Ariel sat beside Ryn’s cart, silent. She tore a strip from what remained of her ruined dress, the white fabric once fine enough to buy an estate, and wrapped it tightly around her right arm. The cloth hid the golden cracks pulsing faintly beneath her skin, though the faint shimmer still bled through in places.

  She could feel Lilia’s eyes on her the whole time.

  Even without looking, she knew.

  Still, she kept her gaze fixed on the marble floor, pretending not to notice.

  They sat apart after that. Lilia busied herself with the morning meal, her movements careful, almost too quiet. The air between them felt heavy, filled with everything neither of them could bring themselves to say.

  When the food was done, Lilia hesitated. For once, she didn’t press.

  She said softly, setting the bowl near her. “If you’re hungry… it’s here.”

  Ariel only nodded, eyes still downcast.

  However, Lilia didn’t let her be.

  She moved closer until their knees nearly touched, the faint warmth of the morning fire brushing against both of them.

  “...You should rest,” Lilia said softly. “You look terrible.”

  Ariel didn’t answer right away. Her eyes stayed fixed on the floor.

  “…You dont get to talk,” she murmured after a moment.

  Lilia smiled faintly at that—tired, Her gaze drifted upward, following the cracks in the marble ceiling where the sunlight spilled through.

  “I–I think we should start searching the temple tomorrow,” she said quietly, breaking the silence. “There has to be something here. Some clue…”

  Ariel nodded.

  “Yeah,” she said. “We should.”

  Lilia’s gaze drifted toward Ryn’s cart. His breathing was steadier now, rising and falling beneath the thin layer of cloth.

  For a while, neither of them spoke. The fire cracked softly between them, its light flickering across the marble floor.

  Then, quietly, Lilia said,

  “...We’re gonna live.”

  Ariel turned to her, confused. “What?”

  Lilia swallowed, her voice shaking at first but firming as she went on.

  “We have to,” she said. “All of us. Me, you… Ryn. We have to survive.”

  Her fingers twisted in her lap before she looked up again, eyes glimmering faintly in the firelight.

  “Whatever secrets you’re keeping from me… Ariel… just—just try not to hurt yourself because of them, okay?”

  She hesitated, then added, quieter still,

  “Promise me that. At least.”

  Ariel’s breath caught. For a moment, she couldn’t find her voice. Her gaze dropped to the dirt, fingers curling tight against the ground.

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  Then, finally… she nodded.

  Lilia drew in a slow breath, forcing a small, trembling smile.

  “I’m not taking a nod this time,” she said, her voice soft but certain.

  She raised her hand, holding out her little finger.

  “Swear on it.”

  For a long moment, Ariel just stared at it. Then she sighed, quiet, almost defeated, and lifted her own hand. Their fingers hooked together, small and fragile against the cold air.

  “I promise,” Ariel whispered.

  Lilia’s shoulders relaxed slightly. The tension in her chest didn’t fade completely—but it was enough.

  For now… it was enough.

  ***

  Surprisingly — and to Ariel’s quiet confusion — Lilia spent the rest of the day cleaning.

  She moved through the ruined chamber with slow, deliberate care, sweeping dust from the marble floor with an old scrap of cloth. Bits of rubble scraped against stone as she pushed them aside.

  When Ariel finally asked why, Lilia only said,

  “It’s where we sleep...”

  It was such a Lilia answer that Ariel couldn’t even argue.

  For a while she just watched in silence, then sighed and joined in, brushing debris from one of the fallen pillars.

  After a few minutes, Ariel said dryly,

  “You do realize it’s a ruin, right?.”

  Lilia didn’t look up from her work.

  “I know,” she murmured, brushing dust off a broken step.

  For a moment, silence. Then Ariel laughed, quiet, startled, like she hadn’t meant to. The sound almost felt foreign to her own ears.

  Lilia glanced up, blinking in surprise, then smiled.

  The rest of the day passed quietly, the afternoon warmth fading into the soft chill of evening.

  By nightfall, a small fire crackled between them, its glow painting the marble in shades of gold and amber.

  They ate what little they had left, bits of fruit, scraps of nuts and berries, but neither complained.

  They sat close, shoulders nearly touching, watching the flames twist and breathe.

  They didn’t speak much.

  But for once, the silence wasn’t heavy or awkward.

  It was gentle

  Ariel stared into the fire, her voice quiet.

  “...It’s pretty warm.”

  Lilia blinked, then laughed softly, covering her mouth with her fingers.

  “What else is it supposed to be?”

  Ariel looked away, a faint flush coloring her face.

  “...I was just saying,” she muttered.

  They sat like that for a while.

  The firelight danced across the marble walls, flickering over the rough bandages on Ariel’s right arm.

  Lilia’s gaze lingered there, her brows tightening for just a heartbeat before she looked away.

  Maybe then. if she’d said something, if she’d asked what what she already knew to be the truth, things might have been different.

  But she didn’t.

  She couldn’t.

  She had been too afraid to shatter the fragile peace that had been formed.

  The two sat in silence for what could have been forever.

  And then—

  A sound.

  Soft, but unmistakable.

  A faint rustle of fabric. The creak of wooden cart shifting .

  Both girls froze.

  The fire crackled once, spitting a lone ember into the dim light.