Haseul moved with grace, eyes closed as her sword swept through the air. She called it a warm-up, but to Vivi it looked more like a dance. 

“Is it like this when you use stone?” she asked. 

“In a fight, stone just chips off from the blade,” Vivi replied. “I usually used a club.” 

Her eyes opened. “To bash people’s heads in?” 

“To make them turn the other way,” Vivi replied. Usually, she added in her head. “People can handle swords, a stone club is another thing.” 

“But can you fight with it?” 

Just the question brought memories to mind. Those were memories Vivi didn't want in her mind. And though she might trust Haseul more than any other elf, she didn't trust her enough for that. 

So she brought up the rock from the ground. “I have.” 

Haseul didn't smile, her eyes filling with understanding. Vivi realised then that she also didn't know any of the elf's stories. 

“You don’t want to duel with this.” Vivi looked at the stone. “I never had a sparring partner unless it was hollow.” She let some of it flow back into the earth. Even if Haseul turned out to be the best fighter she’d ever seen, she didn’t want to land a blow that would actually hurt. 

“Not here,” Haseul said. “Just don’t aim for the head.” She lurched forward, grabbing Vivi’s wrist in the next second. She was hauled to her feet in the next moment. The elf was surprisingly strong. 

Vivi caught herself. “Bones may be broken.” 

“I’ve got light to heal up,” she winked, “but that’s assuming you’ll land a hit.” She waved her blade. “Come on.” 

There was something about her smile and the way her eyes glittered. There wasn't the gentle warmth like when Haseul taught Vivi about utilising moonlight. This was something else: a challenge. Haseul thought they’d be on equal footing. Maybe they would be, maybe not. Vivi realised she wanted to find out.  

She smiled back and swung first. Her club went for the upper part of Haseul’s legs. 

The elf jumped back and Vivi made the ground beneath her rise. 

Haseul laughed as she lost her balance. In the same moment, something hit Vivi in the gut, knocking her back as well. It was warm. 

Vivi got to her feet, but Haseul had righted herself faster. She leapt over the uneven ground, sweeping her own club of white in a lazy arc.

Vivi ducked, while aiming another blow at Haseul’s legs. This one landed. 

And then an elbow drove into her back. The force of it drove her down. 

Vivi’s face hit the dirt. “You could barely lift a slab of stone.” And she'd quite literally floored her. 

Haseul let her. “You were already close enough.” She waggled her brow. “You’re taking long to recover.” 

Vivi snorted and swung, making the stone rise from the ground to extend onto the club. This time it caught Haseul in the side. 

She dropped the club and lunged. 

Haseul stumbled, but evaded her grasp. She landed a small jab on Vivi’s ribs, but it hurt.

Bony hands, she thought. 

Vivi tripped her, forcing her down as she did. Haseul’s centre of gravity wasn’t as strong. Still, she was quick. 

Then Vivi was shoved back, almost exactly onto her feet again. Suddenly being upright caught her off guard. 

She saw Haseul getting to her feet. Again. And she made the stone rise in front of her, forming a wall. 

There was the sound of impact and a curse. 

“I’m,” Haseul gasped, “not sure if that’s fair.” A groan of pain. 

When Vivi let the wall fall away, she saw Haseul clutching her face. Blood streamed out from her fingers. 

“All fine!” The bleeding elf raised her hand. Her skin started to glow. “Just have to right this.” She winced as she pressed on either side of her nose. “Look straight to you?”

“No,” Vivi nudged her fingers, “now.” 

Haseul’s skin glowed even brighter. As did her eyes, from which the tears still came out. 

“Sorry.” Vivi looked away from Haseul’s face to the blood on her hands. “You’re a lot faster than me otherwise.” Her neck was starting to feel warm. 

“Otherwise is the key word,” Haseul replied. “In a real fight, you can play as dirty as you want. Just like I am.” She grinned, but flinched. 

A pressure came over her neck. Vivi reached for it. It was a coil of moonlight. It felt different to what Vivi harnessed. It felt warmer than usual. More potent as well, though it was a quiet intensity. Like an ember rather than the raging fire. 

“Ah ha,” Vivi said. “Have you used that specific tactic before? Break your nose to break a neck?”

