The lanterns above swayed gently in the evening breeze, casting soft halos of light over the plaza, catching in their hair, their eyes, their smiles. They were all looking at me, not with expectations or demands, but with something much heavier and softer.
Hope.
It wrapped around my chest so tightly that for a moment, I couldn't breathe.
I dropped Diana's hand slowly, hesitating, uncertain, but then Claire grabbed my other one playfully, tugging me back into the circle they had unconsciously made around me.
"Don't get all serious on us now," Claire said with a grin, though her voice was softer, her violet eyes more vulnerable than usual. "Stay with us a little longer."
Lillian stepped closer too, close enough that her perfume — faintly floral, warm, familiar — settled around me like an invisible embrace. "No pressure, Sera. No decisions, no weight. Just...you."
Tessa's red eyes watched me from the side, calm, patient, as though she would wait a thousand years if I needed it. Camille brushed past me lightly, her fingertips grazing my arm as she passed, a fleeting touch that said more than any words could. And Diana — Diana simply crossed her arms, watching me with a faint smile, like she knew I was fighting with myself and was content to let me win at my own pace.
I swallowed thickly.
"Sometimes I still feel like I'm...pretending," I admitted quietly, voice barely above a whisper. "Like I'm living someone else's story. Someone I wasn't meant to be."
Camille's hand found the small of my back, steady and warm.
"And what's wrong with making it your own?" she asked softly.
Claire nodded enthusiastically, her smile wobbling just a little. "You already have, dummy. You're not the Sera Vandren from that old story. You're ours."
Ours.
The word hit me harder than I expected.
I laughed under my breath, shaking my head, blinking hard against the sting rising in my eyes. "You're all unbelievable, you know that?"
Diana tilted her head, smirking lazily. "Took you long enough."
Lillian's fingers brushed mine again, curling softly until we were holding hands without even thinking. "We'll keep reminding you," she whispered.
Slowly, slowly, I exhaled. I felt the tightness inside me loosen just a little. Maybe not completely. Maybe not yet. But enough. Enough to let the walls fall a little more.
"Okay," I whispered, squeezing Lillian's hand. "Okay. I'll stay."
The relief was almost palpable, a collective easing of breath around me.
Claire whooped immediately, startling a few passersby, while Camille chuckled under her breath. Diana's smirk softened into something almost fond. Tessa, silent as always, only inclined her head slightly — but her eyes were warmer than I had ever seen.
For a few more minutes, we lingered like that in the plaza. Talking about nothing. Laughing too loud. Telling jokes that didn't even make sense but made us laugh anyway because it wasn't about the words — it was about being there. Together.
Eventually, when the stars were high and the air turned crisp, we started walking back toward the academy.
Claire and Camille skipped ahead, probably racing to see who could get to the gates first (Claire was cheating, using tiny bursts of wind magic to shove Camille back). Diana walked calmly beside Tessa, murmuring something that made the taller girl actually crack a faint smile.
And me — I walked with Lillian, her hand still tangled with mine, her warmth seeping into me with every step.
I didn't know what tomorrow would bring. The threat of the Headmaster still loomed. Mysteries still lingered, unsolved.
But tonight, I had five stars orbiting around me, steady and bright.
And for once, I didn't feel like I was lost inside someone else's story anymore.
It was ours now.Mine and theirs.
And no matter what came next —I wasn't afraid anymore.
I was home.
The walk back to the academy felt like a dream I didn't want to wake up from. Every step was lighter, like some invisible weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
The lanterns overhead gave way to the quieter, familiar glow of the academy's path lights, casting soft shadows against the old stone walls and polished courtyards. We passed by the gardens, the ones where it had all started—the quiet meetings, the hesitant laughter, the slow unraveling of the careful distance I had once kept between myself and all of them.
Now, there was no distance left.
Claire and Camille were still bickering up ahead, their playful jabs filling the night air with life. Diana and Tessa followed steadily behind, murmuring to each other in low tones that I couldn't quite hear.
And Lillian stayed with me, her fingers still laced through mine, like she had no intention of letting go unless I told her to. I didn't tell her to. I never wanted to.
As we crossed into the main courtyard, Camille finally spun around, walking backward with an exaggerated flourish. "Alright, beloved leader—" she said with a mischievous glint in her ice-blue eyes, "—what's the plan for tomorrow? Should we declare it a Sera Appreciation Day?"
Claire gasped, delighted. "YES. Official holiday. I'll start printing banners."
Tessa gave Claire a flat look. "Please don't."
Diana smirked as she folded her arms loosely. "Although... the idea does have merit."
I groaned, face flushing, trying to pull away instinctively—but Lillian's grip tightened ever so slightly, anchoring me there with a serene smile.
"Let them," she whispered softly near my ear, voice like a warm breeze. "Let yourself be loved a little more."
It was ridiculous how those simple words made my throat tighten all over again.
"You're all hopeless," I muttered, hiding my face briefly in my free hand.
"Hopeless for you," Claire chirped proudly.
"And yet you're still here with us," Diana said, her voice softer now, edged with that knowing teasing that always managed to slide right past my defenses.
Camille tilted her head, her platinum hair glinting under the lights. "Maybe you like it more than you realize."
Tessa, quiet as ever, simply looked at me with her steady, unreadable gaze—but there was something almost warm flickering behind her eyes. Approval. Maybe even pride.
