********Harper
The hospital's white corridors were far too bright. My boots clicked softly against the polished floor, each step ringing with a heaviness I couldn't shake. The antiseptic smell burned in my nose, a constant reminder that we were in a place where life hung in balance — where one wrong moment could tip it toward death.
Elias walked ahead of us, silent as always, but I caught the faint shift in his expression when we turned a corner toward the private wards.
"She's in here," Elias said finally, stopping before a door with frosted glass. His tone was low, almost careful, as if speaking too loudly might shatter something fragile inside.
I turned to face him, my voice already tight. "You said… she's—"
"She's going to have her surgery in a couple of hours," he interrupted gently. "The doctors are prepping everything. She's stable for now."
Stable. That word felt like a rope I could cling to, yet it didn't erase the fear twisting inside me.
Luna was silent at my side, her hands tucked in her pockets. I could feel her watching me out of the corner of her eye — waiting, maybe, for me to fall apart.
I pushed the door open.
The sight hit me like a fist.
My mother lay on the bed, the pale blue sheets pulled neatly over her frail form. Her skin looked almost translucent, stretched over sharp cheekbones. But her chest rose and fell, steady and strong enough to remind me that she was still here. That I hadn't lost her — not yet.
My knees felt weak. I walked slowly to her bedside, my boots barely making a sound. The monitors beside her beeped softly, a rhythm that felt both comforting and nerve-wracking.
"Mom…" My voice cracked before I could stop it. I dropped to my knees beside her bed, my fingers curling over the edge of the blanket. My vision blurred as hot tears burned their way down my face.
Her eyes fluttered open, and for a moment, I saw confusion — and then recognition.
"Harpie…" Her voice was soft, worn thin by exhaustion. But there was warmth in it.
"I'm sorry," I whispered, the words tumbling out like I'd been holding them back for years. "I'm sorry for splitting the family. For everything I—"
"No," she interrupted, her hand lifting weakly to touch my cheek. "No, Harper. This wasn't your fault. None of it was your fault."
My throat tightened painfully. "But if I'd been stronger… if I'd stayed—"
She shook her head slowly, her eyes wet but unwavering. "If you'd stayed, you might not even be alive now. I'd rather have you far away and alive than close and broken."
I pressed my forehead against her arm, my shoulders trembling. "I just… I wanted us to be together again. I wanted—"
"I know," she said softly, her fingers brushing my hair. "Elias told me. He told me it was you who arranged the money for my treatment."
I glanced up, startled. "He did?"
She nodded, a faint smile tugging at her lips. "Harpie… I've been dreaming about Maisie lately. In every dream, she tells me not to blame you. She says… it wasn't your fault." Her voice wavered slightly, but she held my gaze. "I believe her."
Something broke open in me then. The guilt I'd carried for so long — guilt so heavy it had shaped every decision, every breath — loosened, just a little.
I leaned forward, wrapping my arms carefully around her. "I missed you so much."
"I missed you too, my little Harpie," she whispered against my shoulder.
We stayed like that for what felt like an eternity — mother and daughter holding on as if the world might end the moment they let go. Luna stood quietly in the corner, not saying a word, her expression unreadable but her eyes softened.
For the first time in a long while, I felt… safe.
---
*********
High above the ward, the hospital's rooftop lay shrouded in shadows, the moonlight barely brushing the edges of the weather-stained concrete. Two figures stood there, a dark wind swirling faintly around them.
Aliya leaned casually against the low barrier, her gaze fixed on the shimmering surface of Vaelthor's Mirror of Reality. Within its smoky depths, Harper and her mother's embrace played out like a silent, fragile scene.
Aliya's lips curled into a knowing smirk. "You really think she'll accept you so easily?"
Vaelthor's crimson eyes flicked toward her briefly, then back to the mirror. He looked almost insulted. "Why wouldn't she? I'm perfect in every way that matters. I could secure her future, give her more power than she's ever dreamed of. Harper will accept me — without question."
Aliya let out a low, amused hum. "You're dreaming." She tilted her head, her long hair swaying in the night wind. "That girl would rather kill you than accept you. Besides, she's already tangled up with Kael."
Vaelthor's head snapped toward her sharply, his gaze narrowing. "How do you know about Kael?"
She shrugged, deliberately vague. "I have my ways."
Something in his expression twisted. The air around him thickened, shadows writhing like living things. A faint crack echoed in the night as a jagged line split across the Mirror of Reality in his hand.
"She will never reject me," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "No… surely she won't throw me away as well."
The last words slipped out quieter, almost like a confession — or a fear he hadn't meant to voice.
Aliya watched him with sharp, calculating eyes. "You're taking this personally."
"I don't take things personally," he growled, though the tension in his jaw said otherwise.
She stepped closer, her tone smoothing into something almost coaxing. "Then don't. Let me help you. I'm here for a reason, Vaelthor. Together, we can—"
A voice cut through the rooftop air like a knife.
"Vaelthor doesn't need your help, girl."
Aliya spun around. A woman stood near the rooftop entrance, her presence sharp and unapologetic. Her gaze was locked on Aliya, cool and assessing.
Vaelthor's eyes narrowed. "Natalie," he said, the name dripping with a mix of annoyance and curiosity. "Why are you here?"
Natalie stepped forward, her boots echoing on the concrete. "The better question is… how did you end up here, and why are you letting her—" She flicked her gaze toward Aliya with thinly veiled disdain. "—be anywhere near you?"
Aliya arched a brow, studying Natalie with a smirk. "And who exactly are you supposed to be?"
Natalie's lips curved faintly, though there was no humor in her eyes. "Someone who knows exactly what he's capable of — and what he doesn't need."
Vaelthor's gaze moved between them, a flicker of genuine surprise breaking through his otherwise composed mask. "How did you know where to find me?"
Natalie didn't answer immediately. The wind curled tighter around the three of them, as if the rooftop itself was holding its breath.
---
********Harper
Down below, I sat with my mother, our hands still clasped. She was telling me about the doctors, about how they'd assured her the surgery had a high success rate. I tried to smile, to nod, but part of me was still caught in that moment earlier — when she said Maisie told her not to blame me.
It was a fragile sort of hope… but maybe it was enough to keep going.
I didn't know that far above me, on the rooftop, shadows were already circling — and my life was once again shifting in ways I couldn't see.