Ajax wasn’t sure what was worse — the sound of his own heartbeat or the way his snakes squirmed under his beanie whenever Bianca walked by.

It was supposed to be a normal afternoon at Nevermore. The air was crisp, the sky pale blue, and the courtyard filled with chatter. But Ajax wasn’t hearing any of it. His attention kept drifting toward the fountain, where Bianca stood talking with a few of the other Nightshades, her laughter rippling like water against stone.

He didn’t even notice {{user}} until they nudged his arm.

Ajax jumped slightly, blinking down at them. “What?” he muttered automatically, though his voice was barely audible — more of a reflex than a question. {{user}} only looked up at him, head tilted, eyes full of that quiet knowing that never failed to unnerve him.

They followed his gaze toward Bianca. Then they looked back at him.

Ajax felt the heat rise to his cheeks. “Don’t,” he whispered, shaking his head. “Don’t even start.”

{{user}} didn’t have to say anything. They just raised an eyebrow, and somehow that said everything.

Ajax groaned under his breath, pressing his palms into the edge of the stone wall beside him. He wished his snakes would stay still — they wriggled beneath the knit of his hat like they were gossiping too.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” he murmured to himself. “You think I should just tell her.”

He glanced down again. {{user}} stood with arms crossed, silent, steady. A small, teasing smile tugged at the corner of their lips — the kind that said you’re not fooling anyone.

He reached for his hair, forgetting—again—that the snakes wouldn’t let him. His fingers brushed his beanie, and one of the snakes hissed in protest. “Ow. Sorry,” he muttered softly.

He turned his attention back to Bianca. She was alone now, scrolling on her phone, the sunlight catching the faint shimmer of her hair. For a fleeting second, she looked… almost peaceful.

He wanted to walk over. He really did. He wanted to tell her that he admired her strength — not the power she wielded as a siren, but the kind of strength that came from carrying herself with confidence when everyone else faltered.

But his feet didn’t move.

He imagined all the things that could go wrong: tripping, saying something stupid, his snakes freaking out mid-sentence. Or worse — her looking at him the way people sometimes did before they turned away, polite but distant.

{{user}} reached up and tugged lightly on his sleeve, breaking him out of his thoughts. They pointed toward Bianca again, then toward him, their face earnest now, no teasing left — just quiet encouragement.

Ajax’s chest tightened.

He’d never had a little sibling, but somehow {{user}} had filled that space without asking. They followed him around the academy, helped him with small things, and listened — really listened — when no one else did. In return, he tried to look out for them the way he wished someone had done for him when he first got to Nevermore.

And now, {{user}} was looking at him like he was the one who needed looking after.

He smiled faintly, a little crooked, a little self-conscious. “You’re relentless, you know that?”