Chapter 35

Raeve dangles from Líri as the Moonplume surges skyward, barely stabilizing her grip by bracing on wing buds. Líri flies south at speed, then slams onto a mountain peak, keening in grief before curling into herself. Raeve attempts to approach but is rebuffed, recalling Kaan’s counsel about dragons yearning for love.

Choosing empathy, Raeve sings her calming song and carefully moves to Líri’s head. She soothes the dragon, acknowledges Líri’s pain and loneliness, and promises she is loved. Líri gradually relaxes, then coils her tail around Raeve and nests her like an egg, accepting Raeve’s presence.

As they lie beneath the aurora, Raeve senses her Other rise and settle. Líri’s heartbeat begins to echo Raeve’s, and a silent understanding binds them. The pressure in Raeve’s chest becomes a shared rhythm; Raeve recognizes the formation of a soul-bond, even as it confirms a prior emptiness that pains her.

Inside her inner lake, Raeve tries to free herself from a silver thread, then discovers a luminous silver splinter embedded within. She carves it out despite the agony and casts the heavy fragment into the depths, hardening herself in the process. Her Other dives after the falling light as Raeve resolves to wrap protectively around Líri’s new presence within her.

Returning to the present, Raeve embraces the bond and the sharper, more guarded self it requires, vowing to keep Líri safe as the Moonplume holds her tightly on the windswept peak.