"I am not nervous," Eris stated, her voice flat, unwavering, staring straight ahead into the gloom.
"I did not say you were," Soren replied smoothly.
Eris paused mid-step, her amber eyes flicking to his profile. She realized, with a sudden surge of heat in her cheeks, that by denying it before he had even spoken, she had betrayed herself entirely.
"Shut up," she muttered.
A faint, fleeting curve touched the corner of Soren's lips—not quite a smile, but a quiet, fierce warmth that softened his harsh features. "I will be standing beside you through every second of it," he said, his voice lowering into a gravelly, absolute promise that echoed softly off the damp stone. "You will not face a single breath of this alone. If the flame burns, I will bleed with you. If the seal tears, I will hold you together. Do you hear me?"
