"When his yes met mine, the sea rose, the earth hummed, and for a moment, we weren't two souls, but one force written in salt and stone."
They returned just after dawn. The hush of the morning was broken only by soft footsteps over earth and stone, the distant hush of waves, and the whispered buzz of magic that clung to them like a second skin. Caelan and Morkai together, changed, bound. I felt it immediately. The bond between them hummed like pressure before a storm. Like the ocean had recognized its missing moon and decided never to let go again. They did not speak much as they entered the garden. Caelan's hand was in Morkai's. Their eyes flicked only to each other, as if the rest of us were smoke in the distance, momentary and unimportant.