[color=lightgray][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/xmPcYtk.jpeg[/img][h1][color=red]FLASHBACK[/color][/h1]
[h2][color=#8D3B72]Kalliope[/color] & [color=1E90FF]Sjan-dehk[/color]

Part 1[/h2][/center]
[color=#8D3B72]Time:[/color] Morning, Ignis 8
[color=#8D3B72]Location:[/color] A cove off coast of Sorian[/color]
[hr]

It was a nice cove that Cynwaer had found.

Sjan-dehk had felt as much when he’d stepped ashore a few days ago, but only now, as he walked up the sandy beach, with the soft rush of languid waves behind him, and the warm-but-not-too-warm morning sun hovering overhead—and without as much tension weighing on him—could he truly appreciate the relaxing airs permeating the cove. It was almost like a whole other world, here. The grey rock formations encircling the bay, and the verdant forest stretching further inland, made it easy for him to forget the world.

And to—for the moment, at least—forget the events of the past few days.

[color=B0E0E6][I]“More pitch for the stern!”[/I][/color]

[color=B0E0E6][I]“...bucket of paint for the larboard gunwale…”[/I][/color]

[color=B0E0E6][I]“If your hands are idle, you can start mending…”[/I][/color]

The shouts and calls of sailors, echoing across the beach, provided Sjan-dehk a welcome distraction from his thoughts. They seemed to respond to the squawks and cries of gulls, ospreys, and other seabirds high above, circling lazily with wings outstretched. Punctuating this strange conversation were the loud scrapes of saws against wood, thumps of hammers against wood, and the occasional bellowed expletive.

A smile, small and unbidden, spread across Sjan-dehk’s lips. Moments of relative peace like this had been far and few in-between during the war—least of all for a warship as active as Sada Kurau. He’d long since learned to savour them whenever they decided to grace him with their presence.

Quietly humming a tune, he tucked the package under his arm—a vaguely cube-shaped object wrapped in old sailcloth—tighter against him, and quickened his pace. There was someone he wanted to see.

Not ten steps later, he came across Yasawen and Inshahri. The two young arcanists were crouched over a diagram etched onto the sand, the former with worried eyes and furrowed brows, and the latter with a long stick in hand. As Sjan-dehk drew closer, he heard the boy first.

[color=FFFF00][I]“Shahri,”[/I][/color] Yasawen said, trepidation clear in his voice. [color=FFFF00][I]“I, um, I’m sure you know what you’re doing but…But this feels dangerous.”[/I][/color]

Sjan-dehk immediately changed direction and walked over to them.

[color=98FB98][I]“It’ll be fine!”[/I][/color] Shahri chirped. Her eyes turned towards him. [color=98FB98][I]“Good morning, Captain!”[/I][/color]

Yasawen snapped his head around to look at Sjan-dehk, so quickly that Sjan-dehk could feel his own neck ache from just watching the boy.

[color=FFFF00][I]“Oh! Good morning, Captain. Shahri—I mean, we’re just trying to draw an arcane array. A simple one! N–Nothing complicated!”[/I][/color]

[color=1E90FF][I]“I see,”[/I][/color] Sjan-dehk replied simply. The diagram didn’t look like anything to him—just a series of overlapping and concentric circles, with crudely-drawn pictographs surrounding their edges. He looked at Inshahri. [color=1E90FF][I]“So what’s this…Array supposed to do?”[/I][/color]

Inshahri blinked. She said nothing, and simply smiled at him.

[color=FFFF00][I]“I—I told you, Shahri,”[/I][/color] he said, glancing sideways at her. [color=FFFF00][I]“We should at least get the book, so if…If anyone asks us anything, at least we can give an answer.”[/I][/color]

[color=1E90FF][I]“I assume the book you need is aboard Sada Kurau.”[/I][/color]

Yasawen nodded.

