Nineveh woke slowly to a sickness all over, a cold hard surface under him that was causing his head to ache, a whining sound, and something small and warm pressing down on his chest.

He opened his silvery eyes slowly, blinking in the half-light. The first thing he saw was the cause of the only pleasant sensation, the warmth, brought to him by the small white fox that was standing up on his chest and watching him intently. The little fox had been trying to wake him, Nineveh decided. Its clever eyes were the color of emeralds, and its large pointed ears were tipped in black. It tilted its head to the side as if waiting for Nineveh to do something.

'Little fox,' Nine whispered as he instinctively reached to stroke its soft snowy fur. The fox whined and shifted, restless. Nineveh caught a spot along its jaw and scratched there, and for a moment the fox stopped his fidgeting, closed his eyes, and lifted his chin up in the ecstasy of a scratch in just the right spot. Presently, however, the fox seemed to remember something, and he again took up his task of nudging with his nose at and scratching with soft paws at Nineveh's chest, urging him to get up.

Nineveh scooped the fox up in his arms so as not to topple it, sat up, and peered at his surroundings mournfully. Back in Xyn's fortress. Trapped. He cradled the fox closer, doing his best not to cry.

'But what can I do?' he said to no one in particular, but the fox gazed up at him as if listening. 'I promised I would do as the Prince asked, and now Ishrael is safe somewhere far away, and if I do this thing Xyn asks of me, I will be safe and far away again soon too. And I will bring you with me, little fox, because Xyn is not very nice, and you should be living free in the forest, not trapped in here.'

The fox snorted and hopped dexterously from Nineveh's grasp. Fleet-footed, it landed on the ground, hopped once and twisted in the air, yelping loudly as it did so. Having done this, it looked up at Nineveh expectantly.

'What are you trying to tell me, little fox?'

The fox leaped, spun in the air, and barked again.

'I wish I could understand you,' Nineveh lamented. 'Poor little fox. You don't belong here at all. Perhaps you can dig your way out, you're good little diggers. Me, I can't go with you. I wish I could. I miss my dear friend Ishrael.'

Ishrael finally woke, ran away with me from Prince Xyn's awful underground fortress.

Ishrael did not blame me, but I still know that it was all my fault that he slept for so long. Enchanted. Xyn told me that I could have made Ishrael wake up, but I was too frightened and too weak to save him.

It didn't matter. Ishrael came away with me back to our park, so that we could listen to the birds in the tall trees and sleep in the soft grass under all those distant stars.

He promised to stay with me this time. 'Always,' said Ishrael.

It's not Ishrael's fault what happened yesterday. We went to find some plants I need that I can only get from the desert peoples. I cannot go often because the sun is too strong for me, but we traveled at night. Ishrael is clever, he knows how to protect me from the things that I cannot bear, just like Miah used to - when the sun was out he wrapped me up in a blanket and hid me away in our tent.

In the market... I can't bear to think of the market now. I had all my plants and herbs out on the blanket, I was sorting them before we made our trip home. Ishrael heard the merchant there selling pomegranates. 'Pomegranates!', and Ishrael started to go. 'Don't go,' but Ishrael only chuckled and tousled my hair. Teasing look, for worrying too much.

Fear for him. Fear to be alone. But I do not argue with Ishrael because he is good, and very good when he smiles.

Then there was the Prince - terrible, beautiful Prince. Sidhe Prince. Evil Prince, come to hurt us. Threats to hurt the children - Briony, Defrin, Kendrew. Threats against others too. Worst, threats to hurt Ishrael. Why won't the Prince leave Ishrael alone? Because Xyn must use Ishrael to bring me to him. What does Xyn need me for? Twisted words. Confusion. If the Prince will never hurt Ishrael again, I could be brave. I could go with Xyn. For Ishrael. For the others.

The heat shimmers in my eyes. 'Save Ishrael,' I say. Xyn smiles his cruel smile. 'Yes,' and then the sun was too bright, the heat too intense. All swam into blackness - Ishrael out of reach of the Prince now.

Me, in his place.

