CHAPTER FIVE
The Shadow of Eamon
Eamon watched them from a distance, like he had for months. He kept telling himself he just happened to be passing by, just checking on Aria because he cared, because he was loyal, because of whatever scraps were left of a friendship that used to be so easy. But honestly, he was tired of lying to himself. The truth pressed in harder every day: he loved her. Quietly, hopelessly, with a patience that had grown heavier than he could carry.
He'd stood by her through everything; storms, seasons, her wandering and her grief, but she had never looked at him the way she looked at Kael now. There was something soft in her smile again, a light back in her eyes, and instead of feeling relieved, Eamon felt jealousy twist inside him. Or maybe fear. Maybe both.
Back at the ranger's outpost, the wind hissed through pine needles like it was warning him. He buried himself in past journals and brittle scrolls, hoping to find something, anything to ease this gnawing anxiety. Silver pine had always been tangled up in myth and cold, but the legends he found that night chilled him more than the winter outside ever had.
One entry, the ink faded and brown, caught his eye:
"If the Guardian of Winter loves again, the veil will break. The frost will claim the world, and his heart will turn against him".
Eamon froze.
He read it again, slower, his hands shaking. The Guardian of Winter, Kael. The stranger with a half-truth smile and eyes like a coming storm. The one who watched Aria like she was something precious he was afraid to hold. The one who could freeze with a breath, though he claimed he didn't remember how he got that power.
Was this a prophecy? A warning? A threat?
Eamon slammed the journal shut. The sound echoed through the empty outpost. He started pacing, heart pounding, mind racing with doubts and wild conclusions. If the veil broke, if winter spilled past its borders, Aria could get caught in the middle. Worse, Kael could be the one to hurt her. Eamon just couldn't let that happen. Not while he could still do something.
That night, the moon hung low over the inn where Aria and Kael were staying. Frost crept along the windowsills, tracing sharp, icy veins. Eamon stood outside the door for a while, fists clenched, trying to figure out if it was love or fear driving him forward.
He found Kael behind the inn, alone, sharpening a blade that shimmered with frost, something no ordinary smith could've made. Snowflakes drifted around him, even though the air was still.
"Whatever you are", Eamon said, stepping into the light, "stay away from her".
Kael looked up. No surprise, no anger, just calm. Too calm. "It's too late for that".
That steadiness made Eamon snap. "I'll protect her", he said, sharp. "Even if I have to stop you".
Kael stood, lowering the blade to his side. "You can't protect her from destiny," he said quietly. "Only from the truth".
Eamon scoffed. "Truth? You mean that prophecy you never bothered to mention?"
Something flickered across Kael's face; pain, guilt, something he wouldn't say. "I never told her" he admitted. "Because I don't know if it's real. I don't know if loving her will doom the world or save it. I don't even know if I deserve"
He stopped himself.
The silence between them got heavy, thick as the air before a snowstorm.
Eamon stepped closer. "She deserves honesty".
"And she deserves a choice", Kael muttered. "If I tell her what I am, what I could become, she'll never stop worrying for me. Or maybe she'll start being afraid of me",
"Maybe she should be", Eamon threw back.
Kael's eyes flashed, sharp with something cold. The air grew even colder. "You think I want this? These powers I barely control? This fate I never asked for? I didn't chase after Aria. She found me. And for the first time in years, I feel" He broke off. "Human".
Eamon hesitated. He'd expected arrogance, not this.
But vulnerability didn't make Kael any less dangerous.
A gust of cold wind cut between them, and Eamon caught a glimpse of something in Kael's face, a fear that matched his own, just shaped differently. Eamon was afraid of losing Aria. Kael was afraid of losing everything else because of her.
"You should walk away", Kael said, voice low.
"And you should explain yourself", Eamon shot back.
Neither of them moved.
Then footsteps crunched in the snow. They both turned. Aria stood a few paces away, her cloak caught in the wind, her face shadowed and troubled.
"How long", she whispered, "have you two been out here, threatening each other?"
Eamon stiffened. "Aria"
She held up a hand. "Don't. I heard enough".
Her eyes moved between them, hurt building there, not sure where to land yet, but ready to break.
"Eamon", she said softly, "I know you care. But you don't get to decide who I spend my time with. Not like this",
Kael felt her words hit harder than anything Eamon could throw at him.
She turned to Kael next. "And you. You don't get to hide things from me just because you think you're protecting me. I don't care about legends, you owe me the truth".
Kael stared at her like the ground had just vanished beneath his feet. "Aria, if I tell you, you'll never see me the same way again".
"Let me decide that", she answered.
Silence settled around them, thick and cold.
Kael finally nodded. "Alright. I'll tell you everything. Just. not here".
Aria stepped forward, planting herself right between the two men. "Both of you. Come inside. We talk. All three of us".
Eamon hesitated. Relief and dread tangled inside him. But he followed. He always did, even when it hurt.
Inside, the fire snapped and sent warm light flickering over the walls. Kael stood at the hearth, shadows dancing across his face. Aria sat at the table, and Eamon hovered close by, still guarding her, even with his heart in pieces.
Kael started slow. Bits and pieces came out, endless white landscapes, voices he couldn't name, a fate tied to winter's secrets. He talked about powers he barely understood, and feelings that scared him even more. Aria listened, silent, her hands clenched tight.
Eamon couldn't stop watching her. The truth Kael spilled out might put them all in danger, but it also stripped away all the mystery. In the end, Kael was just a man, haunted by his own life.
When Kael fell silent, Aria stood and crossed to him. She laid a hand on his arm. Frost bloomed under her touch, then faded.
"You're not your prophecy". she said, soft but steady. "Whatever comes next, we'll face it together".
Eamon swallowed, something inside him coming apart, but it wasn't anger. It was surrender. Maybe even understanding.
Kael looked at her like she was sunlight after years of cold. "Then I'll do everything I can to keep you safe.
"And I'll do everything in my power to make sure you're not alone", she said.
Eamon stepped back, almost invisible for a moment. Letting go hurt, but somewhere deep down, hope flickered. Maybe he could protect her, not by fighting fate, but by walking beside her, wherever it led.
Outside, the wind shifted. Pines whispered. Somewhere far off, deep in the woods, winter woke, stirred by the choices made that night.