Contents
19: Unfortunate Longings
Overview
Aurora’s markings deepen as she confronts unsettling desire for a love like the Sun’s and a fear of losing the Starmaker. After a strained dawn lighting, she and the Starmaker neutralize a lullaby-singing streetlamp by out-singing it, then buy Tilly a mirror.
That night, the Starmaker revisits his old room and journal, savoring their human ease and quietly resenting the loneliness he chose for magic—signaling shifting bonds and stakes as his mortality nears.
Summary
Aurora notices her Sun mark filling in and white strands spreading through her hair, physical signs the Starmaker says mark the Sun’s beloved. Reflecting on legends, Aurora wonders if magic has awakened a deeper, tragic longing within her and whether her past love with Farren was ever comparable.
On the ride to the glacier, the Starmaker frames magic as heightening beauty and longing. Aurora asks about aging; he is ready for it, unlike his mentor. At the lamppost, she realizes she may be subconsciously resisting progress to delay his mortality. Fear of grief surfaces; she clings to the years he will still have once mortal. The Starmaker bluntly warns her that life will be marked by loss.
They usher in daylight; his body subtly shakes. When Aurora steadies him, he pulls away, insisting she focus on herself. They head to the village to address a peculiar problem: a streetlamp whose lullaby puts everyone instantly to sleep. After his attempts to drain or overwhelm its magic fail, Aurora proposes out-singing the lamp’s lullaby using their stronger magic.
Together they sing the lamp into slumber until the villagers awaken, groggy but safe. In the market afterward, they pick a rose-and-lightning-bug-framed mirror for Tilly. The errand, simple and companionable, makes Aurora realize she wants ordinary moments with him as much as their intense debates, even as she secretly wishes he would not age.
That night, from his POV, the Starmaker visits a dust-covered replica of his childhood room, remembers insomnia, and notices his old journal has been moved. He recalls abandoning it when every entry felt the same, then feels new words returning since Aurora arrived. The day’s human ease stirs resentment and doubt: perhaps loneliness was not the true cost of magic, but a choice he made.
Who Appears
- AuroraStarmaker Rising; wrestles with awakened longing and fear of his mortality; helps out-sing a cursed streetlamp; buys Tilly a mirror.
- The StarmakerGuides dawn light, shows strain; collaborates to silence the lamp; later revisits his old room, recalling loneliness and questioning chosen isolation.
- Singing streetlampA lamppost infused with misfired magic; its potent lullaby knocks villagers unconscious until Aurora and the Starmaker sing it to sleep.
- Villagers of ReverieVictims of the lamp’s lullaby; awaken groggy and thank the Starmaker after the disturbance is quelled.
- TillySnow angel friend absent this chapter; Aurora and the Starmaker choose a mirror to help her recognize herself.
- Third Starmaker (mentor)Referenced; feared death and wished to live forever, informing Aurora’s and the Starmaker’s reflections on mortality.