Chapter 32 Chapter 32 Sarah
Niklaus walked ahead of Aurora toward the wagons where the other graduates were gathering, their gear already stacked neatly beside the wheels. Horses stamped and tossed their heads, sensing movement, sensing change. The air was thick with anticipation—the kind that came only once, at the edge between what had been taught and what would now be lived.
He was halfway across the clearing when something pulled at him.
A soft, loving presence.
He slowed without realizing he had done so.
Someone stood apart from the others.
She wasn’t doing anything remarkable, no nervous pacing like so many of the graduates around her were displaying. She simply stood near the edge of the crowd, hands loosely clasped in front of her, gaze fixed somewhere beyond the wagons, beyond the stone walls of our kingdom, as if her thoughts were already far ahead of where her body remained.
Aurora noticed immediately.
She always did.
“Who’s that?” she asked, following his line of sight.
“I don’t know,” Niklaus answered quietly. Then, without taking his eyes off the girl, he added, “But I’m about to find out.”
He changed direction before Aurora could comment, already moving toward her.
He stopped a few feet behind her.
Up close, the pull hit him fully, deep, immediate, and undeniable.
Her hair was a deep, burning red, catching the fading light as it fell in soft waves down the center of her back. Her skin was pale, dusted with freckles scattered across her shoulders and arms like constellations, no map could fully capture. But it wasn’t just how she looked that held him still.
It was her scent.
Spring flowers warmed by the sun with something sweet beneath it—like baked cookies cooling on a stone counter.
Comfort.
Heat.
Home.
His breath caught.
She knew he was there.
She had known the instant he stepped toward her, before his shoes even touched the ground behind her. She’d felt it earlier, too, during the graduation rites, when she had looked up and found his eyes already on her.
One glance.
That was all it had taken.
Mate. Her beast spoke without doubt.
The word hadn’t formed its full meaning, but her body recognized its truth instantly. The bond stirred—quiet, steady, impossible to ignore.
She turned slowly, a shy smile already beginning to form—
She froze.
He wasn’t there.
Her smile faltered as she scanned the clearing, confusion flickering across her face. The pull was still there, humming beneath her skin, but its source had vanished.
At that exact moment, Aurora felt a hand catch her wrist, yanking her backward.
“Where are we going?” Aurora asked cheerfully as he dragged her away, already grinning.
“Please tell me,” she continued, half laughing as she stumbled slightly to keep pace, “that I am not being hauled off because your—how shall I phrase this delicately… lower instincts have taken full command.”
Niklaus groaned. “Do you ever stop?”
“Oh no,” Aurora replied brightly. “Especially not when you look like this.”
He didn’t slow. Didn’t answer properly.
She studied him with open amusement. Her brother had never reacted like this before. Not once. Not to anyone. His control had always been ironclad—measured, disciplined, immovable.
Until now.
“Who are we running from?” she asked lightly, already knowing the answer.
Niklaus stopped near the edge of the last wagon and turned just enough to meet her gaze.
“You saw her.”
Aurora’s grin widened. “Red hair. Quiet. Standing like she was already halfway gone.”
“Yes.” She grinned. “Oh, this is excellent.”
“Don’t,” he warned.
She ignored him completely. “You felt it, didn’t you?”
Niklaus exhaled slowly, the truth settling heavier in his chest than he expected. “The bond’s already there.”
Aurora’s grin softened, something warmer taking its place. “Then congratulations, brother. Looks like real life didn’t waste any time.”
They both looked back toward the clearing.
She was still there—now speaking with one of the handlers, nodding politely, though her attention drifted. Every few seconds, her gaze lifted, searching, as if she could feel something just out of reach.
“Do you know her name?” Niklaus asked.
Aurora tilted her head, thoughtful. Then she smiled.
“I could find out for you.”
Before he could stop her, she was already moving.
Too late, Aurora whispered into his mind, laughter woven through the bond as she approached the girl.
Niklaus watched from a distance, unease creeping in. Aurora smiled easily, already slipping into what could only be described as a distinctly female form of communication—soft laughter, shared expressions, heads leaning slightly closer.
He frowned.
Girls had a way of talking that made absolutely no sense to him. He’d seen it before—entire conversations conducted through looks and laughter that somehow conveyed everything.
Then he froze.
Both of them turned at the same time.
Both of them looked directly at him.
They giggled.
And then, as if nothing had happened, they turned back to each other.
Niklaus muttered under his breath, already plotting several appropriate ways to make his sister pay—after questioning her thoroughly, of course.
He turned to walk away.
That was when a hand slipped into his.
His breath caught as he looked down.
“Sarah,” Aurora announced cheerfully. “And she likes you too.”
Oh no.
She did not just—
“You told her?” Niklaus hissed.
“That I liked her?” he continued under his breath. “That’s not how this works. That is not how guys do things.”
Aurora merely smiled.
She just messed everything up.. He thought, trying to figure out ways to explain to the girl…
The twin bond flickered instantly, and she heard every irritated thought as clearly as if he’d spoken them aloud.
“I didn’t mess anything up,” she said lightly. “She already knew you liked her before I even asked her name.”
Niklaus opened his mouth to argue—then stopped.
Sarah was still holding his hand.
Her grip was gentle, warm, steady.
She looked up at him, her smile darkening as her cheeks flushed. “I like her,” she said softly. “She is the daughter of the wagonmaster here; she has powers, too.”
Something settled in his chest then—something solid and grounding. He wanted to hear everything about her.
They were called to board the wagons moments later, voices carrying across the clearing as the teams were hitched and lines gathered. The procession began to move, wheels creaking as the graduates climbed aboard.
They took the last wagon.
Niklaus waved once toward the pyramids, where their parents stood watching. Aurora leaned out enthusiastically, waving both arms until the distance forced her back into her seat.
As the kingdom slowly disappeared behind them, the road stretching long and uncertain ahead, Aurora curled against his shoulder and fell asleep within minutes.
Niklaus didn’t.
His mind raced—too aware of the girl sitting across from him, her occasional smile undid him. Thoughts of their future unfolding faster than he’d expected.
No one knew exactly where they were being taken. Whispers of a vision quest had passed between the elders more than once, and that alone made his instincts sharpen.
A movement along the treeline caught his attention.
He stiffened slightly.
Kira, he sent quietly through the bond, his awareness locking onto the shadows. Something’s there.
I know, her voice came calmly. Thorn is already tracking it.
Niklaus didn’t look away from the trees as the wagons rolled onward.
Whatever waited ahead, life had already begun.
And there would be no turning back now