The hollow had grown quieter as the molten rivers outside cast flickering red shadows across the walls. Ariya sat cross-legged on the stone floor, the Night Ember Bloom resting gently in her lap. Its glow was comforting, a piece of her world amidst the alien danger around her.
Kael leaned against the opposite wall, arms crossed, golden eyes scanning the horizon beyond the hollow's entrance. He hadn't spoken much since the last encounter with the smaller demon, and Ariya felt the weight of his presence pressing down on her in a way that was both protective and unnerving.
She finally broke the silence. "Kael… why do you stay with me? Even now?"
His gaze met hers, sharp and unwavering. "Because if I leave," he said, voice low and even, "you will not survive this realm for long."
Ariya felt a shiver run down her spine. "I can survive," she whispered. "I have to. My brother—"
"You risk more than your own life," Kael interrupted, his tone edged with warning. "Every step you take here binds you closer to this world… and to me. That bond… is forbidden."
Ariya's heart skipped. "Forbidden?"
Kael's eyes flickered with a hint of conflict. "The Council forbids any demon to form attachments to humans. Any act of compassion, any tie of trust or… more… is punishable by death."
Her breath caught. "And yet… you stay."
He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he took a slow step closer, his presence commanding the space around her. "Because sometimes… the rules of the Council are not worth following," he said quietly. "Because sometimes… connection is worth the risk."
Ariya's chest tightened. She didn't fully understand what he meant, but the weight of his words settled in her heart. The warmth of the flower in her lap seemed to pulse in time with her racing heartbeat.
Kael moved closer still, stopping just a step away. The heat radiating from him was undeniable, almost dangerous, but she didn't flinch. Instead, curiosity and something more—something dangerous—stirred within her.
"Kael… what will happen if they find out?" she asked softly.
He looked down at her, eyes flickering with a strange mix of anger and concern. "Then you will know fear in ways you cannot yet imagine. And I… will face the consequences of keeping you alive."
Ariya swallowed. "And what about you? You could lose everything."
"I could," he admitted. "But some choices… are worth the risk."
The words hung in the air, heavy and charged. Ariya realized that the danger wasn't just around them—it was between them. A connection was forming, fragile yet undeniable. A bond neither of them fully understood, yet one that felt inevitable.
She hesitated, then spoke the question she had been holding back. "Kael… why me? Why not another human?"
He paused, and for the first time, his expression softened, almost vulnerable. "Because you are… different," he said quietly. "You are brave, stubborn, and unafraid to step into a world that would break most mortals. You do not cower before danger… and yet, you do not seek it unnecessarily. That combination… is rare."
Ariya's heart fluttered, a mix of pride and fear. "So, this… bond," she whispered, "is it… dangerous?"
Kael's eyes darkened, shadows flickering across his sharp features. "Everything here is dangerous," he said. "And yes… this bond… it is forbidden, but it is also real. And real bonds… cannot be ignored without consequence."
She looked down at the flower in her hand, then back at him. Somehow, holding it, feeling its warmth, made the fear easier to bear. Somehow, Kael's presence made the danger feel less impossible.
"You're saying we're… connected?" she asked cautiously.
Kael's gaze softened fractionally. "Connected," he repeated. "By choice, by circumstance… by the threads of fate. But do not mistake this for safety. You are human. I am demon. And the laws that govern my world do not forgive what we are beginning."
Ariya swallowed, her heart hammering. The weight of his words pressed down on her, but it also lit something inside her—a fierce, stubborn determination. If Kael was risking everything for her, then she would face whatever came next with courage.
For the first time, she saw the demon not only as terrifying, not only as powerful, but as something… more. Something capable of trust, of restraint, of connection. Something that defied every story she had ever been told about demons.
Kael stepped back slightly, the tension between them not easing but changing, shifting into something fragile and unspoken. Ariya realized the truth, startling in its simplicity and its danger:
She was beginning to care for him.
And worse—he might be beginning to care for her.
The hollow seemed to pulse with the quiet heat of molten fire outside, as if acknowledging the forbidden connection growing between them. Ariya's breath caught, her hand tightening around the Night Ember Bloom. The danger, the law, the Council—none of it mattered as much in that moment as the undeniable truth forming between them:
They were connected.
And that connection could either save them… or destroy them both.