Chapter Six

Fight or Flight

Before she could properly acknowledge what was happening, Naya was already squeezed between Matt and Kayla around the small table in the living room, a plate with food in front of her, completely alienated from the light, cheerful conversation the humans were having. She observed their easy interactions with hungry interest and wonder, not daring to say a word or react, afraid to break that wonderful spell that involved them, perfectly happy to be forgotten.

Their shadows danced in the walls, elongated and beautifully dark, courtesy of the dozens of candles spread throughout the house, and yet, despite all the darkness and cold that surrounded them, the house felt warm, safe and cozy. Naya couldn't understand how this was possible, her cage had always been cold, empty, rough and silent.

"Aren't you going to eat?"

It took her a while to understand that Nicole was talking to her and her heart jumped slightly once she finally did.

"Oh, yes, sure!"

Naya looked at her plate, carefully inspecting all the food in it. She had never eaten anything before, as a Keeper there was no need for it, but now, as barely more than human, she probably should. Although she'd never done it, she knew what it was and how and why humans fed, so she gently grabbed her fork and stabbed what should be a vegetable with it. Slowly, she brought the food to her mouth and chewed.

Her eyes widened as Naya felt the pleasure of flavor in her tongue. It was a whole new sensation she had never known and it felt amazing. Suddenly, all she wanted to do was repeat the same action over and over, her body begging her to keep eating. Naya realized she must've been hungry, only she hadn't known it.

"It's not much," Nicole continued, "just some leftovers from two nights ago, but it's-"

"Delicious!" Naya said, finally understanding the meaning of the word. She attacked the rest of her meal, drank some water and eagerly repeated the process, not being able to suppress a happy moan and a pleased smile. "I love it!"

"You know what?" Nicole said with a grin, "I like you already."

Her eyes immediately abandoned the dish and landed on Nicole, widened, but before Naya could further react to that amazing statement, something black and elegant suddenly jumped on the table, catching everyone off guard. The feline gracefully landed right next to Matt's plate, startling him into spilling his drink all over himself and choke on what little of it he had managed to swallow.

"What the hell is that?" Adam asked, after a slight jump.

"It's my cat, Luke," Naya happily replied as she tried to help the still coughing Matt by tapping his back.

"Oh, yeah, right... Forgot to tell you about that," Kayla mumbled, smiling apologetically.

"He's really sweet and calm," Naya reassured. "You won't even notice he's here."

Ignoring them all, Luke shamelessly started to eat Matt's dinner directly from his plate.

Adam narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, sure. He seems very... unnoticeable."

Kayla giggled at his remark and Nicole flat out laughed, which had a soothing effect on the Keeper. She found herself returning their smiles. Everything seemed to be alright, they all accepted Luke's presence very easily, which was a relief.

Soon enough, Luke was going through everyone's plates and no one seemed at all bothered by it, the conversation continued to flow in a natural and easy going way and, for a brief moment, Naya felt completely relaxed. It was when the topic went back to her Fall that it all came crashing down again and her nerves returned in full blast.

"So, six Terrors, huh?" Nicole commented, as she filled her glass with white wine and unceremoniously filled Naya's as well. "Looks like we'll have some pretty eventful months ahead. Should be lots of fun."

"Do you think you'll have to face them all?" Kayla wondered, reaching for the wine bottle. "I mean, do you think they'll all return? Will this Vessel stick around?" She frowned as Adam expertly removed the bottle from her reach.

"I don't know, I reckon it will try to run away, maybe go somewhere more secluded," Matt replied and Naya flinched at his use of 'it' to refer to her. "I'm not sure if it will hang around Aurora after all the chaos it caused, it must've seen what we're capable of and realized we'll be waiting for it."

"Wouldn't be the first time."

"Well, I believe it will stick around," Adam replied, a satisfied grin on his lips. "I don't think it will have enough power or strength to run anywhere right now. I mean, it lost six Terrors, that must've weakened it considerably. I think it will try to hide and rest here, in Aurora, right under our noses, wait for a few of its Terrors to come looking for it, try to get a few of them back and then, probably, try to escape somewhere less protected."

