Zara
I hadn't meant to look into the Vessel mirror again.
It was late, too late, the kind of late where silence presses against your bones. The Academy had quieted. Ronan hadn't returned since giving me the moonwell water. I could still feel the heat of it inside me, like it was settling into old spaces, lighting something up that had long gone dark.
I stood in my room, half-dressed, the Guardian mark still tingling under my collarbone. I pulled my robe tighter and turned toward the mirror.
I should've looked away.
The surface glowed. Not like a normal reflection. It pulsed once. Like I knew I was watching. And then I saw her. At first, I thought it was just a trick of light. A shadow. A memory, maybe.
But then the shape formed, a delicate face, wild hair braided back w
