Chapter Text
The cargo hull was cramped in the train that was barrelling its way to London. There were many people constantly moving to and from the big city, people who wanted the big life and some who just wanted to get away to somewhere quiet. This was a train on its way to those hectic, lively streets. The cargo was filled with so many bags, furniture, packages making its way to the city. It reeked of some foods that someone had decided to pack, which they really shouldn’t have. On a busy travel day, Jacob Frye wondered why Evie decided to have them leave Crawley.
It had all been very sudden. Both of them had talked for years about getting out of Crawley, getting somewhere safe. Jacob had watched Evie work so hard to make sure he was safe, he was getting the care he needed. Getting doctors, getting professionals, anyone who could help them. Evie spending hours curled up with some books as he slept up in the loft, studying and making sure she knew how to properly care for Jacob. It had been a mess, those years. The siblings could only do so much to keep themselves safe and happy and thriving. Things had been easier at home for Evie - a father who loved her and worked with her and wanted her to be happy and educated. Jacob was the outcast, the one Evie had spent years caring for and feeding and clothing and teaching. It was a pitiful existence for them, but now they were on their way to London. Evie said it would be better there. That Jacob would have to be pent up in a barn anymore. Jacob wouldn’t have to hide or pretend. Nothing of the sort.
The train lurched to a stop and Jacob pulled the blankets he had gathered from many suitcases around himself. He couldn’t be seen, he was a stowaway. Tucked away between some bags and an old desk, Jacob curled up among the blankets, holding his breath as the sound of the train car doors opened. Things were being tossed in, taken out, moved around. Nobody came near his pile of blankets, and the sound of the door closing was a relief for him. Hiding like this in such an uncomfortable space was something Jacob wasn’t exactly thrilled about doing.
“Jacob?”
Evie’s voice startled the man as he pulled the blankets down quickly. He saw her hiding among some stuff, and a smile was on her face. “I came to check on you and spend some time with you until the next stop. Only one more stop before London.” She had incredible balance, the moving of the train and luggage around them not stopping her from reaching him and taking a seat. “How has it been in here?”
“Oh, you know,” Jacob replied. “Dark. Cold. Claustrophobic.”
“Other than that?” Evie nudged her brother and smiled. “Soon we’ll be out in the open air and you can spread out. Then we’ll find a good place to stay and… Well, we can live normally.”
“You really think we can live normally?” Jacob gave her a side look, to which she rolled her eyes.
“We can do our best,” Evie replied, shaking her head a little and leaning back against the side of the hull. “I mean, we need to. Twenty years of… Of that life… You can’t just stay in a barn forever.”
“I don’t know, it was nice,” Jacob said with a yawn. “I had all the hay I wanted. I could scare the chickens and laugh at them. One time I even caught a rodent, did I tell you about that?”
“You caught them all the time.”
“Yes but this one was really big, I mean like bigger than your face.”
The two sat in silence for some time, listening to the rolling of the train on the tracks. The train would bump and shake and Jacob couldn’t help but feel a little sick. It had been some time since he ate, though, so he doubted he would be throwing up anytime soon. Evie didn’t seem too bothered by the train. She had been on it many times before, though not in the storage. Still, she had more experience with the inconsistent feeling of the tracks.
“Do you think London will really be better?” Jacob asked among the quiet. “If it turns out to be just like Crawley-”
“All of this is much more common in big cities,” Evie said. She touched his shoulder, thumb rubbing his skin as she watched him. “You won’t have to hide, but you won’t be forced to be around people if you really don’t want to. You won’t be alone anymore, okay? And I’m here. I will always take care of you, but it’s difficult for me because-”
“Yeah, I know…”
Jacob shifted where he sat. He wanted to stand up and stretch out but there was hardly any room for that. “Do you know how much longer it’s going to be until we get to London?” he asked. Even though there was one more stop, Jacob couldn’t stand it anymore. He was first cooped up in the trunk of a truck for an hour, then hours before any trains were scheduled he had to hide away in the storage compartment. The trip to London was only supposed to be an hour, yet here Jacob was almost six hours later, waiting to be liberated from his messy prison.
“Only fifteen or twenty more minutes,” Evie said. “So not long. You’ll get out and you can stretch and we’ll go find them, okay?”
“Okay, sure…”
“I’ll stay with you until we get there, how about that?” Evie smiled at him, and Jacob felt thankful. He wasn’t sure he could stand any more time alone in that storage space than he had to. It was nice to have company. Still, they both just pulled blankets over themselves and fell asleep leaning on each other.
To London they went.
“Up! Up come on we have to go!”
Jacob was drowsy, body sluggish as Evie was pulling on his arm. “Come on, we need to hurry before we’re caught!” she said. “Jacob! Jacob wake up we’re here!”
The smell of London hit Jacob’s nose. It was a mixture of disgusting, amazing, all sorts of foreign smells. In Crawley, it was basic smells. Some parts nature, some human, all completely dull and boring. This was something else entirely. Evie was pulling his arm, dragging her brother to his feet. “We need to go quick! Come on, come on!”
Jacob followed his sister out of the cart, hopping down into the station. He was thankful none of the workers seemed to notice where they came from, but everyone stared at him the moment he came into view. Cheeks getting red, he kept close to Evie, grabbing her hand and letting her lead him. He always hated the staring whenever he entered a room, whenever someone other than Evie was present. Even when they were small, Evie never stared at him like he was some kind of freak. She was never embarrassed of him, never thought he was abnormal or strange.
The station gave way to a beautiful city. Clouds billowing above their heads, a cool air that nipped at Jacob’s skin. “I…” He wanted to tell Evie that this was so much different than he was expecting. He anticipated a place that would have screaming people pointing at him, chasing him out of the city. People stared, but some people didn’t actually look surprised, or more fascinated than afraid. Evie was giving them all looks back, too, daring them to speak or comment or shout, and so nobody said a word to Jacob as they walked out onto the street.
“Well, you’re here,” Evie sounded relieved. It was like years of pain and struggle had lifted off the both of them. “London. Just like we wanted. I have the address of those…” Evie stopped when she glanced at Jacob and she laughed. “You can stretch now, you don’t have to keep it in like that.”
“You sure?” Jacob glanced around at the people watching. “They won’t… They won’t freak out or anything?”
“Jacob, we can’t exactly hide it, they already know.”
After some hesitation, Jacob figured there was no point in objecting as his bare arms stretched out, his naked chest exposed as he leaned back. It felt good to stretch his limbs. The tension in his back began to unwind, relief starting in his lower back, climbing up, and stretching into his wings.
Puffy feathers stuck out as Jacob’s wings outstretched. Light brown fluffy down was all over them, a few dark brown feathers with white streaks fitting around them. He had just begun to molt when they decided to leave. His wings were small, and neither of the twins could tell if it was because his gene had been ignited with human parents or if his wings were just naturally small. So far he was unable to fly with them. Jacob wondered if he could learn to fly with them at all.
“This… feels good,” Jacob mumbled, unable to stop the smile on his face. His wings fanned out, spreading around him. People watched with wonder, and nobody said anything. A little child looked curious and wanted to go see, but the mother stopped them. Jacob’s wings fluttered a little and he looked at Evie. “So there’s a group here like me?”
“Yes,” Evie said with a smile. “They can help you much better than I can. I did some research, and we’re going to go meet with Henry Green, he’s the alpha of this… flock…” Evie nodded to herself. “He can help you. And maybe even name what you are!”
Whenever Jacob was excited or happy or proud, his feathers and down would fluff up and the little chirp would always come from his throat.
Evie laughed as Jacob covered his mouth, and they went on their way.