She met the witch’s eyes, and flinched at the wary look she found there. Jinx might be here, but it was clear she had misgivings.

“Why didn’t you tell us?”

Aurora shrugged helplessly. “My whole life, my mother drilled into me that I could not trust anyone but myself. Secrets are what I know. Besides, it was difficult enough to get Kiran to agree to let me join the crew. If he’d had any inkling of who I was, he never would have allowed it.”

“That was then. In all the weeks that followed, did we not do enough to earn your trust?”

A stone sunk in Aurora’s middle. For a girl made of flesh and bones, she felt like she had wreaked more havoc than one person should be capable of.

“Of course you did. But by then, it was too dangerous. Soldiers were looking for me, and my magic was out of control. Truth be told, there were days I thought about being Roar forever.”

“I think that’s the problem. All of us are loners in some way. We don’t form attachments easily. But you were one of us. Nothing matters more in a crew than trust. We would all be dead a hundred times over if we didn’t have it. We invited you into the closest thing we all have to family, and for you it was temporary. How are any of us supposed to react to that?”

“I don’t know,” Aurora answered, her insides feeling shredded. “It is not as if I could have anticipated any of this. I did not know I would fall in love with Kiran. I did not know how much I would love you all.”

“But once you did, you still kept your secret. You never let us in the way we did for you.”

“I made a mistake. If I could go back and change it, I would. Because I’ve never been happier than the time I spent on this crew. But how could I live with myself if I turned my back on these people now? I would die a little every day knowing what fate I had left them to. I’m dying now knowing there are remnants vulnerable and suffering outside these gates. I know that Stormlings are not known for their compassion, but that’s something I would like to change. Something I will change.”

Jinx shook her head. “You even sound like a princess.”

“And that’s a bad thing?”