Martia woke suddenly with the odd sensation that someone was watching her.
Her eyes flew open, and she realized someone was watching her. She blinked rapidly several times and tried to rally the pieces of her mind before she realized her watcher was Bright, sitting crosslegged on the floor beside her bed, staring at her sleeping form.
“You awake?” Bright asked, rising from the floor in an unbelievably fluid motion. She’d changed into a new outfit, purple blouse with orange and silver pants.
No, Martia wanted to say, I’m still asleep and this is all part of my nightmare. “Sort of.”
Bright nodded approvingly. “Best way. I’ve done ‘sort of’ for years.”
“I can believe that,” Martia mumbled.
“Don’t,” said Bright. “It’s a lie.”
“Whatever.” Martia was in no condition to argue the metaphysi
