The rain had not stopped since morning.
It fell softly against the wooden roof, like fingers tapping a lullaby. Inside the cabin, a warm fire crackled in the hearth. Sovann stirred the pot hanging over it, the scent of herbs and rice filling the air.
Elira sat near the fire, her legs tucked beneath her, wrapped in the same blanket he had given her the night before. She watched the flames, lost in thought, the flickering light dancing in her violet eyes.
After a while, Sovann spoke. His voice was quiet.
"Elira… where are you from?"
She turned to look at him. There was a long pause. Then she pointed up—toward the ceiling. Toward the sky.
"The stars?" he asked.
She nodded slowly, then tapped her chest. "Elyrahn."
It was the first time she had spoken that word.
He repeated it gently. "Elyrahn…"
She smiled a little. Then, to his surprise, she began to speak—haltingly, mixing her tongue with broken pieces of his language, drawing shapes in the air to help.
A floating city in the sky. Lands of crystal and wind. Giant birds, singing trees, ancient warriors. A world filled with light and magic… but also with war. A battle that tore her people apart. She had fought. She had run. And then… the portal. The fall. And now—this quiet cabin in a green world far below.
Sovann listened, spellbound. When she finished, there was silence but for the rain.
Then she looked at him and touched her hand to her heart.
"You?"
He blinked. "Me?"
She nodded.
He chuckled softly, then leaned back. "There's not much to tell."
But he told her anyway.
How he had grown up in the village below. Quiet, different. His parents gone early, his relatives kind but distant. He had always loved the mountains—the peace, the stillness. So, when he was old enough, he built this cabin, away from the noise. He healed people sometimes. Grew herbs. Wrote stories no one read.
"I guess I just… disappeared. Like a leaf in the wind."
Elira reached out and gently took his hand. Her fingers were cool but steady.
"You… not disappear," she said softly. "You… wait."
"For what?" he asked.
She looked at him, eyes glowing like candlelight.
"Me."