Page 157 of Court of Aether and Shadows

"Even with the chaos and questionable fashion-based punishments?" I couldn't resist asking.

His last words floated back to me as he disappeared completely: "Especially those."

Left alone in the garden, I looked up at the three moons overhead, each casting their unique light over the magical flora. "Well," I told a particularly attentive void lily, "tomorrow's conversation should be interesting."

The flower's only response was to release a small puff of void energy that looked suspiciously like a snicker.

Moonlit Thoughts

~SPARROW~

Heat pulled me from the depths of sleep, making the silk sheets cling uncomfortably to my skin. I blinked in the darkness, momentarily disoriented by the unfamiliar patterns of starlight dancing across the ceiling. The academy room slowly came into focus – all crystal and shadow, luxury I still couldn't quite believe was mine.

"Too hot," I mumbled, untangling myself from the sheets that had somehow wound around my legs like affectionate snakes. My skin felt hypersensitive, every brush of fabric sending tiny shivers through my body.

The floor was blessedly cool beneath my bare feet as I padded toward the washroom, moving on autopilot through the unfamiliar space. Even half-asleep, I couldn't help but marvel at the facilities. The Underground's communal bathrooms with their perpetually dripping faucets and suspicious stains seemed like a distant nightmare compared to this private oasis of marble and crystal.

After taking care of business, I found myself shedding layers – the silk pajamas Nyx had insisted I wear feeling suddenly too constraining. The cool air kissed my bare skin, bringing momentary relief from the inexplicable heat coursing through my body.

On my way back to bed, the window caught my attention. I drifted toward it, drawn by the ethereal light of the three moons hanging impossibly large in the sky. Each cast its own unique radiance – one silver like captured starlight, one gold like ancient honey, and one the deep red of fresh-spilled wine.

"How big is this place?" I whispered to myself, pressing a hand against the cool crystal pane. From this height, I could see the academy grounds sprawling below, each court's territory marked by its distinct architecture and energy. Beyond that, the realms stretched into infinity, filled with wonders I couldn't even imagine.

The very air seemed alive with magic, creating auroras that danced between the moons like celestial veils. It was nothing like the smog-filled skies above the Underground, where we'd been lucky to spot a single star through the urban haze.

A wave of nostalgia hit me unexpectedly, making my throat tight. For all its harshness, the Underground had been home for so long. I thought of my small room there, barely bigger than a closet but mine in a way few things had ever been. The weapon rack I'd built myself, each gun and knife meticulously maintained. The hidden compartment under the floorboards where I'd kept my most precious possessions – a few worn paperbacks, a silver ring I'd found on my first successful mission, a photo of a woman who might have been my mother.

"Wonder if they've cleared it out yet," I mused, tracing patterns in the condensation my breath had left on the window. "Probably gave my weapons to Marco, the bastard." The thought made me snort softly. "Hope they blow up in his face."

Another surge of heat rolled through me, making my skin prickle uncomfortably. I moved back to the bed, slipping between sheets that felt impossibly soft against my bare skin. Despite the lingering warmth, I found myself craving their embrace, wanting to cocoon myself in their comfort.

"Everything's so different here," I told the darkness, watching shadows dance across the walls in patterns that seemed almost sentient. In the Underground, shadows had meant danger – places where enemies could hide, where death could lurk. Here, they felt almost... protective. Like they were standing guard over my rest.

My thoughts drifted to Aetheron, to the way his shadows seemed to reach for me instinctively. To Liam's protective presence and Nyx's fierce loyalty. To Solaris's warmth and Cypress's easy acceptance. So different from the Underground, where every relationship was a potential weakness, every connection a liability.

"No going back now," I murmured, feeling sleep start to reclaim me despite the persistent heat under my skin. The moons' light painted patterns across my bed, their combined radiance creating a gentle glow that seemed to pulse in rhythm with my breathing.

As my eyes grew heavy, I couldn't help but wonder what tomorrow would bring in this realm of impossibilities. What new magics I'd discover, what ancient powers I'd learn to control. The thought should have frightened me, but instead, I felt a thrill of anticipation.

The last thing I saw before sleep took me was a shimmer in the air – something that looked like a protective bubble of void energy wrapped around my bed. I smiled faintly, recognizing Nyx's magical signature.

Home, something deep within me whispered as consciousness faded.This is home now.

The three moons kept their eternal watch as I drifted off, their light blessing the slumber of a girl caught between worlds, between identities, between destinies.

The line between waking and dreaming began to blur as my thoughts turned to Aetheron. My skin still burned, but now it was a different kind of heat – one born of desire rather than discomfort. I could almost feel his shadows caressing me, the way they had that first night in his realm.

"Aetheron," I murmured into the darkness, the name itself carrying power. The sheets twisted around me as I shifted restlessly, remembering how his touch could ignite every nerve ending, how his presence alone could make the air thick with possibility.

What was he doing now, in his eternal twilight? Was he thinking of me too, feeling this same yearning across the distance between us? The academy suddenly felt too far from his court, too removed from the sanctuary we'd shared.

A phantom touch brushed my cheek, so real I could have sworn I felt the familiar coolness of his power. My breath hitched as I leaned into it, craving more. "Please," I whispered, not sure if I was speaking to my memories or the night itself. "I miss you."

The touch became more substantial – a gentle caress down my neck that made me arch slightly, seeking more contact. It felt like his shadows, like the way they would dance across my skin in those intimate moments when power and passion became one.

"Visit me," I pleaded softly, lost in that space between sleep and consciousness where anything seemed possible. "Let me dream of you tonight."

Something cool and silken trailed down my bare shoulder, leaving goosebumps in its wake. The sensation was so vivid, soachingly familiar, that I couldn't tell if I was already dreaming or if somehow...

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