Heidi's wolf howls with bitter laughter at Morgan and Grayson. "Don't worry? From them? Oh, that's rich. As if a pat on the head from the peanut gallery ever helped anyone survive a death maze."
She feels a flicker of annoyance, but beneath it is also a strange, and misplaced gratitude. Their easy and confident movements seem to belong to a different world; one where "it'll be fine" is a guarantee, not a joke. It's an infuriatingly useless comfort, yet it's comfort nonetheless. She's annoyed by it but also, in a deep, desperate corner of her heart, she's a little grateful for it.
The rune finishes searing itself into her wrist. Heidi jerks her gaze away before Darien can act, before Amias's steady eyes can undo her, and before the twins can annoy her further with their everything will be fine gesture when everything is clearly wrong. She tears herself from their world and steps forward into the portal.
The air collapses around her.
