“She’s not a pet, Lilani.”
“I know that! I mean can she come live with us? We have room. And she’s nice. And you like her.”
“It’s… complicated.”
“Grown-ups always say that when they mean ‘I don’t want to explain.’” Lilani abandoned her reflection and plopped down next to the fire, her little face screwed up in thought. “But I don’t see what’s so complicated. She doesn’t have a pack. We don’t have a pack. We could be each other’s pack.”
Pack.The word resonated in her chest. Humans had families rather than packs, but had she even had that? She’d had her father, who treated her as a science project, and Merrick, who treated her as an investment, and the occasional researcher who treated her as a curiosity. But she’d never had anyone who simply wanted her for herself.
“Your father’s right,” she said gently. “It’s complicated. I have… obligations. Debts. People who expect things from me.”
“What kind of things?”
My body. My abilities. My freedom.She couldn’t say any of that to a six-year-old. “Adult things.”
“See?” Lilani pointed at her triumphantly. “You said ‘adult things.’ That’s the same as ‘complicated.’ You’re just using different words.”
“She has you there,” Valrek said, and when she looked up, she caught the ghost of a smile on his scarred face. It transformed him, softening the harsh lines and making him look almost… approachable. Almost gentle.
Her heart skipped a beat.
“The fish is ready,” he added, and the moment passed.
They ate together, the three of them arranged around the fire in a loose circle. He had wrapped the fish in some kind of broad leaf and cooked it directly on the coals, and the result was surprisingly delicious—tender and flaky, with a subtle smoky flavor that lingered on her tongue. Lilani chattered throughout the meal, telling stories about the seabirds she’d befriended and the shells she’d collected and the time she’d found a crab the size of her head.
Ariella listened, contributing little but soaking in every word. This was what breakfast was supposed to feel like. Not the cold, clinical meals of nutrient paste in her father’s lab, eaten in silence while he reviewed data on his tablet. Not the formal dinners with Merrick, where every bite felt like a transaction. This was warmth. This was life.
This is something I can’t have.
Tears threatened to blur her eyes as the knowledge crashed down over her, and he noticed.
“Is something wrong?”
“No,” she said, and quickly changed the subject.
After the meal, Lilani convinced her to come outside and look at her shell collection. The little girl had amassed an impressive array, sorted by color and size and arranged in careful spirals on a flat rock near the cave entrance. Ariella examined each one with genuine interest, identifying the species when she could and making up fantastical names when she couldn’t.
“This one is a Sunset Spiral. Very rare. Only found in the shallows near volcanic vents.”
“Really?”
“Absolutely. And this one…” She held up an iridescent shell that caught the light in a thousand different colors. “This is a Dragon’s Tear. Legend says they’re formed when sea dragons cry.”
Lilani’s eyes went wide. “There are sea dragons on Cresca?”
“I’ve never seen one. But that doesn’t mean they don’t exist.”
“I want to see one. Will you take me to look for them?”
“Lilani.” Valrek’s voice came from behind them, quiet but firm. “Ariella has to leave soon. She has her own home to return to.”
The reminder was like a bucket of cold water. Her own home. The lab. Her father.Merrick.
“But she just got here!” Lilani protested. “She hasn’t even seen my secret hideout yet!”
“Another time, maybe.”
“You always say that. ‘Another time.’ But another time never comes!” Lilani’s lower lip trembled dangerously. “I just want a friend, Papa. Is that so bad?”
