Page 176 of Claimed In Darkness

We cut our palms and we lace our fingers together.

And we speak the words.

Ancient words. Forbidden words. Words of power older than time itself.

"Luthin'quor."I am yours.

"Luthin'vrae."You are mine.

It’s the ancient mating ritual of our house. The one my mother told me when I was young and everything was right with the world.

Before my father turned into the monster that he was today.

Her breath hitches as she repeats them back.

"Luthin'quor."I am yours.

"Luthin'vrae."You are mine.

The space crackles and magic shivers around us.

I feel it sink into my skin, into my blood, into the broken places inside me.

And suddenly, I’m anchored. A part of her is filling up the empty places in my soul.

I am anchored to her. To us.

To something greater than myself.

Now, I truly I understand what it means to belong.

Not because of chains.

Not because of power.

But because of love.

I take a deep, steady breath.

Something I haven’t been able to do since the moment my soul started unraveling.

The pain is gone.

The curse is still there but it’s different now.

Her eyes widen as her body tenses.

"Zephiran—" she gasps.

And I feel it. The pain, not just hers, but also mine. The relic can’t take us both, our soul stronger when together. Our souls are united, one being but not one soul.

Ours.

The bond didn’t just save me.

It didn’t just anchor me.

It tied us together.

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