[color=1E90FF][I]“And you want to get back aboard while she’s like that?”[/I][/color]

Careened on the shoals, and amidst the white surf of breaking waves, was Sada Kurau, her keel exposed to air for the first time in months. Sheets of copper plated the entirety of her hull beneath the waterline, the metal tarnished by blots of mottled green in most places, though there were still tiny patches that could still glimmer in the sunlight. Long poles—not much more than tree trunks stripped of branches—prevented her from righting herself, whilst dozens of ropes, anchored to the ground by dismounted cannons, stopped her from toppling over onto her side.

Her crew clambered over her hull like ants. Some replaced planks that were showing signs of wear, others scraped marine growth from areas that weren’t protected by copper, but most simply gave her a good, and long overdue scrubbing. It would take a full day to clean her thoroughly, by Sjan-dehk’s estimate, and then another half-day to repaint her.

Ample time for rest, for everyone involved, in other words.

[color=1E90FF][I]“Nobody’s getting aboard,”[/I][/color] Sjan-dehk continued. [color=1E90FF][I]“Not even me. Whatever you need will have to wait—”[/I][/color]

[color=FF91FA][I]“Shahri!”[/I][/color]

A voice not too far off in the distance—a girl’s—interrupted him. Inshahri’s eyes widened, and she jumped to her feet.

[color=98FB98][I]“Hasehnya found us!”[/I][/color] she exclaimed, hooked her arm under Yasawen’s, and practically hauled him up. The boy let out a surprised yelp, stumbling and almost falling face-first onto the sand, before he found his balance. [color=98FB98][I]“See you, Captain!”[/I][/color]

Inshahri gave her parting words without looking at Sjan-dehk. Yasawen gave him an apologetic look as he was dragged away.

Barely a couple of heartbeats later, Hasehnya dashed past Sjan-dehk.

[color=FF91FA][I]“W–Wait, Shahri, please stop!”[/I][/color] she called out between pants, clearly out-of-breath. Still, she gathered up as much of her skirts as she could in her hands, and continued chasing after the two younger arcanists. [color=FF91FA][I]“D—Don’t do whatever you’re planning to do! It—It’s not safe!”[/I][/color]

Tehwasang followed behind her, though she was markedly in much less of a rush. She even found time to stop and offer Sjan-dehk a simple nod.

[color=DEB887][I]“Greetings, Captain,”[/I][/color] she said, a smile on her face. [color=DEB887][I]“Hasehnya and I will take care of those two. Don’t worry about us.”[/I][/color]

[color=1E90FF][I]“Make sure you do,”[/I][/color] he replied. [color=1E90FF][I]“But make sure the two of you find time to unwind as well. Times like these don’t come easily. Get as much as you can out of the next day or so.”[/I][/color]

[color=DEB887][I]“I’ll see to it that Hasehnya takes it easy, Captain.”[/I][/color]

And with that, she ran off after her friend.

Sjan-dehk watched her go, and watched the other arcanists chase each other for a while. Then, with a soft chuckle on his lips and a shake of his head, he continued on his way. All of the arcanists—Tehwasang and Hasehnya included—weren’t much more than children. They could still afford to be silly, and he was more than willing to allow them that luxury.

He found the person he was looking for a little further up the beach, seated on the sand just a dozen-or-so steps away from the treeline. Her scarlet tresses shivered in a gentle, balmy breeze, and she was dressed in a spare set of his blue-and-white uniform. Sjan-dehk held his package just a little more securely against himself, straightened his back a little more, and approached Kalliope with careful steps. He knew he didn’t need to be cautious around her, but he couldn’t help himself. It hadn’t been that long ago when she’d been confined to his quarters while Dai-sehk tended to her considerable injuries.

Sjan-dehk announced his presence by clearing his throat, and setting the package on the sand.

