The Lost

18- Missing

Lucius

The pink Winged continued to pace across the grass. Her feet slammed down hard, hard enough that she crushed the green blades so they didn't spring back up. One scabbed hand was cupped under her elbow and she was biting her nails on the other. I thought to myself that in the four days I had now known the small person, I had never seen her look so... well, emotive. Actually showing emotion. She looked kind of ill, almost— just so damn worried. The hazel-coloured skin was pale. Her wings, already greying and seriously screwed up from the birds, were limp and lifeless. Rosin had slowly been slipping into a state of hysteria with every passing day her friend remained missing. Not once had I seen her shut her eyes and sleep; had she even sat down? If there were some magic words I could have said that would have put Rosin at ease, I would have muttered them a hundred times.

"We have to do something."
I turned at the familiar noise.
Lyn was looking up at me with an expression of hopelessness on her dirty face. The girl was knelt in the dewy grass with her fraying dress splayed around her, hands clasped together. Dirt was smudged all over her from where she had been roaming around. Her small voice sounded equally as distressed as Rosin looked. It must have been mid-afternoon judging by the bustle of the park, and we were all growing tired of waiting around like idiots. Tired and anxious.
Rosin shook her head at Lyn, cringing like she was in physical pain, "Do what?" Her reply was barely audible.
"I'm not sure..." the girl admitted in a small voice, "But waiting for her to come back obviously isn't working-"
Rosin spoke over her in a tight groan, "What's taking her so long?"
Nobody replied to that. There was nothing to say because nobody knew the answer... something we didn't want to admit.

Azure had been gone for three days.
Shit. Three whole days now, counting this morning. Three. What the hell that might mean I didn't want to think about. A tiny girl flying around this 'human' city, no idea where she's going or what she's doing, totally alone... it made me feel slightly sick. Three days. Wasn't that too long?
Although I didn't know what might have been causing her to take so long, I certainly knew why Azure hadn't come back after her fight with Rosin. She had made it pretty clear that she had one sole objective.
"She's still looking for... him," I said softly. I made sure my voice was quiet, hoping I wouldn't scare anyone. A stupid comment really- as if Rosin didn't already know that.
Rosin clutched her head in her hands, eyes shut tight, "That girl is so foolish. Alone? Without food, water, shelter? She's been gone for days." She made another groaning sound, this time far more quiet. "Oh Azure, what were you thinking? It's been too long..."
Faelyn hurried to her side with distress spreading across her face, "Rosin, please-"
I think that she wanted to say 'don't worry', but Lyn was smart enough to know not to say that. We were all worried. Instead, she tried, "Azure said she won't be back until she finds Aspen. She misses him, she told me. I'm worried too... but the both of you are so strong, so she..." Lyn was obviously still in awe of these winged people that shared her size. Even the way she described them as 'so strong' was her idolising them.
"I'm sure she's looking after herself." Lyn finished, sounding like she really did believe it. But me? Do I believe that? Shit, I don't know. Someone as small as Azure couldn't really look after themselves in a place like this.
I just hoped Lyn was right and I was wrong.

But the pink Winged shook her head vehemently when Lyn said that. Her broken wings tried to flare on her back. All she could manage was a sharp little flutter.
"You cannot say that— you have no means to be 'sure' of anything. She is alone in an unknown place and- and hysterically searching for someone that is... dead." Spoken with a slight shudder. "She could be lost or- or hurt, or..." Rosin's face paled, voice cracking in horror, "God knows what's taking her so long. I can't bear it. Azure... she's not in her right mind! She's letting her emotions control her, make her do stupid things! And now she's out there alone. In the midst of all these humans..."