"Elfie… Elfie…"
The whisper slipped through the quiet like a haunting spell, soft and insistent.
Alicia's eyes fluttered beneath closed lids, her brow furrowing as the sound wove its way into the edges of her dreams. The voice was low, almost a caress—intimate, like a lover's breath against bare skin.
"Elfie…"
Slowly, she stirred, caught between the fading veil of sleep and the pull of wakefulness. Her mind was thick, sluggish, as if moving through a fog. Her throat felt dry, raw, as though she hadn't taken a single sip of water in days. She parted her lips, swallowed hard, and then, with an effort, pushed herself upright.