Haseul laughed, taking her hands away from a now straight nose. “Not yet.” She pulled out her water skin, pouring it over her head, before wiping away the blood. Any human lady would’ve found it unsightly. Vivi believed that others in the camp would think it undignified as well. “But someone’s pride is always a useful weapon.” Her eyes darkened ever so slightly. 

She could only nod. 

Green eyes widened. “I didn’t mean you were prideful!” Haseul exclaimed. “I just knew you weren’t going to pay much attention to it, because of the nose.” She sighed, a small chuckle leaving her lips. “And I wanted the last say in this.” 

“So you were the more prideful one then,” Vivi replied. Pride wasn’t always terrible. Arrogance was a word she could hardly associate with Haseul. Confident was a perfect fit. 

She nodded. The moonlight around Vivi’s throat vanished. How did she have enough light? So many had complained they'd had too little, but Haseul was using clubs and making these other structures. Did she use it better than them?

“You made the stone hollow, didn’t you?” Haseul almost looked disappointed.

Vivi smiled. “A full-on blow can crush a person. You’d have had a lot more than a broken nose and cracked ribs.” 

“Right,” Haseul touched her side, gingerly, “did I even get a bruise on you?”

“A few,” she turned back towards the camp, “but I think you won today, regardless.”

“I’m the one who was beaten bloody,” she looked at her blood-speckled clothes, “are you sure you didn’t win?”

“You gave me room to get up after that hit to my back. If you’d have used anything other than your arm, that was the winning blow.”

Haseul shrugged. “So we’re even.” She smiled at her. “We went two rounds.”

Vivi didn't find it in her to protest. Haseul's insistence proved she was anything but arrogant. She found herself liking the elf more and more. 

"Next time will be different,” Vivi said. 

“I’m sure.” Her smile widened. “Because next time, I’ll be the one making that pretty nose of yours crooked.” 

______

“Just,” Priad sighed, “take it easy, alright?”

Hyunjin frowned. “You came all the way out here to say that?” And at the end of the guard shift too. She was hungry and on edge from the last spirit she’d fought. She really hated days without enough moonlight. She’d already drained her waterskin and was already starving for whatever pieces she could still get tonight. 

“Heejin’s been on edge for a while now,” he said. “You’re just making it worse if you force her to fight.”

She wanted to argue and say that the training was perfect to soften that edge. It might’ve been one of the reasons Heejin didn’t lash out every other day. 

But arguing with him, especially with the others around, it wouldn’t end well for her. They could talk circles around her. Heejin could also do that, but she never had with Hyunjin. Priad and the others didn’t have the tact to avoid that with her. They relished in making people like her struggle.

This was also the chance to stop seeing Heejin as much as she was. Just these few words with Priad was showing her he didn't like the time they were spending together. Others weren't either. 

“I’m not forcing her,” Hyunjin replied. “But if you think she’s overdoing it, then I can ‘take it easy’.” She stifled a yawn. The many patrols really were getting to her. Maybe she could shave off one tomorrow and use that time for herself.

Beside him, Teveril scowled. “Are we boring you?”

She smiled. “Yes.” Then she looked to the sky. “And it’s time for my dinner.” She nodded at them. 

They let her go just fine. She was pretty sure they didn’t hate her. She didn’t hate them. A lot had just changed since that day. 

Just the thought stung. Hyunjin ignored the pain. Even if Heejin despised how the moon had dictated their actions and showed some their fates, the light of the moon tying two people together had the potential to be beautiful.

Once Heejin stopped rejecting it, maybe she’d start feeling the connection to Priad. As far as Hyunjin knew, the bond didn’t force love, it only highlighted the reasons why you were bound. It was like a very powerful suggestion. It didn’t force you. 

But she’s not realised that, Hyunjin thought. The day after they’d learned of the bond, Hyunjin had left for a few years. When she’d returned, Heejin’s eyes still hadn’t held any affection for Priad. 

Ultimately, her decision to leave hadn’t done anything. She’d learned how to fight from other elves, but also from sour encounters with wolves, witches, and vampires. Seunghee and Hyojung had agreed that she’d come to excel at that. She’d needed to return to train the rest. Yuol was an exceptional duelist, but he was just one person. And no one went as far out as Hyojung’s group did. They came back now and again, but had essentially formed their own faction. If she didn’t love being at home as much as she did, she would’ve made it a permanent thing. 