Naya looked down at her plate and tried to remain as innocuous and neutral as possible. She would only allow herself a few quick glances at Adam, as he continued to talk.

"Which, you know, is kind of great, because I really, really want to meet this Vessel and see if it's really as powerful as we think it is." A powerful glint lit up his wonderful eyes as his grin widened and Naya shuddered and returned her gaze to the table immediately. Her dinner was dangerously close to return to her empty plate. "I want to destroy these Terrors one by one."

Naya's limbs were suddenly trembling and she was finding it harder and harder to breathe. The more she tried to inhale deeply, the more closed her lungs felt. With urgency, she reminded herself that it was imperative that she remain calm and acted as normal as possible, but it proved to be completely counterproductive, as her heart started beating faster and faster, threatening to collide with her ribs and come out of her chest in a fury. Elias' warning kept repeating inside her mind, like the most cruel broken record ever, constantly reminding her of the peril she faced – They will kill you, they will kill you, they will kill you, they will kill you. Lucia's stories of terrible battles she and their siblings endured with the humans suddenly surfaced, her tales of lost and disappeared brothers and sisters, all adventures that had seemed so exciting when she had told them, now seemed terribly dark and dangerous, chilling in their veracity. It didn't sound as fun anymore, not when she was so close to living it.

Still shaking, she grabbed her glass and tried to sip a little of the drink in it, in an attempt to calm herself down. To her terror, she let it slip and fall to the table, spilling all its contents and effectively claiming the attention of everyone, precisely the opposite of what she desired.

"Sorry, sorry," she mumbled, getting up quickly and grabbing the same cloth Matt had used to clean himself. In her hurry, she bumped her arm against his glass, spilling it all over again. "Sorry! So sorry!"

Naya quickly tried to clean up her mess, horribly aware that everyone's eyes were on her, desperately hoping they wouldn't be able to notice her trembling and avoiding everyone's gazes.

"So, Naya," Adam suddenly called, prompting her to look at him. He was staring at her intensively; his suspicious look had returned and held a mischievous smirk on his lips. She recoiled, feeling the weight of his judgmental green eyes and the guilt his scrutiny inflicted on her. He continued, even after her attention went back to her task, his voice laced by fake friendliness, "Kayla says you don't remember anything from your past."

She nodded, holding Matt's glass close to her chest.

"Why?"

"Why?" she repeated, confused.

"Why can't you remember?"

"Hmmm... I'm not sure..."

"I mean, did you hit your head? Went through some trauma, been in a coma-"

"Yes, I think that's it."

"What?"

"I hit my head."

"When?"

"I think it was during the attacks... I guess..."

"You guess."

"Yes, I'm not sure," she replied, more abruptly, getting more and more upset and frustrated at his relentless inquiry. "Like I said, I can't remember."

"So you don't remember anything at all? Not where you came from, why you're here-"

"No, not much."

"What do you remember then?"

"Adam, what are you doing?" Kayla asked, glaring at him.

"I'm just trying to determine how serious her problem is." He shrugged. "I mean, she remembers her name-"

"So did I."

"And her cat," he continued, ignoring Kayla's last remark and impatient sigh, "and her cat's name... Anything else?" His judgmental stare returned to Naya, badly disguised as polite interest.

"Well," she started, lifting both hers and Matt's plates to sweep the cloth across the table, "I remember I have a father and I know I have siblings, though I can't remember their names or what they look like," she half lied. Truth be told, she really couldn't remember her Father's name or how he looked like and hadn't even met most of her siblings.

"Do you remember where they are? Maybe they're here, in Aurora?"

"No, I mean... I don't know."

"Oh, good. So you have selective amnesia."

His sarcastic, accusing remark unnerved her to a whole new level. Not only that, but his attitude also angered her – not that she had the right to feel mad at his suspicions, knowing fully well how entitled and correct he was in them, but still. Her trembling got so severe, so suddenly, that she let slip both plates and glasses back on the table.

"Stop it, Adam!" Kayla chastised. "God, what is wrong with you? You're making her uncomfortable! Naya-"

"I think I'll help with the dishes now!" Naya suddenly said, her tone awkward and definitely higher than necessary.