Dear Setheus Angel,

Slumber

The Prince told me. There's something about the Prince that makes me want to turn and run when I see him, but he said Ishrael's name, and Ishrael is the most important person in the world. His name is Xyn. He knows Lamia, and Lamia scares me, and Xyn has never done anything bad to me but he scares me, too. Xyn said that Ishrael was sick. My dear friend; a fever, he said. I had to go to Ishrael. I had to help him. Something is terribly wrong with Ishrael, he cringes away from everything, he doesn't say what hurts him, but whenever I'm near him my chest hurts and there's a knot in my stomach and I know it's what Ishrael is feeling, too. Nehemiah said that I feel what others are feeling because I am something called an "empath".
Ishrael was still at the inn where I saw him last time. I was too forward and I came to him and smothered him in an embrace, he didn't look well, I pressed my hands to his face and he flinched away. I flinched, too, because feeling him hurt me, because he hurts in his soul, but it doesn't matter if it hurts me, I have to be strong for him; I thought I could take his pain, I thought I could make him better. He wanted to tell me something but he couldn't. I gave him medicines for his fever, and something else, a special brew, something I learned from a secret friend, a tincture. Only a few drops will make you sleep deep and dream of peaceful, pleasant things. You cannot have nightmares when you take the dreaming potion. I thought it would help.
Ishrael went to his bed, he was very tired, the medicine worked fast. I wanted to be near him when he woke up, so I went outside, and spread my blanket on the ground under the porch of the inn, and slept.
Ishrael was still sleeping when I woke up, so I waited. And waited, and waited. He was taking too long. He should have been awake and refreshed and feeling much better by now. I wanted to see him wake and smile and eat something finally, because he never eats and he is too thin, even thinner than me. I crept into his room. He was asleep still. I called to him, but he didn't answer. I pushed his hair out of his face and shook him gently, but he didn't wake up. I cried out, but he didn't move. I put my head against his chest. His heart was beating still, but it sounded so far away. My tears made a cold, soggy puddle on the front of his shirt.
What have I done? What have I done to my dear friend?

Heavenly Host

I have met a man with wings like a dove and the kindest of smiles. His name is Mister Setheus Angel, but he asked me to call him "Just Seth". Miah told me that I should always be respectful to everyone no matter who they are, and especially to my elders, and I'm pretty sure that Setheus is my elder, so I should be extra polite to him. But he also wants me to call him by an informal name, so I am confused, and besides I only ever nicknamed my twin Nehemiah. Miah would know the right thing to call my new friend Setheus Angel, if Miah were still here, even though Miah said there's no such thing as angels, but I know that's what Setheus is because he told me that angels exist if I believe in them. So I do believe.
But Mister Setheus has great big soft wings, like a bird, and birds are my favorite because they are never cross or mean or sad, they just are, and they always sing even when bad things happen. Setheus has one twitchy wing and I caught a feather that fell off of it. I don't know why, maybe his wings looked so soft and pretty that I wanted to keep part of them for myself, but I didn't want Setheus to know that I had taken one of his wing-feathers, so I tucked it very fast into my pocket and didn't offer it back. I feel very bad about it now, I guess I should tell him that I have it in case he's missing it, I don't think he will be mad. He is very kind and even took me to a restaurant in Paris that never lets me have even their scraps, and he gave me a whole meal, all to myself. I haven't eaten so much in a long time.
I hope Ishrael can meet my new friend soon. Maybe Setheus Angel will be able to help Ishrael. Angels can do magic, right?

Lost & Found

I found Ishrael. I saw him at the inn of a small desert town on my way to the apothecary. I'd only gone there for some ingredients for my medicines that are hard to come by elsewhere. Only very occasionally do I venture out into the heat and sand for these supplies. But there he was, my dear friend, lost for so long, standing right there, close enough to reach out and touch. I came in to get out of a the hot afternoon storm, and he was right there, and I almost couldn't breathe.
I didn't recognize him at first. He used to be a warm smiling face, always. Now, he wasn't smiling. He didn't seem himself. His eyes were full of hurting, and I felt it too strongly, and sometimes I had to look away because I was afraid I would cry for him. Miah used to say it happens to me this way because I have an "empathic link". I wanted to hug my long lost friend tightly and not to let go, but he did not seem to want to be touched, he was far away and too far into his pain, so I had to pull away. Miah said that sometimes I am too forward and that people don't always want me to try to heal them, or to tell me what's wrong, so when Ishrael wouldn't really answer my questions, I didn't press, because I didn't want to make him feel worse, even though I wanted so badly to know what had gone wrong for him. I used to feel safe and peaceful when Ishrael was there, because I knew he would protect me. Now I think that Ishrael is the one that needs protecting, but I am not strong, what could I ever do to save him?
I'm so scared for my friend. What's happened to him? How can I help him?