Then a voice reached her ears, one that was deep and currently quite animated. 

“It could cut the amount by at least a quarter,” Heejin said. She spoke to her father, Erlan, and another. 

“The others'll grow restless,” Lisa frowned, “including me.” She was one of their primary hunters, having a knack for finding spirits. Her usual partner, Jennie, was the one handling the strategy. She had a deeper understanding of their behaviour than most. They made an excellent pair. And they were bound by the light. 

Heejin nodded. “I’d rather be stuck here than not be able to defend myself properly out there." 

“So would I.” She turned to Erlan. “Yuol’ll agree with me and I’ll make sure he’s the bearer of bad news for the thrill seekers.”

Hyunjin tuned the rest out and kept walking. This was probably a new plan in place for patrols or hunts. Maybe something about only those with the most moonlight being able to get out.

Hyunjin just went straight to their fire pit. Haseul and Viian already sat there. She was happy to see that Vivi felt comfortable enough to eat with them. When Jungeun had first come, she’d eaten alone for the first year, only ever coming for the bigger celebrations or when they, usually Haseul, had urged her to join them. When Jinsoul had come, Jungeun had taken the time to eat separately from them again. That had only been for the first month, because Jungeun hadn’t let her have the same isolation she had. The rest of them had welcomed Jinsoul and later Choerry as well. Now they had Viian and it seemed that Haseul wasn’t going to let her eat alone at all. 

“How was it?” Haseul asked. She gestured to a very full platter of cooked food. If she got to the fire first, she always made enough for them all to have seconds. 

“Quiet night,” Hyunjin picked off some of the roasted vegetables and meat, “three spirits came around. One pair, one on its own.” 

She looked at her for a long moment, eyes probing. “You've got patrols for a week. And no guard duty tomorrow. Maybe the day after too.”

She laughed. “Is it bad that I was hoping you’d say that?”

Her brow rose. “Surprising.” She looked to Viian. “The last time I tried to get her to take a break, she did a few day-trips into town just to prove she didn’t need it.”

Viian’s light pink eyes flicked to Hyunjin. “But isn't there more risk in the day for you?”

“Just not understanding them. We got language lessons we got as children,” Haseul said. “And she never paid any real attention.”

“They always think I’m a foreigner,” Hyunjin grumbled. 

The pink-haired girl looked puzzled. “So how did going there prove your point?”

“It didn’t,” Haseul grinned, “but she came back very proud.”

“I still am.” Hyunjin tossed a slice of aubergine at her. “Had to concentrate on everything they were saying. The human language is hard.” 

“And there’s more than one,” Viian replied. 

“I know,” she groaned. “And it just gets worse the farther west you go.” She’d stopped trying to understand the mortals after passing through Russian lands. Her appearance also became increasingly unique for the mortals the further away she went from home. She hated the stares. 

“Do you know any of their languages?” Haseul asked, a spark of interest flaring in her eyes. 

Viian nodded. “One of the western languages, a bit of Korean, but mostly the one in the region above this one.” 

Yeojin sat beside Hyunjin then. “The Ming Empire?”

The newcomer shook her head. “It’s the Qing Dynasty now. Has been for some years.”

“So you were coming from there?” Hyunjin asked. She’d assumed Viian’s clan had been in Korea. Maybe that was shortsighted of her. 

“Yes, but there were plans to go further north,” Viian said. “Maybe even across the ocean and further east.” 

There was something off with that. Viian’s eyes had fallen to the fire. She wasn’t exactly a stone wall when it came to hiding her emotions, something Hyunjin appreciated. But she also wasn’t one to bear her soul. Which also wasn't terrible. 

Still, Hyunjin knew homesickness well. In Viian’s face, she saw that, but also something else. 

“Sorry,” Viian muttered. 

Haseul and Hyunjin shared a look. “Don’t be. None of us have had to leave our home like you did, but we know it’s hard.” 

Then Haseul's expression crumpled. She didn't hide it fast enough. Hyunjin saw it, Yeojin had too. And she was sure Viian had as well, proven by the frown she wore. She looked worried. Unlike Hyunjin and Yeojin, she wouldn't know what it meant. 

But when Haseul wiped her face of the pain, Viian's concern also vanished. Like a mirror. 

