"Hey."
Kushi's voice pulled Myles from his thoughts.
He jumped slightly, almost dropping the plate in his hands.
For the briefest instant, he could have sworn he saw the faintest trace of a playful smirk upon her lips.
Then it was gone.
She leaned casually against the counter beside the sink, resting her chin upon her palm as she regarded him with that familiar, impossibly gentle smile.
His mind immediately descended into confusion.
What twisted game are you playing?
The thought surfaced before he could stop it.
His unease only deepened.
"Are you alright?" she asked suddenly.
The question startled him enough that his grip tightened instinctively.
Crack.
The plate folded beneath his fingers.
A second later it snapped cleanly in two.
Fragments clattered into the basin.
"You are scary," Kushi murmured, staring at the ruined dish.
The comment was not made lightly.
The people of Vini possessed a natural affinity for gathering vast quantities of criole. In exceptionally uncommon cases, such as Dande's family or Kushi herself, that affinity extended to generating it directly. While the ability was not truly rare in terms of potential, very few ever survived the strain required to awaken it.
Because of that immense power, everyday objects throughout Vini were crafted to endure extraordinary punishment. Plates, tools, furniture and even decorative pieces were designed to withstand forces that would reduce ordinary materials to dust.
No untrained person should have been able to snap one in half with nothing more than their hands.
Myles certainly should not have.
Realising she had been staring, Kushi blinked herself back to the present and quietly cleared her throat.
She straightened before stepping closer.
Then, with remarkable gentleness, she rested both hands upon his shoulders.
"What... why?" Myles asked, caught completely off guard.
For once, her smile wavered.
"About our conversation earlier..."
She drew in a slow breath.
"Things are more complicated than I could ever be bothered to explain."
A soft sigh escaped her.
"But I can at least tell you this."
She turned away from him.
For a long moment she simply gazed into empty space, as though watching something only she could see.
"I am in love with you."
Her voice remained calm.
Steady.
"I know that for certain now."
Another pause.
"And it hurts not being able to share that love with you."
Slowly, she looked back over her shoulder.
"But..."
A faint grimace crossed her features.
"I feel as though I took advantage of your longing for..."
The sentence died before it reached its end.
Instead, she lowered herself until her forehead nearly met his before resting her chin gently atop his head.
Her arms slipped around him.
Holding him close.
"Is this weird?" she asked quietly.
Myles let out a small laugh.
"Yeah."
He smiled despite himself.
"A little."
Kushi smiled too.
For a few seconds, neither moved.
Then Myles carefully eased himself back, lifting his gaze to meet hers.
"Hey."
She looked down at him.
"Look. No one, and I mean no one except the Creator, can make me do something I don't want to do."
Slowly, he reached up and cupped her face.
Kushi closed her eyes.
She leaned into his hand without hesitation, rubbing her cheek softly against his palm before opening her eyes once more.
She looked directly into his.
Without wavering.
Without hiding.
The intensity of her gaze made him swallow.
He closed his eyes first.
A moment later, he felt her lips meet his.
Warm.
Gentle.
Her breath brushed against his skin as her embrace tightened around him.
The kiss lingered before drifting to his cheek.
Then to his forehead.
Then his chin.
Then, once more, back to his lips.
The rest of the world seemed to fade.
Only the quiet warmth between them remained.
Somewhere beyond his closed eyelids, a brilliant light began to shine.
He ignored it.
For that fleeting instant, nothing mattered except the woman holding him.
Then a scream tore through the room.
It was sharp.
Raw.
Heart-wrenching.
Myles' eyes flew open at once.
"Lia?"
********
Over on Cerve's ship, tension lingered in the air.
"Allyser? My mother isn't here. Why are you here?" Cerve asked cautiously.
As he spoke, he subtly gestured for Thia to move behind him.
She complied without protest.
Thia had plenty of pride, but she also possessed enough sense to recognise when she was hopelessly outmatched. The woman who had just appeared could kill her in an instant.
Not permanently, of course.
But that distinction offered little comfort.
"Hm?" Hamana tilted her head. "Curious. I could have sworn I sensed Al's criole just now."
Her eyes drifted around the room before settling on Cerve once more.
"What am I doing here?" she echoed with amused delight. "I should be asking you that."
A grin spread across her face.
"Aww, look how quickly they grow. Little Cev is giving me a death stare."
She placed a hand dramatically over her chest, feigning offence while trying, and failing, to suppress a laugh.
The display was so thoroughly Hamana that Cerve finally relaxed.
He let out a long sigh before glancing towards Thia.
"It's alright," he said. "She's our aunt. One of Mum's closest friends."
His shoulders slumped ever so slightly.
Hamana the Blue Death.
"Whoa, whoa," Hamana protested between giggles. "Is that how you're introducing me to your little sister?"
Leaning awkwardly to one side, she craned her neck in an attempt to peer around Cerve's broad frame.
Thia stepped out from behind him of her own accord.
"Hi."
Her voice remained perfectly flat.
Hamana blinked once before looking back at Cerve with an expression that silently asked for an explanation.
He merely shrugged.
Receiving none, she sighed.
"So then," she asked, folding her arms, "what brings all of you here?"
Only then did she properly acknowledge the younger generation gathered nearby.
"We would like to know that as well," Ulda spoke up.
Thia rubbed at the bridge of her nose.
"Lia finally convinced Terrene to help her find Myles."
Recognition flickered across Hamana's face.
"Myles' lover?"
A smile tugged at her lips.
"Quite the character, isn't she?"
There was a brief pause.
Then Cerve and his children answered together in remarkably subdued unison.
"She is."
The synchronised reply caught Hamana off guard.
She hid a laugh behind her palm.
"Well then."
She composed herself before continuing.
"Since you're here, come and greet my husband, Cerve. The two of you have quite a bit to discuss."
"And Lia?" Thia asked immediately.
Hamana turned towards Cerve instead.
"Is she strong?"
He answered without hesitation.
"A satisfactory amount, yes."
"Hmm."
Hamana nodded once, entirely unconcerned.
"Then she'll be fine."
The confidence with which she said it suggested that, in her mind, the matter was already settled.