Serina's eyes snapped open.
Dawn light crept through the broken windows.
Kaelon sat across from her, still awake, watching the street below.
"I need to see Leo," she said.
Kaelon didn't turn around. "The Mage-Knights are still searching."
"I don't care." Serina stood up, brushing dust off her clothes. "The wish worked, right? You said he's healed. I need to see him with my own eyes."
Through the bond, Kaelon felt her drive.
Arguing would be pointless. "Then we go together," he said. "Fine. But we have to be quick."
They moved through the empty streets as the city woke up.
Serina kept her hood pulled low.
Kaelon stayed close, scanning for risk.
Through the bond, she felt his awareness. His caution.
Every shade could hide a knight. Every turn could be a trap.
But nothing stopped them.
Twenty minutes later, they reached the streets.
Serina's tiny flat sat wedged between two crumbling buildings.
The door hung crooked on broken hinges. "Wait here," she whispered. "The bond won't allow that."
"Then stay out of sight."
Kaelon pressed against the wall while Serina slipped inside.
The room was dark and quiet.
Too quiet.
Serina's heart pounded as she crossed to Leo's room.
She pushed open the door.
And froze.
Leo stood by the window, bathed in morning light.
His back was straight. His skin glowed with health.
No more pale lips. No more droopy eyes.
He looked perfect. "Leo!" Serina rushed forward.
Her brother turned, and his face broke into a huge smile. "Serina!" He flung himself at her.
She caught him, spinning him around like she used to when he was smaller.
He felt solid. Strong. Alive. "You're okay," she breathed, setting him down. "You're really okay."
"I feel amazing!" Leo bounced on his toes. "I woke up this morning and I could breathe! No coughing! No pain!"
Tears streamed down Serina's face.
The dream had worked.
Her brother was healed.
Everything she'd risked, everything she'd sacrificed—it was worth it. "How did this happen?" Leo asked, his eyes wide with wonder. "Did you find a healer?" "Something like that."
"Was it expensive? Did you have to—" "Don't worry about it." Serina hugged him tight. "All that matters is you're better."
Through the bond, she felt Kaelon's presence outside.
He was giving her this moment. This meeting.
She was grateful.
Leo pulled back, studying her face. "You look different." "I'm just tired."
"No, it's something else." His head tilted. "Your eyes are brighter."
Serina touched her face, suddenly nervous.
Was the bond changing her already? "I'm fine," she said quickly. "Just happy to see you healthy."
Leo grinned and grabbed her hand. "Come see! I cleaned the whole place! And I made breakfast! Well, I tried to make food. I might've burned the bread a little."
He dragged her toward the main room, talking excitedly.
Serina followed, relief rushing through her.
This was her Leo. Happy. Energetic. Alive.
But as they entered the main room, something made her stop.
Dead flowers.
A vase sat on the table, filled with dead roses.
The flowers were black and shriveled. "When did those die?" Serina asked.
Leo glanced at them. "Oh. Those were fresh yesterday. Weird, right?" "Where did you get fresh flowers?"
"Mrs. Kento brought them when she checked on me." Leo shrugged. "She said they were from her yard. But I guess they were already dying."
Serina moved closer to the vase.
The flowers weren't just wilted.
They looked tired. Sucked dry.
Like something had pulled all the life out of them.
"Leo, did anything strange happen last night?" "Strange how?"
"I don't know. Anything unusual?"
Leo thought for a moment. "I had weird dreams."
"What kind of dreams?" "I don't really remember." He scratched his head. "Just voices. Lots of people talking at once."
Through the bond, Serina felt a flicker of warning from Kaelon.
"What were they saying?" she asked carefully. "I couldn't understand them. It wasn't our language." Leo's face scrunched up. "It sounded old. Really old."
Serina's stomach tightened. "Can you remember any of the words?" "Maybe?" Leo closed his eyes, focusing. "There was one that kept repeating. It sounded like... tha'kor... vel'shara... something like that?"
The words hung in the air.
Serina didn't recognize them.
But through the bond, she felt Kaelon's shock.
