Hold On To You ? {Apply Fic}

The sun was setting and the flock had dragged the old fire pit out from the disuse of the garage. They'd thrown leaves and wood on until the fire lit the entire backyard of the house.

Ivy was currently sitting next to Lucy, playing rock, paper, scissors. The game was so simple, but Ivy couldn't help but love it. She'd never really played games before, so all day she'd thought of basically nothing except this small pastime. When they'd finished their chase across the beach (She had never ridden a horse before, and it was like flying) and gone back to the house for dinner, she went directly to Lucy and challenged her to another duel. Thankfully, the other young girl had been more than willing to continue their tournament.

Sabine walked over to them holding a paper plate of sliced watermelon. She set it next to them on the bench and squatted in front of them. "Who's winning?"

"Me," Ivy said confidently.

"Not for long," Lucy muttered.

Sabine smiled with that brilliant light of hers. If Ivy had thought Sawyer was like a star, Sabine must have been the sun. She was so bright, so full of life. She was excited about everything, always laughing and making the most of every situation.

Lucy nabbed a slice of watermelon from Seb's plate and bit into the tip, pink juice spilling onto her lip. "Hey, has anyone seen Luke and Carter?"

Ivy glanced around their little circle of benched, scanning for the two boys. Sure enough, they were both missing.

✵✵✵

Carter stood at the edge of a cliff, a veritable two hundred foot drop below him (60 meters). He leaned cautiously over the edge, examining how far he'd have to fall if he failed.

"Relax," Luke crooned from beside Carter. "I did it and as you can see, I am fine."

"Are you sure you didn't hit your head somewhere along the way?" Carter replied. "It would explain your brain damage symptoms."

"Very funny." Luke slapped him on the back. "Seriously though, this is how Sawyer taught me to fly. He says everyone learns differently. He tried to teach me from standing on the ground, but I couldn't do it. Like you."

Carter was brought back to the beach not one hour ago, when he'd asked Luke to teach him to fly. Luke had tried to talk him through it, but no matter how hard he beat his wings he couldn't get more than two inches off the ground. He probably should have asked Sawyer now that he thought about it. Sawyer probably wouldn't have asked me to jump off a cliff.

"Get over your jitters," Luke said again. "You told me you like roller coasters, right? This is like that. It's like the huge drop at the beginning to get momentum for the rest of the ride. You can do this."

Carter took a deep breath and scooted closer to the edge until his toes stuck over the margin. The feathers of his wings fluttered against each other in the light breeze. "I can do this," he whispered to himself.

Luke suddenly whooshed past him, the slight wind generated by his wings pulling Carter's blond hair into his face. The boy who was now a wolf leapt off the precipice and spread his wings in the night air. He hovered for a few seconds before the wind caught his feathers and lifted him towards the clouds. He loosed a howl that sent chills down Carter's spine. Luke sounded so happy and free when he flew... that was all Carter wanted.

Carter took another breath and leaned forward on the balls of his feet. It wasn't much, but it was enough for gravity to grab him by the shoulders and pull him away.

He tried to stay calm and keep his wits about him. However, the drop of his stomach sent his mind into a panic. Every thought he'd been determined to keep in his head flew away, and he froze up. His instincts took over. Though his arms and legs buckled at his sides, his wings seemed to move on their own. They spread wider, wider than he knew they could go, and angled themselves to slice through the wind like a sword. He was carried farther down like he'd been yanked by a rope before he stooped back into the air and next to Luke once again.