The effect of the trousers was shocking. If she ignored the bruises, she looked like a version of Lily who could run and fight and jump on and off a horse without effort. The trousers allowed her to move freely without having to hitch up heavy skirts, and although they weren’t exactly what she was used to, she understood that perhaps she would benefit from their practicality.

There was a knock on the door.

Lily jumped, moving far away from the mirror and standing in a position that she thought, or rather hoped, would make her seem strong and intimidating. Her muscles still ached but she found that if she stretched and tensed as she stood, the pain gradually lessened.

‘Who’s there?’ she croaked, her feeble voice eliminating any air of intimidation she might have been able to create.

‘I am a friend. I am here to help you. May I come in?’ The voice was unmistakably male, and Lily felt a strange mixture of relief and fear. If the person who had brought her here was male, then he couldn’t be a part of the Shadow Sect, which meant that she was safe from their powers whilst she was still in recovery from her incident. But then, that also meant that this person was unpredictable, unknown, and thus potentially even more dangerous than those she was tracking. What if he was the man who had chased her across the moors? The man who had killed Morrigan?

Lily clenched her fists and raised them in front of her, poised to defend herself.

‘Enter,’ she croaked again, wincing.

The door opened slowly and silhouetted in the doorway was a tall, slender figure. The man took a step into the room, holding his hands up in a gesture of surrender. As he stepped into the light, Lily realised that he wasn’t a man at all. He was a boy, of a similar age to her. The way he carried himself created the illusion of age: he stood straight and his shirt sleeves were rolled carelessly, showing his strong arms that rippled with muscle. He had brown skin and dark russet hair that fell in a thick curtain past his shoulders. He had a kind but weary face; he looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders, but he was more than happy to carry it.

A smile tugged at his lips when he saw Lily’s fearsome stance.

‘Woah, woah, I told you, I’m a friend, I promise,’ he said, hands still up, in a feigned attempt to show her that he wasn’t a threat. In one of his clenched hands, Lily noticed, was a crumpled brown paper bag.

Lily relaxed a little but didn’t move from her spot at the back of the room.

‘Who are you?’ she asked. ‘Where am I?’

‘It’s all right. We will get on to all of those things very soon, but first I need to inquire after your health.’ Seeing her frown, he continued. ‘You had quite the ordeal last night, and you were lucky that the light from the tower illuminated your boat just as it capsized. I ran down to the beach as soon as I could but you had already swallowed an awful lot of water.’