The sky was grey, swirling with clouds like stormy waves.
Above them, high in the cold misty air, a girl floated — her white dress fluttering, her long hair sticking to her wet cheeks. Behind her were wings—once brilliant, but now bloodied and torn.
Tears streamed from her eyes, mixing with the red dripping from her side.
She had been stabbed.
By her own sister.
"Why…?" she whispered weakly, her voice fading into the wind.
A blade still buried deep in her stomach, her wings half-cut, feathers scattering like ashes. Her eyes widened, heart aching — not just from pain, but from betrayal.
Then came the fall.
Her body started to descend… slowly at first… then faster.
Down.
Down.
But to where?
No light. No ground.
Only clouds and darkness.
She didn't scream.
She didn't resist.
She closed her eyes… and passed out.
---
Somewhere distant, in a place far away from the skies and the blood — a child's voice echoed softly.
> "Mommy… please come back. Your princess is missing you."
"I miss you more than all the stars."
---
Back in the human world...
Addie lay on her bed, drenched in sweat.
Her lips moved, whispering something too quiet to hear.
Her body twitched slightly.
> "No… please… don't…"
Her brows furrowed. Her hands clenched the bedsheet tightly. A single tear rolled down her cheek.
She was in pain. Not physical — something deeper.
Then—
BZZZZZZZ BZZZZZZZZ.
The alarm on her phone buzzed loud beside her ear.
Addie gasped and sat up straight. Her heart raced. Her breath came fast.
She looked around — her room was the same. Posters on the wall. Books scattered on the desk. A cracked mirror in the corner. Nothing out of place.
Except her.
Outside her room, the house was already alive with chaos.
"Addie!" her mom called from the kitchen. "You're going to be late for college!"
Addie rubbed her eyes, wiped the sweat from her neck, and pushed herself out of bed.
She stepped into the hallway.
Her little brother Zac was lying on the living room couch, playing video games on full volume.
Her sister Mira was dancing in front of the mirror, music blasting through her Bluetooth speaker.
Their mother was in the kitchen, flipping parathas on the pan and muttering about how nobody helps her in the morning.
Just another day.
Or so it seemed.
Addie walked into the kitchen, opened the fridge, grabbed a bottle of cold water, and took a long sip. She leaned against the counter, her hand pressed to her forehead.
The pain from the dream was still there — a dull throbbing behind her eyes.
"Another bad dream?" her mother asked, glancing over her shoulder.
Addie nodded slowly. "Yeah… since childhood… it's always the same."
Her mother frowned, concerned. "You want to go to the church again? Maybe the priest will—"
"No, leave it, Mom," Addie cut her off, her tone sharper than she meant. "They're all just… thugs. Always asking for donations and telling me to light ten candles."
Her mom sighed but said nothing.
Addie took another sip of water and stared at the floor.
Why did the same dream haunt her for years?
The flying… the falling… the little girl's voice…
And the man.
She didn't know who he was — but every time he spoke in her dreams, her heart ached like it remembered him.
---
"Addie! Come play with me!" Zac shouted, waving his game controller.
Addie grabbed a nearby pillow and threw it at him. "You skipped school again, didn't you?"
Zac ducked and laughed. "Miss Katie scolded me last time for not doing homework. So what's the point of going?"
Addie rolled her eyes. "That's the dumbest logic ever. You don't skip school because of scolding!"
He grinned. "You love me too much to stay mad."
"I love you enough to throw you out the window if you fail again," she teased, walking past him.
She reached the bathroom and turned on the light.
In the mirror, she saw her reflection — pale, tired, eyes full of questions. She touched the feather pendant around her neck.
It shimmered again.
Not brightly.
But just enough.
She looked at it silently.
What are you?
And why do I feel like I've worn you before... in another life?
"Okay," she muttered to herself. "Quick shower. Then class."
She stepped into the bathroom, but something tugged at her mind.
The little girl's voice from her dream echoed again.
"I miss you more than all the stars…"
Why did that sound more real than anything else in her life?