✖︎TW: Mention of blood, unwanted touching.✖︎
Elijah was woken by a loud, rattling sound. It shook the plastic container. He sat up and was startled by one of the children's faces pressed against the plastic.
They tapped their finger against it, making a sound that made Elijah's headache worse. Martha came over to look at what her brother was doing. She pushed him aside.
"You're scaring her!" She called. She picked up the container and looked inside. "Don't worry. I've got you. He's just dumb."
"Hey!" Benny yelled. Martha stuck her tongue out at him and left the room. She went into her own bedroom which still had some boxes that needed to be unpacked.
Martha put the container down on her dresser and hurried over to her bed. She came back holding things made of paper in her hands.
She held one up to the container for Elijah to look at. It was a dress cut out with paper. There was yellow marker scribbled on it for color. She held up another one that looked like a pink ballerina skirt. The last one was like a ballgown with five different colors.
"Do you like them? Which one is your favorite?" Martha asked and held all three up again. Elijah sat there in confusion so Martha chose one for him. She took the ballgown and put the others to the side. She then looked over the lid.
She lowered her gaze back down. "Don't fly away. I'm gonna open the lid and drop this in for you." She grabbed onto the tape. Because it was so strong, it made the container jolt forwards as she pulled on it.
Martha held the container with one hand and used her other hand to pull the tape off. It made that loud shrieking sound again. Elijah covered his ears but stared up at the lid instead of curling up again. He could fly out as soon as she opened it.
Martha finally got the tape off and threw it in the trash. She used her huge little fingers to pry the lid off.
As soon as she did, Elijah tried to fly out. He only got about an inch off the ground before he felt a sharp pain in his wing. He immediately fell back down. He tried again, barely getting off the ground. Martha frowned.
"She's injured!" She cried. She stuck her hand in the container. Elijah quickly tried to get away from her, but the small space he was stuck in made that difficult. She grabbed him, pinching her fingers on his waist. Elijah tried his best to squeeze his way out of her fist, but she held on too tight.
Her eyes lit up as she brought Elijah closer to herself. She dropped him in her other hand, then cupped him in her hands so he wouldn't fall.
"You're so tiny!" She giggled. Elijah wobbled as he stood up in her uneven hands. He looked over at the ground.
'Would a fall from this height kill me?' He scanned his surroundings for alternatives while the little girl marveled at his characteristics. It was soon decided that there was no other place to go. The dresser was bare. She'd just grab him again. There were no boxes close enough to fall on but close enough to hide behind after he jumped off.
Elijah quickly tried to climb out of the girl's hands. She panicked and went to grab him again.
Elijah stopped as he felt an agonizing pain. He screamed and fell back down. Martha quickly let go and dropped him on the dresser in panic, hurting him more. Elijah looked back at where the little girl had grabbed him.
He noticed a tear in his wing. He gasped and covered his mouth as tears fell from his eyes. Before, the pain would've soon gone away and he'd be able to escape.
But now, he was trapped. A tear can't heal on its own. It needs medical attention. And even then it took a long time to heal. The little girl gasped. She picked him back up and ran downstairs. She held both hands on top of each other like a sphere to protect Elijah from falling.
