a nearby portrait hanging from the wall. "When do I get to 're-meet' these people you want me to?"

"Couple of minutes. If everything goes well."

"What if it doesn't go well?" I asked, turning to face him.

His expression fell in a matter of moments. "Crap! What if you're right? What if everything doesn't go well? What if someone dies!"

"Okay, Thomas, I didn't mean to worry you."

"This was a horrible idea," he decided, turning. "We'll do this some other time. Come on, let's go."

"We can't go now—"

"Yes we can! Come on, I—"

"Thomas!" exclaimed a new voice. I turned to look at a nearby staircase. "I thought I heard you."

Thomas swallowed nervously and sent me a pleading look.

"Did you bring me back something?"

"No...?"

The other man, significantly shorter than Thomas and dressed in gray, frowned. He had dark skin and seemed to have an intelligent and curious way about him. He struck me as a person who never stopped questioning the world around him.

"Why do you even bother going to Earth, then?" he asked. "You're needed here. You need to stop running off."

Thomas rolled his eyes like a man who had heard the same spiel a hundred times before and had ignored it all hundred times. 

"Anyway, the others are upstairs. We're trying to research the spell you mentioned the other day, but we can't find anything on it."

I joined the two others and pushed my hands into my pockets, watching with interest.

Thomas smiled at me and crossed his arms. "This is James," he said, breaking into the other man's rhetoric about some sort of memory loss spell. "He's an asshole."

James, who showed a keen dislike for being interrupted, glared up at Thomas and shifted his gaze to me.

"Hi," I began, holding out my hand. "I'm—" I stopped dead short as a look of horror, disbelief, and flat out shock exploded through his face.

His next words were not intended to be as cold as they were, and I doubt he meant them in the way they came off, but they still chilled me to the core.

"You're supposed to be dead."