“And here’s where you tell me to bond with the three who weren’t born Astra?” Viian asked, raising a brow. 

The newcomer was changing the subject. Thankfully. 

“Yeah,” Hyunjin said. “But also because they’re gonna be your patrol group.” 

Another nod. “But they’re not together often,” Viian frowned, “Jinsoul’s more of a healer than the one to go on patrol. Jungeun goes off with Chuu or by herself. And the only time I’ve only ever seen Choerry with Jinsoul in the camp, or Jungeun when she’s off with Chuu.” 

“You saw all this in the past week?” Yeojin asked. 

Had it only been a week? Time was always quick to blend together for Hyunjin. For all she knew, it could’ve been a week, two, or a month. The only time she’d felt the passage of time was when she’d left for those years. 

Viian nodded. “And I’ve yet to be on any of these patrols.” Then she shrugged. “But that’s also because I haven’t got a grip on the light.”

“Yet,” Haseul said. She was looking at Viian with surprising fondness. “Jungeun just got hurt, Hyunjin’s getting to the edge of what she should’ve been using, and I’ll be just as exhausted by the end of the next hunt. It’s risky even for the experienced.” 

Hyunjin felt eyes on her in that moment. She looked around, wondering if someone was eavesdropping. 

There were some who still sent frowns their way, probably in Viian’s direction, and others who seemed to try and listen whenever they could. That was more to see what Haseul was like and what she spoke about with others. 

She didn’t see anyone looking straight at her. 

The tension in Viian hadn’t faded. “Because of how the spirits have been changing,” she said. “They need more light to be changed too, don’t they?”

Hyunjin was torn between surprise and being impressed at how observant she was. She also liked how the girl didn’t sound spiteful at being left behind for patrols. Hyunjin had to agree with Jungeun on that. It really wasn’t safe. 

“And if you get hurt by one, the darkness sticks with you longer,” Haseul said then. “More like a wound you can’t magically heal. That just takes time.”

“What does it do exactly?” Viian asked. “The way everyone talks about it just tells me that the darkness is bad.” 

“It isn’t bad,” a new voice said. Her tone was sharp. 

Hyunjin watched as Heejin looked between her and Viian. Her jaw was tight.

Already, Hyunjin knew she'd say something like before. She was angry, her mind stuck in memories of before. 

“It’s the type of darkness,” Heejin said, not sitting down. “Like the types of light, even if the rest don’t talk about it.” 

Viian didn’t seem to mind the harsh tone. “So the bright spirits who attack, they have the worser type of it?”

“And there’re dark spirits who don’t attack,” Yeojin said. Her eyes were hesitant. Hyunjin knew she had about as much anger as Heejin did. She didn’t handle it well either. She also knew that Yeojin hadn’t said a kind word to Gowon, Chuu or Yves since that day. Neither had Heejin. 

“So the first thing you do is make sure you know the difference,” Heejin added, her eyes cold. “Some turn the spirits without caring if they’re better off dark.”

Hyunjin felt how eavesdropping elves stiffened. They were allowed to say things like this, but the beliefs those words alluded to weren’t exactly approved. Hyunjin hadn’t said anything like it for a long time. Her family had stopped saying it long ago.

But Heejin was supposed to think for herself. It was what'd make her a great leader. If only she kept her newfound distaste for the moon to herself. 

“And that’s none of us here,” Haseul said slowly. There was a small warning in her eyes. “Did you come to eat? I can put more on the fire. The others should be coming soon as well, then we’ll have enough.”

“No.” Heejin’s response was curt. “I needed to talk to you.” When she met Hyunjin's eyes, her gaze was a bit more gentle. Why couldn’t she spare that for Viian?

“Is it anything you can say here?” Hyunjin asked. 

Hurt flashed across bright pink eyes. Hyunjin regretted asking. 

She got up instead. 

Heejin barely nodded and turned away, walking to one of the tents. The one Hyunjin shared with Jinsoul and the others. 

Hyunjin felt her face start to burn. Did they have to go here? After everyone else had heard Heejin’s outburst, their gazes would also be on them now. And although Heejin didn’t care for it, the rest did, including Hyunjin.

Still, Heejin walked with more certainty now and a familiar tension in her shoulders. Hyunjin could only follow. 

