Chapter 101 Part 2: Of Love and Other Disasters

The evening it happened, the kitchen smelled like burnt bread and lavender.

Kael knew he was in trouble the moment Aurelia's laughter cut through the haze of smoke. She leaned against the doorway, arms crossed, watching as he frantically waved a towel at the charred remains of what was supposed to be Selene's favorite honey cake.

"Let me guess," Aurelia said, her voice dripping with amusement. "You were trying to impress her again."

Kael scowled, tossing the ruined cake into the fire. The embers flared briefly, casting flickering shadows across his flour-dusted face. "It was an accident. The oven—"

"—was fine until you touched it," Aurelia finished, plucking an unburnt berry from the counter and popping it into her mouth. "Face it, little brother. You're hopeless."

The old nickname stung more than usual. Kael turned away, scrubbing at the counter with unnecessary force. He could still feel Aurelia's gaze on his back, sharp as always, missing nothing.

A quiet moment passed before she sighed and nudged him aside with her hip. "Move over, disaster." Her hands moved deftly, gathering fresh ingredients. "If you want to win Selene's heart, at least do it with something edible."

Kael watched as his sister worked, her fingers quick and sure. The fading sunlight through the window caught the gold flecks in her eyes, the same ones he'd inherited. They'd spent their whole lives like this—bickering, teasing, but always, always showing up when it mattered.

"You're staring," Aurelia said without looking up.

"I was just thinking," Kael murmured, leaning against the counter. "Remember when we were kids and you convinced me to put frogs in Mother's bed?"

Aurelia's lips twitched. "She screamed so loud Father thought we were being murdered."

"And then made us sleep in the barn for a week."

"The fleas," they said in unison, grinning at the shared memory.

The comfortable silence that followed was broken only by the sound of dough being kneaded. Then, softer:

"She looks at you, you know."

Kael's hands stilled. "What?"

Aurelia rolled her eyes. "Selene. She looks at you when you're not paying attention. Like you've hung the damn stars."

The confession hung between them, fragile and precious. Kael swallowed hard, suddenly unable to meet his sister's gaze.

Aurelia nudged him again, gentler this time. "So stop burning cakes and just talk to her, idiot."

The seasons changed, as they always did.

Kael never forgot the way his heart had raced that first time Selene's fingers brushed his when passing him a cup of tea. How her laughter had warmed him more than any fire when he finally admitted his terrible baking attempts had all been for her.

And Aurelia never let him forget it either.

"Tell me again," she'd crow, grinning over her own cup of tea as Kael groaned. "About how you tripped over your own feet when she—"

"I will push you into the river."

"You wouldn't dare."

The splash had startled a flock of birds from the nearby trees.

Then came Lucian.

Tall, quiet Lucian with his storm-gray eyes and the shadows that seemed to cling to him like a second skin. Kael noticed the change in his sister immediately—the way her sharp tongue softened around him, how she'd pause mid-sentence when he entered a room.

It was during one of those rare quiet evenings, just the two of them sitting by the hearth, that Kael finally spoke.

"You like him."

Aurelia stiffened, her fingers tightening around her mug. "Don't be ridiculous."

"He asked me about you today."

The admission made Aurelia's breath catch. Kael saw it—the briefest flicker of hope before she schooled her features into indifference.

"What did you tell him?"

Kael grinned. "That you snore like a bear and have the temper of a wet cat."

The pillow hit him square in the face.

But later, when Lucian appeared at their door with wildflowers in hand (carefully chosen, because Kael may have mentioned Aurelia's favorites), Kael made sure to disappear into the kitchen with a wink.

Years later, when the wars were memories and their hair had begun to silver, they gathered on the porch of the house they'd built together. The setting sun painted the sky in hues of gold and violet, just like the shard's light that had once bound them all.

Selene leaned against Kael's shoulder, her laughter warm as he recounted yet another failed attempt at cooking from their youth. Lucian's arm was slung casually around Aurelia's shoulders, his thumb tracing absent circles on her skin.

"You know," Aurelia mused, watching the fireflies begin their evening dance, "we turned out alright."

Kael snorted. "Speak for yourself. I'm stuck with you lot."

But when he reached for his sister's hand, his grip was firm. A lifetime of shared secrets, of bickering and laughter and quiet support, passed between them in that simple touch.

The night air was sweet with the scent of blooming jasmine as the stars blinked awake above them. Somewhere in the distance, a nightingale began its song.

And for once—just this once—no one had a clever comeback.