“I thought you might want to come here to warm up after Winter Solstice,” she says softly, her voice almost a whisper. Bright green eyes stare up at me from dark lashes, almost shy. When I take another step closer, she freezes for a moment before pulling back, vulnerable expression gone. “All three of you, I mean. Silene and Fionn, too. You’re all welcome to use the space whenever you’d like.”

“Thank you, truly,” I say, then bow low, my hand fisted over my heart. “This is—it’s extremely thoughtful.” The longer I spend in here, the more it reminds me of Eastern Velmara, where my mother and her people hail. The humidity and lush vegetation are so similar to that oasis, it’s like I’ve aerstepped to my maternal grandfather’s estate. A twinge of sadness roils in my gut at the small reminder of her. It’s not unpleasant, a cross between nostalgia and longing, but it makes me ache with how much I miss her. Even though we only spent a decade together of the three and a half centuries I’ve been alive, the grief at losing her has never left me, never will leave me. I can still picture the way her eyes crinkled when she smiled, can still see the exact way her mouth would purse when she was trying to pretend to scold me but wanted to laugh.

“Are you okay?” Laurel’s soft voice pulls me from my walk down memory lane. She’s so perceptive, this female who pretends to be so fearsome and emotionless. Her small, delicate hand lifts, like she’s going to reach out and touch my arm, but just as quickly as she considers it, she clenches the hand in a fist at her side. I give her a real smile.

“Yeah, just remembering. This place reminds me of Eastern Velmara.” She swallows, and I follow the movement with my eyes.

“You can come back here whenever you want. To—um—remember.” Her words make her cheeks flush with embarrassment, and I can’t help the chuckle that escapes me.

“Thanks, witchling. I’ll keep that in mind.” We stare at one another in awkward silence for a beat too long.

“Well, should we head to the training room now?” she asks stiffly.

I nod, burying my frustration. She keeps doing this. Opening up, letting me glimpse the warm and vulnerable female beneath her icy exterior, before building her walls back up. It’s aethers-damned frustrating. Even if we don’t give into the heat between us, I still want to build a friendship with her.

We walk side by side down and then back up more flights of stairs, to the training room. As soon as we enter, she stalks around the room in a circle, concentrating on something.

“What are you doing?” I ask.