No one was in the tent. And almost every tent had wards so that simple conversations wouldn’t be overheard. Among other things. 

Heejin rounded on her in the next moment. “Why’s Priad saying you’re only doing half the training sessions?” 

That bastard, Hyunjin thought. Was she really going to give Heejin another reason to hate him? The last thing she was supposed to do was make things worse. 

And now that she was near her bed, her own exhaustion was becoming more pronounced. She wanted nothing more than to sleep for several days. And Heejin was bound to be exhausted as well. Both a group of western elves and sea elves wanted an audience about recent events. Heejin would either be preparing for that or be swept up in discussions. Same for Haseul. 

No, Hyunjin had to do what she could to make sure that Heejin got enough rest. Especially at these times. And the less time they spent alone together, the better. 

“Well?” Heejin let out a long breath through her nose. Her anger had evaporated, leaving only frustration. 

“You’ve made a lot of progress already. We don’t have to see each other that often.” 

The hurt appeared again. It stayed there. “That’s the only time we see each other.” The disappointment in her eyes was familiar. Hyunjin had seen it the day she’d left. And before the next few smaller trips she’d made. 

“You could still eat with us.” Hyunjin fought the urge to cross her arms. “But that might not be wise if you spit at Viian every time she asks for the salt.”

“You know everyone’s going to keep acting like she doesn’t belong here. And even after she’s tapped into her source of light,” Heejin paused, “they’ll ignore it.” 

Hyunjin frowned. “And the way you treat her is any better?” She didn’t leave room for an excuse. “You know her clan’s probably in Russia by now, maybe even across the eastern ocean. She’s just like the others were when they first came: homesick and lonely. And then you’re coming in, as if she’s done something wrong by asking questions.” 

Heejin didn’t get angry this time. She only sat down on Hyunjin’s bed of furs. Her fingers fiddled with the blanket. 

Hyunjin was reminded of better days. Days when they’d lay together there, chatting about the stars and other gossip. Heejin hadn’t been full of spite then. She’d been curious and open. 

“You have to stop letting your anger out around her. She’s the one person who shouldn’t receive it. She doesn't even know that Hyejoo exists!” Hyunjin stopped to calm herself. This wasn’t the right way to go about it. 

Even raising her voice with Heejin felt wrong. When Jungeun and the others had come, Heejin had been so welcoming, never judgmental. And now this. 

“So yes, the training’s cut in half for the next weeks,” Hyunjin said. “There’re other things we have to focus on.” She needed to find some way to better their patrols. Shorter shifts or bigger groups. A change that wouldn’t get her as many dirty looks as the last suggestion had. She’d just wanted them to practice a swift takedown, involving aiming right for the vulnerable areas instead of every fight being a glorified duel.

And maybe she’d have to talk to Heejin about that, but she’d save it for another day. When she was using the patience Hyunjin knew she had. 

“Including tomorrow?” Heejin asked. Her voice sounded small. 

“Including tomorrow,” Hyunjin said. “And you know they notice whenever you’re here.” She stopped at the entrance of the tent. “Next time just say it when we’re at the fire. You never had a problem saying everything else when you shouldn’t.”

______

Olivia didn’t run home. She took as much time as she could. Maybe that wasn’t the best of ideas—she’d been attacked by plenty of benevolent and twisted bright spirits. Each she’d turned to dark ones. 

It was dawn. She hadn’t eaten since yesterday morning. She should’ve passed by the man’s kitchens and taken from the stock. A few missing strips of meat and loaves of bread wouldn’t have been missed. Wealthy mortals had food in abundance. They kept a log on all of it and taking it almost never went unnoticed for long. Luckily, she was quite sure that the man wouldn’t order his guards to follow. She hoped so at least. 

Taverns didn’t usually have the same attention to detail, but taking from them felt wrong. They made actual money from serving it to others. 

Olivia scoffed. Was there a right and wrong place to steal from? The mortals could grow their food fine, even if it was an animal, so why did which stockroom she took from matter? 

She walked on, considering where the next town was. Not too far. All animals fled from her and there was never enough fruit or plantlike to eat in the ‘wilderness’. She either stole food or bought it. Luckily, she had enough money to buy it for a few months. 

Briefly, Olivia longed to sleep on a proper bed. 