[color=1E90FF][I]“Courtesy of Master Avek,”[/I][/color] he said, letting out a quiet grunt as he took his seat beside her. [color=1E90FF][I]“There’s salted fish, some pickled vegetables, vinegared rice, and a few other things in there. I wish I could’ve gotten you something better than our rations to commemorate your recovery, but the next time I go aboard Sudah will most likely be for an hours-long tongue-lashing, and I don’t want to keep you waiting that long.”[/I][/color]

He leaned back on his palms. There were better things he could’ve said—better than grousing about what he had to look forward to, and food, at the very least—but nothing came to mind. Pressing a finger into the soft sand, he swept his eyes across the beach, ultimately settling his gaze on the arcanists. Hasehnya still chased after Inshahri, and Inshahri still dragged Yasawen behind her. It did seem as if they were all having fun now, however.

[color=1E90FF][I]“I’m sure you saw what happened,”[/I][/color] he started awkwardly. [color=1E90FF][I]“But don’t worry about it. Our arcanists may just be children, but they know what they’re doing. I’m mostly confident that they won’t do anything too stupid.”[/I][/color] 

The sun was almost too bright, the sand too warm, the air too full of life. For days, Kalliope had existed in a world that was only the size of Sjan-dehk's cabin, a dim, rocking space that smelled of medicinal salves, old parchment, and the lingering, comforting scent of the Captain himself.

The journey back to the [I]Sada Kurau[/I] had been a blur of agony and strange, haunting beauty. She remembered the weight of Sjan-dehk’s arms, the way his chest felt like a fortress against the world, but it was the music that had kept her soul from drifting back into the river. Stratya’s fife and the bards in the streets had woven a silken shroud over the sounds of the city—drowning out the imagined click of locks and the memory of Hafiz’s low, melodic cruelty. Every note had been a handhold, something for her to grip when the dissociation threatened to pull her under. She had been so deeply, achingly grateful for that music; it was the one of the only things that had made the transition from the stone tomb to the wooden deck of the ship survivable.

But once the music stopped and the cabin door closed, the wreckage of her mind had truly begun to splinter.

The last few days had been a descent. She had been a ghost haunting Sjan-dehk’s bed, her body wasting away until her collarbones stood out more than normal. Every time she closed her eyes, she was back in the tunnels. She would wake with a throat-tearing scream, her hands clawing at her own skin as if she could peel off the memory of Hafiz’s touch. The nightmares weren't just images; they were sensory assaults—the smell of sulfur, the cold slide of a needle, the feeling of her own autonomy being methodically stripped away until she was nothing but a vessel for pain and the pleasure of a twisted man. She had wept until her eyes were swollen shut, sobbing into the pillows until she was physically too exhausted to breathe, only to fall back into a fitful sleep where the cycle began again.

She had let Dai-sehk treat her, but she had been silent, her gaze fixed on a knot in the wood above her. She had made one request, whispered with a shame that felt heavier than any chain: something to ensure no part of her violator remained within her. Since then, she had felt hollowed out, a burnt-out husk of a woman. She had hardly eaten, the very idea of nourishment feeling like an insult to a body she no longer recognized as hers.

Now, sitting on the sand in one of Sjan-dehk’s linen shirts and pants, she felt exposed. The sleeves were rolled up multiple times to keep them from swallowing her hands, the fabric smelling of him and the sea—a sharp contrast to the stale, metallic scent that seemed to cling to her own pores. She looked at the package he’d brought, then slowly shifted her gaze to him. Her eyes were sunken and rimmed with the red of exhaustion, the vibrant green of her irises muted, looking like moss on a grave.

[color=#8D3B72][I]“Salted fish is plenty, Sjan-dehk,”[/I][/color] she rasped, her voice thin and jagged from lack of use. [color=#8D3B72][I]“Better than anything I’ve tasted in a while. I think... I think my stomach forgot how to be hungry.”[/I][/color]

To hear the weakness in Kalliope’s voice—-a far cry from the oftentimes mischievous, sometimes teasing, but always sure and strong tones that he’d gotten used to—made Sjan-dehk’s heart ache with a pang that cut him right to the quick. His fingers dug into the sand, and he stared at the space between his feet. How could he have felt so light-hearted, so relaxed earlier, when Kalliope was in such pain?

