Laurel stepped closer to the girl on the couch. "Lael... I've never heard that name before. Where are you from?"
The girl looked up at me with unfathomably blue eyes. "I can't tell you," she said quietly. Treker let out a small moan and rubbed one of his shoulders. The girl blinked slowly, rubbing a small crystal between her hands. Despite her calmness, it was evident she was in pain. "Ryo Mannis," she said. "I didn't think they were real."
Laurel exhaled sharply. "None of this is making sense... Ryo Mannis? What even is that?"
Lael didn't answer immediately. "I can't tell you that, either." She said finally. Treker sighed and stepped forward. "Why can't you tell us? Are you in trouble?" He asked. Lael looked distressed and looked down at her crystal. "Yes," she whispered.

~

The boy and girl look at me. "What kind of trouble? Are you going to get us in trouble? Do we need to call someone?" The girl asks. I shake my head. "There's no one to call. They're gone." The words stick like honey in my mouth. Everything and everyone I've ever known is gone. I am alone.
The soft surface of my resting place shifts as the boy sits beside me. "Whatever's going on, we're going to help you. But you need to tell us how," he says. I feel a faint, second heartbeat in my chest, and I know he's feeling the sadness and hopelessness I'm feeling. The Hope Crystal in my hands has been mostly depleted, so I stick it back in my satchel and look the boy in the face. His eyes are green, like spring grass. "Okay," I whisper. "Okay. I'll tell you."
The presence of my Ryo Mannis makes me feel comfortable enough to talk. If there's a Ryo Mannis here, these people can help me.
"My name is Lael, daughter of Kasan, who is... Who was the chief of SkyIsland. I am the last living member of my species..." I trail off, the weight of my words sinking in. I am the last one. I am the last Wingborn.
I take a shaky breath and continue. "My island fell. It was the Festival of New Wings, and everyone was singing and dancing, even the littlest babies were laughing.
I was the only one that escaped. The others..." I stop talking and sit, quaking, on the soft surface, my wings pressed tightly to my back. "I am the last Wingborn and I am not going to let my heritage die. No matter what."

~~~

Treker felt a sense of purpose flood through him, as if nothing could stand in his way. A second heartbeat thumped in his chest, a reassuring, steady rhythm.
The girl, Lael, began to shake, her eyes aimed at the floor. The same purpose that had flooded him seemed to flood her. She looked up and locked eyes with him. "I am the last Wingborn and I am not going to let my heritage die. No matter what." Her voice was firm, but had a trace of nervousness. Her blue eyes seemed to glow with passion.
Both Treker and Lael silently stared into each other's eyes, a supernatural calm settling over both of them. Laurel interrupted the peace by speaking. "Wingborn? Wingborn aren't real! They're just a kid's story. You need professional help."
Lael reached forward and gripped Treker's shoulder, a silent request for him to help her stand, since her ankle was mangled.
Using him for support, Lael made her way to the middle of the room and slowly, carefully unfolded her feathery white wings. "I assure you, we're very real."