She shook her head, pushing down the thought. It’d been nearly a day since she’d set off to kill another. Nearly a day since she’d turned away from Alluin. And now she was longing for a warm meal and a bed. Either the luxury she’d experienced with Alluin’s group had softened her or she’d grown delirious. 

The sky was beginning to pale. It was a sign for most mortals to wake. And it was the time when Olivia should’ve been going to sleep. 

Often she’d wondered if that was the right way to go about it. Those who were chosen by the moon had all needed to suffer those changes to their sleep cycle. Yerim had stayed awake until late morning in the beginning, while Jinsoul and Jungeun had taken to the change better. 

In spite of herself, Olivia continued to think of home. Was Jungeun still so punctual? Did Yerim still resist missing out on experiencing a sunrise? Were Jungeun and Jinsoul still ignoring how one of them always waited for the other? 

Homesickness struck her like a slap. She didn’t want a wooden bed and its mattress. She to sleep on furs gathered from previous hunts. She wanted to enjoy meals made by those she’d once loved and sit by a fire Jungeun had conjured. She wanted to drink water infused with moonlight. She wanted to laugh. And she wanted to enjoy food she hadn’t needed to buy or steal. 

There was a time when she might’ve had that in Alluin's group. One of the many things that turned her away was that they talked of having a grand building to house them. Alluin's main influences were the large stone constructs of the west. Olivia hated them. They were scrambled paths of rock interspersed with wooden doors. Unless a fire burned, they were always freezing in the winter. 

But they showed power. Their size created awe in mortals. They showed that you were powerful and rich. To the mortals, they proved you were someone to respect. Even if it was far from the truth. 

And it held what the humans called staff: mortals to work for other mortals. They’d clean, cook, and serve, all to gather enough money to have food of their own. Some did that their entire lives, while others were to fight in battles they didn’t understand. There were other fates, other lives Olivia had caught glimpses of, but didn’t understand. 

Olivia laughed. It sounded like a strained breath with her underused voice, but the twisted humour there remained. Her own life had come to circulate around money and food. How had she gotten her money? She'd taken it or served another to take something else. Yesterday, she’d nearly taken a life to get a bag of silver. 

The mortals called that a crime. Others called it a sin. Some called it justice. 

Olivia had the sense that she’d left that man to die anyway. If the woman who’d sent her grew outraged that he still lived, what was to stop her from finding another? What would stop Alluin from sending another to do the work Olivia had failed to do? 

Perhaps she should’ve gone through with it, if only to spare him from the agony of a death by another’s hand. 

Pushing those thoughts away, she kept walking, tugging her cloak and the shadows closer to her. The light of the sun burned her. It always hurt. It also drained her. 

Olivia made it to the town some time before evening came and all venders returned home to their families. 

“Just passing through?” a young man asked. The corners of his lips tugged up. He eyed her in the way that told her he liked what he saw. Had he known what she was, let alone her age, he would’ve thought very differently. At least, she hoped so. 

Olivia nodded. One of her hands was wrapped around her animal skin filled with handmade noddles, stray vegetables, things the humans called spices, and beef. Though her silver hadn’t been from this region, it’d been accepted just the same. Almost with more reverence than their own money. 

She stowed away one loaf of bread and kept the other. She turned away from the boy and left the bakery. Her eye caught on someone squinting at the wooden hut. Her eyes landed on Olivia. There was a flicker of recognition. She was old. 

Olivia cursed and turned away. Her pace quickened with each step. She heard the woman call out, but ignored it. To be recognised here? She didn’t find one feature familiar about the human, but that wasn’t the case for her, it seemed. 

Of course she’d recognised her. Olivia wasn’t the one who'd aged several decades. Hopefully the mortal would just dismiss it as an uncanny resemblance. It just meant that Olivia would have to wait a few years before returning here. That was hardly a problem in the scope of forever. 

As she returned to the forest, the late afternoon sun peaked through. It burned more than it should have, but her skin never tanned nor burned. At first, she’d wondered why that was. Yerim had come to them quite tan, but paled as her time in the night grew longer. Was her magic subconsciously destroying the light when it touched her skin? 

Above, Olivia spotted birds flying away from her. She still heard the calls of others. That side of the forest always made for a peaceful atmosphere. Coupled with the wind, Olivia could focus on that myriad of sound, rather than get stuck in her thoughts. 

