When the Lost are Found

Life had sure gone downhill fast.

Trinity was usually pretty good at keeping herself in high spirits, not one to stay down long, but lately things had been a little bit harder. She kept finding herself coming to in more and more dangerous situations lately, and unsure as to how she’d gotten there. It was a phenomenon that had been happening for years, but no matter how many times it occured it never got any less terrifying.

Things had been nice for a while when she’d been traveling with Ehoron. He had a lot of darkness about him, but seemed to have his heart in the right place. Over the time they’d wandered around with one another he’d shown himself to be sweet and protective, playful and attentive. She could sense a sadness inside him that was always lurking, but he had appeared to be grateful for her company and that was nice. Trinity had never really had a friend before, mostly because she never stayed in one place long enough to do so -- though if the choice had been hers, she’d have lots of them. Plenty of people had always been so nice to her, but she always wound up disappearing without a word… which was exactly what had happened with Ehoron.

Was he sad, she wondered? Was he angry with her? She wouldn’t be surprised if he was. Trinity had tried looking for him, but by the time she’d woken up and been separated from him, she had no idea where she’d gone or how to get back. The young woman had searched for days, weeks, and still nothing. Things had started to look up a little when she’d met Baird and he’d noticed her power, inviting her to join him at his guild, offering her a place to finally call home. And then that guild had gone under. She never could seem to hold on to anything, and it was starting to weigh on her normally optimistic mindset -- though at least she’d managed to hang on to some of the clothes Baird had given her, so she wasn’t wearing rags anymore.

It was a rainy night at the port in Lavanitir. Trinity had not found a place to stay for the night, but she also hadn’t really tried too hard. She didn’t have any money for a hotel room, but there were plenty of bridges and docks in the city to provide shelter enough from the storm. She’d certainly slept in worse places, and comparatively speaking sand wasn’t so uncomfortable a bed to lay on. A bit cold at night, but not as hard an achy as dirt and concrete often could be. Tucked away under the dock, she had her knees tucked to her chest and her chin resting on them as she listening to the soothing sound of the ocean waves rushing back and forth to and from the shore. The rain danced on the sea, making it glitter from the bright moonlight that managed to peek through the clouds. Soon she would probably try sleeping, but for now she was just too awake. There was much on her mind, and she needed to soothe it somehow before she could think about trying to rest for the night.

She could hear boots walking above her on the dock, which wasn’t unusual even for this time of night and the weather. Sailors came and went as their schedule demanded, though the activity above her had died down some since the rain started hitting. It was starting to get a little cold, though that wasn’t too much of a concern for her. She could just grow some fur or something to get her through the night if she needed to, though that wasn’t ideal. If someone discovered her like that they were bound to label her a monster and try to attack her while she was sleeping -- it wouldn’t be the first time.

Whoever was moving around over her stopped and sat down, cause she could see their legs dangling over the edge of the dock. She could also get just the barest whiff of the food they were eating, which somehow drifted down to her through the rain. Her stomach rumbled loud enough for her to hear, and she clutched it sadly. She was going to need to eat something soon, and probably was going to need to steal whatever she could get her hands on. Trinity didn’t like stealing, but her options were limited. She didn’t have enough money to buy a meal, but…

Reaching a hand into her pocket, she pulled out a few jewel. It wouldn’t buy a meal, but maybe it would be enough to beg a couple mouthfuls from the person above her. The young woman was always embarrassed to have to do things like this, but it beat breaking the law. With the money in her hand, she stood to her feet and walked into the rain on the side of the dock away from where the stranger was facing. She didn’t want to spook him by having someone randomly fly up in front of his face, so instead she would go up with a little bit of distance between them on the other side.

A pair of pink, feathery wings sprouted from her back and she flew up onto the docks, touching down without making too much noise. As soon as she landed, the airy limbs disappeared and left her a normal looking human once more. Or at least, as normal as she ever looked with two different colored eyes and hair. Trinity shuffled her feet a little and bit her lip as she looked down at them, trying to figure out how to approach this man and convey her intent when she couldn’t talk. She was so busy trying to work that out that she didn’t even notice the man had already turned to look at her.

Her stomach rumbled again and once more she put her free hand on it, silently trying to calm it down. Her uncertain gaze finally rose to look at the man and she blinked for just a moment before shock slammed into her. The paper money dropped from her hand, flying away into the wind and weather where it was forgotten. Her eyes lit with joy at seeing him and a smile started to form on her face as she started like she was going to run toward him, but then the expression twisted into something else. Guilt overcame her. This was the first time she’d ever managed to find someone that she’d lost, and she didn’t know what to do. What if he was mad at her? What if he resented her for leaving without telling him anything, for disappearing in the middle of the night? Maybe after all this time he wouldn’t want her back.

A slew of emotions wracked her and she fell to her knees, crying. “S… sor…” Trinity was desperately trying to talk, but the words weren’t coming for her to be able to tell him how sorry she was, that she hadn’t meant to abandon him. Her inability to communicate with him properly only exacerbated her feelings of inadequacy and she started crying harder, clutching to herself and shaking as her body got soaked in the rain. Such was her guilt that she couldn’t even look at him, afraid of what she might see in his eyes.