Cassian's POV
I grabbed her wrist before the blade touched her skin.
"No!" I twisted the dagger from her grip, and it clattered to the floor, dissolving into light. "Are you insane?"
"Let me go!" Seraphine fought against me, tears streaming down her face. "I have to save you!"
"Not like this!" I pulled her against my chest, holding her tight while she struggled. "Not by killing yourself!"
"But the curse—you're dying—"
"Then I'm dying! But I'm not letting you sacrifice yourself for me!" I could feel her shaking, could hear her broken sobs. "There has to be another way."
"There isn't," the Oracle said quietly. "The curse was designed to be unbreakable. Only a divine sacrifice can—"
"Then find a different solution!" I roared. The Oracle actually stepped back. "You're ancient and powerful. Figure something else out!"
"Your Grace," Theron said carefully. "The Oracle knows more about divine magic than anyone. If she says—"
"I don't care what she says. Seraphine is not dying. End of discussion."
Seraphine had stopped fighting. She sagged against me, exhausted. "Why?" she whispered. "Why won't you let me save you?"
"Because a life without you isn't worth living." I tilted her face up to meet my eyes. "You think I survived ten years of a curse just to watch you die for me? That's not salvation. That's torture."
"But you'll die within hours. The Oracle said—"
"The Oracle also said we had two days before the Celestial Court arrives. Maybe she's wrong about the timing on this too."
The Oracle's expression darkened. "I am never wrong about death."
"There's a first time for everything." I looked at Theron. "Get every scholar, every healer, every magic user in the castle. Someone must know another way to break this curse."
"Your Grace, we've been researching for years—"
"Then research harder!" My curse mark throbbed, sending pain shooting up my arm. I gritted my teeth against it. "We're not giving up."
After Theron and the Oracle left, I sat on my study floor, still holding Seraphine. She'd gone quiet, but I could feel her tears soaking through my shirt.
"I'm sorry," she said softly. "I keep making everything worse."
"You haven't made anything worse."
"Your curse is spreading because of me. People are in danger because of me. The Celestial Court is coming because of me." Her voice broke. "How is that not making things worse?"
"Because before you, I had nothing to live for." I stroked her hair. "You gave me a reason to fight. That's not worse. That's everything."
She pulled back to look at me. Her silver eyes were red from crying, her face blotchy and human and beautiful.
"I don't understand you," she said. "Why do you keep choosing me? I'm not worth—"
"Stop." I pressed my finger to her lips. "Stop saying you're not worth it. You are worth everything."
"But—"
"No buts. You're brave and kind and strong. You've been beaten down your whole life and you still care about others. You heal people even when it hurts you." I cupped her face. "That makes you worth more than all the noble ladies in the kingdom combined."
Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. "I don't want you to die."
"Then we'll find another way." I kissed her forehead. "Together."
"Promise?"
I looked into those silver eyes and lied. "I promise."
Because the truth was, I could feel the curse spreading. My heart was beating irregularly. My left arm had gone numb.
The Oracle was right. I had hours, maybe less.
But I'd be damned if I'd let Seraphine spend my last hours knowing I was dying. I wanted her to have hope, even if I didn't.
"You need rest," I said, helping her stand. "Come on. I'll take you back to your room."
"Will you stay?" Her voice was small. "I don't want to be alone."
"Of course."
I walked her to her quarters and sat in the chair beside her bed like I had before. She climbed under the covers, watching me with those eyes that saw too much.
"Cassian?"
"Hmm?"
"Whatever happens tomorrow with the Celestial Court... thank you. For making me feel like I mattered. No one's ever done that before."
My chest tightened. "You do matter. More than you'll ever know."
She smiled—sad and sweet—and closed her eyes.
I waited until her breathing evened out, until I was sure she was asleep.
Then I let myself feel the pain I'd been hiding. The curse was eating me alive from the inside. Every breath hurt. Every heartbeat was agony.
I had maybe six hours left.
Six hours to find a way to save her from the Celestial Court.
Six hours to make sure she'd be okay after I was gone.
I stood up carefully, trying not to wake her, and headed for the door.
"Where are you going?"
I froze. Turned to find Seraphine sitting up, looking at me with knowing eyes.
"Just checking on something—"
"You're lying." She climbed out of bed. "You're getting worse, aren't you? The curse."
"I'm fine—"
"Don't lie to me!" Her voice cracked. "Please. Don't spend your last hours lying to me."
We stared at each other. Finally, I nodded.
"How long?" she asked.
"Does it matter?"
"How long, Cassian?"
"A few hours. Maybe less." The truth tasted bitter. "I'm sorry."
She crossed the room and wrapped her arms around me. "Then don't leave. Don't spend those hours working. Stay here. With me."
"Seraphine—"
"Please." She looked up at me, and her eyes were breaking my heart. "If we only have a few hours left, I want to spend them together. No more running. No more trying to fix things. Just... us."
How could I say no to that?
I let her pull me to the bed. We lay down facing each other, and she took my hand.
