I was awakened by Taylor. It seemed that the rain had stopped. Yawning, I looked outside the tent. The roads were covered in water. This was going to be fun. All I ever wanted was to walk around in soggy boots. I could have flown, but I was still too weak. Just materializing my wings was a chore.

I gathered the tent up and hung it from a tree nearby. There was no way I was carrying wet leather all day. While the tent was drying, I decided to venture into the woods. I was starting to feel hungry, and I was betting Taylor was hungry too. It was time to see if my hunting lessons paid off.

It was quiet in the woods. Besides the sounds of birds flying around, it was as if everything was asleep. I wondered if I would even spot anything. Then, I saw something move. I ducked down and waited for it to come into view. It was a decent-sized rabbit. It wouldn’t count as a meal for both of us, but it would keep us from starving. Summoning my bow, I notched an arrow. I steadied myself as I pulled the string back. Taking aim, I held my breath and released the arrow.

The arrow struck its mark. A sadness washed over me. Although I knew we needed food, I was sad that the poor creature had to die. I felt a tear roll down my cheek. Dad said it was normal to mourn for the animal, but we would be left eating veggies if we didn’t kill. I have nothing against vegans, but I do love my meat. It was just more comfortable when you go to the store and bought it.

Returning to our temporary campsite, Taylor screamed when she saw what I was carrying.

“Angel. How could you? That poor bunny,” Taylor cried. I knew how she felt, but at the same time, I didn’t know what vegetation was around, and it wasn’t like we had bought any food for the road. Being poor meant we had to resort to primitive means.

“I know how you feel, Taylor, but we cant go hungry. The next town we come across, I will try to earn us some coin so we can buy meat,” I said, trying to console her. She shook her head.

“I don’t want to eat the rabbit. I am fine,” Taylor tried to convince me, even though her stomach protested. Sighing, I shook my head. She was stubborn. I understood her feelings, but at this point, we had little choice.

“I promise this will be the last time I kill a rabbit, but you do need to eat. We don’t know when the next time we will find a town is. I can see the towns on the map, but I can’t judge the distance in days,” I said. With a quivering lip, Taylor nodded.

Taylor had decided to try and find us some dryish firewood so that she didn’t have to watch me dress the rabbit. I never liked skinning, but it had to be done. It wasn’t like we could just eat it with the fur still attached. I mean, I probably could in wolf form, but I didn’t want to try. I felt bad enough, just eating it cooked.

After Taylor came back with a decent amount of wood, I started a fire and found a couple of sticks for roasting the rabbit. It smelled delicious as it started to turn golden brown. There was no need for utensils as it was easy to tear pieces off. Taylor reluctantly took hers. She was crying as she ate her meat. Once the rabbit was gone, I put the fire out, gathered up the tent, and stuffed it in the pack. It was time to move on.

As we traveled, Taylor turned to me.

“Angel, I know that you feel responsible for Maddison, but I have to ask. Why did you jump through that portal? Why did you have to play the hero? I don’t get it. You said you were going to be done playing a hero. Why didn’t you let someone else rescue her? I mean, it wasn’t that long ago that your mom died,” Taylor asked. I knew that this would eventually come up. I didn’t answer her right away. Instead, I pondered on her question.

I think it was because I couldn’t save mom. The healing powers that I used on that cop haven’t been working. I tried the day my legs got burnt. I don’t know why, but I just couldn’t. I thought, if I saved Maddison, maybe I would feel a little better. But instead, I got us trapped in a world we don’t even know,” I said as tears started streaming down my face. This was the first time I had admitted this to anyone. I kept thinking, was it something that I did. Did the goddess punish me for something? Why hadn’t my healing powers worked?

“That wasn’t your fault. There was nothing you could have done. I saw your mom. Even if you had tried to use your healing powers, that pole punctured her heart. You would have had to remove it to heal her,” Taylor said as she stopped me and pulled me into a hug. I wanted to believe what she was saying, but the fact of the matter was, I failed my mom. If I hadn’t been around, none of this would have happened.

“It was still my fault. I am the reason mom is dead and the reason that Maddison was kidnapped. Some hero I turned out to be,” I said, burying my face into her shoulder. She held me there for a while. Then she pulled me away.

“None of it was your fault. This goddess of yours messed with your life. And that man, whatever he was, provoked you. The cards were stacked against you. Then there is the fact that Mr. Carver wanted to play heroes and villains and drug us all into it. So in a way, it was his fault too,” Taylor said. I heard what she was saying, but it didn’t change how I felt. Then a question came to mind.

“Why did you stay? After you saw what I became, what I did to that monster, why did you stay with me?” I asked. I watched as her face turned from sympathetic to angry. I could only guess what was about to happen.

“Why did I stay? What kind of question is that. I fucking love you, That’s why. You are the sweetest, most caring person I know. I know that what happened to you wasn’t you. YES, it scared the hell out of me. But I knew that deep down, you would have never willingly killed that monster. That’s why it killed your mom. That man wanted you to become that… thing.” she said before slapping me. I guessed I deserved that.

“But…” I started to say, but Taylor placed her finger over my lips.

“But nothing. I know who you are, so you need to stop blaming yourself. No one else does,” Taylor said before kissing me. “Now, let’s head to the next town. I am sure someone has heard about that man and Maddison by now. If not, we can at least ask about this girl with a marking on her hand,” Taylor said. I nodded and looked at the map.

“There is a fork in the road. I think we should take the left path when we get there,” I said. Taylor nodded.

“Sounds like a plan,” Taylor said as we started walking again. No matter what I did, it seemed that this girl truly loved me. When we got home, I swore I was going to marry her.