"I thought… I'd never see you again…" Lyra said, her voice broken by sobs. "W-we all thought maybe you'd died… that they'd killed you… But I always felt you were still alive. I felt it… I always felt it."
Ethan couldn't stop his own eyes from filling with tears. With a trembling hand, he gently brushed Lyra's tangled hair away from her face, searching for her eyes.
"I doubted too, thinking I'd lost you all," Ethan replied, his voice a mix of relief and sadness. "What hurt me the most was thinking I couldn't protect you, that I wasn't there when you were attacked. It was my fault, my arrogance, not seeing the danger until it was too late."
Lyra looked up, her eyes filled with emotion. Without saying another word, she clung to him tighter, as if fearing the moment might vanish in an instant.
For that moment, the world disappeared for both of them. There were no battles, no gods or demons. Only the two of them, finally reunited after so much time and pain.
