The next morning I woke up with my heartbeat in my ears. I sat up quickly, my breathing heavy and my vision still adjusting. I was running, screaming, I felt a sharp pain in my chest, where- where am I? Calm down. I tried to steady my breathing and peered around, listening for growling, a gun clicking... but everything was still. Huh?

I blinked, trying to remember. I was in a bed, a bed? I gripped the sheets then pulled at my shirt, realizing it wasn't a hospital gown but my tattered striped shirt. Memories from yesterday finally came flooding in. I wasn't there. I escaped. I was free.

I let out a shaky breath and swung my legs over the bed, trying to suppress my fear with excitement of my first day of being home. I stood, the sheets rolling off me in folds as I wiggled my bare toes against the carpet.

Home.

I closed my eyes briefly and heard a familiar snore not too far. Smiling, I tiptoed across the hall towards Speck's room. Her door was cracked and I peered in, expecting her to be sprawled all over the bed, only to see a bundle of blankets. My pulse quickened as I cautiously walked over, feeling around only to grab handfuls of fabric. No, no no no- I sprinted back to my room and flew to my bag, hanging it upside down to empty it. The laptop banged against the table, snacks bouncing onto the floor, everything I shook out. My hands grabbed for everything, anything, trying to figure out how I could find her, who took her, who would leave me behind-

"What's wrong?" someone moaned from the bed.

I whipped my head up to see Speck sitting up in my bed, rubbing her eyes and hair everywhere. She drowsily stared at me frozen in place, trying to rack my brain on how she even got there. "H-How did you- why aren't you-" my breaths were short.

"I couldn't sleep," she grumbled. Her eyes were droopy as she yawned, trying to wake herself up. "You kicked a lot."

Now that she said that, I vaguely remembered waking up to my door creaking last night. I was half-awake when she crawled in my bed to join me. I guess she didn't like being apart from me, even if it was just across the hall.

I let out a shaky sigh and joined her in bed, pulling her into a hug while calming my racing heart. "Sorry, I forgot you joined me last night."

"It's okay," she muffled against my shoulder. Pulling away, she yawned again and looked up at me with concern in her eyes. "Bad dreams?"

I nodded and brushed her hair with my fingers. Despite being in a comfortable bed and place to live, my subconscious didn't want me to forget what might happen. What could happen. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, trying to dismiss it, "Sorry for kicking you."

"Sorry for scaring you," she stretched her arms over her head and stood out of bed. Her clothes were all wrinkled and the frog shirt's tag was sticking out. Not to mention the rips and tears in her leggings. She turned around, "Do you think they're awake?"

I glanced towards the hallway, "I don't know, we should be quiet just in case."

"Okay," she started tiptoeing towards the door. "I'm hungry, do you think they have food?"

I joined her, tugging down on my shirt to at least look somewhat decent. "Yeah, but make sure we don't eat the entire fridge."

We cautiously stepped down the stairs which creaked at every step. Speck tried to coordinate her steps with mine but it just made the creaking louder. She bumped into me, almost making me tumble, and I had to shush her giggling. Once we touched the first floor, Mom turned the corner wearing an apron and scaring me half to death. Speck squealed and I nearly doubled over.

"Goodness!" Mom put a hand to her chest. "I was hoping you two were still asleep."

"No, we're up," I breathed, steadying myself. I sniffed and my eyes widened. Was that sausage? I turned towards it and breathed in. No, it was eggs, no- pancakes. What was this delicious scent?

"Hungry?" a heard her smile. "I made some breakfast for you, before I got back to work."

"Yes!" Speck beamed, only to be jabbed by my elbow. "Please."

We followed Mom into the kitchen to be welcomed by a plethora of food. Pancakes, sausage, toast, eggs, bacon; I was in heaven. There was also milk and juice out, with butter and cream cheese on the side, and jelly and hot sauce if we wanted.

"Go ahead and dig in, there's plenty where it came from," Mom smiled.

And we did just that.

"So I was thinking," Mom walked back in just as we finished our thirds on food. I managed to eat four pancakes and two helpings of eggs and sausage while downing three glasses of orange juice. Speck ate nearly all of the bacon so I had to fight for some pickings. We glanced up at her from lounging in the chairs. "After I finish my work for the day, would you like to go shopping? You need some better clothes."

I flushed, embarrassed that she noticed our uptake of cleanliness. What could we do though? We didn't have the money to wear nice clothes every day. At least we had something covering our backs. I shared a gaze with Speck, knowing full well we needed it. We had to get out of these old rags. Plus, they reeked. We didn't have soap and water to keep up a good hygiene. When I smelled my pits this morning, I gagged.

"That would be nice but," I stated. "We don't have any money."

"Nonsense! You don't have to worry about that," Mom offered. "You're my daughter, of course I'm going to buy you things."

