Evelyn:

I woke up, panting. After the dream spell I had cast to tell Ella... about Jem, I had the strangest dream. I had dreamt of Amber and her best friend, Princess Auora of the Spring Realm. 

But was there really such things as consequences in this strange world of magic? 

My brain worked frantically to piece together the pieces- if my dream was true, and Amber had acquired mirror dust from Maleficent... who would be the victim? 

Could it be Ella? No, I had to see to it that she did not trap Ella in a mirror. No one deserved to waste away in a mirror. No one. 

I needed to leave Omia. This port city held too many heartbreaks. I exited the inn with a purpose, and as I rode a stolen stallion out of Omia's gate, I looked back only once, with unshed tears shimmering in my eyes, whispering, "Best friends forever, Jem, I promise." 

Then, I rode into the desert, sparing not another glance back at the bright city that filled me with so much sadness. 

~

I had ridden in the direction of Luminous- where Ella was. But I couldn't risk a visit, when bounty hunters roamed the streets for me and Amber. 

So, when the bright capital loomed in the distance, I veered away and continued on North, and I found myself back int the desert. Dread began to set in as my stallion had trouble trotting through the sand. The horse slowed from galloping, to cantering, and then, jogging. 

It would take forever to get out of the desert, and I did not have time for that. The sun began to descend and I guessed we were still in Bressya territory, nearing the city of Resmia. I wouldn't be able to catch Amber in time. 

But there had to be another way. What would Amber do? What would Paris do?

 And then, it hit me. Jumping. I could Jump my stallion and I away from this desert. But despite being training to wield my raw magic since I was born in the Fall Court, no had ever taught me how to Jump. 

Desperately, I racked my brain to remember Paris's words when he vaguely mentioned Jumping, as my stallion staggered around the desert. 

two months ago-

"I'm still curious, Paris, how do you do that transporting thing? Jumping?" I quried as the High Prince of the Winter Realm Jumped us to Asyrien , the capital city of the Winter Realm. But any thoughts I had about Jumping fell away as the shadows vanished and I beheld the beautiful city from a balcony of the Winter Palace overlooking the captivating city. 

Snow decorated the rooftops of Asyrien, and gentle snowflakes continued to fall, showering the lovely city with white powder. Lights gleamed like fireflies as the skies darkened, yet the streets were still busy, from children dancing in the streets, to the vendor owners to the mothers and sisters bargaining. 

"My city is magnificent, isn't it?" Paris whispered, his calloused hands resting upon my shoulders. I nodded, awestruck, and leaned back, supported by Paris. We must've stood there for a while, until Paris broke the silence, "Imagine Jumping like you have a portal. Your magic is the portal, and the only thing you have to do, Eve, is to vividly picture your destination."

I twisted to look at the prince, whose gaze was fixed on the beautiful city below, almost sadly, "What?" I demanded, noticing how his sad eyes fixed upon the angelic capital, abdicating all thoughts of Jumping. 

Paris only smiled sadly, "We'll start on the Jumping lessons in a month. Promise." 

I opened my mouth to ask him what was wrong, but he was already walking away, his shoulders slumped. What had gotten into Paris? 

I winced at the memory- what had, exactly, caused Paris to randomly go into these bursts of emotions? But I couldn't think about Paris right now- his betrayal still stung harshly. 

Okay, so, if my magic did the teleporting, all I had to do was to visualize my location. I closed my eyes for two reasons- a sandstorm was near, and I had to concentrate over the wind blowing sand everywhere. 

I leaned into the mare of the stallion and concentrated. As soon as the stallion stumbled, almost throwing me off, I panicked for fear falling and my magic whisked us away. 

Shadows violently tore at me and my stallion, whose mare I clenched tightly. The stallion snickered, and tossed its head, but did not panic. 

I concentrated on my location, imagined the scent of foreign spices and merchants bellowing their prices and "discounts", the loud hustle of the marketplace. And then, it was gone. 

I opened my eyes tentatively just as the reek of urine hit me. The alleyway I was in was dark and stank of human waste. I spotted a few stray cats who fled as soon as I seemingly appeared out of nowhere. I nudged the stallion forward and found myself in a busy street. I squinted, looking around atop the horse. 

