Helix Academy reopened on limited access under heightened security.
Which made it the worst possible place for Lyra's plan.
Lyra didn't care.
She arrived with a backpack that looked suspiciously heavy and a grin that should have been banned by Academy policy.
Vesper caught up to her near the entrance.
"What's in the bag."
Lyra hugged it tighter. "Supplies."
"That's not an answer."
"It's a very good answer."
Valentina appeared beside them, calm and elegant. "Don't worry."
Vesper looked at her. "You're on her side?"
Valentina's lips twitched. "I'm on the side of ending emotional incompetence."
Kael walked behind them, hands in his pockets, looking like he hadn't slept and didn't care.
Dorian strolled in last, still grinning.
Cassian followed, already irritated by being present.
Aurelio arrived with Orsini security trailing like shadows.
He stopped when he saw the group assembled.
He looked at Vesper. "Why do I feel like I'm walking into a trap."
Vesper exhaled. "Because you are."
Lyra waved cheerfully. "Hi! Don't panic. Panic makes you ugly."
Aurelio stared at her. "Excuse me?"
Lyra smiled. "You're welcome."
Step one of the plan was supposed to be "accidental proximity."
Lyra achieved this by submitting a "joint research assignment request" to Halvorsen under Vesper and Aurelio's names.
Halvorsen accepted because he didn't read anything besides the title line.
By the time Vesper discovered it, she and Aurelio were assigned as partners for an after-hours lab session.
In the secure lab.
With auto-locking doors.
Vesper stared at the assignment screen.
"This is fraud."
Lyra shrugged. "It's romantic fraud."
Aurelio's voice was tight. "This is inappropriate."
Valentina leaned in. "So is hovering."
Kael nodded. "Yes."
Dorian whispered to Cassian, "They're going to combust."
Cassian muttered back, "We are going to get expelled."
The lab session began with tense silence.
Vesper stood at one workstation. Aurelio at another.
They worked on resonance lattice models—Orsini tech required careful refraction mapping, and Vesper's density modulation made her unnervingly good at stabilizing simulated structural fields.
They should have been an excellent team.
They were.
Which made the tension worse.
Aurelio spoke first, carefully.
"Your shoulder—"
"It's fine."
"It burned."
"Yes."
"You don't have to dismiss it."
She paused, hands still over the terminal.
"I don't like being fragile."
His voice softened. "Neither do I."
She looked up then.
For a moment, he wasn't composed Orsini heir.
He was a young man who'd watched someone pull his sister out of fire and then had to pretend it didn't ruin him.
"Are you still angry?" she asked quietly.
His jaw tightened. "About the coffee?"
"About me doing what I want."
He exhaled slowly.
"I'm angry about not being able to protect you," he admitted.
The honesty startled her.
Before she could respond—
The lab doors sealed with a loud click.
Lockdown mode.
Vesper turned sharply. "What."
A holographic message appeared:
AFTER-HOURS SECURITY LOCK — MANUAL OVERRIDE REQUIRED
Aurelio stared at it. "That's not standard."
Vesper's eyes narrowed. "Lyra."
As if summoned, Lyra's voice crackled through the lab intercom.
"Okay, so—small update—"
Vesper leaned toward the speaker. "Lyra. What did you do."
Lyra sounded cheerful and slightly guilty.
"I may have… triggered a containment lock."
Aurelio's voice went dangerously calm. "Why."
"Because," Lyra said, as if this was obvious, "you two needed uninterrupted conversation time."
Vesper's eyes widened. "You locked us in."
Lyra corrected proudly, "I curated a private environment."
Aurelio pinched the bridge of his nose. "We are in a secure lab."
Lyra giggled. "Yes. Romantic."
Valentina's voice cut in, smooth as silk. "It's only for an hour. Don't waste it."
Kael added, "Try not to destroy anything."
Dorian's voice came next. "Actually, destroy something. It'll be funny."
Cassian snapped, "Dorian."
Lyra whispered loudly into the mic, "Ignore Cassian. He's allergic to joy."
The intercom cut.
Silence returned.
Vesper stared at Aurelio.
Aurelio stared back.
Then, unexpectedly—
He laughed.
It was quiet. Almost disbelieving.
Vesper blinked. "Did you just laugh."
He shook his head, still laughing softly. "Your family is insane."
"My family?" she repeated, incredulous. "You think they're mine now?"
Aurelio sobered slightly. His gaze held hers.
"I think you've been acting like you're alone for so long you don't notice when people start… orbiting you."
Her throat tightened.
Before she could respond, the lab lights dimmed slightly as the security system recalibrated.
Aurelio stepped closer, careful.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "For making you feel like your choices were a threat to me."
Vesper's voice came softer than she intended. "They are."
He paused. "How."
"Because if I choose wrong," she whispered, "I don't get a do-over. I've already lost eighteen years."
Aurelio's expression shifted—understanding, sharp and immediate.
"I can't give you those years back," he said. "But I can stop treating your time like it's negotiable."
The air between them tightened.
For a moment, it felt like something might finally happen.
And then—
A loud bang sounded from the corridor outside.
Vesper flinched. Aurelio spun toward the door.
Aurelio's security comm crackled faintly through the lab speakers.
"…unexpected disturbance near west stairwell—"
Vesper's heart dropped.
"Is that—"
Aurelio's eyes narrowed. "That's not Lyra's doing."
Vesper swallowed hard. "Nothing ever is, until it is."
Aurelio looked at her. "Stay behind me."
She snorted despite herself. "That's adorable."
He glanced at her, exasperated. "Vesper."
"Fine," she said, and then, softer, "but if this is another extremist thing, I'm not letting you take hits for me."
His gaze held hers for half a beat longer than necessary.
"Then we don't take hits alone," he said quietly.
Outside, footsteps ran.
The lab remained locked.
And Lyra's "curated environment" suddenly felt less romantic—
And more like a cage.