Cloud Strife Draw Novels & Stories

I draw the bow slowly across the strings. The first note vibrates through the clearing like sunlight through glass. The seam answers immediately. A ripple of pale light spreads through the air before me. I layer another note over it. Then another. The melody grows slowly, carefully, weaving together the same harmony I felt earlier through the bond. The barrier brightens. And then— The air clears. Emberhold appears faintly through the shimmer. Cliffs. Storm clouds. And a single dark figure standing against the wind. My breath catches.

Clara’s POV The art room smelled of turpentine and old wood, a blend that usually calmed me, wrapping me in a familiar embrace. But not today. Today, it only heightened the bitterness choking me, clouding the air as I fought to push my emotions onto the canvas. My brush trembled in my grip as I dragged thick black strokes across the canvas, each one heavier than the last, blurring into a chaotic mess that mirrored the storm inside me. My chest felt tight, my throat raw, as the frustration and anger threatened to overflow.