The cafeteria buzzed around them, but at their table, time felt slower.
Leon's eyes scanned every entrance, muscles tense, jaw tight.
He didn't speak.
He didn't have to.
Everyone knew exactly what—or who—he was looking for.
Rex leaned back, blonde hair falling into his eyes.
"He actually left," he muttered, voice low. "Just… poof. Gone."
Theo's glasses were crooked, head tilted as he stared at the empty seat where Eliot usually sat.
Fists clenched on the edge of the table.
"I… I miss him," he said quietly.
Rex shrugged. "He left you hanging, man. Not exactly heroic."
Theo shook his head, a faint, bitter laugh escaping. "I don't care. If he apologizes, I'll forgive him. Immediately. I don't even care what he says."
He paused, softening, almost to himself. "He's… so sweet. My best friend. He's literally… Eliot."
Leon's gaze never left the entrance.
Quiet.
Controlled.
Protective.
But his eyes flicked toward Theo for a split second—seeing the way he missed Eliot—and something unspoken passed between them.
Rex leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands. "I just hope he knows we're waiting. That we've got him. No matter what he tries."
Theo nodded, jaw tight, eyes flicking again to the empty seat.
He could imagine Eliot there, adjusting his crooked glasses, trying to fix things that weren't his to fix.
Then the cafeteria doors slid open.
Eliot stepped in.
His uniform was neat as always, glasses slightly askew. Hair falling in soft curls over his forehead.
Nose and eyes red from crying.
His steps were hesitant, almost timid.
Everyone froze, hearts tightening.
But Eliot didn't come to the table.
Instead, he walked past, head down, shoulders hunched, guilt and fear pressing into every step.
He slid into a seat two spaces ahead of them, trying to make himself invisible—too scared, too embarrassed, too guilty to sit where he belonged.
Theo's breath caught.
Leon's jaw tightened.
Protective, silent, watching every movement.
Rex leaned back, letting out a quiet sigh. "Yeah… he's thinking."
The three of them exchanged a look.
Eliot was here—but the distance between them suddenly felt enormous.
And no one moved to bridge it yet.
The forest listened.
Lunara moved through it without hesitation, boots barely snapping twigs, breath syncing with the dark.
She wasn't thinking anymore—she was following. The pull in her chest, the hum beneath her skin.
The amulet.
It tugged again, sharper this time, like a thread being drawn tight.This way.
Trees grew denser. Older. The air cooled, heavy with moss and something ancient. Then she felt it—before she saw it.
A glint.
Half-buried beneath roots and glowing faintly was a crystal, smooth and cut with purpose. Pale silver, veins of light moving inside it like a heartbeat.
Lunara froze.
"No way…" she whispered.
She knew this kind of crystal.
A Bondstone.
Trackers—but not crude ones. Two stones were made together. One held by the seeker. One by the bound.
Distance didn't matter. Walls didn't matter.
If you had one, you could always find the other.
Her throat tightened.
Mom… did you leave this for me?
The realization hit hard enough to steal her breath. If her mother had carried the twin… then this wasn't just a clue. It was a promise. I'll find you.
Lunara knelt and touched the crystal.
The amulet flared instantly, light spilling over her hands. The forest seemed to lean in.
"What happened to my family?" she whispered into it. "Where are they?"
The crystal pulsed—but didn't answer. Not yet.
"Okay," Lunara said, jaw tightening. "Then hide."
She pressed the amulet to the crystal and whispered the old words—magic woven in instinct, not language. The glow dimmed, folded inward, light compressing like a held breath.
Vines crept. Roots shifted. The crystal sank deeper into the earth until nothing remained but a faint warmth under the soil.
Hidden. Protected.
Lunara stood, eyes sharp, wolf-fire back in full force.
"Good," she muttered. "Because if he's hunting us…"
Her tail flicked once.
"…then I'm hunting back."
--
Lunara slipped back through the house just as quietly as she'd left.
The door barely clicked shut before a hand grabbed her sleeve and yanked her inside.
"Theo—!"
He slammed the door and locked it, breath fast, glasses crooked from worry.
"Where have you been?" he whispered harshly.
"Do you have any idea how long you were gone? And—" his eyes flicked to her ears, her tail, still only half-hidden "—why didn't you cover your wolfie—feline—everything?"
Lunara blinked, then shrugged like it hadn't almost gotten her exposed. "It's okay. No one saw me."
Theo stared at her like she'd lost her mind. "That's not comforting."
She reached into her coat and pulled something out.
The crystal caught the light immediately—soft silver glow, veins of light moving slowly inside, like it was alive.
Theo froze. "What is that?"
Lunara's expression shifted. Focused. Serious.
"It's called a Bondstone," she said. "A tracker crystal. Two are made as one. If you have one… you can always find the person holding the other."
Theo swallowed. "You're saying—"
"My mom probably left it for me," Lunara said quietly. "If she has the twin, this can lead me to my family."
For the first time since everything had gone wrong, hope flickered.
Theo stepped closer, eyes wide behind his crooked glasses. "So this means… we can find them?"
Lunara nodded once. "Yes."
Theo let out a breath he'd been holding for hours. "Then this changes everything."
She closed her fingers around the crystal, the glow dimming obediently.
"Yeah," she said, voice firm now. "It really does."
Somewhere outside, the night pressed closer—but inside the room, for the first time, there was a way forward.
-
Eliot stepped out of the bathroom, towel draped over his shoulders, gently rubbing at his silky curls.
The mirror fogged behind him, the house quiet except for the faint hum of the lights.
His phone buzzed.
Group chat: Braincells & Bad Decisions
He paused.
A message popped up.
Leon: what is it theo you want to talk about
Almost immediately—
Rex: let me guess you can't find your socks again
Eliot huffed despite himself.
Then—
Theo: no. i found them yesterday anywayTheo: everyone come to my house tomorrowTheo: immediately after school
Eliot's thumb hovered over the screen.
The towel slipped lower as he leaned against the sink, staring at the words like they might rearrange themselves into something easier.
Should I go?
The answer came too fast.
No.
His chest tightened.
I'm meeting Mira tomorrow.
He shut off his phone, screen going dark before anyone could see him typing… or not typing at all.
Eliot leaned back against the wall, towel still in his hands, eyes closing as he let out a slow, shaky sigh.
Tomorrow, he'd choose the path that felt necessary.
Even if it meant walking it alone.