The smell of garlic and something warm hit Jin before he even stepped into the kitchen.
He paused in the doorway a moment, letting it settle over him, the quiet buzz of voices, the soft clatter of pots, the ordinary warmth of a place people actually lived in rather than just survived through.
Seul stood near the stove, sleeves rolled up, hair tied back, a pot simmering gently in front of her. "Sit," she said, without looking over. "You look like you're about to fall asleep standing up."
"Wouldn't be the worst way to go," Jin said, dropping into the nearest chair anyway.
Areum perked up almost immediately from across the room. "Jin! Watch this."
She didn't wait for permission, snapping her fingers toward an empty patch of counter, and a small, controlled burst of flame flared and vanished almost as fast as it appeared, no scorch mark left behind, no wild spread licking toward anything it shouldn't.
