The castle is heavy with tension when we return.
The guards move faster now.
Doors are locked. Windows are barred.
Everyone knows the enemy is coming.
Kael is quiet as we walk through the halls.
I can feel the weight he carries.It presses down on him like a storm cloud.
We stop outside a door made of black stone.
I have never seen it before.
Kael hesitates, then speaks.
"This is my real chamber," he says. "Few are allowed inside."
He pushes the door open.
Inside, the room is dark.
The air hums with old magic.
Symbols are carved into the walls. They glow faintly as we enter.
At the center of the room is a mirror.But the glass is cracked. Pieces are missing.
Kael walks toward it.
"This mirror shows truth," he says. "It reveals what the heart hides."
I follow him slowly.
"What are you going to show me?" I ask.
He doesn't answer at first.
He touches the mirror.
The cracks shift.
Light bursts from it.
A scene appears.
At first, I don't understand what I am seeing.
There is a boy. Young. Smiling.
His hair is silver like Kael's.
His eyes are full of hope.
He's standing beside a woman.
Beautiful. Proud.
She places a crown on his head.
"That's me," Kael says quietly. "Before the curse."
The scene shifts.
Now the boy is older.
He stands on a balcony, speaking to a crowd.
They cheer for him.
"He was loved," I whisper.
Kael nods.
"I believed in peace. In kindness."
His voice is bitter now.
The scene changes again.
The same boy.
But now he's alone.
Blood stains his clothes.
The crowd is gone.
Only shadows remain.
And then, the woman, one who crowned him, steps forward.
But her smile is cruel now.
She whispers something.
Kael falls to his knees.
The mirror shakes.
The scene blurs.
Kael pulls his hand away.
The images vanish.
He turns to me.
"They betrayed me," he says."My own family. My people."
I reach for his hand without thinking.
His fingers close around mine.
Warm. Solid.
"You don't have to say more if it hurts," I say.
But he squeezes my hand tighter.
"No. You deserve to know."
He takes a deep breath.
"I was meant to unite the kingdoms. Humans and magical creatures. That was the prophecy."
"But they feared it. They didn't want peace. They wanted power."
He closes his eyes.
"My mother… she was the first to strike me down."
My heart breaks.
I can barely breathe.
"She gave me to the shadows," Kael says."A dark magic. It binds me still."
He steps closer to me.
"And the worst part?" he says, voice shaking."The curse can only be broken by one thing."
I look up at him.
"What?"
"A willing heart," he says."Someone who chooses me freely. Someone who loves me."
The room feels too small.
My heart pounds.
"That's why you're afraid," I whisper. "You think the curse will hurt anyone who tries."
He nods.
His eyes are full of sorrow.
"I've already killed too many by accident," he says."I won't let you be one of them."
Tears sting my eyes.
"You won't," I say fiercely. "I'm still here, aren't I?"
The bond between us hums stronger.
Kael looks like he wants to believe me.
But fear holds him back.
"I can't risk it," he says.
Before I can answer, the mirror flashes again.
A new scene appears.
Me.
Touching Kael's face.
Choosing him.
The curse shivers but does not attack.
Kael stares at the image.
Hope flickers in his eyes.
"Maybe…" he says, voice barely a whisper."Maybe it's already beginning."
I step closer.
"So trust me," I say.
He hesitates.
Then he pulls me into his arms.
I can feel his heartbeat against mine.
Fast. Wild.
Alive.
He buries his face in my hair.
"I want to believe," he whispers.
I cling to him.
"You can."
We stood there for a long time.
Wrapped in each other.
The magic in the room calms.
The symbols on the walls glow softer.
The curse inside him retreats a little.
For the first time in years, Kael is not alone.
And neither am I.
Later, we sit by the fire.
Kael tells me stories of the old days.
Of his dreams.
Of the world he wanted to build.
I listen.
And I dream with him.
I heal a cut on his hand without thinking.
He laughs softly.
"Every time you touch me," he says, "it gets easier to breathe."
I smile.
"Then I'll keep touching you."
He looks at me with wonder.
Like I'm the miracle he never expected.
I think maybe he's my miracle, too.
Outside, the storm gathers.
The enemies prepare.
But inside the castle walls, something stronger begins to grow.
Hope.
Trust.
Love.
And I know—
Whatever comes next,
We will face it together.