Across the street was the vendor where I stole food from to get across the desert, which meant this had to be Subosa, one of the border cities. I hopped off the stallion and led him down the streets, hopping every now and then, to avoid mysterious looking puddles. 

"Hey miss!" A voice called. I spun around, on edge. But to my surprise, it was just a young man, strolling toward me. 

"Yes?" I asked, gripping the harness of the stallion tighter. 

"Have you seen this woman?" He held a piece of paper with a stunning replica of Amber. I shook my head and brushed past him, walking slightly faster than I had before. 

You see, the city of Subosa was as divided as one would expect it to be. The East and Northeast side of Subosa was the Fall Village, where the cultures of the Fall Realm resided, and where it was technically "Fall soil." This part of Subosa usually made anyone not from the Fall Realm on edge, due to rumors surrounding the Fall Court. Despite this, the Fall Village was more calm and reserved. Fall Village housed the more lethal part of Subosa- assassins and hitmen. 

The South side was the "Summer Village" where I had entered. That was the poverty ridden area, where common prostitutes roamed at night, where criminals lounged to hide from the law, where drug addicts littered the streets. It is mainly considered to be the bad part of Subosa. To its credit, if you were to go into hiding, this could be the place to go. When Mother, Amber and I fled from the Fall Realm, this was where we hid, and where Thomas Cinder found us. 

The West and Northwest side, the "Winter Village" was of the rich and middle class. Unlike the Fall Village, Winter Village was a neighborhood where you'd want to raise your child in. Winter Village is also more friendlier and "safer" than Fall Village. Each village had their own embassy, and the young man who asked if I had seen Amber most likely came from the Summer Embassy from his bronze skin tone and his accent. 

And the middle of Subosa was the Village Center, where trade from the three realms prospered. As the Village Center came into view, I tugged the stallion's harness, and the horse snickered, before trotting faster to match my speed. 

I kept my head down as I sped walked through the Village Center, towing my stallion, ignoring every bargain thrown my way. And as fast as the merchants yelled out their price for me, they forgot me just as fast and found another target. 

And then, over the sounds of bargaining and the chaos, I heard as clear as day, "Evelyn!" I kept my head down, and my face neutral even as my heart raced ahead. Calm. I had to stay calm. 

And then, "Evelyn! It's me, Jonas!" Jonas. Jonas Rivertine had once been a good friend of mine when Mother, Amber, and I resided in Subosa. I snapped my head up just as a young man with curly brown hair and a bright smile skidded to a stop in front of me. 

"Jonas? You're still here in this dump after, what now, five years?" I asked, still walking. Jonas had to speed walk to keep my pace, "Of course, I had nowhere better to go. How's your sister and your mom?" 

I shrugged, "Mom's dead and Amber's... angry at me." 

The boy who had grown and changed so much frowned, "Oh, well, I'm really sorry for your loss, Evie." 

Then, I shifted the conversation to him, I remembers quite vividly that he liked to talk about himself. A lot. "So, what's up with you nowadays?" 

Jonas sighed, "Same new, same old. I have a steady amount of clients, enough that I can pass each month without worrying about the rent."

I furrowed my brow, "I'm sorry, clients?" 

His voice took on a bitter tone, "I'm a prostitute, Evelyn. Not everyone gets a chance out of this hellhole." 

Inhaling sharply, I breathed out, "I'm sorry," and saw the entrance to Winter Village looming closer and closer. 

Jonas shook his head, "You know what, Evelyn, I don't even want to know what you're doing here and why you're going to Winter Village. I don't even know why I decided to talk to you-"

I cut him off halfway by tossing a sack of gold coins at Jonas. With his great reflexes, he caught the sack in one hand and peered inside, "Holy shit, how did you get all this-"

"I stole it," I blurted out, unashamed.

Jonas opened his mouth, but was stunned speechless. 

Sparing him a sad smile, I replied, "This should be enough to pay for a one way trip to Acacia and pay for a healer's education. Maybe one day we'll meet in better circumstances." 

Then, the crowd swallowed me and my stallion whole and I couldn't see Jonas anymore. Maybe it was the best for the both of us.