Chapter Text
Raven’s eyes snapped open and for a moment, she couldn’t breathe; Blood. There had been blood everywhere.
Lyra’s body in her arms. The smell of iron thick in the air. Darkness consuming the battlefield. Grief tearing through her chest so violently she thought it might split her apart… The memory lingered for a fraction of a second before reality reasserted itself.
A dream? No, not a dream. A flashback.
Her breathing was faster than normal and body remained tensed as though preparing for a fight that had ended fifty years ago. Slowly, Raven forced herself to focus; one thing at a time.
She was lying down. Not outside. Not in the alley. Not on a battlefield. In a bed. A ceiling she didn’t recognize stretched above her. The daughter of night remained perfectly still as her awareness expanded outward. The room was unfamiliar. Small, comfortable and lived in.
Her gaze drifted slowly across the space; Bookshelves, a desk, a half finished sketch abandoned near a stack of papers, sunlight filtering through cream curtains. There were no immediate threats, no restraints nor weapons pointed at her.
The panic that had surged through her moments ago began to recede.
Her fae senses had always been sharp-even in her human shift. It was Nairen’s apartment, and his presence clung stubbornly to every room. Salt lingered in the air, clean and bright as sea spray carried inland on a summer wind. Beneath it was the warmth of sun heated sand and weathered driftwood, the scent of long afternoons spent beneath an endless sky. And deeper still, something she couldn’t quite name- a golden warmth that felt less like a smell and more like standing in sunlight itself.
It was the beach distilled into a person. The sea, the shore, and the sun woven together and left behind in his absence. Even now, with him nowhere in sight, the scent lingered as though the apartment itself refused to let him go.
Normally waking up somewhere unfamiliar would have put her immediately on edge, and yet she found herself relaxing slightly instead. The realization settled surprisingly easily.
Her attention shifted downward: fresh, clean bandages adorned her wrist and knee, wrapped neatly and professionally.
Her brow furrowed faintly. Carefully, Raven examined herself. The countless cuts and scrapes she’d accumulated during the fight were gone. The bruises along her arms had faded significantly. The gash on her forearm where she’d struck the wall after collapsing had been cleaned and treated.
She’d been healed. With demigod magic.
Nairen was Apollo’s son- of course.
A strange feeling settled in her chest. Neither discomfort nor suspicion, but something softer.
However, the wounds caused by the fae artefact a week prior remained untouched. Raven wasn’t surprised- no healer had managed to repair them.
Footsteps approached, and Raven looked toward the doorway. A moment later, Nairen entered carrying what looked like a cup of tea.
He froze the instant he saw her awake.
Relief crossed his face so quickly it was almost startling.
“You’re awake.”
The words left him in a breath, and Raven stared at him.
His hair was slightly disheveled.
His shirt sleeves were rolled up unevenly.
He looked exhausted.
Like he hadn’t slept.
And for some reason, seeing him standing there caused something unfamiliar to loosen inside her chest.
Relief. And…concern?
The realization caught her off guard.
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt relieved to see someone. Or even felt something about anyone; Perhaps she never had. The emotion was so foreign she almost didn’t recognize it.
“…Yes,” she replied quietly.
Nairen set the cup down immediately and crossed the room.
“How do you feel?”
Raven considered the question.
“Tired.” She admitted.
He laughed softly.
“That’s fair.”
His gaze immediately dropped to her wrist.
The relief vanished as concern replaced it.
Guilt and frustration flashed across his face.
“I couldn’t heal those.”
His voice was slightly quieter now.
Raven followed his gaze to her wrist, knee and ankle.
“I know.”
Nairen rubbed a hand through his hair.
“I tried.”
The admission sounded almost apologetic.
“As much as I could without making things worse.”
His jaw tightened. “The smaller injuries were easy.”
Raven glanced down at her rebandaged arm and the careful work spoke for itself.
“But those…” He looked frustrated. “Something’s wrong with them.”
Something almost resembling a smile tugged at the corner of Raven’s mouth. “That’s an understatement.” The expression disappeared before it fully formed.
Nairen blinked.
Then blinked again.
“You just made a joke.”
Raven immediately looked away. “I did not.”
“You absolutely did.”
“I didn’t.”
A laugh escaped him.
Strangely, the sound made her chest feel lighter. The realization was alarming. She quickly decided not to dwell on it.
Silence settled comfortably between them.
Then the bracelet lit up. Raven froze. Every trace of warmth vanished instantly. The crystal embedded in the silver band began glowing.
Not the harsh pulsing red of an assignment; this was different. A deep violet.
Summoning.
Fear crashed into her immediately. Her stomach dropped.
No.
No, no, no.
Not now.
Please not now.
Her fingers tightened around her wrist.
Nairen noticed the change instantly.
“Raven?”
She didn’t answer.
The glow intensified.
A summons from Nyx.
Which meant Nyx wanted to see her personally.
Which meant she had done something wrong.
The thought arrived with extreme certainty.
She must have overlooked something-
She’d killed her target. Had she done it wrong? Was it the fact that she’d collapsed after? Was it meeting Nairen? Maybe she’d hesitated before killing him… Maybe-
Her breathing became slightly uneven. Punishment. The word echoed through her mind. Nyx always had a reason, and Raven had learned long ago not to argue. The reasons never mattered; only the consequences did.
“Raven.”
Nairen’s voice sounded distant.
She forced herself to focus.
“It’s fine.”
A lie.
An obvious one at that.
The glow brightened again.
She needed to go.
Immediately.
So the punishment wouldn’t worsen
Yet…
For the first time in a very long time, Raven found herself hesitating. Her gaze shifted toward Nairen.
The apartment was warm. It felt…safe. Quiet.
No orders.
No missions.
No violence.
Just sunlight filtering through a window and a son of Apollo looking worried about her.
The realization hurt more than it should have: she didn’t want to leave. Not yet.
She had spent centuries obeying the summons of gods without hesitation. Now, for a brief moment, she wanted to stay.
The bracelet pulsed again.
Hotter.
More insistent.
Fear tightened around her ribs, and Raven stood.
Her knee hurt more immediately.
Nairen moved as though to help, but she stepped back automatically.
Not because she wanted distance, but because her instincts demanded it.
His expression fell slightly.
The sight twisted something in her chest.
“I have to go.”
Nairen looked at the glowing bracelet.
Then back at her.
The concern in his expression deepened.
“…Will you be okay?”
The question nearly broke her.
Because she didn’t know.
She never knew.
And she was suddenly very tired of pretending otherwise.
Still, the answer came automatically.
“Yes.”
A lie.
The daughter of night gathered the shadows around her feet; her darkness rose like smoke. They were ready to carry her away.
Yet she remained where she was for one second.
Then two. Hesitating. Something she’d never done before.
Nairen watched her quietly and neither of them spoke.
Finally, Raven lowered her gaze. “…Thank you.”
The words were barely above a whisper.
For healing her, for helping her, for staying… and for making her feel something other than numbness for the first time in years.
Nairen smiled softly. “You don’t have to thank me.”
Maybe not, but she wanted to.
The shadows curled higher around her.
The bracelet pulsed again and Raven closed her eyes briefly.
Then stepped backwards into the darkness.
The apartment vanished, Nairen vanished.
And as Nyx’s realm rushed up to meet her, fear settled heavily in her chest. Because summons never came without a reason. And reasons rarely ended well.