Chapter 100 - A new resolve

Chapter 100 - A new resolve
The night after the council’s judgment passed in silence.

Ariella found herself standing in the corridor outside Clara’s room, unsure for the first time in a long while whether she had the right to knock.

She had rehearsed the words in her head all evening, but now that she was here, they seemed to dissolve. What apology could make up for everything that had already broken?

She knocked softly.

After a moment, Clara’s voice came, low and tired. “Come in.”

The door creaked open. The room was dim, lit only by the soft glow of a single candle on the table. Clara sat on the edge of her bed, her hair loose, her hands wrapped around a cup that had long gone cold. Her eyes were swollen from crying, but her posture was still proud, defiant even in grief.

When she saw Ariella, she stood. “Why are you here”

Ariella crossed the room slowly and sat beside her. The silence between them stretched, uneasy but not hostile.

After a moment, Ariella spoke. “I came to tell you that everything will be all right.”

Clara gave a small, brittle laugh. “That’s not true, and we both know it.”

Ariella smiled faintly. “No, it’s not. But I need to believe it anyway. And maybe you do too.”

Clara looked down at her hands. “You’re sending her back to him. To Cole. She’ll die out there.”

“She might,” Ariella said softly. “But she’s the only one who can finish this. You know that.”

Clara’s lips trembled. “She was always braver than I was.”

“Or more foolish,” Ariella said. “Sometimes it’s the same thing.”

The silence returned, but this time it was gentler, the kind that allows breathing again.

After a while, Clara spoke. “You don’t have to comfort me, Ariella. I know you did what you thought was right.”

Ariella shook her head. “I didn’t come here as your queen. I came here as someone who’s failed you both.”

Clara frowned, confused.

Ariella continued, her voice low. “I wasn’t there for either of you. I have become too hardened as a Queen and self centered. I saw Claire growing quiet, withdrawing. I told myself it was nothing, that she’d speak when she was ready. But she didn’t. And I didn’t ask.”

Her voice wavered slightly. “Maybe if I had… things would be different.”

Clara turned toward her. “You can’t blame yourself for her choices.”

“I can,” Ariella said softly. “And I do.”

Clara studied her for a moment. “She loved you, you know. Even when she hated what you were becoming.”

Ariella closed her eyes briefly. “That’s the part that hurts the most.”

The candle flickered, throwing light across Clara’s face. Her anger had faded, leaving only sadness.

“She was terrified of losing Cassian,” Clara said quietly. “But I think what broke her most was losing you.”

Ariella’s throat tightened. She looked away. “Then maybe this is my punishment, to watch her walk away to a difficult territory and not stop her.”

Clara reached for her hand. It was a small gesture, hesitant but real. “She’ll come back. I have to believe that.”

Ariella nodded, though she didn’t trust her voice enough to speak.

They sat there a while longer, two women bound by loss and the fragile hope that grief sometimes allows. When Ariella finally rose to leave, Clara stood too.

“Ariella” she said quietly. “Thank you for coming.”

Ariella gave a small, sad smile. “Don’t thank me. Just try to rest.”

When the door closed behind her, the corridor felt heavier somehow. The weight of every choice she had made seemed to settle over her shoulders.



Ares was waiting for her in their chambers.

He stood by the window, looking out over the courtyard where the torches still burned. When she entered, he turned slightly, his expression unreadable.

“She’ll go at dawn,” he said.

“I know.”

Ariella crossed the room and poured herself a glass of wine, though she didn’t drink it. She stared at the liquid for a long moment, watching the candlelight ripple across the surface.

“I went to see Clara,” she said.

“I thought you might.”

“She hates me a little less now,” Ariella said with a faint smile. “That feels like progress.”

Ares turned from the window. “You did what had to be done.”

She looked up at him. “That’s what everyone keeps saying. But I’m starting to wonder if ‘what had to be done’ and ‘what was right’ are ever the same thing.”

Ares came closer. “Sometimes they’re not. Sometimes doing what’s right costs more than you can afford.”

She met his eyes. “I used to think ruling meant making choices with certainty. But now every decision feels like a wound.”

Ares didn’t answer right away. He just reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her face, his touch brief, almost reverent. “You’re carrying too much alone.”

“I’ve been alone for a long time,” she whispered.

He didn’t argue. He simply took the glass from her hand and set it aside. Then he pulled her gently into his arms.

For a long time, neither of them spoke. The quiet between them was deep, filled with the kind of understanding that doesn’t need words.

When Ariella finally spoke again, her voice was soft against his chest. “I’ve changed, Ares.”

He held her tighter. “Everyone changes.”

“No,” she said. “Not like this. I’ve become hard. Cold. Claire didn’t confide in me because she was afraid of what I’d say. I’ve become the kind of queen people fear, not the kind they trust.”

He pulled back slightly, looking down at her. “You’ve become the kind of queen a broken kingdom needs. There’s a difference.”

“But I don’t know if I can keep being her,” she whispered. “I can’t keep making every decision with a sword in my hand.”

Ares studied her quietly. “What are you saying?”

“I want to step back,” she said finally. “Not forever. Just for a while. I need to remember who I was before the throne swallowed me whole.”

He nodded slowly. “And who will rule in your place? You are my mate and I choosed to leave this matters for you to head,so you can learn.”

“I’ll still rule,” she said. “But I won’t command every battle, every judgment. You can take the council back. Cador can handle the reports. I just need time to breathe again.”

Ares reached for her hand. “You’ve earned that.”

She gave a small, tired laugh. “I don’t know if I’ve earned anything anymore.”

“You have,” he said. “You’re still standing. That’s more than most of us can say.”

Ariella closed her eyes. “Do you think she’ll make it to him?”

“I think she’ll try,” Ares said. “And maybe that’s enough.”

She nodded against him, exhaustion finally settling into her bones. “Promise me something,” she murmured.

“Anything.”

“If I lose myself again, if I start to become her, the queen who forgets what it means to feel, stop me.”

He smiled faintly. “You don’t need me to stop you. You’ve already found your way back.”

She didn’t answer. Her breathing slowed, her body relaxing against his.