Working in a dead-end, post office job in the heart of a primarily-Human city, Arya Salcrest cannot let her secret out else she loses her rights and her safety. Norren Sterling, a member of the Council whom she met after a failed museum trip, is det...
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Arya felt like throwing up.
"I'll step out for a minute," she muttered under her breath, soft enough to be ignored by the rest of the audience but sharp enough to be heard by Eury. "I'll be right back."
"Arya, wait—"
Her friend's call faded behind her as she swung off her seat and tackled the steps leading up to the door. Her breath shuddered, heartbeat loud and wild against her chest. The announcer, a masculine voice thundering over the oppressive silence of gasps and laughter, bore down on her. Heavier. And heavier.
The doors flew open as Arya pushed against them in one forceful shove. The museum's dim lights were a welcome distraction to the ongoing exhibit of horrors behind her. She was vaguely aware of huffing and a set of frantic footsteps chasing after her. Howfast was she moving for that person to end up like that?
She shook her head, drowning out the memories of the helpless mermaid inside the glass tank. Still, images of those bright, yellow eyes pulsed at the back of her mind, growing brighter and brighter until it unleashed a torrent of fear inside her. Hurry. She has to get out of here. This was a mistake. Coming here has been a colossal one.
She shouldn't have listened to Eury. But wait, it wasn't her friend's fault either. Eury thought she was bringing Arya to an adventure or at least a good time to give their uninteresting lives a little bit of color. They've been both duped. Hard.
It was disgusting how the nobles and the wealthy people thought of parading around a harmless person as a source of entertainment. She didn't know it was still a thing amongst the upper class. For all she knew, circus shows and other discriminatory acts against the other races were prohibited after the fall of the Old Kingdom. There had been a war and later on a treaty between the humans and the other races. Shouldn't these exhibits be against the law?
Yet they still existed, albeit a little more cautious and done in the shadows. But in Barnholdt? In the presence of the Maltarci? Arya's mind whirled with how little this whole thing made sense. She should report this to the Council or even to the people she knew could help her.
A bitter laugh snorted out from her. Who would believe her if she told them a prestigious establishment such as Barnholdt was holding such an activity? Moreover, if she spoke up, discussion of her race and her kind would surely come up.
People would ask who in Ouine's name dared to spread lies against the astute institution. People would wonder why she felt the need to speak with sympathy for the non-human. They would conclude that Arya must be one of them. That she wasn't human. And that's a worse fate in itself.
She should—
Wait. Just a second.
Where was she?
Arya paused, the soles of her buckled shoes screeching into a halt. Her surroundings didn't feel familiar anymore. She only meant to go out of the corridor Eury had pulled her into and out the museum's lobby. Then, she'd take a few minutes of doing nothing but breathing. Calm her heart. Clear her head. She'd meant to go back, just to make Eury feel like it was a complete waste of time. After that, they'd go home, forget this day ever happened, and try to live their lives as if it never did.
