Serenity's POV (Three days later)
I arrive at the Dravenhart estate with the wrong expectation settling comfortably in my chest.
The summons had been formal, yes—embossed stationery delivered by a driver whose expression was as blank as the marble foyer—but it hadn't been alarming. There were no sharp edges to the phrasing, no undercurrent of urgency that usually signals a shift in the political weather. I had assumed it was another function tied to Celestine’s upcoming performance, or perhaps some lingering ceremonial courtesy I was required to witness simply because I existed within the estate’s orbit now. A shadow in the corner of their grand tapestry.
That illusion lasts exactly three seconds.
The moment I pass through the outer gates, the air feels wrong. It isn't hostile, but it
