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And still he knew—wherever she went, he’d be right there with her.

They turned onto their street and started up the hill. He finally said, “There’s, uh, something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“You want me to teach you bloodcrafting.”

Skye blinked.

Ivain snorted faintly. “Don’t look so surprised. You’ve got the look you always get when you’re about to ask me to do something that would have your mother demanding my head. Plus, I know how your mind works. There are tough days ahead, and you want to be prepared. You have obligations now. A mate to protect?”

Skye cleared his throat. “You have to admit—Taly’s a magnet for trouble. A little extra ordnance might be useful.”

“Oh, they’re all like that,” Ivain said.Time mages.“Their magic is… wild, unpredictable, and never meant to be witnessed by anyone who values their sanity.”

He tossed the empty bag in a nearby bin and wiped his hands. “I’ll tell you the same thing my teachers told me: this is a bad idea. Not that I expect it to make any difference.”

“It won’t.” Skye’s mind was made up. He’d already proven it to himself at the bridge—he needed to get stronger.

“Which is why I’m also going to tell you the one thing I swore I would never do. I won’t choose between you and Taly. Your mother couldn’t make me do it, and neither will you. And that is, Skylen, what you’re asking me to do. Sacrifice you for her. My answer is no.”

“But—”

“No.”

Skye exhaled sharply. He hadn’t expected that. He truly, honestly, hadn’t believed that Ivain would refuse.

He’d already started down this path. Why pull back now?

“There’s nothing you’ve done so far that couldn’t be reversed,” Ivain said as if reading the thought. “You’ve woven extra protein into your muscle fibers, begun feeling out your aether-limbic system, but nothing has been added or taken away. You’re still you. You’re stillwhole. And you’re going to stay that way. I’m sorry. I know that’s not what you wanted to hear.”

The townhouse was just ahead. They crested the hill, moving toward the side entrance. Halfway across the yard, Skye stooped and called out to him.

“I’ve already thrown my lot in with Taly.”

Ivain sighed before turning to face him. “This isn’t about loyalty, Skye.”

“As a Fabricator, I’m only as powerful as my weapon—as what I can create. And that’s not going to be enough. I need to be stronger. The Queen warned us that something is coming. She toldme—me, Ivain—that I needed to be ready.”

“And you will be. I promise.”

“How can you know that?”

“Because,” the old man said. “I haven’t taught you all my tricks yet.”

Skye narrowed his eyes. “Go on.”

“On the bridge—you morphed.”

Skye’s pulse kicked up at the memory of that rush of power. He’d felt limitless.

“Yeah,” he said carefully. “And?”

“That wasn’t bloodcrafting.”

Skye stared at him, waiting for the punchline. “… what?”

“Close enough to toe the lines of legality, but no. Not bloodcrafting.” Ivain’s eyes glinted. “What if I could teach you how to do that on command? Without almost shredding your insides. That high you felt? That was your cells ripping open beneath the shearing force of all that realignment, flooding your system with aether. You should try to avoid that in the future.”

Skye rocked back on his heels, considering. It wasn’t what he wanted. But it was something. He could work with that. “When can we start?”