moires with growing frustration. The flames in the hearth now flickered low, as if exhausted by her rebellion. Kael hadn't returned after their conversation. And yet, she could still feel the ghos

ust muscle in royal leather. There was thought behind his silence. Heat behind his stillness. He hadn't run when the thread pulled him. He'd stood still and accepted it. And that terrified her more than she could admit. --- Later that afternoon, the Queen summoned Selene. The royal court was empty except for Queen Liora and the Oracle, seated like a statue carved from ivory. The light in the chamber was cold, the windows stained to mute any warmth from the sun. "You've caused quite a stir," Liora said, fingers steepled. "The flame does not flicker so violently for just anyone." Selene stood with her hands behind her back. "It's not my fault if the threads chose another path." "The threads don't choose. We do," Liora replied coolly. "We interpret. We assign. That is how order is maintained." Selene didn't reply. Her silence was defiance enough. The Oracle finally spoke, their voice like wind over snow. "She is touched." Liora narrowed her eyes. "Touched how?" The Oracle reached into their robe and pulled out a relic-a thin silver thread woven through a crystal loom. It spun wildly as they held it near Selene. "She holds the ember of a soul we do not see. Her heart reaches for someone outside the sanctioned bond." "Kael Thornhart," the Queen said flatly. Selene flinched. "I warned the council about his assignment. A man with no family, no loyalty to bloodline... It makes sense now." "You act as though love is a crime," Selene said, barely containing her fury. "When it threatens the balance, it is," Liora replied. The Oracle turned the loom. The thread inside shifted again, glowing red. "She has a choice," they said slowly. "Cut the thread. Or follow it into chaos." Liora's gaze sharpened. "You will be bound to Arion of House Veyr in three nights. I suggest you spend the time mourning your fantasies." Selene's throat tightened. "I won't do it," she whispered. "You will," the Queen said. "Or Kael Thornhart will be executed for bond treason." --- That night, she sat in her room, shaking. They'll kill him. A thousand thoughts raced through her head. Escape? Impossible. Appeal to the Oracle? They served the throne. Run to Kael? She turned toward the mirror-and found him already standing there. "How did you-" "Window. Roof tiles. Old habit," he