The stench hit her first --- burnt chemicals, sweat, rotting wood and something metallic that clung to her tongue.The hallway was narrow and cloaked in shadows. Needle caps littered the floor like discarded seeds. The building --- if you could still call it that ---groaned with broken windows and secrets. Marie didn't belong here and she kept walking.
She found the girl in the back , curled in a stained mattress and a woman to high to notice the baby cries . The child maybe give , maybe younger had tears on her cheeks.
Marie didn't ask questions but scooped the baby into her arms and wrapped with a coat . A man in the corners , hand twitching near something sharp but Marie met his gaze with fire "Try me " she said . She didn't care who the child belonged to .
Outside, sirens wailed in the distance, Marie ran and the building was filled with screams of people who could not come out . But Marie had done wat she came for . A little girl breathing, still crying and still alive .
PRESENT DAY
The courtyard buzzed with afternoon heat and Evadra missed the block again .
Her Master groaned " U are late again " . " Sorry" she said . He snorted "Focus . Chin down , left hand higher. Again ". They reset and she moved sharper and quicker this time , quicker ---almost gat him .
"Better "he said circling " But u are still slow on the turn " . They clashed again -- she slipped but immediately caught herself. The bun holding her hair snapped loose and her long black hair spilled out like a wave .
Her Master paused " Well damn it is the hair now ? " . Evadra laughed " I told her to double the pin ".
The bell ranged .
"I guess it is good bye". "Alright bye " her Master said .
The apartment was too quiet.
Evadra pushed open the door , stepping into the dimly lit parlour, blinking at the stillness. No soft music. No Marie humming while folding laundry .
" Marie?" She called, voice low. "Where are u ?" .
No answer .
She dropped her bag near the couch, her boots echoing and she made her way down the hallway. The kitchen door was cracked open . She pushed it gently --- and froze.
All of them were there .
Marie stood at the counter, dusted in the floor , her hands deep in a bowl of dough . The oven beeped behind her . She didn't look up but her voice came light " You are late ".
Evadra blinked , eyes scanning the room . " Wait ... All of u ?".
Lucian stood behind her ,arms crossed . His hair was tied back neatly, not a strand left out of place . He said nothing , just glanced toward evadra and gave the faintest nod .
Thalos leaned against the wall near the fridge, one foot pressed flat against it , the messy black curls casting shadows over his eyes . He did not say anything but the look on his face said he was thinking to much .
Nero with a spoon in his hand , dimples flashing. "It is a family reunion baby ". He said , coming to hug her tight. " You know I missed ur grumpy face".
Alon sar cross legged in the counter , Popping grapes into his mouth "You were not supposed to come early ". He said smiling sideways.
Evadra stood there , stunned. She looked at each of them -- tall , chaotic, completely different --- and shook her head slowly.
"You are all here !" . She repeated. "Like , really here ?, what is going on?,".
Marie glanced at her "We are going to Italy ", she said simply.
"
Europe ?" Evadra frowned . "Why ?".
"Old friends ", Lucian answered .
Thalos scoffed "Yeah old friends. Right ". "Come on " Nero said , half laughing. "It is not that serious and Italy has pizza ". Alon raised his hand " And gelato " he said smiling.
Marie looked at her calmly .
Evadra stared at Marie like she'd just grown horns.
"Italy?" she repeated. "You're joking."
Marie looked at her calmly, dusting flour off her hands. "I'm not."
"No, no, no," Evadra stepped back, voice rising. "when did u guys discuss this ?".
Marie raised a brow. "I didn't think you'd be this dramatic". "Dra...ma..tic" Evadra stuttered."You must be kidding me "Without another word, she turned and stormed outside, slamming the back door behind her.
Evadra sank onto the stone bench, the garden's silence wrapping around her like an old, itchy blanket. Her breath came out in short huffs. She hated how angry she was — but more than that, she hated how alone it all made her feel.
She stared at the lemon tree in the corner. The same tree that was barely a branch when Marie brought her here.
She was five.
The memory hit her like wind against an old wound.
The door had creaked open and there they were.
Four boys. Four strangers. Four shadows of her future.
Marie had crouched beside her. "Evadra, meet your brothers."
Lucian was first. Tall, even back then. His face unreadable, carved like something too old for the room. He didn't speak. Just stood still, his dark eyes fixed on her like he was scanning her soul.
Evadra had clutched Marie's hand tighter.
Lucian didn't flinch. Didn't smile. Didn't blink.
Just… watched.
Then Nero stepped forward with a crooked grin and soft dimples that flashed and disappeared.
"You're so small," he had said, kneeling to her height.
He pulled her into a hug that smelt like mint and chalk dust.
Talos leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, eyes half-lidded. He didn't say a word. He just glanced at her, then turned and walked away.
He winked and offered her a candy wrapped in purple foil. She didn't take it, but he didn't mind.
She remembered blinking. And blinking again.
They didn't look alike. Not one of them.
Later that week, she'd pulled at Marie's sleeve while she stirred noodles in the kitchen.
"Why do they all look... different?" she asked. "Are they really my brothers?"
Marie didn't pause. "They are now."
"But they don't look the same," Evadra insisted, eyes narrowing in that stubborn way she always had. "Lucian and Talos are white. Nero is dark like me. And Alon—he talks funny. Where are they from?"
Marie finally sighed. "I help children who needed homes," she said. "Some of them were lost. Some had no one. Now they have each other."
It didn't answer much. And when she asked why the boys were never home — why they disappeared during summers, came back with bruises, whispered in the hallway, and never talked about school — Marie only muttered, "You ask too many questions, Evadra."
So she stopped asking. But she never stopped wondering.
Now, years later, she was still sitting on the same bench, fists clenched in the same silene .The door creaked open behind her.
Footsteps.
She didn't need to look to know who it was.
The wind stirred the lavender bush beside her.
Alon sat beside Evadra, cracking open a can of something cold. He handed it to her without a word.
She didn't take it. "Why are we moving, Alon?"
He sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "You should ask Marie… or Lucian. Maybe even Talos—"
Evadra burst out laughing. "Talos? You mean the wall?"
Alon grinned. "Exactly. Stone-faced Talos, who hasn't said a full sentence since 2021."
"And Lucian?" she added, rolling her eyes. "Mr. I'll stare at you till your soul leaves your body?"
They both laughed.
Alon bumped her gently with his shoulder. "I'm serious, though. I'm not in the room when they make decisions. You know that."
They laughed again.
And for a second, it was okay.
Meanwhile the kitchen had gone quiet.
Marie wiped her hands on her apron, the smell of cinnamon still thick in the air. Lucian leaned on the counter, arms crossed, watching the steam rise from the pot on the stove.
Talos stood near the door, one foot up against the frame, his eyes darting like he was already somewhere else.
"She's not ready," Marie said softly, avoiding their gazes.
"She's never going to be ready," Lucian replied. "But if we're leaving… she deserves to know why."
Talos scoffed. "Then you tell her. Because if she finds out mid-flight and messes something up in Europe, I'm not the one cleaning that up."
Marie raised an eyebrow. "She's not going to mess anything up."
Talos shrugged. "You sure about that? I mean, she thinks we're just a family, baking and training and living in temples. Cute."
Lucian gave him a hard glance, but didn't speak.
Talos pushed off the wall. "Look, all I'm saying is — you better tell her before we land in Italy. I've got plans. I don't need a meltdown getting in the way."
Marie's lips thinned. "She's not a child anymore."
"Exactly." Talos walked out without another word.
Lucian stayed behind, still silent. Then: "We tell her tonight."
Marie nodded, slowly.