Kiro forced his body to stay still, lying limp just feet away from where Seira was collapsed. A groan nearly tore itself from his lips and his frayed nerves screamed at him to move, but he slowly exhaled and embraced the pain. This had to have been a thousand times worse for Seira.

"Now I will have the servants take you to your bed. The world does not need to see the heir of the Tang family in such a state."

Their mother walked out of the room, letting the door close behind her with a swish. This was his chance. Seira needed to escape this mess, and if the servants got ahold of her, she'd never be able to. He struggled to his feet, staying as quiet as possible as he limped over to her. His robes felt like they had transformed into white-hot iron, and every step felt like he was swimming through molten magma, but he ignored it all in favor of his sister. She needed his help.

He picked her up, silencing his body's wails as it dealt with the pain and shock of his mother's technique. He had everything he needed in his house — as long as he got her there, everything would be fine.

He had been too weak to do anything in the moment, but at least he could help in the aftermath. He gently lowered her out of the window, making sure that none of her inflamed skin touched the rough tiles of the roof. This was going to be a long walk…

* * *

A mile in, his arms gave out, and he moved her to his back.

Two miles in, he nearly passed out from the pain, but a quick mouthful of sparkleaf sharpened his thoughts enough to continue.

Three miles in, they started encountering more people on the trails. Stares stabbed into his back as clan members passed him on the path to his home, but a flash of Seira's Brave mark had deterred any young nobles looking for a fight. That, and the fact that as soon as one of them stepped near them, the stench of burnt flesh would leave them queasy. How ironic, that despite being trained every day of their lives in fire, they didn’t realize its effects.

Finally, as his home appeared on the far side of the trail, Seira woke.

"... Kiro?"

He gave her a reassuring squeeze, continuing his steady march forwards. "It's okay, Seira. I'm taking you away from her."

“She shouldn't have been there...”

"It's okay.” He let out a ragged breath. “I'm just glad I’m going to be able to repay you at least once before you leave."

Tears welled back up in her eyes, but before she could say anything else, she collapsed back against him, the pain too much for her to take.

He cursed. “Hold on, Seira. We’re almost there.”

* * *

He worked for hours, applying salve after salve to her burns and feeding her soup and elixir whenever he could. Fatigue and his own injuries threatened to collapse him, but he kept himself working with sheer force of will.

He choked back tears — even now, it was barely enough.

Vial after vial was emptied in the name of her healing, and when she was roused awake, he would just hold her, comforting her before she went back to sleep. It was only once he had done everything that he could for her that he turned to his own wounds.

What felt like an eternity later, he limped over to his room, only to realize that he had placed Seira on the bed. Not wanting to rouse her from her sleep and too tired to walk back to a chair, he collapsed onto the floor with a satisfied thump. It was still evening, but he was far too tired to do anything but sleep. At least this way he would be there when Seira woke…

As if roused by his thoughts, she rolled over, groaning as she looked down at him. "Kiro… you should have done your injury first. I can at least cultivate to recover —"

She ended her sentence with a squeak, wincing.

He gave her a tired grin."See? You need it even more than I do. Her technique… it's the same one that the matriarch used in the vision, wasn't it?"

She frowned. "Yes, I think so. Just another reason to free you from that monster."

“I have every faith in you. All we need to do is stay holed up here until tomorrow.”

He closed his eyes, and for a few breaths, they just sat in silence.

"Hey, Kiro?"

He opened his eyes. "Yes?"

"I… this day has made me realize just how much I need you. Without you, I would probably still be... trapped"

That last part came out in a whisper, but she steeled herself and continued. "But even more than that, I just can't imagine never seeing you again. You're practically the only thing keeping me sane, and I want you by my side, no matter where or when.”

She took a deep breath. “So... tomorrow, I'm taking you with me. The Saint is kind — I'm sure she'll take you in. And even with your latent talent, she would be able to train you no problem! If she objects, I’ll just pester her until she caves or make a deal or do whatever in the heavens it takes… but I'm not leaving without you."

He shook his head. "You're making this very hard for me, but really, I can't. All I'd do is hold you back."

"No buts!"

Seira struggled out of bed, and he jumped to push her back down. "Seira, stop it. You'll agitate your injuries."

"Fine, but you're going to listen to me."

He sighed, chuckling. “Alright?”

She grabbed his shoulder, turning him towards her and looking him in the eyes. "You. Are. Not. A. Burden. Everything you've done today has just proved it. If nothing else, your alchemy is a huge help, and that's not even accounting for how much… how much you do for me emotionally. You're always there for me, Kiro. I don't know how I'd live without that."

She sniffled, pulling him in for a hug. He gently pushed himself away to avoid agitating her burns, but she just tightened her grip. "So please, stop letting our clan's indoctrination get in your head. You have more worth than all of these mindless goons, and it's about time you realize that! And plus, Rynn is a Sun, and he was chosen by the Saint. What's to say that you don't have more potential than this clan has given you credit for?"

He released her, careful not to disturb the bandages on her collar. "I… I never looked at it that way."

“Exactly!” She poked him in the side. “Kiro, I don’t care about what this clan, our mother, or even what the Saint thinks about you. Whatever happens tomorrow, we’re going to face it together.”

Supervisor Meng's words came back, and for once, he viewed them from a different perspective.

If I were this fish, I know where I would seek to go. The golden falls of heaven, where, by the power of the Saints, any fish who climbs to the peak becomes a mighty dragon.

All that time, he had assumed that the supervisor was talking about Seira. But... what if he was talking about him?

She smiled. "Now I need to sleep. We've got a big day tomorrow."