When Hearts Begin to Glow

Chapter 19: When Hearts Begin to Glow

The moon hung low that night, like a silver teardrop on the edge of the sky, and Sera couldn't sleep.

The wind whispered secrets through the cracks of her old window. Shadows crawled across her ceiling like they were dancing to an invisible tune. Something was different—something had shifted.

She turned in her bed, hugging the glowing stone tighter than usual. It pulsed against her palm, warm... alive. Like it had something to say, but couldn't find the words.

Down in the common hall, the fire had long gone out.

But someone was awake.

Kael.

He sat near the dying embers, a candle beside him, sketching something in his notebook. His golden hair looked soft under the candlelight, and when he looked up and saw Sera watching him from the stairs, he smiled in that crooked, lopsided way she was starting to know too well.

"Can't sleep either?" he asked.

Sera shook her head, walking down to join him. "The stone's been restless. Or maybe it's me. I don't know anymore."

Kael closed his book slowly, as if the drawing inside was a secret he wasn't ready to share.

"Do you think we'll ever be normal again?" she whispered.

Kael was quiet for a long time. Then he said, softly, "I don't think we were ever meant to be normal, Sera."

The fire popped.

Outside, a howl.

Then silence.

Just when the moment felt still, Sera leaned closer and asked, "What are you drawing?"

Kael hesitated.

Then, with a faint blush, he turned the notebook and showed her. A sketch of her.

Sera.

Not in her robes, not holding the magic stone—but smiling, sitting by a tree, her hair in the wind, free.

"This is how I see you," Kael said quietly. "Before all this... or maybe beyond it."

She looked at him, eyes wide, heart thudding, unsure of what to say. Then, for the first time in a long time, she laughed. Not loud. Just... soft.

"Kael," she said, but the rest was swallowed by the quiet.

Before either of them could say more, the stone in her palm pulsed hard.

She gasped.

A vision flooded her mind.

A door. Hidden under the roots of the Whispering Tree.

Voices calling her name.

Lucifer's shadow standing just beyond the threshold.

Sera stood up fast, knocking the candle over.

"I saw something. A door…" she said, her voice shaking. "We have to go. Now."

Kael didn't question her. He grabbed his coat, snuffed out the rest of the fire with a boot, and they were off into the night.

The woods were darker than ever.

The stars blinked above like nervous witnesses.

And under the roots of the Whispering Tree—they found it.

A curved outline in the ground, old stones like steps leading to a forgotten place.

Sera pressed her stone against it, and it clicked.

The roots twisted and moved.

Kael swore under his breath. "Is this... safe?"

Sera didn't answer. She just moved forward.

Step by step.

The staircase led them into a tunnel lit by ancient glowing moss. The air smelled like earth, like time had stopped breathing here.

Symbols glowed on the walls—some like runes, some like warnings.

They reached a chamber, circular and wide.

At the center—a mirror. Tall. Cracked.

But not reflecting anything.

Sera reached for it.

The mirror shimmered, then spoke.

"The heart must speak what the mouth cannot say."

She paused.

Kael stepped forward beside her. "Tell it how you feel," he whispered.

Sera stared at her reflection. "I... I don't know what this means."

The mirror glowed brighter.

Kael touched her hand. "Try the truth."

She took a breath.

"I don't know if I'm brave. I don't know if I'm the one who can stop Lucifer. But I do know that I care about my friends. And... I care about Kael."

The mirror sang. A low, humming chord that echoed.

It rippled like water.

Then opened.

Not like a door.

Like a memory.

They saw a younger Professor Mora. Crying.

Holding a broken version of the glowing stone.

And beside her... a shadow.

Lucifer.

But not evil. Not yet.

He was smiling, holding Mora's hand.

Sera and Kael watched in stunned silence.

"He wasn't always darkness," Sera whispered.

Kael nodded. "Maybe he loved once too."

The mirror cracked again—this time from top to bottom.

A soft laugh filled the chamber.

Lucifer's voice.

"You're learning. Good. But not fast enough."

Then silence.

The mirror turned black.

The chamber began to tremble.

Kael grabbed her. "Time to go!"

They ran.

Back through the tunnel, up the stairs, out from beneath the tree just as the roots collapsed over the entrance.

Panting. Shaken.

Sera turned to Kael.

He looked at her, eyes full of questions.

She reached for his hand. "You still see me like that? In the drawing? Even after all this?"

He smiled. "Always."

The wind shifted.

Above them, stars burned a little brighter.

And somewhere in the shadows...

Lucifer watched.

Waiting.

TO BE CONTINUED...