"Tell me about your family," she said softly. "Before the curse. What were they like?"
So I did. I told her about my father, who taught me to fight. My mother, who died when I was young. My grandfather, who filled my head with stories about goddesses and true love.
"He used to say, 'Cassian, when you find your goddess, don't let her go. Even if the heavens themselves try to take her.'" I smiled at the memory. "I thought he was crazy."
"And now?"
"Now I understand." I touched her cheek. "You're my goddess, Seraphine. Even if you don't remember being one."
She curled closer, resting her head on my chest. "Tell me more. Tell me everything."
So I talked. About my childhood, my battles, my loneliness. And she listened, occasionally asking questions, making me laugh with her comments.
Hours passed like minutes.
As dawn approached, I felt my heartbeat becoming more irregular. Slower. The curse was reaching its final stage.
"Cassian?" Seraphine's voice was scared. "Your heart. I can barely hear it."
"I know."
She sat up, panic in her eyes. "No. No, it's too soon. We need more time—"
"Seraphine, listen to me." I pulled her close one last time. "When I'm gone, you need to run. Don't wait for the Celestial Court. Just run and don't look back."
"I'm not leaving you—"
"Promise me." My voice was getting weak. "Promise me you'll survive. You'll fight. You'll find a way to be happy."
"I can't be happy without you!"
"You can. You will." I kissed her, tasting her tears. "You're stronger than you know. Promise me."
"I... I promise." She was sobbing now. "But I don't want to. I don't want to live without you."
"I know. But you will. For me."
My vision was getting dark around the edges. My heart was barely beating.
This was it.
"I love you," I whispered. "In case I didn't say it clearly enough. I love you, Seraphine. My goddess. My everything."
"I love you too." She pressed her forehead to mine. "Please don't leave me. Please."
"I don't want to. But—"
My heart stopped.
Everything went black.
Seraphine's POV
"No!" I screamed as Cassian's body went limp in my arms. "No, no, no!"
I pressed my hands to his chest, trying to find a heartbeat. Nothing.
"Cassian, please! Wake up! You promised we'd find another way!"
Golden light exploded from my hands, pouring into him. But it wasn't working. He wasn't breathing. His heart wasn't beating.
"Don't you dare die on me!" Tears blurred my vision. "I love you! Do you hear me? I love you, and you don't get to leave!"
The golden light grew brighter, brighter, until the entire room was glowing.
And then something inside me broke open.
Not broke—shattered. Like a dam bursting.
Memories flooded my mind. Hundreds of years of memories. Of being Astraea, Goddess of Dawn. Of standing in the Celestial Court. Of falling in love with Lord Darian Nightborne, Cassian's ancestor.
Of Celestia's jealous rage when she found out.
Of being cast down, my powers sealed, forced to live mortal lifetimes of suffering while my sister ruled the throne that should have been mine.
And I remembered something else. Something the Oracle hadn't mentioned.
The curse on the Nightborne line wasn't just about death.
It was about rebirth.
"You think you're so clever, sister," I said, and my voice wasn't mine anymore. It was Astraea's voice. A goddess's voice. "You think you killed him. But you forgot one thing."
I pressed my hands harder against Cassian's chest, and this time, I didn't just send power into him.
I sent everything. Every ounce of my awakening divinity. Every fragment of my true self.
"A goddess's love doesn't die," I said. "It transcends death itself."
The golden light turned white-hot, blinding.
And Cassian's eyes opened.
But they weren't ice-blue anymore.
They were glowing gold, like mine.
"Seraphine?" he gasped. "What did you—"
Then he saw my hands. The light pouring from them. The way the air around us was bending, reality itself responding to my power.
"You're awake," he breathed. "Your divinity. You're fully awake."
I looked at my hands and realized he was right.
I wasn't just Seraphine anymore.
I was Astraea.
The Goddess of Dawn had finally remembered who she was.
And I was furious.
"Get up," I told Cassian. "We have work to do."
"Work?"
"The Celestial Court arrives at sunset." I pulled him to his feet. He was healed—the curse completely gone, his skin clear. "And when they come, they're going to find out what happens when you push a goddess too far."
His eyes widened. "You're going to fight them?"
"No." I smiled, and felt power humming through every cell of my body. "I'm going to make my sister regret ever betraying me."
Cassian stared at me like he was seeing me for the first time. "Who are you?"
I met his eyes, letting him see all of me. The servant girl and the goddess. The broken and the powerful. The mortal and the divine.
"I'm both," I said. "I'm Seraphine, who fell in love with you. And I'm Astraea, who's done being a victim."
I turned toward the window, where the sun was just starting to rise.
My sun.
My dawn.
And somewhere in the heavens, I knew my sister felt it too. The moment her carefully laid trap backfired.
Because she'd made one critical mistake.
She thought love would kill me.
But love was about to make me unstoppable.
"Get everyone to safety," I told Cassian. "The war is coming earlier than expected."
"What war?"
I looked at him, my eyes blazing with divine fire.
"The one where I take back my throne."