What if every magical creature you'd ever heard of was real, driven into hiding by an army of violent zealots? This is reality for Sarah Heisen and Porter Collins. Sarah is a sphinx living a life of luxury in her family's mansion. Hidden from all da...
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Chapter Six
(Sarah)
The sun began to rise, and with its light the woods became much less frightening. The trees were a healthy brown color, with rich green leaves, and Sarah could hear birds singing in them. More than once, a squirrel had run right in front of them, pausing to sniff the air before darting out of sight.
"I need to sit down," Porter said, putting aside his crutch and resting with his back against a tree. They had been travelling in the direction Sarah had chosen for hours, but it had been slow going. Walking through the forest had proven difficult with his crutch, and he'd needed to stop and rest frequently to keep from overdoing it.
Sarah let him do what he wanted without comment. He hadn't tried to attack her yet, but that didn't mean she trusted him. In fact, she could barely stand to take her eyes off of him for more than a few seconds, for fear that when she looked again, he would be holding a sword instead of a crutch.
"Sarah, do you mind if I ask you a question?" he asked, suddenly.
She looked at him without saying anything, but her silence seemed to be permission enough for him.
"What exactly are you?"
"I— um," she spluttered, caught off guard. It was a natural question, though, wasn't it? If he truly had lost his memory, he wouldn't have any idea what she was. "I'm a sphinx."
Porter's brow creased in confusion. "Like the statues in Egypt? But they're not real."
Sarah rounded on him. "Am I not real enough for you?"
Porter looked away, ashamed, "Honestly, I'm not entirely convinced that you aren't a hallucination."
Anger rose up in the young Mythic. It was irrational, and she knew it. He was hurt, scared, and confused. But so was she! After everything she had just seen, she desperately needed to lash out at something.
"You think I'm not real?" she demanded, incredulously.
"I'm not sure," Porter admitted. "My head's messed up. I can't even remember who I am. How do I know you're not just my brain playing tricks on me?"
"I dressed your wound," Sarah spat. "I kept you company all night when I could have left you behind to die. I brought you with me, even though you're less than useless, and you still don't think I'm real?"
Porter's face turned red, and he looked down at the ground between his knees. "You're right," he said at last. "I'm sorry. You've done all this for me, and I don't even think you exist. I must be the worst friend in the world."
This last statement made Sarah step backwards in shock. The Slayer who had just tried to kill her considered her his friend? What Mythic would want a human for a friend? They were the ones who had driven them into hiding in the first place! Just because she hadn't had a friend since Misoki left didn't mean she was going to stoop that low!
