Page 13 of Clouded by Envy

“What is it?” Brenik asked as he took a step closer to the enlarged hand.

“It is yours to maintain. Blood. When the time comes, the last drop of blood from a human will need to be added for you to stay as you are. Otherwise you will age and die like everyone around you, but what grows inside you now will make that near impossible.”

To age and die was a route Brenik would not take—he chose to reach for the canvas. As soon as his fingers brushed the object, a picture took form on the texture—a face—his face. Straight black hair brushed his shoulders, blue eyes stood out against ivory skin, and a well-built torso wore a black collared shirt. A silver-gray background brought him to life within the portrait.

Brenik looked down at himself, his clothing now matching that of the portrait—or at least the top portion. The bottom half of himself, not displayed in the painting, was barefoot and wearing gray slacks.

A sudden fire sparked in his body from the inside out. Brenik dropped to the ground, instinctively releasing the canvas. Pain expanded in his head, and he pushed his palms against the sides to try and push the flames away. The hunger, the thirst, the yearning … his already sharp canine teeth slid down into points—he needed it.

As if it was a natural occurrence, Brenik bit down on the weak spot between his thumb and forefinger, letting crimson rise to the surface. Swiping the blood with the index finger of his other hand, he brought himself closer to the portrait on the ground and pushed the red liquid onto his face in the painting.

The canvas rapidly absorbed the blood, the pain Brenik felt already washing away.

“That is only the start,” the Stone whispered, and while it sounded melancholic, there was no misery in Brenik.

Gradually, Brenik reached out for the painting, prepared for pain to accompany his touch, but it didn’t. A devious smile crossed his face as the Stone of Desire drew back into its natural rose-shaped form without another word.

Brenik would not take anything for granted any longer—he would do as he wished.

Walking was a much slower way to travel compared to flying, but Brenik soaked up each step he took through the forest. He would not go back home yet—not to Bray—not to thatfuckingtree. There wouldn’t be a way for him to shrink down to fit back inside of the trunk anyway.

Just the day before, Bray had asked him, “You will always be here for me, right? I miss Ruth so much. I don’t know if I made a mistake bringing us here, but if we hadn’t come, we would either be dead or running all the time.”

He had wanted to tell her that hiding in a tree wasn’t any better, but instead, he told her what was most likely true, “You did the best you could. I will always be here for you just as you will always be here for me.” Brenik had squeezed his sister’s hand and drew her the note the next morning before he left.

Feeling sorry wasn’t something he needed to do anymore—he had to focus on himself. His heart felt free, as if all the chains had been released—the two that were no longer connected to his back was the greatest relief of all. His wings had been a heavy burden that he did not have to deal with anymore, along with his tiny size. He would eventually return to show his new self to Bray, but that could wait.

Contemplating, he finally decided where to go. There were small cabins on the other side of the forest where humans lived year-round, but others only came for summer or holidays. He just so happened to know which ones would be empty.

6

Bray

Bray awoke to a feeling of comfort. But when she remembered falling asleep on Wes’s warm shoulder the night before, her eyes flicked open. No shoulder in sight. Instead, she was nestled in a blanket that was pulled all the way up to her chin, cocooning her in place—same bed, same bedroom, except Wes was gone.

Suppressing a yawn, Bray tossed off the heavy blanket and zoomed out the open door. She found Luca sitting at the small kitchen table, immersed in reading something while scooping cereal into his mouth—or just milk.

“Are you going to eat the cereal with that milk?”

Luca lifted his head from what appeared to be the morning newspaper.

The little beast is something else,she thought.

“After I drink the milk, then I’ll start on the cereal portion.” He smiled. “It’s not soggy enough yet.”

Bray landed on the table and walked closer to inspect the circle shapes swirling around in the bowl. “It looks extremely mushy to me.”

“Nah, it still has a good five-minute wait.” Luca brought another spoonful of milk to his open mouth, giving it a loud slurp.

Something looked different about him today as her eyes roamed his face. “Ah-ha!” She examined his hair and took a step closer. “You parted your hair differently today.” His bowl hair was parted on the left side with a lock of it hovering a little past his brow, instead of creased down the middle.

Tossing his head back, Luca gave Bray a big grin. “Yeah, one of the girls at school said it would look cuter parted on the side—you know, like that kid fromTerminator 2andPet Semetary 2?”

Bray had seen both of those and the predecessors, but she was more concerned about the actor. “So, this kid only gets to be in sequels?”

Luca set down his spoon in his bowl, making a loud clank. “No, he was also inBrainscan.”

That was an odd name for a movie. “Never heard of that one. Anyway, you should not be changing your hair to please other people.” Even though his hair did look much better—he might be able to pass for eight now.

---