Ares entered Thea's chamber, expecting to find the fairies attending to Eleanor. Instead, he found her alone, her serene face bathed in the soft light of the room. He closed the door behind him, locking it, and approached the bed, sitting gently on its edge.
Though it pained him to see her like this, he couldn't help but notice the improvement from the days when her wounds were already healed. Carefully, he took her hand, his fingers tracing gentle patterns on her skin. Closing his eyes, he focused on the connection between them.
Blood-red wisps escaped his arm, like tendrils of a vein, wrapping around his limb before stretching towards her hand, enveloping it in a gentle grasp.