Sharp and sudden. "That's probably nothing," she said, forcing a smile. "Just a weird dream." "Yeah, probably." Leo bounced toward the kitchen. "Come on! I want to show you I can actually run now! Watch!"
He raced across the room, laughing.
Serina watched him, trying to share his joy.
But something felt wrong.
She couldn't explain it.
Leo looked healthy. He acted healthy.
But those dead flowers...
And those strange words...
Through the bond, Kaelon's unease got stronger.
"I should go check on something," Serina said. "But I'll come back soon, okay?"
"You just got here!" "I know. But I have to... handle some things. Important things."
Leo's face fell. "Is it about money? Are we in trouble?" "No. Nothing like that." She kissed his face. "I promise I'll explain everything soon. Just stay inside today, okay? Don't go out." "Why not?"
"Just... please. For me."
Leo looked confused but nodded. "Okay."
Serina hugged him one more time, breathing in the smell of his hair.
He smelled different.
Not bad. Just... different.
Like rain and smoke and something else she couldn't name. "I love you," she whispered. "Love you too."
She pulled away and headed for the door.
But before she left, she glanced back.
Leo had returned to the window, looking out at the street.
The morning light hit his face.
And for just a second, his eyes looked strange.
Not brown like they'd always been.
But darker.
Almost black.
Serina blinked, and they were normal again.
She must have imagined it.
She slipped outside where Kaelon waited. "He's healed," she said, relief and fear mixing in her voice. "I know. I felt your happiness through the link."
"But something's weird."
Kaelon's face darkened. "The words he spoke in his dreams."
"You recognized them?" "Old draconic. A tongue that hasn't been spoken in thousands of years."
Serina's blood went cold. "What does it mean?" "'The door opens. The child wakes.'" Kaelon's jaw clenched. "It's a summoning phrase." "Summoning what?"
"I don't know. But it's nothing good."
Through the bond, Serina felt his fear.
Real, real fear.
A dragon who'd lived for a thousand years was afraid. "Maybe it's just a coincidence," she said weakly. "Maybe he heard it somewhere—" "How would a ten-year-old boy in the slums know ancient draconic?"
Serina had no answer.
They stood in tense silence.
Above them, Leo's window glowed with morning light.
Inside, they could hear him singing.
A tune Serina had never heard before. "We need to figure out what's happening to him," Kaelon said quietly. "But you said the wish worked. You said he was healed!"
"He is healed. But healed and changed aren't the same thing."
Fear clawed at Serina's chest. "What are you saying?"
Kaelon met her eyes. "I'm saying the wish gave your brother life. But something else might have come with it."
Through the bond, she felt his certainty.
This wasn't over.
Whatever they'd started when they broke that contract—it was just starting.
And Leo was part of it now.
Inside the room, the humming stopped.
Silence fell.
Then, so faint she almost missed it, Serina heard Leo's voice.
He was talking to himself.
But it didn't sound like him.
The words were sharp. Layered. Like different voices speaking at once.
"We need to go," Kaelon urged. "Now."
"I can't leave him!"
"We're not leaving him. We're getting solutions before something worse happens."
Through the bond, Serina felt Kaelon's drive.
And underneath it, something else.
Recognition.
Like he'd seen this before. "What aren't you telling me?" she asked.
Kaelon's face was grim. "There are things worse than death, Serina. Things that wear familiar faces. Things that wait in the places between wishes and curses."
"Stop being cryptic!" "I'm saying your brother was dying. And now he's not. But nature doesn't give gifts for free. Something filled the space where death should have been."
Serina's hands shook. "You think something's inside him?"
"I think we need to find out what your wish really did."
Above them, Leo appears at the window.
He waved, smiling happily.
But his shadow on the wall behind him didn't match his motions.
It writhed and twisted like something living.
Serina's breath caught. "Did you see that?"
Kaelon nodded, his face pale. "We need to move. Now."
They turned and ran.
Behind them, Leo's laughter rang through the morning air.
Sweet and innocent and wrong.
So badly wrong.