Hope's Arc

Chapter 1 of 7

Hope wakes with feathers scattered across her floor that aren't hers. They're too clean, too whole — nothing like the patchwork wings dragging behind her as she sits up. She recognizes them anyway. They came from a dream she thought she'd left behind when she opened her eyes, and they shouldn't be here at all. She picks one up — soft blue fading to violet, colors she's never earned herself. The moment her fingers close around it, she feels the pull. Not a memory. Not a message. A presence, deliberate and waiting, wanting something from the space she's trying to build. The feather is a knock on a door she hasn't hung yet, and she knows exactly who's knocking. Hope sets the feather down carefully, then gathers the rest into a pile by the window. She'll need to decide what this costs before she answers, because the sanctuary she's building can't start with someone else's terms.