Lumina sat cross-legged on the small couch, her medical scroll spread across her lap. The candle on the table burned low, its warm light painting soft gold across her face.
Her fingers traced the text as though committing it to memory. Every line about rare poisons and antidotes felt like a thread she had to cling to because if she let go, she might lose more than her own life.
She didn't even notice when Ashen shifted on the bed behind her, his gaze fixed on her figure.
"Hey," his voice cut gently through the quiet, low and hoarse from sleep. "You should sleep."
She jumped slightly, quickly rolling up the scroll as her head snapped toward him.
"You… you are awake?"
He was sitting up now, one arm resting lazily on his knee. His hair was mussed from sleep, his shirt loose around his shoulders, but his eyes, those dark, were very much awake.
"You really think I could sleep when my wife slips out of bed like a thief?" he teased softly, though his gaze never left her.
