Bound to The Enemy of My Mate
Three weeks after the moon madness, Elira stood in a field that had been poison-dead dirt and watched something miraculous happen.
Green.
Not the sickly, yellow-green of plants struggling in toxic soil, but the vibrant, defiant green of mountain clover breaking through the earth. She knelt, her fingers brushing the delicate leaves that trembled in the morning breeze. The air smelled of wet earth and hope instead of chemical decay.
"Still checking on them every hour?"
She looked up to see Kael approaching, two steaming mugs in hand. He'd taken to drinking the bitter mountain tea the Outskirts folk brewed, saying it "built character." She suspected he just wanted to share their customs.