#unfortunately mal is running into the age old and well documented problem all of us face eventually:

[greensaplinggrace]

beneath the dark of the night sky, the ground crumbles out from under them, and they fall into shadow and nothing, through the boughs of great trees.

when mal wakes up, aching and blinking blood from his eyes, its to see a man crouched over alina’s prone form. mal’s heart skips a beat in fear, and he struggles to get his arms under him. a stick cracks beneath his hand, deafening in the deadly quiet.

the man’s head snaps to face him. two fully black eyes lock onto mal from a beautiful, unnatural face. it stares for a beat too long, unblinking, then places a long white finger against its lips.

terror draws mal’s voice from his throat. “alina,” he chokes desperately.

the man’s head tilts just a bit too far, his black eyed gaze too intense, watching mal closely. his hand stills in alina’s hair.

“alina,” the man repeats, in exactly the same way, and alina wakes up.

she shifts, blinking her eyes blearily at mal, and mal gapes at the empty space above her.

“mal?” she asks, and there’s a howling far in the forest, wind rustling the leaves. silence. 

“I thought...” he trails off uncertainly. “let’s just go.”

he helps her up, steadying her as much as his own weak arms can, and they make their way back home. the forest seems to go on forever. trees growing taller and wider, shadows darkening until all is swallowed within them. for a time, it appears as if every star has been pulled from the sky, and bramble thickens the underbrush at their feet.

but then they break through the treeline into a familiar field. sunlight pours over the horizon, painting the tall grasses in luminous golds, and all is well again. their feet ache from walking for what feels like days. mal takes alina’s hand, and she turns to smile at him.

his heart pounds in his chest at the movement, caught in his throat for one painful second. alina’s shadow doesn’t move. 

“alina...” he starts again, voice shaking, but then he blinks, and her shadow is facing him just as she is. she smiles like the sun. then laughs playfully, knowing, tugging him along.

“come on, mal.”

they walk hand in hand back to the orphanage. it’s hardly a home, and they’re going to age out soon, but mal is grateful to see its familiar doors. he grips alina’s hand even tighter as they walk inside, feeling a profound sense of relief. they’re safe now, and everything can be normal again.

then ana kuya is bustling toward them, reprimanding them for their dirty clothes, and mal forgets about everything as they’re dragged to the bathrooms to get clean. ana kuya’s words are sharp as usual, and the other kids giggle at them from around the corners. 

alina rolls her eyes at them, then hesitates, head tilting, a laugh spilling unbidden from her lips. mal blinks at her uncertainly.

“alina? are you okay?” he asks, baffled by the strange behavior, and she rolls her eyes at him too.

“i’m fine mal, honestly, let’s just get this over with.” she steps forward into the hall, before it’s long, antique mirror, and in her reflection mal sees a tall man at her back, pressed against her, fingers locked in her hair.

mal chokes in surprise, horror, mind blank with terror. the man seems to be whispering something in alina’s ear.

“alina-” mal starts. “alina-” she turns to face him, but the man keeps whispering in her ear. her shadow doesn’t move.

“mal, are you okay? you’ve been acting strange since we woke up.”

“the man-” finally, alina’s shadow turns to him. the man’s black eyes stare eerily back at him. he settles his chin atop alina’s head, hand still locked in her hair. she doesn’t even react. outside her reflection, there is only her. 

he brings one long finger to his lips again, silencing, and mal finds he has no words.

alina tuts at him. she grabs his numb hand and pulls him along. they leave the mirror and her reflection behind, but mal does not feel that same sense of relief. his tongue is leaden, breath racing. alina is not even fazed.

her shadow moves with her when she guides them to the bathroom door, mimicking her every action. it is just a shadow.

“come on,” alina says gently, as if his bump on the head knocked too many screws loose. maybe it had. “a nice bath will warm you up.” she glances back at him worriedly. “perhaps we should avoid the woods for a while.”

mal could not agree more. 

she reaches out to run her fingers comfortingly through his hair, and her shadow reaches with her.