Lyanna's POV
I woke up in Seraphine's rooms, in Seraphine's bed, wearing Seraphine's skin.
For one lucky moment, I thought it had all been a nightmare. Then I looked down at my hands—pale, elegant, marked with perfectly trimmed nails—and reality crashed back.
This was my life now. Forever.
The dark runes carved into my chest burned with every breath. I could feel them pulsing against my ribs, a steady reminder that I was trapped. One wrong word and my heart would stop. One try to reveal the truth and I'd die wearing someone else's face.
A knock at the door made me jump.
"Lady Seraphine?" A servant's voice. "Your father asks your presence for breakfast. And Prince Cassian has sent flowers."
Flowers. From the man I loved, sent to the woman I'd become.
I wanted to laugh. Or scream. Or both.
"Tell them I'll be down shortly," I said in Seraphine's voice. Would I ever get used to hearing those cold, educated tones instead of my own?
The servant left. I dragged myself out of bed and caught my image in the mirror.
Seraphine stared back. Beautiful, powerful, scary Seraphine. Midnight-black hair. Violet eyes. The kind of beautiful face that made people either worship or fear you.
I looked nothing like myself.
I touched the mirror, and the woman inside copied the motion. This was me now. These hands. This face. This terrible, stolen life.
The shadow magic stirred under my skin, reacting to my despair. It felt different than my Primordial power—darker, hungry, more demanding. It wanted to lash out. Wanted to hurt someone the way I was hurting.
No. I shoved the feeling down. I wouldn't become her. Wouldn't let the magic twist me into something evil.
But even as I thought it, I felt the dark runes on my chest grow warmer. A warning. The magic knew what I was thinking. Knew I wanted to fight.
And it wouldn't let me.
I dressed in clothes that felt too tight, too expensive, too much like armor. Then I made my way to the breakfast hall, every step feeling like walking to my own execution.
The Shadow King sat at the head of the table, eating like he hadn't killed multiple lives yesterday. Cassian's father sat to his right. And at the far end, looking pale and unhappy, sat Cassian himself.
His eyes found me the moment I entered. Something flickered across his face—hope, maybe, or despair. Did he still think he could fix this?
"Daughter." The Shadow King pointed to the empty seat beside him. "Come. We have much to talk about your upcoming wedding."
I forced myself to sit. Forced myself to smile like Seraphine would smile—cold and controlled.
"Of course, Father."
The word tasted like poison.
"The ceremony will be magnificent," Cassian's father said, oblivious to the tension. "All five countries will attend. A true spectacle of unity and power."
"Indeed." The Shadow King cut his meat with precise moves. "And my daughter will finally claim her rightful place as Fire Kingdom's princess."
Cassian's hands went white around his fork. "About that. I was hoping we could delay—"
"Delay?" The Shadow King's voice went dangerously soft. "Are you backing out of our agreement, Fire King?"
"No. But given recent... complications—"
"There are no complications." The Shadow King's eyes locked onto mine. "My daughter is perfectly prepared for her job. Aren't you, Seraphine?"
The runes on my chest flared hot. A reminder. Play along or die.
"Perfectly prepared," I repeated.
Cassian looked like I'd stabbed him. Good. Let him hurt. Let him understand what it felt like to lose everything while everyone smiled and acted it was fine.
"Excellent." The Shadow King stood. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a kingdom to run. Seraphine, you'll spend the day with Prince Cassian. Get reacquainted. Remember why you fought so hard for this match."
He left, taking Cassian's father with him. Leaving us alone.
Silence stretched between us like broken glass.
"Lyanna," Cassian finally said. "We need to talk."
"My name is Seraphine." The correction came instantly. The runes required it.
"No, it's not. You're—"
"Careful." I held up a hand, showing where the dark marks had spread to my wrist. "One wrong word and these kill me. You want to risk that?"
He paled. "They did that to you?"
"They did it to both of us." I pulled down the collar of my dress slightly, showing the marks over my heart. "The real Seraphine has them too. We're both prisoners now."
"Then we'll find a way to break them. To reverse the change. To—"
"There is no reversing it." The words came out hollow. "Your father and mine made sure of that. The magic is lasting. Seraphine is stuck being me, and I'm stuck being her, forever."
"I don't accept that."
"You don't have a choice!" My voice rose despite myself. "None of us do. We're stuck in a nightmare that we can't wake up from, and the only thing we can do is survive it."
"By marrying me." His jaw clenched. "By pretending to be her for the rest of your life."
"Yes."
"I can't do that." He stood quickly. "I can't marry you while you're wearing her face. Can't touch you knowing you're—"
"Then don't." I stood too, shadow magic sparking around my fingers without permission. "Call off the wedding. Face the results. Start a fight. Do whatever kings do when they finally grow a spine."
The words were cruel. Seraphine's words. But they felt good to say.
Cassian's face went hard. "You've changed."
"Of course I've changed. I died yesterday and got revived as someone else. What did you expect?"
"I expected the woman I love!"
"That woman is gone!" I shouted. "She died the moment you picked duty over her. She died when you let them carve her into pieces and rebuild her wrong. She's GONE, Cassian!"
Tears streamed down my face—Seraphine's face. They felt like someone else's tears.
Cassian reached for me. I stepped back.
"Don't touch me. Don't look at me like that. Don't act you care when we both know—"
"I do care! Gods, Lyanna, I love you!"
The words hung in the air between us.
Words I'd dreamed of hearing for months. Words that meant everything and nothing now.
"You love her." I pointed at my face. "You love the combination translator who looked at you like you hung the stars. But she doesn't exist anymore. I'm Lady Seraphine Nightshade now. Cold. Cruel. Exactly what you deserve."
"You're not mean. You're hurt and scared and—"
"I'm wearing another woman's skin like a costume!" My voice cracked. "I'm going to marry you in four weeks while she watches from my old body, and we're all going to pretend this is normal. This is fine. This is love."
"It's not love," Cassian said softly. "It's pain. For all of us."
Finally. Finally he understood.
"Then end it," I whispered. "Call off the wedding. Let the countries go to war. At least then we'd be fighting for something real instead of living this lie."
He looked at me for a long moment. I could see him struggling—duty versus desire, kingdom versus heart. The eternal fight of princes.
"I can't," he finally said. "The partnership is too important. Too many lives depend on it." Of course. I don't know why I expected anything different.
"Then we have nothing more to discuss." I turned toward the door. "I'll see you at our wedding, Prince Cassian. Try to look happy. The kingdoms will be watching."
"Lyanna, wait—"
But I was already gone, running through rooms I didn't recognize, in a body that felt like a cage, toward a future I didn't want.
I made it to what I thought was a private garden before I fell, sobbing.
That's where Kieran found me.
"There you are." His storm-gray eyes held surprising sympathy. "I've been looking all morning. We need to talk about—"
He stopped. Stared. His soul mark began to glow.
The storm mark on my arm answered.
"No," I breathed. "No, please, not you too."
But the bond between us burst to life, stronger than ever. Because the magic didn't care about faces or bodies.
It recognized souls.
And Kieran's soul knew mine, no matter what skin I wore.
"Hello, mate," he said softly. "Ready to discuss how we're going to destroy everyone who did this to you?"
His smile was sharp as broken glass.
And for the first time since the swap, I felt something other than hopelessness.
I felt hope.
Dangerous, rash hope.