She watched the young arcanists with a distant, hollow envy. They were so loud, so messy, so unbroken. [color=#8D3B72][I]“They’re lucky,”[/I][/color] she added quietly, her fingers digging into the sand. She focused on the grit beneath her nails—it was sharp, it was real. [color=#8D3B72][I]“To have someone shout at them to be safe. To have someone care if they do something stupid. It's a luxury they don't even know they have.”[/I][/color]

She fell silent, the sound of the waves filling the gap. She looked at the oversized sleeve of his shirt covering her arm, the weight of it the only thing keeping her from feeling completely translucent.

[color=#8D3B72][I]“Thank you. For the clothes. And... for bringing me out here.”[/I][/color] She looked up at the sky, her neck straining slightly. [color=#8D3B72][I]“When the stone was closing in... when he was there... I didn't think I'd ever see the sky again. I'd accepted that the dark was all that was left for me.”[/I][/color] She looked back at him, a flicker of raw, heart-wrenching vulnerability in her eyes. [color=#8D3B72][I]“You saved me, Sjan-dehk. I know I’ve been... a ghost these last few days. But I owe you my life. I’m eternally grateful. Truly. Thank you for not letting me stay at the bottom of the river.”[/I][/color]

[color=1E90FF][I]“You don’t owe me anything, Kalliope,”[/I][/color] Sjan-dehk replied with a shake of his head. Coughing into a fist, he cleared his throat before going on. [color=1E90FF][I]“I mean, I appreciate your…Well, I guess appreciation, but it wasn’t just me who went to rescue you. Charlotte was there too, and Stratya, and Roman, and Cassius. I don’t think I could’ve done it all on my own. Not as quickly or easily, at least.”[/I][/color]

He tilted his chin towards open waters, at a ship that lingered just beyond the bay. [color=1E90FF][I]“And the Captain of that ship over there, Cynwaer? He was the one who pointed me in the right direction. Or at least, the people he knows pointed me in the right direction. But without their help, I’d probably still be walking around Sorian in circles trying to find you.”[/I][/color]

He turned his head, and met Kalliope’s eyes with his own. The puffy redness circling them, the dullness of her irises, and the raw emotions in her gaze—none of those escaped his notice. [color=1E90FF][I]“There’s plenty of people who’d happily jump into that river to pull you back out if you ever fall in again,”[/I][/color] he said quietly, reaching out with a hand to cover hers. [color=1E90FF][I]“And that includes me, so you’ve nothing to worry about. After all, what’s a river to a Jafin? I’ll dive in as many times as you need me to, and if I fish you out and find that you’re a ghost, I’ll just find a way to breathe some life back into you.”[/I][/color]

A slight blush washed over cheeks, his ears picking up on the dramatic nature of his words. But still, none of it was a lie—if Kalliope ever found herself in trouble, he’d consider it his honour, his privilege to be there to help her out of it. [color=1E90FF][I]“That’s just the right thing to do, you know?”[/I][/color] he went on. [color=1E90FF][I]“So please, don’t feel like you owe me anything. That you’re out of there, and recovering, and safe, is more than enough for me.”[/I][/color]

[color=1E90FF][I]“And, ah, you don’t have to thank me for my clothes,”[/I][/color] he said, this time averting his eyes before they could drift over her. The looseness that was typical of clothes cut in the Jafin style, and his uniform being a touch too big for Kalliope, meant that rather little was left for the imagination. Sjan-dehk wasn’t even sure where he could rest his gaze. [color=1E90FF][I]“I’ll see if I can borrow some from Iyen, or Hasehnya. They should fit you better.”[/I][/color]

Kalliope felt the warmth of his hand over hers, and for a fleeting moment, the chill that had lived in her marrow since the tunnels seemed to recede. She didn't pull away. Instead, she turned her hand over, lacing her fingers with his in a tentative, fragile grip. His humility was so characteristic of him, so steadying, but she couldn't let him dismiss the weight of what he had done.

