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THEDAWN broke in shades of pale pink and gold, casting a faint glow over the camp as Eleanor and her forces prepared to depart. The night's brief moment of tenderness between her and Fionn seemed like a distant dream now, tucked away in the shadows of her mind as they saddled their horses and readied themselves for the long ride ahead.
Fionn rode beside her, silent for the first few hours of their journey. Eleanor kept her eyes fixed on the path, the familiar weight of duty settling over her like armor. She had spent years building herself into this—unyielding, unshakable. And last night had been a mistake, a momentary lapse in her control that could not be repeated.
The morning passed in quiet unease, the only sound the steady clop of hooves and the rustling of trees in the wind. Fionn, always so attuned to her, finally broke the silence, his voice low but tentative.
"Eleanor," he began, his eyes searching her face as they rode. "About last night—"
Her jaw clenched at his words, and before he could continue, she cut him off, her voice cold and sharp as steel. "There's nothing to discuss."
Fionn blinked, his surprise evident, but he persisted, his tone gentle. "I don't believe that. You can't just pretend—"
"I can and I will," she snapped, turning to him with a harsh glare. "Whatever you thought last night was, it wasn't real. We were both caught in the moment, and it was a mistake. I don't have time for... distractions."
Fionn's expression faltered, hurt flickering in his green eyes. "You don't have to push me away."
"I'm not pushing you away," she said icily, her tone unforgiving. "I'm reminding you of your place. You are my knight. Nothing more. Don't mistake a fleeting moment of weakness for something it isn't."
The words cut like a blade, sharper than she had intended, but Eleanor didn't soften. She couldn't. If she let this continue, if she let Fionn believe there was something more between them, it would only lead to ruin. She had already made that mistake once—with Daemon.
Fionn opened his mouth to argue, but then seemed to think better of it. His jaw tightened, and he nodded, though the hurt in his eyes didn't fade. "As you wish, Princess," he said quietly, his voice strained.
Eleanor turned her gaze forward again, her heart hardening as she shut down any trace of guilt. She had made the right choice. There was no room for softness in her world. Not with everything that lay ahead.
The rest of the day passed in silence between them. Fionn kept his distance after that, riding a few paces behind her, his usual easy demeanor replaced by a quiet, brooding tension. Eleanor felt his absence like a dull ache in the back of her mind, but she refused to dwell on it.
As the Red Keep loomed closer in the distance, she could feel the weight of her return pressing down on her, suffocating the air between them. She didn't look back.
There was no turning back now.
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