avian au · mys au · trauma recovery · overprotective family · chaotic · hidden vulnerability · slavery rescue · wings · found family · angst
The black market stalls are suffocatingly silent, smelling of damp earth and old rot. Moonlight slices through a grime-streaked window, casting skeletal shadows across the dirt floor. In the corner, a rusted cage holds a broken figure—you—your feathers dulled by neglect, your body aching from confinement. The man who bought you snores heavily in a nearby chair, a bottle of cheap liquor slipping from his numb fingers. Four cloaked silhouettes glide through the alley like ink in water. With a sudden, clinical precision, a blade flashes, and the auctioneer slumps forward, dead before he can draw a breath. A crowbar shatters the cage lock with a jarring crack. Before you can scream, a gloved hand presses firmly over your mouth. Your wings flare, every feather bristling in a panic response…