[color=#8D3B72][i]“I know I owe them, too,”[/i][/color] she said softly, her gaze following his out toward the Remembrance and the shimmering horizon. [color=#8D3B72][i]“And I’ll find a way to tell them. I’ll thank Charlotte for her kindness and Stratya for the music that kept me sane. But Sjan-dehk...”[/i][/color] She paused, her thumb tracing the line of his knuckles. [color=#8D3B72][i]“It’s different with you. You didn’t just pull me out of a warehouse. You’ve been pulling me out of the dark since the moment we met.”[/i][/color]

Sjan-dehk’s eyes turned to their hands, the redness in his cheeks growing a touch brighter. Every brush of her thumb against his knuckles sent a strange, tingling sensation rippling up his arm, and across his entire body. He didn’t dislike it, however. Quite the opposite, in fact—it eased his aching heart, and filled him with a calming, soothing warmth. He looked back at her, and gave her a small, soft smile. 

Slowly, he curled his fingers between hers, holding her hand in a ginger, yet firm grip, as if trying to tell her through touch alone that everything would be fine, one way or another. He’d make sure of it.

She looked back at him, her expression earnest and stripped of its usual masks. [color=#8D3B72][i]“You helped me remember that there’s more to the world than shadows and contracts. You... you helped open my heart again, even when I was trying so hard to keep it locked tight.”[/i][/color] The confession hung in the air, vulnerable and heavy, but she didn't look away. [color=#8D3B72][i]“So don’t tell me I don’t owe you. I owe you the fact that I’m sitting here at all, instead of just being another ghost in the stones.”[/i][/color]

Sjan-dehk wasn’t sure if he’d heard what he thought he’d heard. Had she just…Well, he didn’t even know what to call what she’d just said, but it certainly sounded rather intimate. His mind raced to come up with a response—not so much because he didn’t know [I]what[/I] to say, but because he had too many things in mind to tell her. By the time he stopped staring at her with mouth slightly agape, however, she’d already moved on, and he decided to wait for the next opportune moment to share his words. 

When he mentioned finding her better-fitting clothes from the other women, a ghost of her old smirk touched her lips—pale and fleeting, but there. She looked down at the wide, Viserjantan sleeves and the scent of sea air and sun-dried linen that clung to the fabric.

[color=#8D3B72][i]“Don’t bother the others just yet,”[/i][/color] she murmured, her voice losing some of its jagged edge. [color=#8D3B72][i]“I actually... I like these. They’re comfortable. And they smell like you.”[/i][/color] She shifted slightly, pulling the oversized shirt a little closer around her frame. [color=#8D3B72][i]“It makes the world feel a little bit safer. Like I’m wearing a bit of your strength until I can find my own again.”[/i][/color]

She reached out with her free hand toward the package he had brought, her fingers trembling only slightly as she felt a heat touch her own cheeks. [color=#8D3B72][i]“Now, are you going to help me with this salted fish, or are you just going to sit there and turn red?”[/i][/color]

[color=1E90FF][I]“R–Right,”[/I][/color] Sjan-dehk blurted out, the word leaping from his tongue a little too quickly. He looked away, and tried to hide his burning cheeks from Kalliope’s eyes. Embarrassed as he was, however, he still felt a deep sense of relief from having seen the fleeting smirk that’d graced her lips, as how a radiant sun might shine through gaps in foreboding stormclouds. It seemed that whatever he was doing, was helping.

He cleared his throat and pulled the package closer to him.

[color=1E90FF][I]“Let me take care of this.”[/I][/color]

Taking care not to accidentally rip the age-thinned and weather-beaten sailcloth, he deftly undid the couple of overly-tight knots that Avek had tied. The fabric unfolded into two rough squares. Sitting in the middle of them were plates and bowls covered in thin linens—likely cut from old clothes. Sjan-dehk peeled the damp fabric sheets off of the food and laid them neatly on the sand. [color=1E90FF][I]“This looks like the fish,”[/I][/color] he said, and placed a long, oval-shaped dish between Kalliope and him.

