The swim felt longer than she remembered, though Sterre knew it only seemed that way because they had been forced to travel more slowly than they ever had before. Yet despite his blindness, Het Vuur’s efforts had been valiant – he never lagged far behind her, and he had only reached out for her help once when the waves had almost pulled him away.

The fire within him seemed to have been rekindled over the past few weeks, and Sterre enjoyed basking in its familiar heat. Although she would never admit it, she had missed having him by her side. Their relationship had always been volatile, but if there was anyone in this world who understood her awkward mixture of pride and ferocity it was him.

The air was icy cold as they pulled themselves onto the shore of Tinuvel, biting at their skin with its unforgiving winds. The damp sand beneath her hooves melted into a thick layer of snow as the land crept away from the ocean’s edge and dissolved into an uneven mass of ice and rock. They were but two black specks against the sheer white of their kingdom.

Sterre shivered, a tingle running down her spine, although she was not sure that it was caused by the cold. She turned back at Het Vuur, her dark eyes following the water’s path as it ran down the strong curves of his body in narrow rivulets. It would turn to ice if he was not careful.

She moved back to him to bump her nose against his cheek, and when he smiled she smiled. She had not seen him smile in a long time – not like this.

“We are home,” she breathed.

this thing of darkness
I ACKNOWLEDGE MINE