The river was not made of water.
It shimmered like mercury, thick and slow, winding through the silver grass like a living thing. Names floated on its surface—some in ink, some in fire, some in languages Cassia didn't recognize. They drifted past like leaves, vanishing the moment she tried to read them.
Keira stood at the edge, arms crossed. "So. We're supposed to cross that?"
Cassia nodded slowly. "It's the second gate."
Keira squinted at the river. "And what happens if we step in the wrong place? Do we drown in someone else's memories?"
Cassia didn't answer. She was staring at the book. It had opened again, pages fluttering in the windless air. A new line had appeared.
Speak what you carry. The river remembers.
Keira read over her shoulder. "Cryptic. Love that."
Cassia stepped forward. The river lapped at the edge of her boots, cold and humming. She took a breath.
"My name is Cassia," she said. "I'm looking for someone I lost."
The river rippled.
A stone rose from the surface, smooth and dark, just wide enough to step on.
Keira blinked. "Okay. That's new."
Cassia turned. "Your turn."
Keira hesitated. Then she stepped forward.
"My name is Keira," she said. "I'm not letting her do this alone."
Another stone rose beside the first.
Cassia smiled. "Guess it likes honesty."
They stepped onto the stones.
The river hissed beneath them.
—
Each step required a truth.
Cassia spoke of the dream. Of the page that shouldn't exist. Of the way Lucy's name felt like a bruise she couldn't stop pressing.
Keira spoke of fear. Of loyalty. Of the night she almost didn't come back.
With every truth, a new stone rose.
With every lie, the river surged.
Once, Cassia hesitated too long. The stone beneath her flickered. She gasped and spoke quickly.
"I was jealous of Lucy," she said. "She always knew who she was. I didn't."
The stone steadied.
Keira looked at her. "You never said that."
Cassia didn't meet her eyes. "I never said a lot of things."
They kept walking.
—
Halfway across, the river changed.
The names grew louder.
They whispered.
Cassia heard her own name, over and over, in voices she didn't recognize.
She heard Lucy's name, too.
And then—
She heard a scream.
Not from the river.
From the far bank.
Cassia froze.
Keira grabbed her arm. "Did you hear that?"
Cassia nodded.
They ran.
The stones rose faster now, as if the river wanted them gone.
They reached the far bank breathless.
The scream had stopped.
But something was waiting.
—
It looked like Lucy.
Same hair. Same eyes. Same crooked smile.
But the moment Cassia stepped closer, she knew.
This wasn't her.
The not-Lucy tilted its head. "You came," it said.
Cassia's voice shook. "Where is she?"
The not-Lucy smiled wider. "Gone. Like all the others."
Keira stepped forward. "Try again."
The not-Lucy blinked. "You want her back? Then give me something."
Cassia narrowed her eyes. "What?"
The not-Lucy held out a hand. "A name. One you love. One you'll never speak again."
Cassia's throat closed.
The book in her hand pulsed.
Keira stepped between them. "No deal."
The not-Lucy's smile faded. "Then you'll never find her."
Cassia looked at Keira.
Then at the river.
Then at the mirror shard in her pocket.
She pulled it out.
Held it up.
The not-Lucy hissed.
Its face cracked.
Beneath the skin was ink.
Cassia stepped forward. "You're not real."
The not-Lucy screamed.
The world shattered.
—
They were back in the field.
The river was gone.
The book was closed.
Cassia opened it.
A new line had appeared.
Gate Two passed. The third waits in silence.
Keira sat down hard in the grass. "Okay. That sucked."
Cassia nodded. "Yeah."
They sat in silence for a while.
Then Keira looked at her. "You were really going to give up a name."
Cassia didn't answer.
Because she still might.
If it meant getting Lucy back.
She would burn every name she had.