Page 50 of The Academy of Blood & Shadow

"Maybe. That's not the same as having to."

Then he takes the left path. I watch until the mist swallows him. The Trial has separated us deliberately. But it allowed us to help each other first. Another lesson recorded without explanation.

My path descends. The trees become denser. Their pale bark gives way to darker trunks threaded with faint silver lines. Small blue lights flicker between roots, disappearing whenever I look directly at them. The forest is beautiful here. Uncomfortably so. Everything seems designed to make me lower my guard. I do not.

When I hear footsteps ahead, I stop behind a tree. Slow. Uneven. Someone trying to move quietly and failing. I wait. A pale figure emerges from the mist. Nyra. Relief hits so quickly that I almost step out.

Her hair is loose around her shoulders. Her blue eyes search the path. Dirt stains the knees of her trousers. She looks real. Which means very little here.

"Nyra."

She spins. Her hands rise instinctively. Tiny roots break through the soil around her boots before immediately retreating. Manifestation. Unsupervised. Perhaps the Trial permits instinct. Or perhaps it provokes it.

"Eirea?" She asks.

"Tell me something I said yesterday."

Nyra stares. "What?"

I take a step towards her. "Something only you would know."

Her expression shifts from confusion to understanding. "You said you attempt personal growth."

"Too general."

She thinks for a few seconds. "You underlined a sentence in your notebook and immediately regretted it."

My shoulders loosen. "That will do."

Nyra exhales. "What did I say yesterday?" She asks. "You came to my room after curfew."

She shakes her head. "I was not there after curfew."

"Correct."

"Good."

We cross the distance between us. For one second, I consider hugging her. We have known each other five days. That seems fast. Then Nyra throws her arms around me. Decision made. I hug her back. Her entire body is trembling.