POV: Ravenna
I found him exactly where I knew he'd be.
The high ramparts. Our place. The spot where we'd stood under stars and he'd offered me his hand and everything had shifted.
Theron stood with his back to me, watching the sunset paint the volcanic plains in shades of blood and gold. His shoulders were tense, his stance that of a man preparing for battle.
Maybe he was.
"You're predictable," I said, announcing myself before I got too close. Sneaking up on a warrior seemed like a bad idea.
He turned, surprise flickering across his scarred face. "Ravenna."
"Were you expecting someone else?"
"I wasn't expecting anyone." He looked back at the sunset. "How did you know where to find me?"
"You came here after the first trial. After taking the arrow for me. After the Fear Walk." I moved to stand beside him at the wall. "It's where you go when you need to think."
"And you remembered that."
"I remember everything about you." The words came out before I could stop them. Too honest. Too revealing.
His head turned sharply toward me. Those amber eyes searched my face. "Why?"
Because I'm falling for you and it terrifies me. "Because we're bonded. I pay attention."
He nodded slowly, accepting the deflection. We stood in silence for a moment, watching the sun sink lower.
"I overheard something this morning," I said finally. "In the gardens. Lucien was talking to my father."
Theron went very still. "About what?"
"About you." I kept my voice steady. "About how you're common-born with no political training. No diplomatic experience. No family connections. About how you'd benefit from advisors who could guide you through court politics." I paused. "Advisors like him."
"Ah." His voice was flat. "That didn't take long."
"You expected this?"
"Of course." He turned to face me fully. "Lucien is used to winning. Used to being the best choice in any room. Solace rejected him publicly, chose me instead. Men like him don't accept that. They just change tactics."
"You don't sound surprised."
"I'm not." His jaw tightened. "He's right, Ravenna. I don't have political training. I don't know how to navigate court intrigue. I'm a soldier, not a diplomat." He looked out over the plains again. "Everyone in that palace knows it. They're just too polite to say it to my face."
"Lucien said it to your face at dinner."
"And he wasn't wrong."
The resignation in his voice made something twist in my chest. "Stop that."
"Stop what?"
"Stop agreeing with him!" I grabbed his arm, forcing him to look at me. "Stop accepting that you're inadequate because you don't fit some arbitrary noble standard."
"It's not arbitrary." His voice was quiet but firm. "Being consort means representing Cindravale. Attending diplomatic functions. Negotiating alliances. I've never done any of that. I've spent my life fighting, not talking. How am I supposed to—"
"You don't need to be a diplomat to be a good consort," I cut him off. My voice came out fiercer than I intended. "You need to be honest. Strong. Yourself."
"That's not enough."
"It IS enough!" I was almost shouting now. "Do you know what I need in a consort, Theron? Someone I can TRUST. Someone who won't lie or manipulate or play political games. Someone who will stand beside me and be exactly who they are without pretense." I stepped closer. "You are all of those things. That's what matters."
He stared at me. "The court—"
"Fuck the court." The word felt good. Liberating. "I'll handle the politics. I've been dealing with nobles and their games my entire life. That's MY strength." I poked his chest. "Your strength is being the man who took an arrow for me without thinking. The man who survived five rejections and kept breathing. The man who plays strategy games to protect people instead of winning." My voice dropped. "That's what I need. Not some polished nobleman who knows which fork to use."
"Ravenna—"
"We'll figure it out together," I said firmly. "The politics, the diplomacy, all of it. You'll learn. I'll teach you what you need to know. And in return, you'll keep being the person who makes me feel less alone in this nightmare."
His breath caught. "You have that much faith in me?"
"Yes."
"Why?" His voice was raw. Vulnerable. "We barely know each other. How can you have such faith when everyone else—"
"Because every time I've seen you tested, you've proven worthy." The words came easy now. True. "You took an arrow for me. You walked through your worst fears in front of a crowd. You've been rejected five times and you're still here, still standing, still TRYING." I met his eyes. "That's worth more than all the political training in the world."
He looked at me like I'd just given him something precious. Something he'd been starving for.
"I don't know how to do this," he admitted quietly. "How to be what you need."
"You already are what I need." My throat felt tight. "You just need to start believing it."
"I've spent ten years being told I'm not enough." His voice was barely above a whisper. "Five women looked at me and chose to reject the bond rather than accept me. Five women decided death was better than being mine."
Gods. GODS. The pain in his voice—
"They were idiots," I said fiercely. "Every single one of them. Blind and stupid and they didn't deserve you."
"Ravenna—"
"I'm serious." I grabbed both his arms now, making him look at me. "I don't know why they rejected you. Fear, maybe. Prejudice. Politics. But whatever their reasons, they were wrong. You are worthy. You are enough. And if I have to spend every day for the rest of our lives proving that to you, I will."
Something broke in his expression. The walls he kept so carefully maintained cracked just slightly.
"How?" he asked, and his voice was desperate. "How can you believe that when I barely believe it myself?"
"Because I see you." I said it simply. Honestly. "Not the scars. Not the rejections. Not the common birth or lack of title. I see the man who survived the impossible. The man who's kind even when the world has been cruel to him. The man my dragon chose because he is EXACTLY who he should be."
"Your dragon chose me," he said quietly. "But did you?"
The question hung between us.
I could deflect. Could say the bond was enough. Could hide behind magical explanations and destiny.
But I was so tired of hiding.
"I'm choosing you now," I said. My voice shook slightly but I didn't care. "Every day. Every moment. I'm choosing to believe in you. To stand beside you. To figure this out together." I swallowed hard. "Is that enough?"
"It's everything." His hands came up to cover mine where they still gripped his arms. "You're everything."
The hum between us surged. Not demanding. Just—present. Warm. Right.
We stood there as the sun finished setting, painting the sky in fire and ash. Two people who'd been broken by different things, finding something like healing in each other.
"Lucien is going to keep trying," I said finally. "To undermine you. To make you look unsuitable."
"I know."
"We can't let him."
"I know that too." He squeezed my hands gently. "But I'm not going to change who I am to fit court expectations. I won't become someone else just to prove I'm worthy."
"Good." I smiled. "Because who you are is exactly who I need."
His expression softened. "I still have no idea what I'm doing."
"Neither do I." I laughed shakily. "We're going to make so many mistakes."
"Probably catastrophic ones."
"Definitely catastrophic ones." My smile widened. "But we'll make them together."
"Together," he echoed.
The word felt like a promise.
We stayed on the ramparts until full dark, not talking much, just standing close while the stars came out one by one. The hum between us was steady and warm, no longer fighting it.
And for the first time since the competition began, I felt like maybe this wouldn't be a disaster.
Maybe we could actually make this work.
Maybe—just maybe—falling for him wouldn't destroy me.
The thought should have terrified me.
Instead, it felt like hope.