She tore off chunks from her bread loaf. It was lightly sweet, just shy of being a dessert. To her empty stomach, it was wonderful. 

She wanted to find a safe place to stay, something always encased in shadow. 

Her search took her closer to home than she’d been in years. She could feel their light in the distance. It was far away, but still felt too close. She was tempted to turn around and leave the country completely. But she was tired. And Alluin was unlikely to come closer than she had. He was more powerful, yes, but that also meant he was more easily discovered. Perhaps a seer would see him coming sooner than they could Olivia. Unless he sent someone else after her. 

She walked along a river. There were areas with more stone here, mostly rocky banks or boulders. She remembered those from hunting. 

Then she heard soft footfalls. They weren’t from a small animal. These were predatory. 

Olivia summoned a blade and wrapped herself in shadow. She crept towards the nearest boulder. She couldn’t see them with normal eyes, so she looked into the darkness. Whatever followed her drew on the shadows only slightly. 

It was a large figure. Their darkness was familiar. 

Olivia absorbed her weapon and walked towards it. Her hand felt cool. 

The spirit was dark green. It'd taken the shape of a wolf. 

And she'd turned it in the west, quite far away. 

“How'd you get here?” Olivia muttered. 

The spirit looked at her. It neared. If she wasn’t imagining it, its tail was wagging. 

There might’ve been an explanation for it. This might’ve been proof that spirits had more of a mind than they gave them credit for. 

But all she could see were its eyes. They were a bright, yet pale green. Exactly the shade of an elf’s eyes. The sight filled Olivia with longing. Then rage. 

Olivia summoned a crude chunk of darkness and threw it at the wolf. It caught it. And ate it. 

She growled and turned away. Wasting time with this wouldn’t help her find shelter. 

The spirit followed. 

Was this supposed to be a taunt form the moon? She was closer to home than she’d ever been, but she wasn’t going back. Had the moon sent her a twisted reminder of who had turned away from her?

She saw a collection of stone then, rising up a few metres. And there was a portion of it that went in. Not far, from what she could tell. Perhaps it would work. 

She glanced back. The spirit watched with its uncanny eyes. At least they didn’t glitter like hers did. 

Olivia began to climb. She didn’t make footholds, but pushed herself to make do without them. She'd lived a long time without magic like that. It was good never to lose that touch. Even so, unlike those who controlled light, she almost always had a wealth of darkness at her disposal. Everyone had a shadow. 

She reached the top. The wolf was already there. It looked smug. 

Olivia remembered games when she’d seen similar eyes filled with a gentle challenge. She'd seen that same soft pride when the other girl had won. 

She dug her fingers into the rock, tore out a piece of it, and flung it at the beast. It dodged. 

“Leave,” she barked, hoisting herself up fully. 

The wolf remained. 

It wasn’t a proper cave, but the stone curved in to make the semblance of a mouth. 

Olivia gathered the shadows in her hands, creating a short and curved blade. She dug it into the rock. It gave way easily. 

It was very crude work. Jagged edges were left in walls that should’ve been smooth. Bit by bit, however, she got the space to grow. She could at least lie down with some shelter from a midday sun, rain, or full moon. 

The wolf watched her the the entire time, having now sat on its haunches. It eyed the chunks of rocks that scattered the floor. 

“Go on.” Olivia took one up and threw it, aiming for its head. 

The wolf caught it. The rock fell to the ground. The pale green eyes regarded her expectantly. 

She felt an old anger rise. “Don’t you understand? Go.” She stood, feeling dizzy as she did. She faked a swipe at it with her fist. It didn’t flinch. 

She groaned. Then she kicked it, not hard enough to break anything (if it even had bones), but to push it away. The wolf slid, but its claws dug into the stone. It made deep grooves. It whined. The sound tugged at her chest. 

“You’re mindless anyway,” Olivia spat. “What was I expecting?”

Then it was back to carving at the rock.

It’s just a spirit, she told herself. It wasn’t there to harm her. It also wasn’t there to help. She tried to remind herself of that. It was just taking up space on this already cramped plateau. 

Eventually, the piles of rock built up to the point that she was practically swimming in them. Her hands ached from carving and her arms shook from being held aloft for too long. 

