(Amaia)

His staggering frame fills the doorway as he walks in, dominating the place, making it shrink. An unspoken weight he seems to carry on those broad shoulders of his. His scythe is missing from his back.

"I brought your stuff," his voice rumbles out, his presence commands attention.

My gaze travels down to his leg, and I see it has been bandaged; most probably, TJ did it.

Placing the jar on the table, I extend my hand and take my bag from him, putting it on the table too.

He lingers, like a large shadow, watching me.

"How is Mintaka? When can I go see him?" I ask, taking out the new metallic bird feeder for Zille. It has tiny butterflies decorating it, painted blue and purple, the colour of his feathers. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"He is fine, a little shaken but nothing serious," he pauses, his eyes don’t waver from my hands where I pour Zille’s food into the bird feeder. "Let him rest for tonight."

I quietly nod.

"Is that for your pet?" He points towards the bird feeder.

"Yes, I have a pet grackle in the very same colours as these butterflies. I think he will like it." Filling up the feeder, I close the lid and place it near Zille’s wooden house.

"Thank you for saving our lives, you were exceptional."

Turning my head, I watch him over my shoulder. The man is as tall as Rigel but much broader than him, filled in just the right places.

He watches me back, hiding his emotions under this mask of indifference but it has cracks in it. Either he doesn’t know or he can’t hide it all that well.

"Why didn’t you close your eyes like I asked you? Everyone else did," he asks, leaning against the opposite wall, near the door and crossing his buffed arms.

"I tried but I couldn’t keep them shut, knowing you will be fighting it alone," I unapologetically say.

"Do you always ignore instructions and orders like this?" He narrows his eyes at me.

"Not always and especially not on purpose," I sheepishly answer. "How were you so unaffected by the nightmares?"

A tiny but grim smile graces his lips at my question. "I have already experienced my worst nightmares, nothing affects me anymore."

His dark answer shakes my heart, making me wonder what this man must have endured.

"How were you able to break free from the nightmares so quickly? Once you get stuck it’s not easy," he asks, tad curious. Some of his dark hair has slipped out of his half-manbun and arches in front of his eyes.

"I don’t know, I have never faced one before. Always thought they were just tales meant to scare kids."

"Hmm, Chittering doesn’t exist in Orion or so we thought. Seems like they do and we have to be extra careful. I have informed Alnilam and he will have a session with you all regarding them," he calmly says, unpeeling himself from the wall and taking a step closer to me.

He smells like leather and a misty night. All mysterious and dark.

I stay where I am, not taking a step back and keeping eye contact with him. His presence is overwhelming but in a protective way.

"Next time, listen to my command, Amaia. I am glad you are safe," his carefully chosen words are veiled in a quiet, almost possessive concern.

"I will try, no promises," I truthfully answer, listening to commands is not really my thing. "How is your leg?" I question further.

My eyes travel down to his leg again. That must have left him a nasty wound.

"You should sleep now, the experience was traumatic enough for all of you." He completely ignores my question and takes a step back, ready to leave.

I have so many questions for him, especially related to his weapon.

"Where did you get that scythe? Is it only charmed, or does it possess your magic as well?"

I ask, remembering his mammoth scythe which had literally saved our lives today. The thrill of touching such a fine weapon and learning about it would be special.

He stares at me with a guarded care before speaking, "Go to bed, good night Amaia."

With that, he simply turns on his heels and walks out the door, quietly closing it behind him with a small click.

I exhale once he is gone, not even realising I am holding my breath.

"Now that was an awkward conversation," I mutter to myself and slip under the comfort of my blanket.

The events of the day replay in my mind as I close my eyes. The nightmares have felt so real, the screams of my mother and brother. It has shaken me, then.

How was Saiph so unaffected?

And what did he mean by he has already lived all his nightmares?

What happened to him?

My thoughts are interrupted by another small knock on the door followed by Kacir’s voice.

"Amaia, I am coming in."

"You can," I answer, flipping the blanket so I can watch him. Kacir opens the door to enter. I notice he has a tiny silly grin on his face.

"Someone took his time to return," I purposely tease and a small blush flashes on his visible cheek.

He rubs the back of his head. "Yeah! I went to Rahria’s room just to ensure she didn’t feel alone and frightened. She was pretty shaken from the whole experience."

"I understand, Kacir. You don’t have to explain yourself. She is your mate."

He smiles at my answer. "How are you?"

"I am good, just worried about Mintaka."

Seriousness descends on Kacir’s face as he moves to the cupboard to extract his nightsuit.

"Yes, he got the worst of it. I hope he is doing better. They have forbidden us from going to the infirmary."

"We will go tomorrow," I assure him and he nods before heading to the bathroom to change.

I close my eyes, ducking under the blanket when I hear the fluttering of wings and something heavy lands on the upper part of my chest.

A grin descends on my face, knowing who it is. Slowly I flip the blanket and open my eyes to find Zille sitting on me, staring with that annoyed look he always carries.

It’s less angry when he is looking at me and Kacir, but for others, he is ready to peck or fight them with his beak. He is not friendly or maybe because he got hurt somehow, he doesn’t trust people.

"Hey, gorgeous. You are here." My hand lands on his head, slowly patting him, and he just melts into my touch; all that annoyance evaporates as his beak comes and rubs against my lips, showing his affection. It is like soft pecks on my lips.

"Once you are done showing your love, I brought you something." I point towards the bird feeder and he nods at me, understanding.

Seriously, he is amazing and I couldn’t have asked for a better pet than him.

He takes flight and lands near the bird feeder, happily chirruping at it, nibbling at it with his beak.

He likes it.

This swells my heart.