The first time Kiran learned that she couldn't carry a tune was in kindergarten, when the teacher taught them a song that the class was supposed to sing in a school program in front of parents. She was the first one to memorize the lyrics of the song but no matter how much she tried to sing the notes, it always sounded off. A teacher had to give Kiran private lessons just so she wouldn't embarrass herself too much. In the end, the loud singing of her cheerful and proud classmates covered up her shamed and silenced voice.It was a relief that her parents weren't in the audience. They were both busy with earning money for their financially challenged family. Her mom arrived at school to pick her up after the program had ended. They then bought cake to celebrate her first stage performance before heading home.Kiran avoided singing in front of people after that. And in group presentations in primary school where she had to sing, she either mouthed the words to pretend like she was singin

Kiran woke up to strong gusts of wind blowing across the side of her face. She squinted her eyes and groaned as she felt the stiffness in her back in the curled up position that she was in."Are you awake?" a familiar voice muttered against her ear.It sent pleasant chills down her spine, jolting her awake. She leaned away from the chest had apparently been curled up against and stared wide-eyed at Noorh's face, which was right in front of her. She was speechless as her eyes once again admired his striking dark eyes."How are you feeling?" Noorh asked, noting the flushness of her cheeks. "Do you have a fever?" He raised his hand to touch Kiran's forehead."I'm fine," Kiran quickly said, blocking his hand and realizing how loudly her heart was beating inside her chest. "I just…" Her eyes strayed to the horizon behind Noorh's shoulder and gasped. "A-are we flying?" she gasped, noticing the bluish purple forest and the blue sky behind them. She immedi

"Hold on!" Noorh snapped, pulling the reigns to control Aledir's movements as they plummeted into the unknown. "Calm down, Aledir!"But Aledir only shrieked in pain. Kiran squeezed her eyes shut as fear petrified her. She pressed herself against Noorh's chest as she held her breath in preparation for their imminent death.Noorh pressed his free hand on the side of Aledir's body, summoning another magic circle that dissolved into Aledir's skin.It slowly eased Aledir's panic, bringing him back to his senses. His wings finally spread itself open and flapped slowly but powerfully to stop their descent. After swerving a few more times, he finally gained his balance and floated steadily in mid-air."Good boy," Noorh breathed, sweat dripping down his forehead. "Just calm down. Everything's fine," he said, more to himself than to Aledir or Kiran. He was breathing heavily from the ordeal. Casting the teleportation spell took a toll on his energy reserves. Casting

Kiran held her breath as she gaped at the scenery that Aledir was flying over. Below them and the blue sky was a vast verdant landscape surrounded by mountains that looked like they were hand painted by something divine.Their group of three set out on the next leg of their journey early in the morning, just as Noorh planned the night before. He ordered Aledir to fly toward a direction in the horizon, which Kiran could only muse was north. As basic as her knowledge was about navigation and direction in her world, she wasn't sure which was north from where they were. Primarily because…"Hey Noorh," she began, deciding to open up about something that had puzzled her ever since she noticed it the day before."Yes?" Noorh calmly asked as Aledir expertly maneuvered toward the green horizon."Where is the sun?" Kiran began, looking curiously at Nooh.Noorh blinked. "The sun," he muttered."Yes, the source of light during the day..?" Kiran e

Kiran found herself standing in the lobby of her campus building. She stared at the university grounds. It was filled with youths making their way across the grassy lawn toward their respective classes. Some were happily chatting with their peers while others were casually walking alone with their headphones on. The sun was up and the sky was blue. It was just like any morning that Kiran experienced in school."Kiran!" Remy called out, jolting Kiran from her musings.She turned stiffly around and found her friend smiling brightly at her."Sorry, I'm late," Remy continued, stopping in front of her. "The professor just wouldn't stop talking. Did you wait long? I'm hungry!"Kiran stared wide-eyed at her. A part of her wondered why Remy was there, despite how it made perfect sense for Kiran to see her in school. "No, I don't think so," she answered."Let's go to the café-""Remy!" another familiar voice called out from a distance.