Next came a deep bowl. [color=1E90FF][I]“The rice.”[/I][/color]

Then, another elongated plate. This one, he brought up to his nose to give it a sniff before placing it on the sand. [color=1E90FF][I]“Pickled vegetables. Cabbage, carrots, and peppers, mostly. They smell fine to me, and it looks like Master Avek’s cooked them through, so they should be safe to eat. Though if they taste funny to you, don’t eat them.”[/I][/color]

He looked down the mouth of the next item, an earthen jar. [color=1E90FF][I]“Sugared apples and plums, I think,”[/I][/color] he said, sounding genuinely surprised. [color=1E90FF][I]“Must be made from local Caesonian stuff, because we didn’t bring any sugar with us and the only fruits we’ve got in Sada Kurau’s hold are lemons and limes.”[/I][/color]

Two empty plates, and two pairs of chopsticks came next. Sjan-dehk took a set for himself, setting it on his lap, and held the other out towards Kalliope. [color=1E90FF][I]“We can take our time eating,”[/I][/color] he said with a smile. [color=1E90FF][I]“As far as I know, there’s nobody else on this island, and I’ve nothing to do for the rest of the day. We won’t be taking Sada Kurau out to sea until tomorrow afternoon, at the earliest.”[/I][/color]

He paused, and when he looked at Kalliope, her earlier words—the ones about how he’d helped her open her heart again—played in his mind. A slight blush crept over his cheeks, but he kept a straight face, or at least a face as straight as he could muster. [color=1E90FF][I]“So, ah, if there’s anything you want to do today, feel free to let me know. I don’t know what to do with myself, anyway, so it’d…I mean, if you don’t mind, I’d be more than happy to accompany you for the day.”[/I][/color]

Kalliope watched Sjan-dehk’s hands—those same hands she knew could snap a man’s neck or fire a musket without a tremor—now coaxing Avek’s knots loose with a tenderness that made something sharp twist in her chest. The ordinary scrape of earthenware, the hush of linen, all of it built a fragile barricade against the static still crawling at the edges of her mind. It was an anchor, heavy and real, pinning her to the sun-warmed sand and keeping the chill of her mind at bay.

She took the chopsticks, letting her fingers brush his for a heartbeat longer than necessary. The scent of food hit her—rich, sweet, and alive—and for the first time in days, her stomach didn’t revolt. No bile, no sour twist, just hunger, sharp and startling.

[color=#8D3B72][i]“You might have to tell Master Avek he has a new best friend,”[/i][/color] she murmured, her eyes fixating on the earthen jar. [color=#8D3B72][i]“Sugared plums and apples... it’s like he knew exactly what it would take to lure me back to the land of the living.”[/i][/color] She took a small, careful bite of a plum, the sweetness exploding on her tongue, and it was a sharp, vibrant contrast to the metallic tang of blood she’d tasted for so long.

She chewed slowly, pondering his offer as she watched the waves. [color=#8D3B72][i]“Having your company alone is... it’s more than enough, Sjan-dehk. It’s refreshing. It keeps the noise in my head from getting too loud.”[/i][/color] She poked at the rice, her expression turning pensive. [color=#8D3B72][i]“I don't have a plan for the day. I think I just need... normalcy. Whatever that looks like now.”[/i][/color]

She looked down at the sand, her voice dropping an octave, becoming more serious. [color=#8D3B72][i]“I know I owe you an explanation. I know I should talk about what happened... about him. About...well all of it.”[/i][/color] She shuddered, the oversized shirt rippling with the movement. [color=#8D3B72][i]“But I’m scared to, Sjan-dehk. I’m scared that if I say the words out loud, I’ll be back there. I’m scared you’ll look at me and only see the... the wreckage.”[/i][/color]