Quickly, though trying not to look panicky, she gathered all the plates, forks and knifes and almost ran to the kitchen with them as if she was saving them from a burning building, closely followed by Luke.

Once she entered the empty room, she took a long, calming breath. It was like she had been holding it for hours. It was a relief to be alone again, away from accusing tones and curious eyes.

Luke sat on the floor looking at her, seeming perfectly confident and relaxed. It almost soothed her.

Naya dropped to one knee on the floor, clutching the dishes, and whispered to him, "We are in so much danger! Do you feel it? He suspects us!"

Luke didn't react, other than blink lazily.

"This is so not fair! Seriously, what are the odds? Lucia comes down here every other decade and she was never adopted by a family of Hunters."

"Naya?"

She jumped, startled, releasing everything from her grasp; the dishes hit the cold floor, most of them breaking on impact. Turning around, flustered, she found Adam standing in the kitchen's entry. He barely even looked at the mess on the floor, instead looking at her with a confused expression that she might've thought was pretty cute and funny if she wasn't feeling so nervous and embarrassed.

"Were you just whispering to your cat?"

"Well, that's one way of taking care of the dishes," Nicole said. She was standing behind Adam, hands on her hips, obviously drawn there by the loud noise of shattering porcelain. She smiled and winked at Naya before turning around and leaving.

She was too shaken to say anything and an awkward silence quickly developed between her and Adam. When she regained some sort of composure, she crouched and began picking up the bigger pieces of the destroyed plates.

They had to run. It was the only sensible thing to do. While they were under the same roof as Hunters, she and Lucian would never be safe. And she couldn't handle all the pressure! All those terrible doubts and constant fear would soon give her a nervous breakdown. She would inevitably end up messing it all up, sooner or later (probably sooner, probably very soon) and they would get it! They would understand! And once they did, they would kill her! They would chase her and fight her and kill her. And they would enjoy it! So they had to run, that night, while the Hunters were asleep, she and Luke would leave through the-

Her mental breakdown came to a full stop when Kayla's hand gripped hers. Immediately, she stopped shaking. Looking at the sweet young girl's face, she found her smiling gently. Kayla started picking up all the cutlery and unbroken plates.

"I know you're scared," she whispered. "I've been there too. But don't worry, you're safe here. I promise. We'll take care of you."

The human girl got up and carried everything she'd gathered to the sink. Naya felt a sting in her eyes but managed to control it. She relaxed, Kayla's caring words having a strong effect on her. For the first time, in a long time, Naya felt peaceful, confident and comforted, because she firmly believed every single word Kayla shared with her. She believed Kayla meant them, with all her heart.

Nayla stole a quick glance at Adam and noticed, with relief, that he seemed much more relaxed at well, his stance wasn't so tense and his eyes weren't as harsh as before. Kayla seemed to have the same effect on him.

Eventually, Adam left, leaving both girls to clean up the mess and the rest of the dishes. They worked in silence, but it was comfortable and nice and Naya felt calm and completely at ease for the first time since her Fall. Once they were done, they walked to the hallway, where they found the three Hunters near the entrance putting on shoes and jackets.

"Where are you going?" Kayla asked.

"Going out, blow off some steam," Nicole replied with a mischievous smile. "Lord knows we need it."

"Oh, cool!" Kayla said, excited. She reached for her jacket but Adam held her arm and gently steered it away.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Out. Blow off some steam. With you."

"Nope."

"But Adam!"

"Not having this conversation again," he announced, turning his back to her and heading towards the door.

"But I want to go! Just let me go with you! Come on, I'm not a child!"

"Kayla," he said, after a patient sigh, "you're too young to enter a Bar and you have classes tomorrow."

"Well, technically we don't know that for sure," Matt corrected. "We have no idea if the school building survived this ti- ouch!" he complained, since Nicole hit him on the back of his head.

"Sometimes you let David go with you," Kayla insisted, "and he's the same age as me."

"Exactly. Everything that David does, you should do the opposi- ow!" Adam complained, as Nicole hit his head this time. "The point is: go to bed."

