Ava did so, knowing she was to give up this world. She could hear the wind and the sound of the grass growing. She could hear the ants in the earth and the birds above them. Time passed and Lea was already crossing the border at the Wolf’s Plain, walking out of the forest with Julien. When she turned back, Lea saw everything that had happened in the years since she had been sent away, the door closing in Berlin, the train to Paris, the boy in the hallway, the heron in the trees, the village where snow lasted until April, the bees all around her, Ava.

Birds scattered overhead. Ava let go of all that she was and all she had ever been. She was ready, even if there was no World to Come for her, even if she had no soul. She was willing, but after several hours, she was still in the world. She could hear her own heart beating, a thud that shook her to her core, a sound she had never before heard. Perhaps she was not broken, a monster made of clay. Her pulse beat thickly, sounding in her ears. She was more than she should ever be, made by women to be a woman. But that made her less as well, for there is an ending to all mortal life and all life is damage. The bruise left by the soldier bloomed like a dark flower on her now delicate skin. Her breath came hot and fast. She had thought she would never know why humans fought so hard to stay alive, but now she understood. It was love everlasting. It was the thing that could never be erased. She had been made flesh by Lea’s love for her. She ached and bled and felt tired in her bones.

When she opened her eyes, the word emet was still on her arm.

This is what it was to be human, to be at the will of fate. This is what it felt like to lose a child you loved who had loved you in return. She was awake and brought to life. Being human came to her unbidden, it took hold of her, and changed her. She was helpless against time, the owner of a fragile heart. She felt her pulse and the human blood in her veins. This is what love did. It was a miracle and a sacrifice.