Don't Forget

13. The Hawk and The Rabbit

Maion's wings were recovering. They could flap and lift her off the ground, but she wasn't quite ready for long-distance travel yet. And her mood had calmed. She had apologized to me as soon as she came back from the hospital, assuring me that she hadn't been angry with me but upset that she couldn't fly.

            It had been a week since the Coliseum Battle, and everyone was almost back to usual again. Creatures healed at an exponential rate, so within a mere seven days, their injuries had gotten better or disappeared completely. Cassiel still had a limp that he refused to acknowledge, and May needed a little more time before she got her ability to fly back.

            But a week was enough time to return to school as normal. It was as if the battle had never even happened. As though Mirielle and Zakary had never fought. As though it had just been a bad dream, and everyone was now awake.

            In fact, that Friday, Maion was preparing for a party. The angels decided to go out for the night and celebrate their rankings: with an angel as number one, and the other top ranks dominated by angels, they figured that was enough reason to party. And so, May pulled out her clubbing finest and was twirling about the room.

            As usual, she looked stunning. A pink A-line cocktail dress followed her curves and hugged her waist. Four-inch silver heels made her taller and her legs slimmer. Her caramel tresses fell in feathery waves about her shoulders, and her makeup emphasized the flawlessness of her face.

            She giggled, spinning in front of the mirror. She paused to glance at me and shot me a smile. "Come with us, Amy."

            My smile was small. "Thanks, but I'll pass. Besides, it's only for the angels. I'd just be imposing on everyone."

            She waved my words away and grabbed my hands. She pulled me to my feet. "You know we'd love to have you around. A human is just what this party needs."

            "I'll feel weird, being the only human there," I insisted, taking my hands from hers and rubbing my arm.

            May's lips pursed into a thin line and she regarded me with worry for a moment. "Hey, are you feeling okay? You haven't been acting like your usual self lately."

            "I haven't?"

            "You normally don't concern yourself with details like who's human and who's not. I mean, you've always been the awkward one out, but you've never attributed it to being human or otherwise. It's just . . . Things have felt off lately. You sure everything's okay?"

            I didn't want to admit to her that I had felt left out ever since the Coliseum Battle. So I attempted a convincing smile and said, "Yes, I'm fine. I guess I haven't quite recovered from the brutality of the battle yet or something."

            With a sigh, she wrapped her arms around me and squeezed tight. "We're built for that stuff, Amy. You shouldn't worry so much about it."

            The best I could do was shrug, and I returned to sitting on my bed. I sat crisscross and hoped I didn't look preoccupied with my sadness.

            Maion turned back to the mirror above her dresser and applied lip gloss. "Well, if you aren't going to join me at the party, what are you going to do here by yourself?"

            "By myself?"

            "Yeah. The werewolves are going to celebrate in the forest about one of their kind making it to the second rank. I bet you there'll be psychedelic drugs involved." She chuckled. "And the vampires are off doing god-knows-what. I've never understood their idea of fun.