The burnt grass still released smoke, the smell of iron in the air stuck to the throat. Jack's body lay on the floor, motionless, the expression of shock still frozen on his face. You could barely breathe. The heart beat frantically, the hands still trembling with the energy that had crossed his body seconds before.

"I... I didn't want to..." - his voice came out weak, broken, his eyes burning. -"He was an idiot, he hated me, but I didn't want to..."

The weight of guilt sank into his chest, overwhelming. You took a step back, as if you wanted to run away from yourself, but a firm hand held your arm.

Shad.

His eyes, dark as a storm, didn't have a shred of judgment. He pulled her back, bringing her closer to her own body, firm enough for you not to fall apart.

"Look at me." - His voice was low, deep, but cutting enough to cross his confusion. You were reluctant, but met his gaze, intense, inescapable. - "This is not a curse."

You shook your head, tears overflowing. - "I killed him... Xaden, I did! With my hands, with something I don't even know how to control!"

He held his face, thumb wiping the tear that flowed. - "He tried to destroy you from the first day. He would have killed you without thinking twice." - His proximity burned as much as the energy that still pulsated in his veins. - "Your power does not define you for what you have done now. He's part of you. And you will learn to control it. With me."

"And if I can't?" - his voice came out in a whisper. - "And if I become a monster?"

A muscle contracted in Xaden's jaw, as if the simple idea was unacceptable. He leaned, his forehead touching his, his heat breaking the cold that settled in his chest.

"I've seen monsters." - His words were said almost like an oath. - "And you're not one of them. You will never be."

The energy inside you seemed to calm down to the sound of his conviction, as if even your own magic recognized the strength of the promise.

He didn't move away. On the contrary, he let you breathe next to him, as if he were anchoring you there, back to the world, back to herself.

"You're not alone in this, little one." - his whisper brushed her lips, loaded with intensity. - "You'll never be."