The silence that followed her words was deafening
Threadless...
That single word echoed in Rai's mind, louder than the wind, louder than the cracking of the sky that had torn open to let her through she hovered just above the ground, a cocoon of shimmering threads spiraling around her like a protective shell – alive, glowing, and reacting to her heartbeat.
Rai took a cautious step back. " who... Who are you?"
The girl's eyes locked with his –one silver, one a deep violet. "you're him," she whispered. " The one they said wouldn't exist."
"l'm nobody," Rai muttered, fists clenched.
"I don't even have a thread."
The girl tilted her head. "Exactly."
The cocoon around her began to unravel, the thread stretching outward, reaching towards Rai. He flinched, expecting pain or rejection – like the village threads that always avoided him – but these... these threads didn't resist him. They moved eagerly , almost curiously , circling him like they were trying to remember something lost.
"W-what is this ?" he breathed, heart racing The girl floated down until her feet gently touched the earth. The threads slowly sank into her back, disappearing into her spine like they were part of her.
"I am Barely," she said. "And I wasn't supposed to be here yet. But the Loom was torn... and you – Threadless –you're the tear."
Rai shook his head, overwhelmed. "I don't understand anything you're saying. Loom? Threads? What does this have to do with me ?"
Barely glanced up at the darkening sky. "They'll come for me soon. The keepers. They'll sense the rupture. But I had to find you first."
" why me ?!"
Barley stepped closer. " because you're the one who doesn't belong to the loom.
And that makes you dangerous."
Suddenly, a distant him filled the air, deep and unnatural. The threads in the air stiffened.
"They've found us,"Barely whispered. Before Rai could react, she grabbed his hand – and for the first time in his life, a thread connected to him. It was warm. It pulsed. It welcomed him.
His breath caught.
Barely's eyes buried with urgency. " if you want answer, you'll have to run."
And with that, they vanished into the shadow of the forest – two bounded by fate , one born of thread , and one born without.