I swear, I will never harm you. Ruvan’s words linger in the back of my mind, as present as the hum of magic that reverberates from him to me through the ether between us. He meant those words, and not just because of the bloodsworn. No matter what happens, even if he and I aren’t bonded forever, he will not bring harm to me.
Drew and Callos work together and that gives me time to hammer away in the smithy. Drew needs sickles and armor—things to protect himself with if the Raven Man comes after him in the marshes. The task gives me something to focus on and I pour myself into it until the moon rises and we’re back in the receiving hall.
Lavenzia has offered to take Drew across the Fade. Ventos is still recovering from our last jaunt. It’s just Ruvan and me to see them off.
“Travel safely,” Ruvan says to them both.
“I’ll do my best.” Lavenzia opens the obsidian vial. It’s the half-full one Ventos drank from. One full vial has been given to Callos and the other to Ruvan.
“With any luck, we might be able to come to you again.” I know it’s foolish to say, or even hope, but letting go of my brother again is already proving too painful to bear. “Callos will make the Hunter’s Elixir before we know it, I’m sure.”
“It’ll be far from the full moon by the time he accomplishes the feat,” Lavenzia says uncertainly. “Traversing the Fade is going to be hard enough as it is.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll be all right,” Drew says to me. “We’ll be at the ocean soon enough.”
“Right.” I laugh weakly, resisting the urge to glance at Ruvan. Did he hear? What does he think? “Until then, stay safe.”
“I will.” Drew pats the two silver sickles at his hips. “I have the best smithery in all of Hunter’s Hamlet to see it so.”
“The moon is nearly at its crest. We should go so we’re at the wall of the Fade when my powers are at their strongest.”
I pull Drew to me. My arms won’t come undone. I don’t want to let him go. I can’t. My brother, my twin, I thought he might be dead once before. I can’t handle not knowing a second time. This next month will break me.
“I have something I want you to do,” I whisper quickly. His leaving has reminded me… “Go to the ruins you fought Ruvan in. Take a look there.”
“What am I looking for?” he whispers back.
“Whatever you can find.” I don’t know what I want him to look for, I just know there’ssomethingthere. I’ve been trying to recover that first dream I had in Castle Tempost all day to much aching in the back of my skull. That feeling as Ventos and I passed through the Fade Marshes lingers with me. The dreams… There’s something to it all, and I’ve been too distracted and—if I’m being honest—too cowardly to confront it. But I’m wasting time avoiding it.
Drew is the one who ultimately pushes me away. “Be well, sister, and you stay safe also.”Remember what I said, is left unspoken.
“I will.”
Lavenzia takes Drew by the hand.
“Hold your—” They disappear in a puff of black smoke. “Breath,” I end weakly. I forgot to warn him about the tricks to make mist stepping better. He’ll have to figure it out along the way.
I stare at the spot they left from, the circle of stones on the floor that marks the break in the castle’s barriers. I’m not sure how long Ruvan lets us stand there, but I think it’s a significant stretch of time because when I move, my legs ache slightly. Drifting from the receiving hall, I head up to the room Drew was in. The bed is still indented with his outline. I can still see the ghosts of us at its edge, at the window, talking about how the world was nothing like we were promised.
In some ways, it’s better.
“So why does it feel so much worse?” I whisper.
“What does?” Ruvan reminds me of his presence. I turn, looking up at him. He’s remained at my side dutifully enough that it hurts.
“Everything.”
Slowly, as if he’s afraid of startling me, Ruvan takes my hand. His touch is searing hot. It races up my arm and sets my eyes to burning.
“Talk to me, Floriane,” he gently urges. “Tell me everything that’s been going through your mind. We’ve been silent to each other for too long.”
I sigh softly. He’s asking for more than just today—than our earlier, interrupted conversation. He’s asking for all the things I haven’t said—that I’ve been meaning to. All the things I promised myself I’d muster the courage to speak about when I returned from the hamlet.
“My thoughts about our bloodsworn—about being married to you—are still murky and confusing at best. Sometimes I find comfort in it. Other times it eats at me,” I admit. Ruvan shifts, as if he’s settling in to patiently listen. “I always knew I would be married off, just as I knew I would never have a choice in who or when it would be.” I laugh softly. “When I put it that way, it’s really not so different than what happened. I didn’t have my choice of husband in the end. The world has a twisted sense of humor, doesn’t it? You can be completely right about what’s ahead of you, and completely wrong at the same time. Maybe I can’t actually forge my own path in this world.”
“That’s not true. You can be and do whatever your heart desires,” Ruvan says, soft and firm. “Even the vampir who can see the future in someone’s blood will always say that the choice still lies in the beating heart of the person.”
I glance away. “I wish you could look into my future. The reassurance would be easier.”
