He wouldn’t hold back with her.Wouldn’t pull away, thinking he might break her.Is his hesitation with me inevitable, then? Because one of his hands spans my whole belly? Because he thinks our bodies couldnot be compatible?
Resh spoke with Thessia at length while Auryn forced her gaze to the men and distributed bowls to those needing extra nourishment. They thanked her. Looked at her like she was a star in the night sky. Yet, their words weren’t enough to lift the heaviness on her chest.
Up ahead, Thessia laughed. Loud, mighty, yet melodic.
Auryn tried to keep her gaze on the ground. She saw a seedling for a plant she recognized. Something that, once blooming, was beautiful and added a rich flavor even to broth made of lacking ingredients. Distracted, she reached for it with her magic, pulling on the thread of its life memories, coaxing it into bloom. The seedling unfurled into an azure flower with five bright petals. She leaned down, picked it, and let it float atop the soup she planned to give to Kailorien.
When she reached the firepit, she didn’t look at Thessia at all.
Only at him.
His eyes found hers, and for the briefest moment, his shadow danced, contradicting his apathetic mask.
She extended the bowl toward him with both hands. “Your runes,” she murmured, “they sometimes take your appetite. But you should eat. The Darkness comes.”
Resh took the bowl from her hands. His fingers brushed hers—barely a touch, but enough to set her pulse racing again. The weight in his gaze tethered her, held her in place like a thread drawn taut between them. The heat of his palm scorched where it met her knuckles, even as he pulled the bowl back and glanced down at the flower floating on its surface.
“Auryn,” he said, voice low.
Her heart skipped. “Yes?”
He opened his mouth like he wanted to say more, but a familiar chuckle cut through the moment.
Thessia.
“Well, well,” the Lioness said, arching one finely shaped brow. “So, this is the one they callSokâr. That’s something holy in your black pit, isn’t it Shadeslayer?”
Auryn glanced at her, blinking. From this distance, she saw that Thessia’s eyes were violet. Intense. Raw. Like a war cry too loud for ears.
Thessia circled her like a predator assessing a new addition to the pride. “I expected someone taller. But there’s a stillness in you I recognize.” She tilted her head, and for a moment her shadow danced just like Kailorien’s when he lied.
“You’ve seen things. Haven’t you?”
Auryn looked up at her, steady. “Things?”
“Battle. Combat. Maybe death.”
“I do have such memories.”Auryn stepped toward Thessia, and standing on her tip toes, she reached for one of her braids.
The Lioness didn’t back away. Her violet eyes burned into Auryn even as she twirled a braid around her finger. Something caught her eye. A delicate violet ribbon threaded through the braid—too fine for a warrior, too carefully tied for a woman radiating such chaos.
“You’re brave, touching me without permission.” Thessia grinned.
Auryn glanced at her and tilted her head. “You wanted me to,” she answered.
A pause.
Suddenly, Thessia’s eyes widened. She caught Auryn’s hand in her own, her grip firm but not painful. She looked Auryn up and down, as though seeing her for the first time.
“By the Gods,” she said. “You’re awoman.”
She stood up straighter, and Auryn thought she saw the tips of her ears darken to a faint pink.
“Thought you were a child from your narrow shoulders,” Thessia said. Not intentionally disrespectful, just surprised.
“You would ask a child if they’ve seen death?” Auryn asked. Then nodded. “I do suppose, in this world, it is commonplace.”
Thessia looked at Resh. Saw something that made her stiffen. When she turned back to Auryn, her eyes were hard.“You’rehis then?”