I flushed even more while Speck did a mini fist pump. Mom softly smiled and put a hand on my shoulder, making me jump a little so she retreated. "Why don't you relax and wash up before we head out? I'll be done in about an hour." She took our empty plates and took them to the kitchen and started washing. Feeling useless I started collecting the salt and pepper and glassware to take to the kitchen. Speck stayed lounging in her chair, eyes closed, and I knew she wouldn't think of helping so I didn't push her. But once the sound of running water and dishes clinking got to her, she joined in.

After we finished the dishes, Mom grabbed us some fresh towels and went back to her computer. She never really said what she worked on, but it seemed pretty important so I didn't push. Speck smiled and hopped up the stairs to claim the shower first, slamming the door behind me with a squeal. I banged on it just as she started the water, "Don't use up all the hot water!" I heard an "okay!" and walked back to my room. I tossed my towel on the bed and flopped down, reveling in this feeling.

Home. I was finally in a house, a place I could call my own, and a room too. I fingered the sheets and rolled onto my side, relaxing my wings a bit over the edge. It felt amazing to finally let them breathe. I closed my eyes and thought of my future here. I thought of going on vacations with my parents, a nice dinner at the table every night, watching movies on the tv, maybe even going back to school. All the things any normal teenager does. But I wasn't normal.

I adjusted my position, thinking. Would I be able to walk freely around, pointing at the statues and monuments as we travelled? What about these wings? And would I even be able to go to school again? What would other kids think of me? Gym class, I couldn't do a gym class without hurting someone or revealing myself. Not to mention being mocked for these scales. People may think something other than tattoos; maybe a disease or skin condition. And not to mention having my tail shoved down my pants every day, it was uncomfortable, and it made me unbalanced. What about my ears? I couldn't wear a hat or hood all the time, and the bandana doesn't help that much either. I hugged myself.

I wasn't normal. I was never going to be normal. I would have to go beyond myself to even act normal. How could I blend into this society? Was escaping really the best option? Should I have just stayed there, acted and pushed myself the way they wanted me to be, just to have some kind of life where I was accepted for being this freaky? Why didn't I just stay? Why did I have to be executed? Why was I turned into this? Why was I so stupid? Why-

"Shower's open."

I jumped to see Speck standing in my doorway, hair glistening and clothes damp. A small towel hung around her neck. Her face fell when she saw me curled up on the bed, shaking, and my head twisted in my thoughts.

"Are you oka-"

"Fine," I stood up and grabbed my towel. I walked over and squeezed past her, heading for the bathroom. I didn't want to tell her what I was thinking, I didn't want to worry her or ruin this for her. This was her moment, her dream, and nothing should stop her.

"Amber-"

"I'm fine Speck," I said before closing the door and beginning to undress.

"Are you sure? You looked... worried," she spoke through the door.

"Yeah, you know me," I shimmied out of my pants and tossed them into the corner of my other dirty clothes. "Always the worrier."

I didn't hear her respond so I assumed she left. I went to start the shower. The soap was grimy from Speck's use and little clusters of black hair stuck to the tile. I took the shower head and started rinsing around before I went back to try and comb my hair with my fingers. Glancing in the mirror, I stared at my skinny figure. When was the last time I saw myself in a mirror? I paused and let my hair fall to my elbows. I definitely looked older, but not tall and skinny like I used to be. Instead I looked more muscular than anything. My arms and legs were well defined, and my stomach flat from malnutrition, and I could still see areas of bone around my ribs, shoulders, and neck.

My wings hung behind me in layers of ruby and crimson, large feathers overlapping each other as I flexed and shifted my body. They really were beautiful, the more I looked at them. The stark contrast between their red and my strawberry hair stood out under the bathroom lights. Not to mention the fur on my ears and tail. I leaned forward to analyze them. The golden fur spotted in regular cheetah pattern. I lifted my left arm to gaze at the scales on my shoulder, which glistened in the light. I really was a wonder to behold. The more I looked at myself, the more I realized how much different I was. The more I looked, the more feelings of hatred and awe filled me.

"Are you shaving or something?" Speck called behind the door.

I couldn't hold back my laugh, "What? No I'm not!"

"Well don't take forever!"

"Okay!" I stepped into the shower and let the water hit my skin. I closed my eyes and let it rain down my hair, into my feathers, trickle down my tail, and nourish my scales. Fresh water. It felt amazing on my skin. It took me a few minutes to climb out from the sensation to really wash myself. It took a while, but I was able to change the dirty water to fairly clear and step out into a nice warm towel. I managed to use up the rest of the hot water, leaving steam on the mirror. I wiped it with my arm to see myself only to spit out a laugh. A knock on the door paused me to crack it open, seeing Speck with a curious face. I made sure I was in a towel and invited her in and showed her my puffed-up wings. It was hard not to whack her with one since the bathroom was so small, so I had to stretch them out and make them look even more ridiculous. She laughed, saying I looked like an angry bird, which made me laugh even harder.

I missed this.

a/n: So sorry for the late update on this, my life has gotten crazy and it's been extremely difficult to do much of anything. I'm still writing when I can, but a lot is affecting me (which has caused a horrible writer's block, I apologize for that). I will try to post once a week, on Saturdays in the afternoon-evenings. 3 you all for supporting my story!