The fire had gone quiet in her chest for the first time in days, and Kaelen almost didn't trust the silence.
She sat near the cavern's edge, watching the sun sink behind the western peaks, exhaustion from the morning's training settled deep into her bones but no longer edged with the constant, restless hum that had plagued her for weeks. Ash settled beside her, close enough that his shoulder brushed hers. She'd stopped flinching away from his touch days ago.
"You're different today," he said, studying her profile in the fading light. "Quieter."
"Good different, or bad different?"
"Haven't decided yet." A faint smile touched his mouth, though something more serious lived beneath it. "Can I tell you something? Something I've been turning over since you first got here."
"You've never ask
