Aiden's days grew heavier.
Celestia had only been in camp for two days, but already her presence shifted the air like a thundercloud. Soldiers walked straighter when she passed. Officers whispered about renewed treaties. And Shinomi… he grew quieter.
He still gave Aiden small tasks—sharpening blades, organizing battle scrolls—but he no longer lingered to speak. He didn't ask about the polish. He didn't watch him from across the campfire. It was as if Celestia's arrival had pulled the walls back up around him.
Aiden hated it.
---
One evening, Aiden was called to deliver a message to the queen's tent. He wanted to refuse—but saying no would've drawn attention. He approached just after dusk, the tent's flaps glowing faintly from the candles inside.
He knocked once. "Your Majesty?"
"Enter."
Inside, Celestia lounged in a velvet chair, a half-empty glass of wine in hand. Her golden gown shimmered like liquid sun, though her eyes were sharp and unreadable.
"I remember now," she said before he even spoke. "You're Ren Valis's son."
Aiden froze.
She smiled. "I was wondering where I'd seen that face. Of course, you were still a brat at the coronation. Your father was boasting about you nonstop."
He lowered his head. "That life is gone, Your Majesty."
"And yet," she mused, rising from her chair, "you linger in this camp like ivy. Climbing places you don't belong."
She circled him like a hawk. "What game are you playing, little fox? Serving Shinomi? Or spying for your father?"
"I serve only Lord Shinomi," Aiden said quietly.
"Do you?" Her tone was mocking. "You look at him like a starving hound."
Aiden met her gaze without flinching. "He deserves someone who sees his worth."
Celestia blinked, caught off-guard by his boldness.
"Interesting," she said after a moment. "Very interesting."
She stepped closer, her perfume sweet and poisonous. "Let me give you a piece of advice, child. Shinomi is not a man who loves. He is a man who remembers. And the only thing he remembers of your family… is betrayal."
Aiden said nothing. But his hands clenched.
Celestia leaned down, voice honeyed. "You should go home. Before you bleed for nothing."
---
That night, as Aiden returned to his straw bedding, he stared up at the stars.
Celestia was playing the game again. Beautiful words, veiled threats, and poison smiles.
But Aiden had read this story before. He knew how she moved.
And this time, he wouldn't be the one who backed down.
If Shinomi was a man who remembered, then Aiden would give him new memories—ones worth holding onto.
---