She forced herself to look up, meeting his eyes with a vulnerability that was raw and aching. [color=#8D3B72][i]“So, if you don’t mind, I’d like to just... be here. Maybe later, if there’s a quiet spot away from the crew... I’d like to go for a swim. To bathe. I still feel like the stone, blood, and grime are stuck to my skin. I want to wash it all away.”[/i][/color]

She nudged a piece of fish toward the edge of her plate, trying to lighten the heavy air she’d just created. [color=#8D3B72][i]“But what about you? Is there anything on your mind? You’ve been so focused on me... surely the Captain of the [I]Sada Kurau[/I] has his own thoughts, and not just worries about a ghost in his cabin.”[/i][/color] As if trying to prove she was okay and he didn’t need to worry, she picked the fish up with the chopsticks and took a bite. She was a little clumsy with the utensil, but she managed well enough. They weren’t something she used often, but she was familiar with them at least.

[color=1E90FF][I]“I’ve got plenty of thoughts,”[/I][/color] Sjan-dehk replied with a nod. An amused, knowing grin pulled on the corners of his mouth, and a quiet chuckle flowed from his lips. Kalliope’s attempt at steering the conversation down a less serious path didn’t escape his notice, but he wasn’t about to stop her. If anything, he was more than happy to follow her lead—the past few days had been filled with nothing but seriousness. They could have a moment—or two, or three, or perhaps even four—of levity today.

Reaching across with his chopsticks, Sjan-dehk snapped up a clump of lightly-browned rice and brought it to Kalliope’s plate. [color=1E90FF][I]“But I’d like to think that I can be excused for ignoring most of them while you were laid up in my quarters and, as you put it, looking like a ghost, or looking like you were going to—”[/I][/color]

He stopped himself abruptly, and coughed into his fist. Gallows humour—especially the sort acquired from war and battle—wasn’t the sort of thing most people appreciated. He’d unfortunately learned that the hard way more times than he’d care to admit. And besides, making light of Kalliope’s situation—even if due to a slip of the tongue—when she’d only just recovered well enough to leave Sada Kurau just felt wrong.

A quiet, raspy chuckle escaped her before Kalliope could stop it, a small sound that felt raw in her throat. [color=#8D3B72][I]“You don't have to censor yourself around me, Sjan-dehk,”[/I][/color] she murmured, her gaze dropping to her hands. [color=#8D3B72][I]“I know exactly how I looked.”[/I][/color] She didn't voice the rest. She didn't tell him that in the deepest, darkest hours of her captivity, she had actively prayed for the phantom river to drag her under for good. Even while lying in his cabin, she had calculated the easiest ways to simply stop breathing, to let the dark win, because dying seemed infinitely less exhausting than existing through the violation that played over and over in her mind. But every single time her mind had teetered on that precipice, the memory of his stubborn, furious jaw and the steady cadence of his voice had anchored her, forcing her to hold on just a little longer.

[color=1E90FF][I]“A–As I was saying,”[/I][/color] Sjan-dehk quickly continued. His chopsticks clicked and clacked as he brought more food to Kalliope’s plate—first some vegetables, then more slices of fish. [color=1E90FF][I]“I think it’s only right that I focused on you while you were laid up. I still carried out my duties, of course, but other things? None of them were too important, if you ask me. Not as important as making sure you were alright, in any case.”[/I][/color]

His cheeks reddened at his own words, but still he faced Kalliope fully before going on. [color=1E90FF][I]“And, well, I think I can take my time thinking now, so it all worked out in the end.”[/I][/color]

The sheer earnestness in his eyes sent a sudden, frantic flutter of butterflies straight into her stomach, immediately followed by a deep, hollow ache in her chest that genuinely terrified her. Kalliope wasn't built for tenderness; she didn't know how to navigate a man who treated her life as something precious, rather than a commodity or a target. The way she was falling for him was dizzying and dangerous, a violent current she had absolutely no control over, but as she watched him blush, she realized she didn't want to stop it.