Tesha rolled the scroll back up and retied the red ribbon, then pushed it across the desk toward Esme.
"Take it," she said quietly. "Return to your Star. Review it together. Sign it only when you are absolutely certain. Not when you think you should. Not when you feel obligated. Only when you are certain beyond any doubt that this is the path you choose."
Esme reached out with trembling hands and took the scroll. The weight of it felt disproportionate to its physical mass, like she was holding compressed destiny.
"There is no shame in refusing," Tesha added, her voice carrying unexpected gentleness. "Many servants choose not to bind themselves to Stars. They serve in other capacities, support the family in different ways. This particular bond is not for everyone. It requires devotion that goes beyond normal human limits."
But Esme barely heard the reassurance. Her mind had already moved past the question of whether she would sign and into contemplation of what it meant that she wanted to.
She thought about the awakening ceremony. The dramatic light that had filled the chamber. The crystal's refusal to respond. The insults that had rained down from hostile Elders while Riven stood vulnerable and exposed.
She thought about how he had woken from the fever changed. How he asked questions that suggested his memories were fractured but his mind was sharp. How he had looked at her when she explained the family hierarchy, absorbing information with intensity that spoke of someone cataloging everything for future use.
She thought about yesterday evening in his chambers. How he had asked her to call him Young Master instead of Seventh Star. How he had accepted her commitment to serve him for life with simple grace. How he had pulled out a handkerchief to dry her tears and she had clutched it like treasure.
Something about Riven called to her in ways she could not fully articulate. Something suggested that despite the measurement failure, despite the continued assessment of him as the family's disgrace, he would become significant. Would cause change. Would reshape things in ways no one currently anticipated.
'He'll transform Desolara,' Esme thought, the conviction settling in her chest with surprising certainty. 'I don't know how. I don't know when. But something tells me that Young Master will become someone whose name echoes through history. And I want to be there when it happens. Want to serve him as he rises. Want to be the one who stood by him when everyone else dismissed him as worthless.'
She stood, clutching the scroll to her chest, and bowed deeply to Tesha.
"Thank you, Head Steward. For your time. For your explanation. For your guidance."
Tesha nodded, accepting the gratitude. "Go. Discuss it with your Star. Make your choice with clear eyes and full understanding. Whatever you decide, I will respect it."
Esme turned and walked toward the door, her steps feeling lighter despite the weight of the scroll in her hands. She had entered this office uncertain. She left it knowing exactly what she would do.
The bond would be signed. The contract would be sealed. Her fate would be tied to Riven's until death claimed one of them.
And somehow, that certainty felt like coming home.
She closed the door behind her and began the walk back through modern corridors toward the chambers where her Young Master waited, unaware that his personal steward had just committed to following him into whatever future he carved from the ruins of others' expectations.