Chapter 26: Brave and Beautiful

Sophie remembered being so happy with Fitz, with him, the one and only boy in the world-

And BAM, she was being captured by the Neverseen and trying to scream as she was carried away from Fitz, who seemed to not be able to see her.

Alvar.

The next thing she knew, she was hooked up to a circle on the wall, her hands and feet chained to the circle, wires attached to her head.

She was scared.

That was when someone opened the door.

The figure had a hood over his head, and was flanked by to other people.

He reached her.

She was higher up on the wall, making her taller than him. Still, he seemed much more terrifying.

I have to be brave, she thought.

She thought of all her favorite book characters from the human world. Harry Potter. Percy Jackson. Dorothy Gale. The classics. Wendy, Alice, Lucy.

They were brave.

But they were book characters!

She had to be brave.

She was ready.

Not really.

He placed his pale, cold hands on her temples.

He cackled, deep, evilly.

The ground seemed to rumble.

There was a dark gleam in his eyes.

And before she could think of any more dark characters, there was extreme pain as the wires connected to her buzzed in her brain and the world fell.

She saw things she didn't want to see.

She saw the future, the past, the present.

The present was the worst.

But none of it mattered when he let go and she felt air, beautiful air, and realized she had held her breathe the whole time.

The man stalked out of the room and Sophie let herself cry.

But not for long.

The door opened again, but this time it was Fitz, beautiful Fitz, and everything was beautiful because he was here.

He ran up to her, she could see his eyes were glassy and scared.

She started to cry.

He got her unhooked, she didn't really know how. But she was free, and he was here, and she was kissing him.

Everything was beautiful.