I swallowed a laugh, feeling a strange, bubbly happiness rise in my chest. "Maybe I do."
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
And the smiles that bloomed around me—real, unguarded, brighter than any spell or magic in the world—felt like sunlight bursting through storm clouds.
Claire practically launched herself at me, hugging me from behind with a squeal. "You heard her! She does love us!"
"I didn't say that!" I protested, wriggling helplessly as Claire squeezed tighter.
"Close enough," Camille said with a lazy smile, leaning in to ruffle my hair mercilessly. "We'll take it."
Diana stepped closer too, her hand brushing along my arm briefly, deliberately, her emerald eyes gleaming. "You're making it too easy, Sera."
Tessa didn't say anything, but her hand brushed mine gently in passing—a fleeting, featherlight touch that somehow said more than all the teasing combined.
And Lillian—Lillian just held me a little closer, her smile soft, content, and so achingly beautiful that I thought I might just fall apart right there in the courtyard.
They surrounded me, not caging me in—but lifting me up.
I wasn't just surviving anymore.
I was living.
Laughing. Blushing. Flailing hopelessly against five different kinds of affection I never even knew I needed.
And for the first time in this second life, I thought—
Maybe this wasn't just a detour from the story.
Maybe this was the story.
Mine, and theirs, woven together so tightly there was no separating it anymore.
"Alright," Diana said after a moment, brushing invisible dust off her sleeves with mock grandeur. "Tomorrow, we celebrate. No war councils, no barrier inspections, no survival drills."
Claire threw her hands in the air. "Finally! A normal day!"
Camille smirked. "With you around? Doubtful."
Lillian giggled beside me, and Tessa just nodded quietly in agreement.
I smiled—really smiled, letting it bloom across my face without fear or hesitation.
We eventually made it back to the dorms, our laughter trailing behind us like the tail of a comet. The halls were quiet at this hour, only the faint sounds of distant footsteps and hushed conversations filtering through the thick stone walls.
At the split where our rooms branched off, we paused instinctively, reluctant to let the night end. No one said it aloud, but I felt it—the way they lingered, the way their eyes clung to mine in the low golden light, as if we could stretch this moment a little longer.
Claire shuffled her feet first, hands behind her back, rocking forward on her toes. "Sooo... goodnight, Sera."
She said it brightly, but there was a little tug at the end, like she didn't really want to go.
"Goodnight, Claire," I said softly, and she beamed at me like I'd handed her the moon.
Camille leaned in next, brushing her fingers lightly against my wrist in that casual, maddening way of hers. "Sleep well, little star."
Her voice was low, her smile almost secretive, as if she knew I'd be lying awake thinking about that stupid nickname for hours.
Tessa gave a simple nod, her hand grazing mine briefly—steady, grounding. "If you need anything," she murmured.
"I know," I said, meeting her gaze. Her eyes softened, just a fraction, and she inclined her head again before stepping back.
Diana was last to approach. She stopped in front of me with a sly, knowing smirk, arms crossed lightly over her chest.
"You'll dream of us," she said, voice like velvet, "and you'll wake up embarrassed."
"Will not," I muttered weakly, cheeks already heating.
Diana laughed under her breath—a low, rich sound that sent a shiver down my spine. "We'll see."
And then she reached out and tapped my forehead lightly with two fingers—a teasing, affectionate gesture that somehow felt far more intimate than it had any right to.
"Goodnight, Sera," she said, her voice softer now.
I barely managed to whisper it back.
As they each disappeared down their own halls, I turned slowly toward my door, thinking maybe—maybe—that was it.
But Lillian stayed.
Still holding my hand, still close, still radiating that soft, endless patience only she seemed capable of.
I looked up at her, heart twisting, overwhelmed and warm at the same time.
"You should go too," I said quietly, even though a part of me selfishly wanted her to stay.
Lillian's smile was patient and knowing. "Not yet."
She raised our linked hands slightly, pressing the back of my hand gently to her lips. The kiss was featherlight, barely there, but it sent my heart skittering against my ribs like a wild thing.
"I'll stay until you go inside," she whispered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "I'll stay as long as you need."
My throat tightened painfully.
"Lillian..."
She only smiled again, and somehow that smile said everything—that she would wait, that she wasn't afraid of how complicated my heart was, that she wasn't asking for anything but the right to stay beside me.
After a long, long moment, I squeezed her hand.
"Thank you," I whispered.
She leaned forward, brushing her forehead lightly against mine—so gentle, so careful it made my chest ache.
"No matter how long it takes," she murmured, her breath warm against my skin, "I'll be here."
And with that final, lingering moment, I finally turned toward my door, stepping inside.
But just before I closed it, I looked back.
Lillian was still there, smiling, framed by the soft glow of the hallway lights, like a star I could always find no matter how dark it got.
And somehow, I knew—
Tomorrow, the world might demand more of me.
Tomorrow, I might have to be strong again, fight again, lead again.
But tonight, I could simply be Sera Vandren.
Loved.
Wanted.
Home.
And as I slipped into bed, pulling the blankets around me, a tiny, hopeful thought whispered itself into my heart:
Maybe it was okay to want all of them too.Maybe it was okay to love.Maybe it was okay... to stay.
Sleep came easily after that.
And in my dreams, they were all there—waiting, laughing, teasing, reaching out their hands to me like they always had.
And this time, without hesitation, I reached back.