He presses his lips together to fight a smile, but the dimples in his cheeks betray him. Despite everything—the silence, the resentment, the words we can never take back—seeing that almost-smile loosens something in my chest.
Gods, I miss him.
It's a cruel thing, missing someone who stands right in front of you. Someone who shares your blood and your face and every memory of a childhood spent whispering secrets in the dark. It's crueler still in a place like Lunaris, where everyone arrives alone and siblings are as rare as starlight through the clouds.
The raven hops onto a sketch of a raffin half-buried beneath the maps, and Jordi tilts his head.
“Interesting that he chose that spot.”
I laugh despite myself. “If you think this is a sign he's trying to wake the raffin, I will summon my fire.”
“It's illegal to summon fire indoors.”
“It's illegal to steal from the vault, but here we are.”
He chuckles, low and warm, and I feel it in my chest. For a moment, we’re children again, sneaking into the library after dark, shoulders pressed together as we pored over forbidden texts by candlelight.
“You have to admit," Jordi says, his voice turning wistful, “it would be nice if all it took to wake the raffins was birds pecking at their stone shells.”
I snort. “You think it would be ‘nice’ to wake a creature with a thirty-foot wingspan, poisonous talons, and the ability to summon lightning from a three-hundred-year slumber?”
He scowls. “Maybe it would only take out the Council.”
“That's not how it works. They'd wipe us all out.”
“Either way, the curse would be lifted.”
I stare at him for a moment. “I can't believe we're having this conversation again.”
“It's more important than ever.”
“I doubt that.” I turn to the row of iron cages behind me, their bars casting thin shadows across the floor. “Maybe instead of dreaming about all of us dying for the supposed greater good, you should focus on small changes you can actually make. Like taking this raven home and healing him.”
He scoffs. “And keep him caged?”
“It's a big cage, and it’s only for a few hours.” I reach for the largest one and set it on the table with a heavy thunk. “Besides, once the healing tonic kicks in, he'll be too out of it to know the difference.”
“You just described all the residents of Lunaris.”
The words land like a blow to the chest. I cast him a sideways glance, keeping my face carefully blank. “That's not fair.”
“I agree. It's not fair that they're all in the dark.”
“They seem happy enough.”
“Happy or surviving?”
I scoff. “Is there a difference?”
He frowns. “You can't possibly believe that.”
I bite back a response and focus on the cage. The iron bars. The rusted lock. Anything but the disappointment carved into every line of his face.
“Can you please just look at the maps?” he asks quietly.
“And that’s it? Only look at them?”
“Yes.”
