Chapter 31: Shadows in the Moonlit Garden
The moonlight was a whisper, casting silver over the wild roses that bloomed in the forgotten garden behind the palace. Selene stood barefoot on the dewed grass, her white nightgown clinging to her as if spun from starlight. Her breath hitched as she looked up to the balcony where Valerian once stood watching the night with eyes full of sorrow.
He had not returned since the vision.
Every night since, she'd come here, drawn by something she couldn't name. Maybe it was hope. Maybe it was the invisible tether of fate that still bound her to him, even when the path ahead was choked in thorns and silence.
A rustle.
She turned, and the shadows moved. He was there.
Valerian stepped from behind the ivy-covered archway, cloaked in darkness, his presence like a hush of wind before a storm. His hair was damp, clinging to his temples, and his black shirt was open at the collar, revealing the pale skin marked by centuries of pain and battle.
"You shouldn't be out here alone," he said, voice like gravel and velvet.
She swallowed, her eyes not leaving him. "I thought you'd left."
"I tried."
A silence stretched, thick with everything unsaid.
She walked to him, slowly. The garden hummed with night sounds, like the world had paused, holding its breath for them.
"Why are you here, Valerian?"
He looked at her, the moonlight catching the unnatural glow in his eyes. "Because when I close my eyes, I see you. When I breathe, I taste your name. I came to break the bond—but all I found was that you are the only thing holding me together."
Her chest tightened. "You said the prophecy meant death."
He nodded. "And it does. But maybe... maybe it doesn't mean yours."
She stepped closer, inches from him now. "Then whose, Valerian?"
He lowered his head, touching his forehead to hers. "Mine."
A sob escaped her.
"If that's the price, I'd pay it," he murmured. "To feel your soul press against mine one more time."
She gripped his shirt. "No. We'll find another way. We always do."
The wind picked up, stirring the petals from the roses into the air like bloodied snow.
From the treeline, unseen eyes watched. A figure cloaked in dark magic and ancient hatred. The Seer had awakened, and the game had changed.
Fate was not finished with them yet.
To be continued in Chapter 32...