Page 26 of In Your Light

Zaq’s eyes softened, and he tried to smile but couldn’t quite seem to manage it. “Like I could’ve stopped you.”

Fyn chuckled and pulled the drawstring on his rucksack, his entire life packed into one small bag. “So I, uh... I told him I was going and that I’d be back one day. Probably soon. I don’t know.” He met Zaq’s eyes. “But he told me if I left, I couldn’t come back, so...”

“What?”

Fyn nodded. “Nice, huh?”

“He doesn’t mean that,” Zaq tried. “He’s just mad. He’ll calm down, I’m sure.”

Fyn wasn’t so certain, but he didn’t want to burden Zaq with anything more than he already had. “I’m sorry if he was hard on you. And he’ll probably add my chores to yours.”

Zaq shrugged. “I don’t mind.”

“Tell Zoh and Cyd to step up,” Fyn said. “They’re big enough now to help more. We were doing twice their chore list when we were their age.”

Zaq nodded slowly, again looking around the small room. “Where will you go?”

Fyn couldn’t help but smile. “Well, I have a place in Tenebrae if I want it. They offered me that. But so did Hadeom. He said I could stay at the hut with him.”

Zaq’s eyes went wide. “Is that... safe?”

“I’m sure it is.”

“But he’s...” He winced. “He’s a friend of Cern’s, and he seems... I dunno. Dark, or something.”

“Dark?”

“Yeah. Troubled. I dunno. I never spoke to him, but I saw him from a distance. There’s a shadow over him.”

Fyn couldn’t entirely disagree. “He’s there to heal and rest. But he’s a nice guy.”

And incredibly handsome...

Zaq studied him for a long moment. “You like him.”

Fyn tried his hardest not to blush. “No. I mean, sure. I have no reason to dislike him....”

“No, I mean you like like him.”

He sighed and met Zaq’s eyes. Fyn couldn’t hide anything from him. “Maybe. He’s nice and funny. And mysterious and⁠—”

“And not faun,” Zaq added.

“Well, obviously,” Fyn replied. “Look, I’m curious about him, that’s all. It’s not some sacrilege that will piss off the gods. And just because I might like him doesn’t mean anything will happen. He’s not interested in me. He’s there to recuperate and rest.”

Zaq sighed and was quiet for a long beat. “Just promise me one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“If you are serious about him, ask him what he’s recuperating from. Ask him who he really is. Or what he is.”

Fyn wasn’t about to tell Zaq that Hadeom had admitted to being a hunter of some kind.

“And be careful,” Zaq added quietly.

“I will.”

“And don’t ever think you can’t come back. No matter what Pax said. This is your home. Your people.”