Page 96 of Court of Aether and Shadows

"By all the stars," I breathed, my voice barely above a whisper. The sound seemed to trigger something in the room – the star-lights pulsed briefly brighter, and the patterns in the gold work shifted subtly, as if responding to my presence.

My gaze swept across the rest of the space, drinking in details that seemed impossible. A vanity that appeared to be carved from a single piece of rose quartz dominated one corner, its surface scattered with bottles and vials that contained liquids that moved of their own accord. The mirror wasn't glass but rather seemed to be made of captured moonlight, its surface rippling like disturbed water.

Against another wall stood an armoire of such magnificent craftsmanship that it made my heart ache just looking at it.The wood – if it was wood – had the deep blue-green color of the deepest ocean, with golden inlays that created pictures of fantastical creatures. As I watched, these creatures actually moved, swimming and flying across the surface of the furniture as if it were their natural habitat.

Deciding to get out of bed, the floor beneath my feet was neither marble nor any other stone I recognized. It was something smoother, cooler, with depth that suggested I was walking on solidified starlight. Each step I took sent ripples of color spreading out from where my feet touched, like dropping stones into a pond of pure magic.

"Well," Liam's voice came from where he was picking himself up off the floor, drawing my attention back to him momentarily, "at least you're maintaining your charming personality in all this luxury."

But I was already distracted again, this time by my own reflection caught in a full-length mirror that definitely hadn't been there a moment ago. The person – the being – staring back at me was both familiar and startlingly foreign.

Gone was my usual practical attire, replaced by a gown that seemed to be woven from liquid gold and captured sunlight. It moved like water around my form, responding to the slightest movement with ripples of light that sent cascades of color dancing across the fabric. The cut was both modest and sensual, highlighting my figure while maintaining an air of otherworldly elegance.

But it was my hair that truly caught my attention. The usual dark strands had transformed into a pure, luminescent white that seemed to glow from within. It fell in waves past my shoulders, each strand catching the light like freshly spun silk.

"That would be the magic," Liam explained, noticing my fixation on my transformed appearance. He'd managed to regain his feet and was now leaning against one of the bed posts withcasual grace, though I noticed he kept a respectful distance. "Using that much power... it leaves marks. Though I have to say, white rather suits you."

I reached up to touch my transformed hair, marveling at how it felt the same despite looking so different. "Power? I... I remember something. Fighting? There was a creature..." The memories felt foggy, like trying to recall a dream while still half-asleep.

The room seemed to respond to my confusion, the lights dimming slightly as if in sympathy. A gentle breeze that shouldn't have been possible in an enclosed space stirred the hanging silks, carrying with it the scent of night-blooming flowers and something deeper, more primal.

I turned in a slow circle, still trying to absorb every impossible detail. Near what I assumed was the entrance, a sitting area had been arranged with furniture that looked like it had been grown rather than built. The chairs and sofas were formed from what appeared to be living vines of gold and silver, their cushions upholstered in the same rich crimsons and turquoises that adorned the walls. A low table that seemed to be made of captured twilight held a selection of fruits I'd never seen before, their colors too vibrant to be natural.

"Where am I?" I finally asked, though I wasn't entirely sure I was ready for the answer. "What is this place?"

"This is a safe place," Liam said, his voice softer than I'd ever heard it. He moved closer, each step deliberate, as if he were fighting some internal battle between approaching and maintaining distance. "A sanctuary within the Twilight Court."

The words stirred something in my memory – flashes of shadow and starlight, of power beyond imagining. I pressed ahand to my temple, trying to organize the chaotic swirl of images and sensations.

"You remember some of it, don't you?" he asked, now close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his body. "The fight, the power that awakened in you?"

I nodded slowly, fragments coming together like pieces of a broken mirror. "There was... a spider? No, something worse. Something ancient. And you..." I looked up at him, really looked, seeing him with new eyes. "You were the wolf. The massive shadow wolf."

His lips curved in a slight smile, though his eyes remained intense. "That's my other form, yes. Though I've never been quite that large before. Something about this realm seems to amplify certain aspects of my nature."

He was even closer now, and I found myself swaying slightly toward him, drawn by something I couldn't quite understand. The heat that had annoyed me when I first woke up now felt different – necessary, vital somehow.

"Sparrow," he breathed my name like a prayer, his hands coming up to frame my face. His touch sent sparks of electricity through my entire body, making me gasp. "Do you have any idea how terrified I was? When I got to the wrong rooftop, when I saw you facing Marco..."

The memory of Marco's betrayal hit me hard, making me flinch. Liam's thumbs stroked my cheeks soothingly, and he pressed his forehead against mine in a gesture that felt ancient and instinctive.

"Your scent," he murmured, his voice dropping to a rough growl that should have frightened me but instead made heat pool in my belly. "Even then, through all the chaos and fear, your scent called to me. But now..." He inhaled deeply, his whole body shuddering. "Now it's even stronger. You smell of starlightand shadow, of power and possibility. Of things my wolf nature recognizes on a level I can't even explain."

My hands had found their way to his chest of their own accord, feeling the rapid beat of his heart beneath my palms. "What's happening between us?" I whispered, both thrilled and terrified by the intensity of what I was feeling. "This connection..."

"It's something ancient," he explained, one hand sliding into my transformed hair while the other remained cupping my cheek. "Something that transcends the normal bonds between beings. My wolf recognized it the moment we first met, but I fought it, tried to keep my distance. I thought I was protecting you."

A laugh escaped him, though it held an edge of self-deprecation. "Fat lot of good that did. I couldn't stay away, couldn't stop myself from watching over you, trying to keep you safe. And then today, when I saw you fall..." His voice broke slightly at the memory. "I thought I'd failed. Thought I'd lost you before I ever really had you."

The raw emotion in his voice made my heart clench. I pressed closer, some instinct I didn't understand needing to comfort him, to erase the pain in his voice.

"But I survived," I reminded him softly. "I'm here. We both are."

His golden eyes, so similar to his wolf form's gaze, locked onto mine with an intensity that stole my breath. "Yes," he agreed, his voice dropping even lower. "We are. And every instinct I possess is screaming at me to never let you out of my sight again."

The admission hung between us, heavy with implications neither of us was quite ready to face. The air grew thick with tension, with possibility, with the weight of whatever this connection between us truly meant.

Finally, Liam took a deliberate step back, though the effort it cost him was visible in the tension of his shoulders. "You need to rest," he said, his voice rough with controlled emotion. "You expended an enormous amount of power today. Your body needs time to adjust."

---