The next day I woke up pretty late, but feeling much better. I sat up, rubbing my eyes and after a moment of gathering my thoughts spotted a little table in the corner of the room. A wooden basin stood prepared on top, a big flagon with clear, cool water right next to it. I got up, sleepily walked over and washed my face and hands.
As I was drying myself with a little towel, which I also found on the table, my eyes accidentally fell on a tall mirror, that stood crosswise from the bed. I almost jumped. I completely forgot about the wings... I hesitantly walked up to it and took a closer look.
They were a quite unpleasant contrast to my scrawny, pale silhouette. They rose and fell almost imperceptibly with each of my breaths. They were horrible... they jutted out from behind my back like some ominous shadow, and their inner surface wasn't really black, but faded, intersected by darker lines of supporting edges and delicate veins.
I opened turned away from my reflection with disgust.
I needed some fresh air... Hesitantly, I peeked outside through a slit in the door. I listened for a second and, deeming it safe, ventured outside. I wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone right now, but I wanted to get to know our new "home" a little better.
The room upstairs was arranged into a sort of small library with a big, solid table on the left, the floor made of polished, dark wooden planks. It was well lit thanks to the balcony, that spread across almost the whole length of the wall that looked out to the lake. On the right side the southern and eastern walls were completely covered by huge bookshelves, carrying countless books with leather bindings.
I returned to the level of our bedrooms and went further down. I found what I assumed to be a bathroom... I really wasn't sure. The majority of it was occupied by a sort of big reservoir, carved out in the solid, polished sandstone of the floor and filled with water.
Shortly after I crossed the bridge connecting the two parts of the residence and went down the decorated corridor. I met one person on my way, an old maid carrying fresh tablecloths, and instinctively wanted to back away or hide somewhere. But she just smiled at me, as if there was nothing out of the ordinary and went from one room to another. I sighed and went down the stairs in the entrance hall.
Once outside, I circled the mansion from the east side and headed towards the lake. It was breathtaking. The warm sun rays were bathing the slowly greening forest and blue water in gold. The lake's surface mirrored the little clouds above, that looked like sheep gathering by a watering place.
It was then that I heard soft footsteps on the grass behind my back. I didn't turn around, didn't tell the intruder to go away, nor did I walk away along the shore. I knew who it was. It was obvious, because it felt like nobody was there at all.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Sril's voice mingled perfectly with the serenity of the surroundings. I didn't answer. "Is something wrong?"
"Yes, but... I'm not even sure what..."
Sril seemed to think for a moment, then came a few steps closer. "Is it the wings? Are they still not disappearing?"
I shook my head slightly, starting to feel like his words were slowly helping my doubts to crystallize. "They're... so horrible..."
"Can we sit down for a moment?" he asked. I nodded and we settled down onto the soft grass. "Is it their looks that scare you? Or... is it their meaning?"
"Meaning?"
"Do they seem horrible to you because they make you different?"
I averted my gaze. How could I get mad... he was just right...
"Sian... we all are different. I think most people go through a time in their lives where they think, that they want to be special in some way... and then there are people who really are special, are different, but on the inside they wish nothing more than to just be normal, like everyone else..."
I smiled bitterly, desperately trying to fight tears.
And suddenly felt his cool hand on mine and turned my head to look at him. There was a smile on his face, telling me that here is where he wanted to get to the point. "But it's at this moment, that you have to ask yourself... what is more important to you: being 'normal' or being happy?" My hand stirred involuntarily under his fingers.
I just stared for a long moment, as if mesmerized, then turned my gaze away to look at the sand again. I felt something in his words starting to sink into me and settling somewhere deep in my heart. "Besides, I don't think they look that bad. I suppose you didn't see their outer surface yet?"
I raised my eyebrows. "Is it different?"
"It's very different," he took a firmer hold of my hand and stood up, pulling me to my feet with him. "Try dipping one of them forward and spreading it, just be a bit careful. I assume they are not very flexible yet."
He took a step back and I followed his advice. What I saw stunned me.
The outer surface, invisible to me when I held the wings straight, had the deepest, magnificent shade of pure black. It was entirely different from what I saw in the mirror.
Sril smiled upon seeing my bewildered stare. "They are a bit different from mine, but I still like them very much."
"How do yours look like by the way?" I lifted the wing to its normal position again. "Can I see them?"
"Yes, but maybe a bit later. Try to get used to your own first, alright?" I couldn't help but smile. He always cared so much about other people's feelings... even if he tried to deny it, he seemed to long for the warmth of some relationship.
Two terns passed us, diving from above and settled down by the shore a few meters away. "Oh, and about being different from a bird's wings..." Sril continued, following them with his eyes. "I think ours are far more efficient. Have you ever seen how much time birds spend with keeping their feathers clean and arranged? We don't need to worry about that at all. They also won't soak up water, and they are much more flexible than bird wings. Which makes it easier to adapt to various conditions in the air and gives us an extreme advantage in flight."
I blinked, looking into his emerald eyes. "In... what?"