She looked down at her own hands for a moment, fingers curling slightly.
"I'm disappointed—just a little—that I'm not the one behind these changes in you. Maybe marriage to me has affected you in small ways… but I'm certainly not the one who truly changed you."
She lifted her eyes again, watching the slow spin of the sword above his head.
"It's fine," she whispered. "I can understand. Luna had a head start. She was with you when I wasn't there. She saw parts of you I hadn't yet reached."
Thea's expression firmed, though a quiet ache lingered behind her eyes.
"But I won't leave you alone from now on."
She straightened her back, gaze steady on his face.
"I'll be here. Every step. Every change. Whatever path you walk—Sage or otherwise—I'll walk it beside you."
The sword continued its slow, glowing orbit.
The white layer pulsed brighter.
And Thea sat in patient silence, guarding the man she loved while he drifted in a place no one else could follow.
