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I felt his sincerity—and beneath it, a depth I hadn't anticipated.

"So you were meditating," I said.

He nodded. "Helps me think, witchy poo.” He glanced at me. "Might help you too, given what you're diving into later."

"I've never been good at sitting still," I admitted.

"Meditation isn't about emptying your mind. It's about finding the quiet beneath the noise."

I thought about that.

"Like finding the seedling under the weeds?"

"Exactly like that." He seemed pleased by the comparison. "Want to give it a shot?"

"Why not? My other option is pacing anxiously until sunset."

"That's the spirit," he said dryly. "Close your eyes. Focus on your breath."

I followed his instructions, expecting my mind to immediately start its usual circus act. Instead, the garden sounds washed over me—birds calling, leaves rustling, water trickling. My breathing slowed naturally, matching the rhythm of the fountain.

"You're a natural," Sloth said softly after several minutes. "Most people take a lot longer to settle."

"Must be all that quality time with temperamental tomato plants," I murmured, keeping my eyes closed.

"There's wisdom in growing things," he agreed. "Patience. Acceptance of what you can and can't control."

"I've been so busy being angry, I forgot I'm allowed to feel other things too."

"Anger's just the loudest emotion. Doesn't mean it's the only one."

We sat in comfortable silence for a while. Gradually, I became aware of the bond between us. A calm, steady presence unlike my more volatile connection with Lust or the structured precision of Pride's bond.

"I can feel it," I said. "Our connection. It's..."

"Blue," he supplied. "Like still water on a clear day."

I opened my eyes, surprised. "You see it that way too?"

"We all experience the bonds slightly differently, but the essence is the same." He stretched lazily. "Mine tends toward thecalmer end of the spectrum. Lust's is all passion and fire. Pride's is structure and precision."

"And what happens when all seven are active at once?" The question that had been nagging at me.

He considered this. "Honestly? No one knows. This kind of network hasn't existed before, not with our particular...configuration."

"You mean the deadly sins and their long-lost member?"

"Something like that." His lips quirked. "Though 'long-lost' implies you were missing. Maybe we were the ones who didn't know we were incomplete."

The sentiment caught me off guard. "That's...strangely poetic coming from you."

"I contain multitudes," he said with exaggerated mysteriousness, then grinned. "Actually, I read a lot of poetry. One of the benefits of appearing to nap constantly. People leave you alone with books."

I laughed, genuinely delighted by this revelation. "So Sloth has hidden depths. What other secrets are you all keeping from me?"

"Fishing for information about all of us?" he teased. "Planning your approach?"

"Just trying to understand who I'm connecting with," I said, though heat rose to my cheeks. "You're all more than your sin aspects, obviously."