Arina was staring at the chess board on the table. The glass marbles littered on the chess board particularly intrigued her. She wanted to peck at them. But deep down she knew those marbles were not playthings. As if following a memory, she picked up one marble. The coolness from the marble seeped through her skin and into her body. She placed the marble into a container. Then she picked up another and repeated the action. Soon the whole chess board was clear. She felt that she had done this countless of times, clearing up the chessboard after a match of chess.
Countless of times? When? Chess was a pastime for human, not birds. Why would she be playing? With whom? She stared at the container holding the white marbles. She picked up one and placed it on the chessboard. Immediately, someone placed a piece of black marble on the chessboard. She looked up and found Carlisle smiling at her.
"This time you couldn't cheat."
