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By the time Emris returned to the village, night had descended.

There was a fire raging outside of one hut. She noticed a few of the Eternals gathered around it, and she approached timidly. Emis tugged at the hem of her shirt, at unease, and when the others glanced at her, she felt as though what had happened with Ikaris was written all across her face. Her cheeks flamed just thinking about it, and she hurriedly shoved it out of her mind.

She claimed a seat on the grass beside Sprite. Emris cleared her throat, asking Sprite, "Where is everyone?"

Sprite was leaning back on her hands, her arms armored straight and the tip of her nose lifted to the sky. The flames of the fire basked her in a warm hue. "Didn't you hear? Ikaris and Sersi left earlier this afternoon for the states to get Phastos."

Emris drew her knees up and rested her chin on one arm. She gazed into the cackling fire, the vibrant oranges and reds hissing and they spewed heat. "And Thena?" she questioned, tone absentminded.

She saw Sprite shrug out of the corner of her eye. "Who knows."

"Emris!" Kingo called excitedly from across the fire, only then realizing she had joined them. "Where the hell have you been, loca?!"

Emris stared at him. Looked at Sprite. Then back to Kingo. "What?"

Kingo belted out a laugh, elbowing Kuran in giddy movements.

"It is trend on TikTok, Ms. Emris!" Kuran wheezed through titters. "See, Boss, I told you she would think it funny!"

Kingo slapped Kuran on the back, making Emris jump. "HA!" he blurted, eyes bulging. "You were right, Kuran, you were right!" He jutted a finger at her. "Just look at that stupid look on her face!"

Emris blinked.

She glanced at Sprite to see if she knew what was going on, but Sprite had her head buried in the palms of her hands, as though the two men gave her a headache.

Emris looked back at Kingo and Kuran, who were still pointing and laughing at her, and she made a face. "So funny," she deadpanned. "I am dying of laughter."

Sprite lifted her head and let Kingo fester beneath her deathly glare. "Please, never talk about TikTok - or reference Twilight - " she grated, "again. Makes me want to kill myself," she muttered, staring into the fire.

Emris had to agree with her.

Kingo's laughter died and he looked offended. "Sorry for trying to provide a little comedic relief," he sniffed, nose upturned. "Your little mortal friend here has looked terrible ever since that incident with the deviant, but I guess I won't try to get that hideous, death-like look off her face anymore since it bothers you so much."

"Hey!" Emris interjected, but Kingo ignored her.

"I don't see your sarcasm saving us, Sprite." he finished promptly.

Kuran let out a chorus of low notes. Sprite, it seemed, did not appreciate the statement. Glancing at Emris, she muttered, "Excuse me while I go drown myself now. Don't wait up for me."

Before Emris could reply, she had already gotten to her feet and was stomping away. Emris stared at the spot she'd been sitting for a long moment, utterly confused. She turned back to Kingo when he made a disgusted noise, her perplexion of all that had just unfolded still forefront in her mind.

"Kids!" Kingo exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. To Emris, he said, "They're so moody, am I right? I bet you were moody when you were younger, weren't you, uh - " he paused and scratched his head. "What was your name again?"

Emris stared at him blankly. "Emris."

"Ah, yes, Emris!" he clapped his hands and pointed them at her. "Wouldn't you agree that you were moody as a child?" He stared at her eagerly from across the fire.

Her mouth opened and closed and she tugged at the end of her hair, uncomfortable. "Um," she fumbled, looking around for something to save her, "I don't know. Maybe."

"Maybe!" Kingo nudged Kuran. "Maybe," he repeated once more, clearly amused. He whispered something to Kuran, his eyes locked on Emris while he said it.

She shifted on the ground and cleared her throat. Gossiping about others without them knowing most definitely was not in his forte. Emris was nearly about to leave and go find Sprite when something at last appeared to save her. Or rather, someone.

"Isn't there someone else you would rather grieve with your torments, my dear friend?" Druig chirped, claiming a seat beside Emris.

She blinked over at him, wondering where he had come from, but he kept his attention on Kingo.

"Really, Druig?" Kingo marveled. "I would have thought you, of all people, would appreciate my humor."

"I have yet to hear something worth appreciating," Druig grinned.

Emris bit her lip in an attempt to hide her smile. But one look at Kingo's aghast face, his mouth opened wide in offense, and she couldn't help the heavy snort of laughter that escaped her. Kingo glared at her and Emris tried and failed to stop her laughter.

Eventually, Kingo scoffed and stood. Addressing Kuran, he said, "Come, Kuran. Let us not waste our energy on these people anymore." Kingo slung an arm around Kuran's shoulder and began to direct him away. "If they cannot appreciate true comedy when it hits them, then they don't deserve to be in our presence!" he shouted, face turned slightly back so Emris and Druig knew the snide remark was meant for them.

