There was no sensation or indication of the monster inside her. The large scar running down her torso, now pale white and healed, was all she had now. Her crushed hand was good as new. There was no pain anywhere. Unease ran up her spine- What had happened wasn’t natural. Her body was no longer natural. There was a big hole in it, and that thing was still inside. Lurking. The unease mixed with pangs in her stomach and she lurched. Was it coming out again? Was she going to be sick? No, the pangs pushed through everything as a single, overpowering feeling: Phoebe had never been so hungry in her entire life.

It was hunger that spurred her to creep off of the strange bed and explore the strange house she was in. When she looked out the window a large field greeted her, bordered by the silhouette of a forest. The shadow of a fox caught her attention fast enough for her to watch it skulk into the brush. She was relieved to see her backpack, along with her laundered clothes, resting on the dresser. Rummaging through the bag, she retrieved her phone with ease and found a sticky note attached to it:

“Please don’t tell anyone what happened or where you are. The person who attacked you is probably watching for that type of activity. We need to talk more, I can answer your questions. I don’t bite :) -Cat”

Clicking the screen on, the only notification Phoebe had was one missed call from her aunt. She considered telling her--or the police--that she had been kidnapped by a creepy man, before coming to the unfortunate realization that Quill was probably the only group of people who could help her.

She texted her aunt that she was okay- that she’d met another student on the train and was able to catch a ride to campus with her family after the derailment. There was no time for anything else.

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05.15.21
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