Serena rose up slowly, smoothing the fabric of her dress with both hands before stepping toward Livia. Elen glanced between them, her brows pulled together in subtle concern. Serena made a small, reassuring gesture– palm tilted down, to keep her seated.
Livia's smile was tight, all restraint and no warmth. She closed the distance and caught Serena's hand in a discreet grip, tugging her in with a practiced motion. Her words came low, like the hiss of steam through a closed valve.
"Where did you go? I have been at my wit's end looking for where you ended up," Livia said.
Serena flinched beneath her hold, then lowered her eyes, guilt rising like heat to her cheeks. She hadn't meant to wander. Livia had left her side first.
"I turned around and… I couldn't find you again," she confessed.
Livia looked at her and then rolled her eyes, she glanced back at the woman there and she recognised that she was part of the Dawnbreak party. Livia turned back to Serena and she gasped.
