Aurora's POV
"And if I answer her action with my own," I continued, forcing my voice to remain steady, "then what have we learned?"
"That you won't let her burn the world," he said.
"No," I said quietly. "That whoever holds the most power decides what suffering is acceptable."
The bond between us tightened painfully.
Stefano looked away.
That hurt more than I imagined.
The council chamber was already full when we arrived.
Too full.
People had gathered not because they were summoned, but because uncertainty pulls bodies toward authority the way gravity pulls stone downhill. Wolves lined the walls. Witches stood in clusters, whispers passing between them like nervous birds.
They fell silent when I entered.
Not with relief.
With expectation.
Elder Halvar stepped forward. His shoulders sagged with the weight of too many years spent maintaining compromises that were never meant to last.
"You felt it," he said.
"Yes."
"The basin…"
"I know."
Murmurs rippled outward.
