Eldoria listened best at night.
When footsteps softened, when laughter faded, when magic stopped pretending it was harmless.
Joy stood alone on the balcony outside Dormitory 407, cold stone beneath his palms. The sky above the academy was restless—stars drifting out of place, constellations rearranging themselves like they were arguing.
He couldn’t sleep.
Not after what he’d seen.
Not after what he’d felt.
Nick’s calm voice echoed in his head.
Jack’s clenched jaw.
That closeness—too natural, too quiet.
Joy exhaled slowly.
Why does it feel like I’m already losing… something I never claimed?
Behind him, the balcony door creaked.
Jack stepped out.He hadn’t changed from training—black uniform loose at the collar, magic marks faintly glowing along his wrist. He looked tired. Not physically.
Emotionally.
“You’re avoiding me,” Jack said.
Joy didn’t turn. “You’re imagining things.”
Jack moved closer. Not touching. Never touching first.
“You watched us,” Jack said quietly. “With Nick.”
Joy’s fingers tightened on the stone. “I wasn’t spying.”
“I didn’t say you were.”
Silence stretched between them, heavy and sharp.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Joy asked suddenly.
Jack frowned. “Tell you what?”
“That you and Nick—”
Joy stopped himself. His voice betrayed him, cracking just slightly. “—that you’re… connected.”
Jack’s expression hardened. “We trained together before Eldoria.”That’s not what I meant.”
Magic stirred.
Not visibly—but Joy felt it. The air thickened, pressing against his ribs like a held breath.
Jack stepped closer now. Too close.
“You don’t get to decide what I tell you,” Jack said lowly.
Joy finally turned, eyes bright—not with tears, but something worse.
“I know,” he said. “That’s the problem.”
For a moment, Jack looked like he wanted to say something dangerous. Something honest.
Instead, he stepped back.
“Stay away from Nick,” Jack said.
Joy laughed softly. “That’s not concern. That’s fear.”
Jack’s voice dropped. “You don’t understand what he is.”
“And you do?” Joy shot back. “Or are you just afraid he understands you better than I do?”
The magic snapped.
A pulse of light burst from Joy’s chest—uncontrolled, raw. Jack reacted instantly, shadows surging up to contain it, wrapping around the light instead of fighting it.
The balcony cracked.
Runes ignited along the railing, alarms whispering through the stone.They froze—too close, magic tangled between their hands without either of them realizing how it got there.
Jack was breathing hard.
“So this is what happens,” he murmured, almost to himself. “When you get hurt.”
Joy swallowed. “You noticed.”
Jack met his eyes. “I always notice.”
For one dangerous second, the world narrowed.
If Jack leaned in—
If Joy moved even an inch—
Footsteps echoed down the corridor.
Emma.
She stopped short when she saw them, magic still flickering faintly between their fingers.
“Well,” she said lightly, eyes sharp as glass. “That answers a few questions.”
Jack released Joy immediately, shadows retreating like they’d never existed.
Joy felt the loss like a physical ache.
Emma stepped closer, studying Joy openly now. Not curious.
Calculating.
“The resonance isn’t random,” she said. “It reacts when you’re emotionally unstable.”
Joy bristled. “I’m fine.”
Emma smiled. “No. You’re dangerous.”
Jack moved between them without thinking. “Enough.”
Emma’s smile widened. “Protective already?”
She leaned in, whispering just loud enough for Joy to hear:You don’t know what you’re carrying inside you.”
Then she turned and walked away.
That night, Nick stood alone in the underground archive, surrounded by forbidden texts. Candles flickered, shadows bending unnaturally toward him.
“You felt it,” Nick said softly.
From the darkness, an ancient mirror trembled.
“I did,” a distorted voice replied.
Nick closed his eyes. “The bond is accelerating.”
“And the boy?” the mirror asked.
Nick opened his eyes—calm, sad, resolute.
“He’s falling in love.”
High above Eldoria, the dark crystal screamed.
William pressed his hand against it, delight sharp in his grin.
“Good,” he whispered.
“Let love fracture them.”
Because the strongest seals were never broken by hate.
They were broken by the fear of losing someone you couldn’t admit you loved.
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