I wish Miah were here now. Miah would know what to do.

'Miah?'
'Yes, Nineveh?'
'Where are our parents?'
Nehemiah shook back his softly-curling chocolate hair and laughed cheerfully. 'Really Nineveh, you ask the silliest questions.'
Nineveh shuffled his feet about a bit, looking embarrassed. 'But, we don't have any parents. Other people have parents. Why?'
Nehemiah smiled broadly, his deep blue eyes twinkling. Miah always looked like an angel when he smiled.
'Well, not us. We're different.'
'How? Where did we come from?'
'The rivers, rocks and trees.'
Nineveh did not say anything, but he eyed his brother carefully, looking incredulous.
'I can see you don't believe me,' Nehemiah chuckled. 'But it's really true. Come sit here and I'll tell you how it happened.'
He pat the spot next to him on the log he was perched on, and Nineveh glided to his side obediently.
'A long, long time ago, there was a Sidhe king who ruled the fairest tribe of the noble fey, under a great tor. The sidhe king had only one child, a beautiful young daughter. At the sidhe princess's birth a prophecy had been told that she would perish in the forests outside the tor, leaving the sidhe without an heir. The king loved his daughter and his people, and was afraid to let the young princess venture outside his kingdom. He kept her locked away for one hundred years, and she never saw the sunlight, nor walked in the wilds beyond his regal halls.
'One day, a traveller stumbled into the sidhe realm. He was a great prince from bright, faraway lands, and he had become lost in the mists. The sidhe tribe was good and kind, and they brought him in and fed him from their table, served him their wine, and offered him to dance in their halls. In that time, mortals feared the sidhe halls and told stories of men entering never to return, but the prince was young and strong, and he did not fear the superstitions of the peasant folk. He was a gracious man and accepted their invitation.
'But time passes differently in the sidhe realm, and whether by accident or design, the man stayed what to him seemed only a few days, but to the mortal world turned to decades.
'During this time, the young prince had caught glimpses of the beautiful sidhe princess, and they began to fall in love. The prince went to the sidhe king and begged that the princess be allowed to join him in the land of man, to have her hand in marriage and make her a queen in his distant kingdom.
'The sidhe king was furious at this, for he knew that the propecy may truly come to pass should his daughter venture from his halls. He forbade the prince his daughter's hand, but the prince persisted, and finally carried the maiden off, fleeing the enchanted castle. The king gathered all of his warriors, and the lovers were chased into the forests.
'As the young prince and his bride fled, a stray arrow meant for the prince, fired from the warriors' mighty bows, struck the princess instead, and she fell to the ground. The princess knew that if the warriors overtook them, she would never join her prince in the realm of man. She made the the arrow grow and entangle her, until she became a tall, strong oak, and in this great oak was a hollow where her prince could take refuge and hide as the warriors passed by. Though she would never escape the branches of the mighty tree, she knew that in this way her love would be safe, and so the princess sacrificed herself for her prince.
'The prince, upon seeing his lovely bride so changed, crawled into the hollow of the oak tree and mourned bitterly. Though the sidhe passed him by, he would not leave her side, and he stayed there in the mighty oak until he became like stone.
'The sidhe princess saw her prince become changed as she had, and wept in the only way that a great oak can weep. From her long branches dropped a small tear-shaped acorn, part dark as night and part light as day, and on the stone that had once been the prince the acorn landed, split asunder. From one half stepped the lord of the forest, and from the other half the child of the moon. And they were named Nehemiah and Nineveh. And that is where we came from.'
Nehemiah leaned back with a satisfied look, his story finished.
Nineveh laughed, flashing his twin a tender but disbelieving smile. 'Miah! That's not really what happened... Is it?'