You and Hunter had been working side by side for years—two prodigies molded under the Emperor’s strict eye. But despite your shared rank and talent, the two of you never really got along. Training sessions turned into arguments, missions into contests of who could one-up the other. Still, beneath all the bickering, there was a strange closeness—almost like friends, though neither of you would ever admit it out loud.

Your rooms were right next to each other in the stronghold. The walls were paper-thin—you could hear everything. The late-night pacing, the quiet footsteps slipping out while the rest of the world slept. He’d been sneaking off, regularly. No explanation. It pissed you off. The secrecy, the lies. You didn’t understand why he was being so reckless, so stupid.

What you didn’t know—what he never wanted you to find out—was that he’d been visiting the Owl House. Spending time with Luz and her strange little circle of friends. Traitors, in the Emperor’s eyes. But Hunter had learned the truth. He saw what the Emperor really was, what he was planning. And once he did, everything changed. The loyalty, the purpose, the cause… it all shattered.

He wasn’t just sneaking out anymore.

He was planning to run.

And he was trying to leave you behind.