Kayla glared at him and angrily folded her arms in front of her chest as she watched them leave. Naya happily turned around, already designing an escape plan in her mind, ready to take advantage of the Hunters' absence, when Nicole suddenly grabbed her arm and unceremoniously pulled her to her side at the door.

"You're coming with us, sweetheart."

"Oh no, really, I don't have to, I mean I shouldn't I... I should really stay and keep Kayla company."

"Pfff, nonsense." Nicole waved Naya's wish away like it was a pesky bug. "If you want to hang with us then you've got to play with us, too."

"But-"

Before Naya could explain that she didn't want to hang or play, whatever those meant, Nicole had already thrown her a long jacket, which landed on her face, and pushed her out of the door. Meanwhile, Luke climbed her leg and torso until he was perched on her shoulder like a very flexible bird.

The four of them were already outside when she noticed Adam eyeing her with the same adorably confused expression as before. He took his hand out of his jacket's pocket and pointed at Luke.

"Your weird cat is on your shoulder."

"I know." She smiled.

His confusion just seemed heightened at her remark and Matt chuckled.

"Then... Take it off."

"Oh, you mean he can't come?"

"Erm... No," he replied. "The cat can't come to the bar with us."

Luke growled at him and shot him an angry glare that seemed to make Adam genuinely uncomfortable. The cat kept the evil gaze directed at Adam while Naya gently held him and put him back inside the house. It was difficult to decide who looked more pissed off: Kayla or Luke.

"Shhh, it's okay," she whispered into the feline's ear, "I'll be alright. Just stay and protect Kayla."

As she slowly closed the door, after waving apologetically at Kayla, Adam looked at Matt, who was chuckling again, and asked, "Seriously, how hard did she hit her head?"

"I really like her," Nicole said with an entertained grin. She waited for Naya to put on the jacket and put her arm around her shoulders with a friendly, yet tough, squeeze.

Naya was caught by surprise at the gesture and tensed at the Hunter's touch and extreme proximity, yet, soon enough she felt her muscles and posture relax and found comfort in the human's closeness.

Humans were definitely weird, unpredictable and confusing. She liked them. She liked them a lot. As soon as that realization hit her, she found herself smiling wide and joyfully walked side by side with them along the empty and quiet road.

The streets were incredibly dark, lit only by a few lamps that held tiny flames and were disposed throughout the street. A few houses held candles by the windows, mercifully sharing their light with the travelers and the moon also blessed them with its natural light. Naya wanted to gaze at the night sky, but couldn't afford to, choosing instead to keep her sight on the way. Even with the frail and few lamps, candles and a clear, bright sky, the night was extremely dark and she feared she would trip, fall or get herself lost if she took her attention off the road or off her company. The Hunters walked confidently and without any problem, completely comfortable in the darkness and probably very used to that path.

Their easy going chatter was the only noise that broke the silence, apart from the occasional conversation that could be heard coming from inside a house.

Aurora was still and sleepy. It was like her Fall and subsequent devastation had never happened.

A cold breeze caressed her skin and she was grateful for the burrowed jacket, clutching it close against her otherwise bare neck.

Inside of her, alarm bells kept ringing, reminding her that she was walking alongside Hunters, by herself, with no Lucian or Kayla, to a place she didn't know. Something kept insisting for her to be alert, telling her she should be scared. But it was difficult to feel worried now that she walked with them, now that Nicole clutched her arm and got closer for warmth and that Matt playfully punched her shoulder after telling a joke and Adam's charming laughter echoed throughout the streets, lighting up the darkness. It was difficult to be afraid when she suddenly felt so safe with them around her – she would probably be much more frightened if she was facing the dark, cold, lonely road without them.

It was very difficult indeed, to feel threatened, when she felt so happy, like she was one of them. Naya felt like she belonged. And suddenly, she wasn't afraid anymore and the road didn't seem so dark, the night didn't feel so cold, Aurora didn't feel so lonely.

The World didn't seem quite so scary.

It was amazing.

And suddenly her smile came naturally and easily, her nervous and timid giggles turning into laughter.

It didn't make any sense, but it felt good, it felt right.