I came out of the deep all at once, like water coming out of a broken jar, into a body that was already moving.
The boy had gone under. He did this when the pain crossed the line his mind could hold, sank into the Hollow place at the bottom of himself, and let me take the wheel.
I was naked, as the clothing that he unconsciously held to his body was dissipated, and I could not wield his spells. The hair turned white; the boy had really spared a portion of his consciousness to dye his hair black and his eyes back to blue… it was wasteful and inefficient.
I did not feel the broken ribs, only noted them, alongside the missing arm, the dead leg, the hook of cold sunk into our shared soul. I noted each one, filed it, and set it aside, as I prepared for battle.
The Moon Fox's jaws were closing on the link now buried inside the soul, pulling on it to drag the leash inside-out and make itself the master of this bond.