Emris and Druig looked at each other. Stayed still for a second - and then burst out in maniac laughter, the sounds of their chortling voices drowning out the fire.

"Has he always been so - " Emris managed through wheezes.

Druig leaned back on his arms and tilted her head at her. "Halfwitted? Daft? Nonsensical?" His lips drew up, his eyes flashing. "Always."

They sat in comfortable silence as the last of their laughter faded out. Emris couldn't help but allow herself to become entranced by staring into the flames of the fire. They reminded her of something equally as intense, just as piquant and deadly, as a previous memory.

Her vision flashed.

Cerulean eyes.

A finger, trailing scorch marks across her skin, his lips... his hand...

Emris lurched, snapping out of the memory. She had run away earlier to escape that moment - so why did her mind keep bringing her right back to it? Emris's eye fluttered shut. He was gone now, and it would do her no good to dwell on the kiss. That potent, devouring kiss -

"What ails you, little bird?"

Emris jerked once more from her thoughts, where she had unknowingly spiraled down into again. "What?" She had missed Druig's question.

She swallowed as he peered closely at her, his eyes searching as though he were trying to read her expression. Or, maybe he was reading her mind. Her cheeks heated and she wormed on the ground, uncomfortable beneath his stare.

Suddenly, he grinned and sat back. "You only looked troubled for a moment there, that is all. More importantly, though, I wished to ask you something."

Emris tried her best not to make her relief too noticeable. She managed a timid, "Oh?" and wiped her clammy palms on the grass beside her.

Druig went on. "If Sersi is able to convince Phastos to join us in stopping the Celestial, we would leave here in roughly two-three days and meet up with them at the ship."

Emris shot him a look. "Does this mean you've agreed to the plan now?"

Druig clicked his tongue at her. "Well, that brings me to my next point, actually. We have two days - two full days for me to train you."

That wasn't what Emris had expected him to say. "You want to train me?" she repeated, voice raised in question.

Druig nodded. "I was hoping, after all of this time you've had to yourself... you would reconsider your previous rejection of me teaching you." He gazed evenly at her, his fingers tapping out a rhythm on one knee.

Emris licked her lips and looked away. "I don't know, Druig..." she trailed off, failing to come up with an excuse as to why she was so against him training her. It was less plausible, understandable reasoning and more of a feeling she had. The thought unsettled her, but she wasn't sure why. Was it because she was scared of becoming like him, capable of taking control of another human being's mind? Or was it Druig himself that left her unsure? Whatever it was, the internal dilemma left her reeling.

"Come now, little bird, I don't even need to read your mind to know what's raging inside of that head of yours," Druig murmured.

Emris's eye darted back to him. His hand cupped the side of one face, his elbow leaning on a knee to support his body weight as he positioned himself toward her.

"You bastard!" she proclaimed. "This whole time - you've just been reading my mind? Making yourself privy to all of my thoughts?" Emris's lips cast down into a sneer, brandishing her anger to Druig.

"I said I didn't need to read your mind," he stated, and when she parted her lips to interject, he held up a hand to silence her.

"I didn't read your mind, and I haven't. It doesn't work like that, so you can stop worrying your pretty little head off that I know your darkest secrets. I give you my word," he finished with a flourishing roll of his eyes.

Emris snorted and her fingers twined into the grass, anchoring her. Steadying her. "And you expect me to just believe that?" She shook her head. "Your word means nothing to me."

It was as though a flip had been switched in Druig. His usual flippant manner was replaced with an unflinching sternness, and his eyes, which always held so much mirth, filled with offense. It gave Emris pause, but she didn't flinch. She meant what she had said.

"You would dare assume such little of me?" He stared at her with narrowed eyes. She wasn't sure if he was hurt by her words, offended, angry, or a mixture of all three.

"I have no reason to trust you," Emris replied. After all, she had only meet Druig a few days ago.

Druig's lips twitched, though she was sure it had nothing to do with amusement. "I saved your life. Is that not all the proof of trust you need?"

Emris fired back, "And I saved yours! That doesn't mean anything. It was an act of duty, nothing more. You should know that better than most, Eternal." Her nostrils flared in defiance.

Druig looked at her, despondent. "An act of duty. Right," he gave a melancholic laugh. "Perhaps for you it was as such, but I did not save you from those deviants because I was duty bound."

Emris traced the lines of his face. He held a rather delicate beauty, something so vastly different from Ikaris's alluring, razor-sharp features, but Emris found that it captivated her all the same. And in that moment, with Druig's arrogance gone and replaced with regret, Emris could nearly envision herself accepting his word. And trusting him.

When Emris spoke, her voice was a whisper. "Then why did you? Why save me, if not simply because it was the right thing to do?"

Druig reached for her. His hand halted in mid air, only inches from her cheek. "May I be honest with you, little bird?"

