The oppressive silence in the common room lasted only until the heavy footfalls of the Watch faded completely down the street. Then, the dam broke.
A cacophony of nervous chatter and fearful questions erupted. Matron Helga clapped her hands, her voice strained as she tried to restore order, but the fragile sense of security in the Hearth had been shattered. Everyone had felt the weight of that search. Everyone had seen where the Captain's suspicion had landed.
Roric was the first to voice it. He shoved his way through the clusters of children, his face a mask of fury and accusation. He pointed a trembling finger at Kael.
"You! This is because of you, you blank-bodied freak!" he spat, his voice cracking with rage. "They were looking for you! That 'forbidden' power! You're going to bring the Temple's wrath down on all of us!"
A murmur of agreement rippled through the room. Fear was a contagion, and it needed a host. Kael, the outsider, was the easiest target.
Kael stood his ground, though his heart was a trapped bird beating against his ribs. "I didn't do anything," he said, the words sounding weak even to his own ears.
"They smelled it on you!" Roric advanced, the air around his hands beginning to shimmer with a toxic, greenish hue. The other children shrank back, creating a wide circle around them. "What are you hiding? What cursed thing did you bring into our home?"
"That's enough, Roric." Sera's voice was not loud, but it carried a new, sharp edge. She placed herself slightly between Roric and Kael. "The Watch is gone. Creating a panic helps no one."
"Stay out of this, witch!" Roric snarled, his focus entirely on Kael now. "I'll make him show us what he's hiding!"
He lunged. Not with a fist, but with an open palm, from which a single, wickedly sharp spike of condensed venom materialized, shooting directly toward Kael's shoulder.
Time seemed to slow. Kael saw the attack coming but his body, untrained and without a Path's instinct, froze. He was going to be impaled.
But Sera moved.
It wasn't a blur of supernatural speed. It was a simple, impossibly precise step. She didn't push Kael. She didn't block the spike. Instead, her foot came down on the hem of Roric's tunic just as he committed to the lunge, throwing his balance off by a fraction. Her elbow bumped a tankard on the table next to her, sending it clattering to the floor.
The distraction was minuscule. But it was enough.
The venomous spike grazed past Kael's arm, tearing his sleeve but missing his flesh. It embedded itself in a wooden post behind him with a sickening thunk, where it immediately began to sizzle and smoke.
Roric stumbled, catching himself on the table. He stared, first at his missed shot, then at Sera, his expression a mixture of confusion and rage. It had looked like a series of clumsy accidents. But the timing was too perfect.
Kael stared at Sera, his breath caught in his throat. How did she do that?
Before Roric could regroup, Matron Helga finally found her voice, shrill with authority. "RORIC! You will stand down! One more move and you'll be out on the street! All of you, to your dormitories! NOW!"
The command, fueled by sheer desperation, broke the spell. Roric shot Kael a look of pure venom before turning and storming away. The crowd dispersed quickly, casting fearful and suspicious glances back at Kael.
The common room emptied, leaving only Kael, Sera, and the Matron, who looked older and wearier than Kael had ever seen her.
She walked over to them, her steps heavy. She looked at the sizzling spike in the post, then at Kael's torn sleeve, and finally at Sera's calm, unreadable face.
"He is right, you know," the Matron said softly, her voice thick with a sorrow that killed any remaining anger in Kael. "The Watch will be back. They are never wrong for long. And when they return, they will not ask questions." She looked directly at Kael, her eyes filled with a painful resignation. "This is no longer a safe place for you, child. I cannot protect you from the Temple."
The finality in her voice crushed what little hope Kael had left. The Hearth was all he had ever known. However miserable, it was home.
"Where will I go?" The question was a whisper, laden with despair.
It was Sera who answered. "Anywhere but here."
Both Kael and the Matron looked at her.
"The Captain said the trail led elsewhere. It was a lie to save face, but he will report the 'faint scent.' They will regroup and return with a Temple diviner next time. Someone who doesn't rely on scent, but on sight. Someone who will see the truth you carry." Her violet eyes were deadly serious. "You have until dawn. Perhaps less."
Matron Helga looked at Sera for a long moment, a strange understanding passing between them. The old woman sighed, a sound of profound defeat. She reached into the folds of her apron and pulled out a small, worn leather pouch. She pressed it into Kael's hand. It clinked softly with a few copper coins—the Hearth's entire emergency fund.
"Take it," she said, her voice breaking. "Go out the back. Follow the alleys to the eastern gate. May the gods… may whatever watches over you… keep you safe, Kael."
It was a dismissal. A blessing. A goodbye.
Kael stood numbly, the weight of the coin pouch feeling like a lead weight. He was cast out. Truly alone.
"I'm coming with you."
Sera's statement was not a question. It was a fact.
Kael blinked. "What? No. Sera, you can't. You heard her—I'm being hunted. You'll be in danger."
"I am already in danger," she replied, her gaze unwavering. "I interfered. I challenged the Watch Captain. My name is in his report. Staying here makes me a target for his questions." She took a step closer. "You are a compass pointing toward trouble, Kael Ardyn. And right now, trouble is the only place I can think to go."
She didn't wait for his agreement. She turned and walked toward the back door leading to the kitchen and the alleys beyond.
Kael looked at the Matron, who simply nodded, tears in her eyes. He had no choice. No argument. Clutching the coin pouch and adjusting the katana on his back, he took one last look at the only home he'd ever known, then followed the girl with silver hair into the darkness.
The night air was cold. The alleys were treacherous and unfamiliar.
But for the first time, he wasn't walking alone.