“All creatures who grow used to normalcy will without a doubt be shocked by things from the unknown. But how we adapt to it will depend on the individual”

-Zula, Elder Seer of the Cetos tribe

When William woke up, the first thing he noticed was that he had a splitting headache. It felt as if someone had hit him in the back of the head with a sledgehammer.

He groaned as he slowly moved to sit up, his hands met with cold wet soil and he flitched before abruptly backing away. His sudden movement seems to have aggravated his headache as the pain got a lot worse.

He first blinked a couple of times before his eyes got used to his dim surroundings. The pit he was one was quite a big whole, enough for him to fit even if he lay flat on his back and spread his hands and legs. But he was thankful that it was probably low enough for him to climb out with the help of the tree roots if he tried his best.

William looked up and saw a dark sky. He knew that it was probably already near if not past midnight.

“Mom’s gonna kill me”

The black-haired boy cried out as he covered his face with his hands and sighed.

Yesterday was Wednesday so when morning comes it will be a school day and he most definitely will be late. But to him, it wasn’t even a problem about his classes since he doesn’t have any friends but, more of because he was afraid of being scolded by his parents for landing himself into this situation.

He stood up and brushed off the dirt from his shirt and pants. He observed the pit was taller than him by a head so he cursed his low height. Suddenly alarm then blared at his thoughts when he noticed that his phone wasn’t in his pockets.

William looked around the pit to see if his phone was anywhere to be seen but to no avail. He then concluded that maybe it had fallen when he was either chasing the cat or when he fell into this newly formed pit.

‘So my phone should be up there or somewhere in the cemetery. Oh great’

Sarcasm dripped from his thoughts as he began to contemplate how to get out. 

Then to his surprise, he heard footsteps heading towards him from above. The boy was about to yell for help when his mind came to a halt and dread filled his consciousness.

After all, what kind of person goes to the cemetery of all places at the dead of night? It couldn't be the groundskeeper since he once saw the old man and how he walked slower than a snail. Those footsteps were far too steady and fast to be him.

His heart hammered on his chest as fright took hold of him. He could feel the fear wrap its skeletal hands over him and strangle the air out of his lungs.

“Hey! Is anybody stuck down there?! I heard the sound of somebody falling. Are you okay?”

Somehow, instead of the grisly voice of a psychopathic serial killer like he imagined, it was a voice of a girl who seemed to be a few years older, greeted him.

William deflated in relief and raised his hands out of the pit so the girl could see it.

“I’m over here! Can you help me!?”

He replied just as loud as the girl and waved his hands even harder.

it seems like the girl spotted him because the footsteps got closer and faster. The boy was grateful that someone was there to help him because he knows that even if he could get out of this pit it would take a lot of time and effort.

As for the reason why he wasn’t suspicious of the girl being in the cemetery?

It was because he had heard from snippets of conversations between his classmates that some teens at senior high occasionally hang out at either the cemetery or park at night just to be rebellious or something. He would lose count of how many times his parents would tell him to be unlike those teenagers and instead be a behaved and good person. They would always say that it was his own good and he actually believes them on that. After all, what good would alcohol and drugs do to him?

When the footsteps were close enough, he heard the person sit down. William raised his head up to see another person looking at him.

He only managed to see the neck and head of the girl but he realized that something was wrong.

The girl had long auburn hair types to a braid and warm tanned skin which was unusual here in New Oregon but still acceptable. What stood out was her eyes, they were a shocking color of Orange that slightly leans to yellow. She also had weird intricate patterns painted on her face in the shade of bright yellow.

William concluded that the girl may be using contact lenses but the weird patterns…..were just weird.  

‘She probably just came from a party or something’

He shoved away from his complicated thoughts and let the girl take hold of his hands and pull him out.

William mumbled out a thanks as his consciousness was clear enough to comprehend that another teenager, albeit older, was in front of him.

Bad habits are easy to slip in and he pulled himself back into his cocoon and turned back to old introverted William who is useless at social interactions.

The girl didn’t seem to mind it though thankfully and started a one-sided conversation with him. 

“-And winds be damned! I swear you damn kids just get on getting yourselves caught in the traps that are meant to catch dinner instead of you little menaces! Oh! I’m definitely going to tattle on the Chief so you lit- wait, you're not a……..are you a troll? no, a human!? how did you get here!?”

William continued to listen to the girl’s unintelligible rambles when he started to piece together what she what’s talking about.

‘Wait, don’t tell me she’s drunk? But she’s not slurring her word. Oh no, maybe she’s on drugs! I hope not’

The girl kept on talking with herself about how it was impossible for him to be here and that no human should exist here and so on.

He had the urge to roll his eyes and get as far away as possible from the clearly high-on-something teenager but in the end, the girl still saved him from being stuck in the pit for far longer than he wanted to.

“Um, thank you for the help but I should really be going home now”

He politely said to the girl as he began to move away, except his wrist was held in a tight grip by the other teen.

“Are you a ghost that lost his memory? After all, only the dead souls of mortal creatures banished from Eve are allowed to even pass by the Hollow Woods”

William was absolutely done with the delusional rambles and was about to snap at the girl when a sight that should be possible appeared before his eyes.

Behind the girl were large pointed wings currently folded close, it resembled the wings of a falcon. 

Brown feathers with stripes of white and black and soft tuffs of light small feathers cover her back. And in place of where her feet are supposed to be are sharp yellow talons of a bird.

He also only now noticed that he wasn’t in the familiar cemetery anymore but rather, a forest with Evergreen trees growing in impossible heights.

‘How could I have not noticed that’

When he continued to gawk, the girl merely raised an eyebrow and rolled her eyes.

Finally, William thought that maybe the delusional one was him because this could only be either a delusion or a dream, he prays that it’s the latter.