The familiar sensation of falling back through time intensified as Theronius guided me deeper into the hypnotic trance. The Ether drug coursed through my system, dissolving barriers my mind had erected to protect itself.
"You're safe here, Seraphina," Theronius's voice floated somewhere above me. "Let's move forward from the memory of the priests binding your wolf. What else can you remember from your childhood? Focus on when you were thirteen."
My consciousness drifted, searching through fragmented memories. The images came slowly at first, then with sudden clarity.
"I see... I see Lyra," I whispered, my voice sounding small and distant. "We're on the streets. After we ran away from the orphanage."
Harrison's hand squeezed mine reassuringly as I sank deeper into the memory.
---
"Come on, Sera!" Lyra waved me toward the community center's back door, her teenage face alight with mischief. "The janitor always leaves this unlocked on Tuesdays."
