“New people and new places can be scary. But without new changes, a creature’s life will remain dull, with their wings bound by their own hands”

-Azol, Sephiroth Chief of the Nidus

“What are you?”

Listening to his own voice, William is aware that he sounded as dumb as the question he unconsciously asked. A blush appeared on his face out of embarrassment, especially since he messed up in front of a girl despite her obvious non-human appearance. 

“Welp, that settles it. You’re definitely a stray human! considering your lack of common sense and obvious sign of still having a pulse. And for starters, before you start calling be me a bird or something, I’m a Sephiroth ok kid”

“A Sephiroth?”

“Yeah, SEphiROth. Learn to pronounce it right”

Unlike from earlier the teen now seemed to be more distant and tone more annoyed. William was flustered over how to react to this and if he should even react in the first place.

“And kid just in case you think you're dreaming or something, hate to break it to you, but you aren’t. This is as real as it could get”

As if the girl could read what was on his mind, she corrected his idea. William’s first reaction was to deny it but based on the pain he was feeling from the Sephiroth’s earlier grip on his hands, he most certainly wasn’t currently dreaming.

“Then what’s going on?” 

His question came out as a weak murmur of a confused kid and he hated it.

The older teen tilted her head and black pupils seemed to have dilated a bit. She scratched her head and sighed loudly. The girl stood up from the ground and flexed her wings a bit before pulling him up as well.

“I can’t really answer that but I do know someone who can. Since you kinda look harmless I can bring you to our nests but make sure you behave ok. By the way, I still haven’t introduced myself, the name is Ignia Falco. What’s yours?”

Ignia offered him to take her to her home to have somebody explain what was currently going on with him but he was still hesitant since he didn’t have a clue where he was and if he could trust her. But he knew that it was either he would accept or he’d have to explore the possibly dangerous forest. So his decision was obvious.

“Thank you for the help, and my name is William Woods”

He heard a snort come from Ignia that was immediately followed by laughter. William looked up to see the teen wheezing and barely able to keep that grin on her face.

“A person surnamed Wood whose lost in the Woods! How fitting! or is it ironic instead?”

William felt his face heat up in anger or maybe embarrassment as he complained to himself that it wasn’t funny. Nothing about this situation is funny.

But to his chagrin, Ignia continued to laugh and joke. It also seemed that her wings joined in, as they lightly flapped with each laughter that came from the girl.

‘At least she seemed much more relaxed now’

The blue eyed boy noticed how after laughing a bit, Ignia’s posture didn’t seem as stiff as it was before and her tone seems to have begun friendlier. Now relaxing himself relaxing a bit, he began to notice more details about Ignia. For example her clothes.

She didn’t wear clothes made of cotton but rather ones made of silk, plants, and even animal hides. They covered her chest like a tank top would and her bottom like a khaki pant. It looked far from the normal clothes he was used to seeing but he had to admit they looked kinda nice.

“Before we go to our nest, can I ask you something?”

Ignia asked him while they walked on the forest floors. 

After the girl’s laughing fit she had told him that it would take at least half an hour of travel before reaching the nests. So they had been traveling by foot now for about 20 minutes.

“Yes, What is it?”

“Are you afraid of heights?”

‘huh’

William was surprised when Ignia suddenly cackled like a mad person when he didn't understand why she asked the question. But his guts told him that whatever the Sephiroth was thinking wasn’t good for him.

When they finally reached their destination after another twenty minutes of walk, he finally understood why she had laughed at him as she did.

‘How could I have been so dumb, Sephiroths have wings, of course, they lived on trees’

William looked with awe at the towering trees upon him. Golden trunks of massive girth as thick as fifteen men sprang from the brown rich soil covered by grass the color of amber. Sprawling branches that seem to reach the heavens give birth to pointed bronze leaves as big as his hand.

Multiple trees grew on the space of land in front of them and each tree had a house perched on top and cradled by the long branches. The treehouse was made from wood and the roof from straw and thick oversize leaves. Each house differs in the number of floors and size but all of them had terraces that didn't have any stairs connected to them. 

He also noticed the odd appearance of multiple straw ropes that were tied to the branches and connected each tree. Hanging from the ropes were multiple bells that swing as the wind passes through them. Yet somehow the bells didn’t make any sounds at all.

“Welcome to Nidus, the home for the Winged ones, the Sephiroths. So no stairs here”

Ignia declared with great pride as she moved away from him and let her wings spread open. Brown wings with pointed feathers spread wide and flapped themselves as she took off in the air.

The wind from the flaps made William’s hair turn into a mess and hit his face. He heard Ignia snicker from where she was flying at and the boy shot her a glare.

The Sephiroth merely grinned and held out her hand towards him.

“Come on, it ain't like you can fly up there yourself. I’ll try to be careful so don’t worry”

Fear flashed in his sapphire eyes as he watched the hand that was held out to him but he pushed down his worries and laid his hands over her.

Ignia’s grin grew wider and sharp teeth reflected his expression. Then he froze in place before he felt himself being pulled up and having his feet leave the ground.

Excitement with a mix of fright swelled in his chest and he found himself smiling and laughing along Ignia as felt the weightlessness of his body. The wind flowed around him and he felt a slight resistance due to their speed hitting him but nothing too bad. William wanted to observe his surroundings as Ignia took him for a flight but his eyes instinctively closed themselves and they didn't open until he felt his feet land again on solid ground.

He looked in front of him to see that he was in the largest treehouse. He couldn’t help but stare until he heard Ignia’s voice beside him.

“This is the house of the Chief of our tribe, my father. Come in and let’s know how in the name of the winds did you get here”