Page 174 of Eight of Swords, Part Two

Hand on hand.

Light. Kind. Gentle.

The contact sends immediate frissons of base recognition through him and without seeing, Riley knows that this… this is his brother.

Julian.

Riley forces himself to look, each inhale protectively shallow as blood from his nose trickles over his lips and down his chin.

There.

There he is.

Brother.

He’s blurry at first just like in the dreams, but the more Riley blinks, the more he sees him. Amber eyes, dark auburn hair. He’s tall, strong and intact; everything Riley isn’t, but it simply doesn’t matter. Riley’s gaze drops to their joined hands.

He catches sight of something on Julian’s wrist.

A small, dark crescent moon.

The exact mirror of Riley’s own bite scar.

Julian follows his gaze, gasps softly.

They lift their hands and press their wrists together.

It’s a perfect mirror match.

One made with teeth.

One made with ink.

But the same.

The same.

‘I dreamed of you,’ Julian utters, voice interwoven with so many elements beneath the surface that Riley wants to ask him to speak forever because there is magic in his voice and he thinks he could learn to love it when embodied by these two beautiful creatures.

‘I did too,’ Riley croaks. ‘Always, I think.’

Julian’s eyes fill with tears. ‘You’re my big brother?’

Riley doesn’t know what to say, how to apologise for being what he is, nothing but a disappointment, a waste of skin, nothing like Julian, not like Mimi or Céliane or anyone else on earth.

He’s just Riley and Riley is nothing, no one.

‘Y-yeah. I’m sorry.’

Julian pulls him into a fierce hug.

Riley flinches, but only at first because his nervous system immediately recognises that this is his brother, his pack, his kin, his blood.

Safe. Home. Family.

He shakes himself to return the gesture, has never hugged anyone in his life, so he just copies what Julian does. Riley’s heart is the last part of him that needs to grow up, stretch into strength and newness.

He feels it happen.