Sunny's POV
Sunny threw his fist against the golden door for the hundredth time.
"Let me out!" he shouted, even though he knew nobody was listening. "I didn't do anything wrong!"
The door didn't even shake. Magic hummed through the golden walls of his prison room, keeping him trapped inside like a bird in a cage. His father had called it "protective custody," but Sunny knew the truth. He was a prisoner in his own palace.
His knuckles were bleeding from hitting the door, but he didn't care. All he could think about was Luna, somewhere far away in the Night Realm, probably locked up just like him.
Are you okay?
Sunny jumped and spun around. The voice had come from inside his head, clear as day. But he was alone in the room.
Luna? he thought back, hardly daring to hope.
Sunny! Her mental voice flooded with relief. I was so scared the connection was gone forever!
Sunny sat down hard on his bed, his legs suddenly shaky. You're really there. I can really hear you.
Every word. Are you hurt? I felt pain through our bond.
Sunny looked at his bleeding knuckles and felt embarrassed. Just from being stupid and punching things. What about you?
Locked up tight. My mother says it's for my own protection, but there are guards outside my door.
Same here. Sunny lay back on his bed and stared at the ceiling. This is all my fault. If I hadn't gone to the border—
Don't you dare blame yourself, Luna's voice cut through his guilt like a sword. I'm the one who ran away from my own festival. I'm the one who got us into this mess.
We both made choices, Sunny thought back. But I'm glad we did. Even if we're in trouble now.
There was a pause, and Sunny could feel Luna's surprise through their connection.
Really? You're glad?
Of course. I've been dreaming about you for three years, wondering if you were real. Now I know you are, and you're amazing.
Sunny felt Luna's happiness bloom through their bond like warm sunshine. It made his own heart feel lighter, even trapped in his golden prison.
Tell me about the dreams, Luna thought to him. What did you see?
You, Sunny replied immediately. Always you. Sometimes we were dancing under stars that were both gold and silver. Sometimes we were flying together on dragons made of light. But mostly we were just talking, like we are now.
In my dreams, we were always reaching for each other but could never touch, Luna shared. It made me so sad when I woke up.
I know. I felt the same way.
They talked for what felt like hours, sharing memories from their dreams and their real lives. Sunny told Luna about growing up as a prince who was afraid his magic was too strong. Luna shared how lonely it was being the only young person in a palace full of adults who expected her to be perfect.
I always felt different, Luna admitted. Like I didn't belong in my own kingdom. Everyone else loved the eternal night, but I kept wondering what sunshine felt like.
And I always wondered about moonlight, Sunny thought back. Real moonlight, not just the stories people tell. I wanted to see stars that weren't hidden by daylight.
We're opposites, Luna said, but her mental voice was warm, not sad.
Maybe that's why we fit together.
As they talked, Sunny began to understand how wrong everything he'd been taught was. Luna wasn't evil or trying to steal his magic. She was kind and brave and funny. She made jokes that made him laugh out loud, even sitting alone in his prison room.
Your people aren't monsters, he thought to her. Are they?
No more than yours are, Luna replied. I think our parents have been wrong about each other for a very long time.
A hundred years of being wrong, Sunny agreed. That's a lot of hate for no good reason.
Maybe we can change that.
Maybe we already have.
Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of footsteps in the hallway outside Sunny's room. Heavy footsteps that he recognized immediately.
My father's coming, he thought to Luna quickly. I have to—
The door burst open without warning. King Apollo strode into the room, his face dark with anger and worry. Behind him came three court wizards, all carrying books and magical instruments.
"Sunny," his father said, his voice strained. "We need to talk."
"Finally!" Sunny jumped up from his bed. "Dad, you have to listen to me. Luna isn't our enemy. The shadow creatures were going to attack both kingdoms, and we stopped them together!"
King Apollo held up his hand. "That's not why I'm here."
Something in his father's tone made Sunny's stomach drop. "What do you mean?"
"The court wizards have been studying the magical chain that connects you to the moon witch," King Apollo said carefully. "They've discovered something disturbing."
One of the wizards, an old man named Master Brightflame, stepped forward. "Your Highness, the bond between you and the Night Realm princess is deeper than we first thought. It's not just connecting your magic—it's connecting your minds."
Sunny tried to look surprised, but he could feel his face turning red. "I don't know what you mean."
"Don't lie to me, son." King Apollo's voice was sharp. "We cast a truth-seeking spell on this room an hour ago. We know you've been having conversations with her. We heard you talking to someone who wasn't here."
Sunny's heart stopped. They had been listening to his side of his mental conversations with Luna. They knew about the bond.
Sunny? Luna's worried voice whispered in his mind. What's happening?
But Sunny couldn't answer her. His father and the wizards were staring at him like he was some kind of dangerous animal.
"The mental connection is dangerous," Master Brightflame continued. "She could be filling your mind with lies, or worse—controlling your thoughts."
"She's not!" Sunny protested. "Luna would never hurt me!"
"You don't know that," King Apollo said firmly. "Night magic is tricky and dark. She could be making you think you care about her when really she's casting spells on your mind."
That's not true, Luna's voice said urgently in his head. Sunny, tell him that's not how our magic works!
But Sunny realized with growing horror that he couldn't tell his father anything. Not without revealing that Luna was talking to him right now, proving exactly what they were afraid of.
"We're going to break the connection," Master Brightflame announced, opening one of his books. "It's the only way to free you from her influence."
"No!" Sunny backed away from them. "You can't! The prophecy said—"
"What prophecy?" King Apollo demanded.
Sunny's mouth snapped shut. He had said too much.
Through their bond, he felt Luna's panic mixing with his own. In her mind, he could see that her mother and the Night Realm wizards had just arrived in her room too. Queen Celeste was saying the exact same things as King Apollo—that the mental connection was dangerous, that it had to be broken.
Both their parents were terrified of the bond between them.
And they were going to destroy it, no matter what Luna and Sunny wanted.
They're going to separate us forever, Luna's voice whispered desperately in his mind.
Not if I can help it, Sunny thought back.
But even as he made that promise, Master Brightflame began chanting words in the old language, and Sunny felt the first painful tug as someone tried to tear the magical bond from his heart.