The air in the study turned still.
The golden light softened the edges of tension, but the weight inside the room grew heavier with every breath.
Lysandra—Serene—stood at the center of it all, her hands trembling at her sides. Her gaze shifted from Alaric to Seraphine, then to Carlos… and back again. Her usually confident posture faltered.
"There's… something I need to say," she said, voice barely above a whisper.
Alaric looked up from where he sat, his arm still gently resting behind Seraphine. Carlos narrowed his eyes warily, sensing the tremor in his sister's aura.
Lysandra swallowed. "Back then... before everything fell apart—before the fall of Ravenshade..."
She turned to Seraphine, her eyes already glassy with unshed tears. "I thought I was doing the right thing. That we were still at war. That you—Karena—and Alaric… were abandoning us."
Seraphine's breath caught, a chill running down her spine.
"What are you saying…?"
Lysandra fell to her knees, her hands gripping her skirt tightly. "It was me." Her voice cracked. "I gave the order. I commanded the archers at Ravenshade to strike down the traitors of the bloodline. I was Alaric approaching… I thought—" She choked on her words. "I didn't know Karena had sealed your nature. I didn't know you were living as humans… raising your twins in peace."
Gasps filled the room.
Alaric stood slowly, every movement deliberate. His eyes had darkened with ancient fury—but beneath it, hurt stirred in waves.
"You…" he breathed. "You ordered the massacre?"
Lysandra nodded, tears now falling freely. "Yes. I thought vampires would survive it. You were the strongest of us, Alaric—you killed our father, Dracon. You were supposed to be indestructible. But Karena's spell… she sealed your nature. She just wanted peace. A normal life for you, and your children…"
Seraphine's eyes widened. She clutched Alaric's arm for support.
"Our… twins died that day…"
Carlos looked away, his jaw clenched, fury simmering beneath his skin.
"I nearly killed her when I found out," he muttered bitterly. "She disappeared after the massacre. She didn't face us."
Lysandra sobbed, her voice shaking. "Because I couldn't. Victor—Carlos—your eyes that day… I've never felt such hatred. And I deserved it."
Alaric's fists curled.
"You let rage rule you. You let the Council's pressure blind you."
"Because you chose her over us!" Lysandra cried, standing suddenly, face streaked with tears. "In the middle of a war, you chose Karena—the royal witch girl we were supposed to hate! The one betrothed to Victor! You turned your back on your blood!"
Seraphine's voice rose, firm and cutting.
"He chose love. A family. Something you both lost in the bloodshed."
Silence echoed.
Lysandra collapsed back down, trembling. "I would undo it all if I could. I never wanted the twins to die. I thought… I thought I was protecting the bloodline. But all I did was destroy it."
Alaric closed his eyes for a long, aching moment.
Then, he knelt before her.
"Their names were Thaleia and Caelen."
Lysandra broke down completely.
Carlos turned away, pacing toward the window, jaw tight, his back trembling from restraint.
Seraphine slowly walked forward. Her hand—no longer trembling—rested lightly on Lysandra's shoulder.
"The past is heavy, Serene. But we're here now. And if fate brought us back… then maybe we have a second chance. Not to forget—but to do better."
Lysandra looked up through her tears, her lips trembling. "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"
Carlos finally turned, his voice gruff.
"You'll earn forgiveness not through words, but what you do next. The Council still wants to divide us. Let's not give them more blood."
Alaric stood again, taller, his aura now burning with quiet intensity.
"Then we stand together—as Vellaria, Carello, Moonwell, and Nexus. The world took everything from us once." He looked at Seraphine. "We will not let it happen again."
The tension in the room was still thick when the doors suddenly burst open.
A gust of wind swept in, stirring the curtains and snapping everyone's attention toward the entrance.
Caveen stood there—his tall frame rigid with fury, worry etched into every line of his face. His dark eyes locked onto Lysandra, no one else. His aura rippled with ancient magic and a primal protectiveness that made the air buzz.
"Lysandra," he said, voice low and ragged. "I've been looking for you everywhere."
Lysandra turned sharply, her red-rimmed eyes widening in disbelief. "Caveen...?"
He stepped forward, his gaze never leaving her—burning, questioning, desperate. "Do you have any idea what I went through? What I thought happened to you?"
His tone trembled on the edge of pain. "I came to Ravenshade… I saw the ashes. I thought—" his voice cracked. "I thought you were gone. That they got to you. That our child was gone."
Gasps echoed through the room.
Seraphine's eyes widened. Alaric looked at Lysandra in shock. Carlos's brows furrowed deeply.
Lysandra, carrying a child?
Lysandra slowly brought a trembling hand to her stomach. Her eyes filled again, this time with guilt.
"I… I didn't mean to worry you. I didn't know you would come for me—I thought it was safer to hide. I didn't expect to find my past self again, to remember everything… to be pulled into all of this."
Caveen approached her with steady steps. He stopped only inches away and dropped to his knees in front of her.
He gently placed a hand over her stomach, then looked up at her—his voice softer than it had ever been.
"You carry our child, Lysandra." His words trembled, reverent. "Do you even understand what that means? A child of Carello, Vellaria, Landon and Moonwell... She's the first of her kind."
Lysandra's lips quivered. "I didn't want to endanger you. Or her. I made mistakes, Caveen—terrible ones. I thought disappearing would protect you both."
"You disappearing nearly destroyed me." His voice turned raw. "I would've burned down the world to find you."
A long silence fell, the weight of his words filling every corner of the room.
Lysandra's tears fell again as she lowered herself into his arms. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "For everything. For making you search."
Caveen wrapped his arms around her protectively, lowering his head to her shoulder.
"You're here now. That's all that matters."
He glanced up, meeting the stunned gazes of Alaric, Carlos, and Seraphine.
Lysandra clung tightly to Caveen, her breathing ragged.