Ellie POV


    The dream came softly at first, like another memory I hadn''t meant to remember.


    I was standing in a field of silver blue grass that shimmered under a full moon. The air was cool and still, the stars so close they seemed to hum. A woman stood a few paces ahead, her back turned, hair dark and reflecting the light.


    I knew her before she spoke.


    "Mother?"


    The woman turned. Selene''s eyes were the same soft gray I remembered, shimmering like moonlight. They were kind and knowing, full of a love that reached across years.


    "My little moonbeam,” she said, her voice soft as a breeze.


    My chest tightened. "You''re here. I''m so d. I need you. I feel so lost.''


    "What the goddess keeps is never lost," my mother said. She reached out, her hand brushing my cheek, warm despite the dream''s chill. "You''ve been carrying too much guilt, my love. It''s clouding what''s meant for you."


    "I don''t understand," I said, tears stinging my eyes. "Everything feels wrong. I keep making choices that hurt people."


    Selene smiled softly. "The goddess doesn''t make mistakes. She puts us where we need to be, even when we don''t yet see why."


    "But what if I ruin everything again?"


    "Then you learn," my mother said simply. "The goddess doesn''t ask for perfection, Ellie. She asks for faith in her, and in yourself."


    The moonlight brightened, spilling over everything until the field was awash in silver light. My mother''s form began to fade with it, her smile lingering.


    "Trust your heart," Selene said, her voice echoing as the dream began to dissolve. "It knows the way home."


    I woke with a soft gasp. The early morning light streamed through the window, golden and quiet. The familiar scent ofvender drifted from the open door - Rae must have already arrived.


    My heart was still racing. I pressed a hand to my cheek, half expecting to feel the warmth of my mother''s touch still there.


    "The goddess doesn''t make mistakes."


    The words echoed through me, bothforting and terrifying.


    "The goddess might not, but I do," I whispered to the empty room.


    I sat up slowly, rubbing my temples. It was hard to tell where my mother''s voice ended and the goddess''s began. Maybe they were one and the same. Maybe that was the point.


    The faint sound ofughter drifted from the kitchen light, familiar, real.


    I rose, wrapping my robe tighter around myself, and padded softly down the hall.


    +25 Bonus


    Rae was standing at the stove, humming under her breath, a pan of eggs sizzling. Cassian was behind her, reaching over to grab a mug from the shelf. He said something low that I couldn''t quite catch, and Raeughed, shaking her head as she swatted his hand away from the te.


    The sight stopped me in my tracks.


    It was a simple moment, ordinary and warm, but something about it made my chest ache. The ease between them, the quietfort of shared space. They moved around each other without effort, as if their rhythms had always matched.


    Rae turned and spotted me first. "You''re up early,” she said, smiling.


    "Couldn''t sleep," I admitted.


    Cassian handed me a mug of coffee as I sat at the table. "You look like you''ve seen


    a ghost," he said gently.


    "Maybe I have," I murmured.


    Rae arched a brow. "Dreaming again?"


    I nodded. "My mother."


    Cassian''s expression softened. A look of longing shed across his face before he schooled his expression.


    "Mom... tell me about it. What did she look like? Did she seem... okay?" Cassian asked. There was a softness to his tone that I''d never quite heard before. Cassian had a deep voice that effortlesslymanded attention.


    Right now, he almost sounded nervous.


    It made perfect sense, though. This was our mother, and Cassian remembered her


    in ways that I never would. It almost felt wrong that I was the onemunicating with her while she remained beyond his reach.


    “She was beautiful. Serene. She''s at peace, Cassian," I replied carefully.


    He nodded once, seemingly satisfied with the information. His shoulders/rxed a fraction, and he cleared his throat. "What did she say?"


    I hesitated, staring into the dark swirl of my coffee. "That the goddess doesn''t make mistakes. And that I should trust my heart."


    Rae set down a te and slid into the chair across from me. "That sounds like good advice."


    "It sounds terrifying," I said honestly. "What if my heart doesn''t know what it wants?" Cassian smiled faintly. "Hearts usually do. Our minds just talk over them."


    I looked up at him, surprised by the gentleness in his tone. "When did you get so wise?"


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