“I can’t seem to quiet my mind today.”
She chuckles and stretches her legs out in front of her. I roll my shoulders, trying to itch my wings against the leather.
Everything is bothering me today.
My brain hurts from the stress of my duties, my heart still aches from the loss of my parents, and my body aches with the changes brought upon by my wings and the skills I practice every day in training.
Mina studies me briefly and grins. “All right, let’s start with what you’re feeling physically.”
I hang my head and sigh through my nose. “I don’t mean to be whiny,” I mutter.
She pats my thigh. “It’s not whiny, just tell me what you’re feeling.”
I tilt my head up to the sky, watching the light filter through the green leaves. “My wings itch and throb every second of every day. I can feel each feather as it pierces my flesh. My muscles are always sore from training or stress, and my heart aches.”
“I have a solution for most of that.” Mina nods thoughtfully.
My eyes flick to hers. “Really?”
She nods. “But we need to calm your mind first.” She pokes me in the forehead. “What’s going on up there?”
I lean back on my hands and stare out at the sea. “Too much. I’m lost again. I don’t know where I should be leading us. I know I’m doing the right thing by restoring our old ways, but what’s next? And I’m angry.So angry. They killed my parents, and I’m just sitting here, doing absolutely nothing.”
The words tumble out of me.
I hadn’t realized I had kept them bottled up.
I am furious, and the rage is consuming me more than I had realized.
“I was used, lied to, and betrayed.”
Mina dips her chin, sadness lining her features. “I was wondering when you would realize that.”
I take a breath, and it finally fills my entire chest.
“Close your eyes,” she whispers. “Hold on to that anger, and with each exhale, I want you to let it go.”
We take long, slow breaths together, and I work to let it all go.
“Anger can be a good thing,” she whispers, “when you sharpen it into a weapon you can wield. But you have used it to hinder yourself from reaching your full potential.It’s holding you back. So you must let it go.”
Her words, coupled with my controlled breathing, lull me into a state of peace, and I begin to feel lighter.
It’s a long while before I realize she hasn’t spoken in some time, and my breathing is slow and steady. I’m not quite asleep, but not fully awake either; I’m relaxed in a place in between.
Slowly, I float back to the surface of my body, my pain gone, the itching of my new wings easily ignorable. Mina twirls a cedar needle between her fingers. The wings I rarely see on her are out on full display.
“I think your wings are big enough now. I can teach you to vanish them so they won’t bother you so much.”
I nod and study her wings closely. A few scars mar the tops of them where the feathers are attached.
She notices my scrutiny and smiles sadly. “I might have lied a bit about my childhood,” she murmurs. My stomach sinks. “My parents did use me as a weapon against each other, but first, they had to hone me into one. Weapons aren’t allowed to have weaknesses, and wings are sensitive things.”
Her eyes darken with the weight of her memories, and I swallow hard.
My eyes burn with unshed tears. “Oh, Mina, I am so sorry,” I whisper.
“I learned very quickly how to hide the things that were important to me, but you’ll have plenty of time to learn.” I nodquickly, but my chest begins throbbing for the kind soul that is my friend.
