Aveline found Aelion waiting beneath the sprawling willow tree, its drooping branches swaying gently in the evening breeze. He was dressed from head to toe in dark linen, the hood pulled low enough to conceal his unmistakable silver hair. Without a word, he held out another dark cloak.
She accepted it, running her fingers over the coarse fabric before slipping it over her shoulders.
"Is this our uniform?" she asked with an amused smile.
Aelion glanced at her beneath the fading light of the setting sun. Somehow, she looked... excited.
It was not the expression he had expected from someone about to participate in an illegal raid against one of the kingdom's most powerful noble houses.
Once again, she managed to surprise him.
He shook his head and turned, motioning for her to follow.
"Can't you be serious for once?" he muttered. "We could die tonight."
"Eh..." Aveline only shrugged.
She sincerely doubted that.