Olivia loved it. When she walked, her mind wandered too much. Here, she could focus on the work completely, even have a bit of fun with what shapes she dug out. 

And now she had to clear up the space. She started tossing the rocks off the plateau. 

Then the unexpected happened. The wolf picked up one of the stone chunks with its mouth. It dropped it off the edge. It didn’t seem to hurt its teeth. 

“So you can do something useful,” she muttered. “Good.” 

In another world, she would’ve been interested in that. This said something about the behaviour of spirits. Olivia dismissed it. As long as the spirit wasn’t a nuisance, she didn’t need to care. Fairies were better at reaching conclusions anyway. 

Together, Olivia and the wolf cleared away the plateau. Olivia wiped most of the smaller fragments towards the mouth. 

Now the space was a little bit more like a cave. She could curl up and still have some room if she moved around in her sleep. She wouldn’t be able to sit up and she’d definitely whack her head when she woke up, but being able to lie down in the first place was a luxury. 

Olivia smiled. After a few days of carving and cleaning, it’d be a proper place to stay. It was as close to a castle as she’d ever get too. All before Alluin had even gotten close to it. 

She smoothed away the bottom parts of the wall. That was a task achieved with a mixture of shadow work and using something like what the mortal craftsman did with their stone constructs. It wasn’t perfect, but good enough so that she didn’t cut herself while she slept. She healed from that, but that didn't mean those things didn't hurt. When she was an idiot, she even got infections.

The wolf lay down a the entrance. It almost looked like it was guarding her. 

“No noise from you,” Olivia dug around in her pack, “or I’ll find a way to get rid of you.” She pulled out the bread she’d already eaten from. She was too tired to cook. After eating something to quell the gnawing feeling in her stomach, she put the last part back. 

She arranged her things to make some sort of pillow. She had one thin blanket. The night wasn’t freezing, the darkness that surrounded her always made sure of that. But now it was nearing day again. She was so exhausted that it didn’t matter what time it was. 

There was a low whine. It was filled with pain. Again, there was a tug at her, as if her own heart told her she was being cruel. 

The next thing Olivia felt was something nudging her leg. The wolf. 

She swallowed the urge to kick it again and opened her eyes. 

“What?” 

The wolf looked back at her with almost reproachful eyes. Another expression she’d seen before.

Her chest tightened. She fought the urge to kick it again. 

The spirit looked at the slowly brightening world outside. There was something close to disgust in its gaze. 

“The light?” Olivia asked. 

Of course, it didn’t answer. It just nudged her again. Its snout was strangely warm. 

“Fine.” She sat up and made the shadows extend toward the cave’s mouth. It made the floor more darkness than natural stone. 

The wolf slipped past her, pressing its body to the wall. It closed its eyes and seemed to actually relax. 

Olivia felt more annoyed than angry. She was too tired for that. “If you wake me up,” she muttered, laying down, careful not to touch the spirit. She didn’t finish the threat. 

Once again, there was no response. 

The spirit was both cool and warm. Olivia didn’t feel unsettled. Her annoyance lingered, but she almost felt comfortable. 

Vaguely, she found the current state of things funny. She was already drifting off, but she nearly laughed. 

That amusement comforted her. Then sleep took her in fully. What greeted her were dreams of glittering green eyes, airy laughter. 

And when Olivia woke, her eyes felt swollen and her head hurt. Her chest was being pressed in on by a deep ache. It wasn’t from longing or even anger, but it still hurt. And she hated it. 

______

Author's Note

Went for a more balanced chapter this time. I wanted to start with a bit more of how Vivi is getting accustomed to the camp (with difficulty, but there are some good things), as well as show a bit more of Hyunjin's perspective. That includes a bit of what's happening with Heejin. There'll be more light shed on those two in the next chapters, but I decided that what I had here was enough for now. 

And then we have Olivia, going off alone in the woods and trying to make a makeshift home out of stone. It's fairly lighthearted compared to what I had before, but that's because she's on her own. There's no source for her anger or job for her to do at the moment. There's just a wolf with very familiar eyes that remind her of the past. 

Would love to know your thoughts! I'm currently extremely busy in my non-writing life, but I'm trying to write in at least one of my stories. 

I hope you're all well (or going to be). See you next chapter.