A soft breeze tickled Abrial's nose.
It tickled again.
Wait a minute — was that a soft breeze? It seemed too…solid, right? And it was moving all around Abrial's forehead, almost like something fluttering and soft.
Finley, thought Abrial. Is that her braid tickling my nose? It smells a little sweet…
Abrial blinked her eyes open. Something small and dark and feathery was obscuring her vision, flapping about like an enormous insect.
"GAH!"
She swatted it away, vaulting to a sitting position. Immediately, she hissed in pain. Not only did the wound in her side sear like a hot iron had been pressed into the tender skin, but her palms simmered painfully as well.
She lifted them to her face to see that they were wrapped with clean linen bandages.
"What the…?"
A sudden breath of coolness on her collarbones prompted her to look down. Abrial frowned deeply.
