Evaline:
Kieran's and Oscar's hands were on me before I even realized they had moved.
Their grips were firm but careful, each of them holding onto my arm as if trying to ground me without actually pulling me away from Kyros. My palm still rested against his chest, right over those dark, spreading veins. My power still hummed beneath my skin... ready, waiting, desperate to act.
"Evaline," Kieran said, his voice low but urgent. "Maybe we should wait."
I turned my head toward him and the worry in his eyes hit me instantly. He wasn't just concerned about Kyros. He was worried about me.
"Let Elder Morwen take a look first," he added, his grip tightening just slightly around my arm. "We don't know what this could do to you."
Oscar didn't say anything, but I could feel it through the bond - the same fear, the same hesitation, the same desperate need to pull me away from something that could possibly harm me.
And I understood it.
I truly did.