Emris traced a line from Druig's fingertips to his face. She locked eyes with him and nodded.

He took a struggling breath and his hand clenched, as though in self restraint, and he brought it down to rest on the grass beside Emris's calf. She blinked down at it for a moment.

Cerulean flashed. Ikaris.

No!

Emris propelled the image away and focused back in on Druig.

"Truthfully, there is something about you that demands my utmost attention. I felt your presence that first day before I ever laid eyes on, and instantly your aura enthralled me. Perhaps, at first, it was the stone that enticed me," he breathed, his eyes trailing circles around her face, "but now? It isn't merely that." Druig shook his head and when he looked at her again Emris felt her flesh raise in puckered bumps.

"I have lived many lives, little bird, and met many people along the way. But you are so impossibly different from them all, and that - " he uttered with conviction, "that is why I have found myself lured into your trap, bewitched by your body and mind, and implicitly, indisputably, at your mercy."

Despite the fire fizzling before her, despite the heavy, humidified air of the great jungle, a great cold had wormed its way into the soles of Emris's feet, spreading across the backs of her legs and encompassing the entirety of her physical being. First it had been Ikaris, kissing her as though there would be no tomorrow, and now Druig, who expressed to her something so jarring, and it made Emris feel disoriented. She could offer Druig no words of comfort.

Emris chose her next words carefully, hoping to ease into the rejection as smoothly as possible. "Druig, I -"

But he didn't allow her to get any farther. "Emris." His voice was soft, but not at all weak. "I already know what you wish to say, so you can spare me the grievances."

Emris's brow creased, but Druig hurriedly filled the space between them before she could say anything.

"That isn't why I informed you of the hold you have over me, little bird, so don't worry yourself." Druig grinned an easy smile, and Emris found no trace of any lingering remorse on his face.

"Then why did you?" she asked, quiet.

"To prove to you that you can trust me. Contrary to what you might believe," he sighed, "I cannot read minds. But, even if I could, I would never betray your trust like that. You might have just met me, little bird, but I have been waiting for you for a long, long time. And I will do whatever it takes to have you trust my word, even if it means baring my soul open to you."

Emris sat silent for a long moment, reeling over Druig's confessions. His declarations. What could she possibly say to that? Should she tell him that she trusted him? No, because that would be a lie, and Emris knew she needed to be honest. He deserved that, if nothing else. It would take a lot more than words to solidify Emris's decision to put her utmost trust in him, and she had a feeling Druig knew that as well.

She finally decided on telling him the truth. "I don't know what to say," she shrugged.

Druig nudged his chin at her. "I'll make it easy for you, Mo grá," he simpered. "Say you'll train with me."

Emris twisted to stare at him head on. She mulled over his words, for once considering instead of instantly shooting the idea down. Druig watched her as she thought, his expression hopeful and eager, and Emris recalled her mission. How she promised herself that she would kill the Celestial. It would take a power far greater than anything she knew now; and Druig could fix that. He could broaden her magic, help her better understand it, and show her what it would take to tap into that chasm of magic buried deep within her.

Really, what was the risk? Being manipulated into becoming Druig's pawn? She nearly laughed at herself. Emris took a relaxing breath and came to her decision. She wanted to be powerful, and there was only one man who could teach her how to become something more. Something better. Something to be feared.

"Okay," Emris affirmed. "I will train with you."

Druig's eyes burned with reverence, all directed at her. Emris held his eyes for a moment, then shook her head and looked back into the flames. Only when she was sure Druig had stopped watching her did she allow herself the slightest of smiles.

_________________________

Emris released a string of curses. "I can't do it!" she snapped, stomping on the ground in retaliation.

Druig sighed and folded his arms. "You're thinking too hard. Let go, allow your magic to take control, and give in to the power. You mind is used to be grounded, used to being latched onto something physical, and now it's rebelling against what you wish to do."

"Forgive me for being just a tad skeptical about flying!" she snapped, her annoyance clear.

The first power Druig had wanted her to harness was flight. Emris had immediately shot the idea down; she couldn't fly, contrary to what he believed. Druig seemed to think that because she could move things with her mind, then, in theory, propelling her own self up and into the air would be no different. What he didn't seem to understand, though, was that Emris's magic didn't work like that. She had never been able to use it on herself before. Emris didn't believe it was possible.

"Ikaris can fly," Druig said flippantly.

Emris glared at him. "Ikaris is also immortal, in case you forgot. I, on the other hand, am not. One fall - one wrong thought, one slip of the mind - and bam!" She clapped her hands together. "Emris splattered on the ground, pieces of her - of me - everywhere. Is that really what you want?"

Druig made a sound and ran his fingers through his hair. "Are you always so dramatic?"

