Warmth clung to the edges of Rose’s sleep. For once, her dreams had been silent. No burning skies. No screaming stars. Just soft quiet—and the strange comfort of not being alone.
She blinked awake to early light pouring through her window, golden and calm. Her eyes adjusted slowly, reluctant to leave that stillness behind. The weight on her chest was familiar by now.
Pib.
It perched contentedly, curled into the crook of her shoulder, its stitched smile as unnervingly eternal as ever. Watching.
Rose sighed. “You’re still here.”
The creature chirped, a musical trill that vibrated in the air without echo. She gently nudged it off her chest, sitting up and stretching. Her muscles protested—sore, but not shattered. Her mind wasn’t screaming. For once, she didn’t feel hunted.
Not by the st
