Three months into watching, the Watcher spoke unprompted.
Not to everyone—just to Maya.
The small one. The winged one. The one who feeds others.
Maya blinked. "Me?"
You. I have watched you most. You are... interesting.
"Thanks? I think?"
You gave me a choice. No one ever gave me a choice. Why?
Maya considered the question seriously. "Because everyone deserves a chance to change. Even beings older than everything."
Even me?
"Especially you. You've been alone longest. You deserve connection most."
The Watcher was silent.
Then—impossibly—Maya felt something new in its presence.
Not hunger.
Gratitude.