Emris sniffed. "I think of it more as being sensible. Something you clearly lack," she added as an afterthought, turning up her nose.

Druig stalked toward her. She watched him approach, wary. He stopped only a beat away from her. The tip of his finger darted forward, tapping on her forehead. Emris shrunk bank, recalling that time he flicked her, and made a face.

"You're using this," Druig said, tapping her skin once more, "when you should be using this." His arm lowered and he placed his palm over her heart.

Emris stared at him, wondering if he could feel the rapid rhythm of her heart, but then in an instant his hand was gone and he stepped back. She cleared her throat. Regained her thoughts.

"Not sure if you were aware, but the stone is in here." Emris pointed at her head. "Not in my heart. I would have thought it obvious from my lack of an eye," she deadpanned.

Druig looked amused at that last part. "Is that so?" he marveled, tone curious. "I would never have guessed."

Emris let him wither under her glare. "Very funny, Druig. Your sarcasm is greatly appreciated."

He gave a quick chuckle. "Ease up, little bird. You're too much in your own head."

"Well, what do you want me to do? Magic isn't a feeling, it's a tool, one that I need to analyze and control. That's what Von Strucker told me, and it's worked ever since." Emris hadn't meant to speak about the man, but it was true. He had taught her how to work her magic from a scientific point of view. It was easier to control that way, rather than allowing rampant emotions to fuel it, and Emris had found she agreed.

"Oh, sweet, beautiful Emris, you couldn't be more wrong." Druig brandished to her a hand.

When she shot him a questioning glance, he nodded down at it, beckoning her to take it. She hesitated.

Druig smiled at her softly, like she was a new born child that if handled too harshly would snap. "I want to show you something." His voice was a rumbling whisper and it eased her doubt away.

Emris reached out and took Druig's hand. Immediately, the jungle around them faded from view. She was transported to some place inside Druig's mind, a place of impossible beauty and unhinged magic.

The jungle was replaced with a sky of golden ecstasy, fields of rainbow, dancing flowers littering the ground at her feet and filled with creatures of brilliant marvelous. Wild, untouchable exuberance hung heavy in the air, catching in her hair and billowing in the folds of her clothes. The wind was a melody of dazzling notes, singing in her ears and festering in her heart. The sky, coppery streaks reaching out in every which way, like fingers seeking to claim, teased Emris. Teased her for being constrained to the ground when there was so much freedom, so much possibility, just out of her reach.

There was tug on her hand. Emris's eye departed from the sky, and she found that Druig led her through the wallowing field. Her mind flipped, feeling as though she were in a dream, but Druig's hand was so solid in her own, so secure, and she knew this was more than a mere dream. He grinned at her, pulling, tugging her faster, and shouted something that failed to reach her ears.

And then Druig was jumping, taking Emris up with him, and she was soaring through the air. Over the field of flowers, past the grazing animals, and into a pool of grand majesty. A feeling grew in Emris's heart as they flew, her body tingling and her lips releasing a bubble of true laughter. Emris felt that she was no longer confined to the laws of men; she was free and it was pure bliss.

It ended just as soon as it had begun.

Druig released her hand, and with him went the illusion. She blinked and the jungle materialized around her. A deep sorrow overtook her heart, but she tried not to let it show on her face.

"How did you do that?" she asked Druig.

"I only allowed your mind to see the future, little bird," he murmured, his feet slowly walking a circle around her. "I know you felt that. I can see it on your face." Druig stepped in and out of her vision as she stood rooted forward, but his lips kept darting toward her when he spoke, his whispering voice reaching her like a prayer.

Emris's voice trembled when she spoke. "Felt what?"

"The magic of flight. The thrall of soaring through the clouds, the entire world at the majesty of your feet. I know you felt it in your heart; wonder, delirium, the feeling of everlasting life." His words struck her.

They were true. They were impossibly true. She hadn't flown in the illusion because it was the right, calculative thing to do, she had flown because she'd wanted to. Emris hadn't even realized it, but her heart had been guiding their flight. Her emotions.

Emris closed her eye. She recalled the lightness of flight, how her body had been no more than a feather at the wind's mercy. She envisioned grand birds in flight, their wings majestic things that allowed them to fly free, and she marveled at the same sensation. Emris felt something awaken in her heart.

Ikaris had been the first to show her to fly. He had dropped her the next moment; she'd been at his mercy. Dependent upon him.

Emris lifted her hands, likening them to wings.

She would rely on him no more. Emris had wings of her own, and it was time for her to use them.

Druig made a noise. Emris's eye peeled open. "What?"

"Look, little bird, look!"

Emris looked down at her shoes, dirty, trampled things they were, and that's when she saw. They hovered an inch above the ground.

Her heart stopped, her lips slowly turning into a grin so large it physically pained her. It wasn't much, but it was something. And to Emris?

That was more than enough.