The fire had died down to glowing embers, casting the room in a soft, warm gloom. Ren sat on the edge of the broken windowsill, staring out into the moonlit night. He looked peaceful for once — not brooding, not tense — just… still.
Ayame wasn't sure how to handle that.
"Are you always this quiet when you're not in life-or-death mode?" she asked, stretching her arms behind her.
Ren turned, smirking. "Depends. If I talk too much, people usually assume I'm trying to hypnotize them."
She snorted. "Oh, really? The infamous vampire mind tricks?"
"Works best with eye contact," he said, leaning a little closer, his voice lowering just enough to make her heartbeat skip. "Want me to demonstrate?"
Ayame raised a brow, fighting the smile tugging at her lips. "Try it and I might stab you. Out of reflex, of course."
Ren grinned. "Risk accepted."
They stared at each other for a moment — his gaze playful, hers skeptical — until Ayame rolled her eyes and tossed him a piece of dried fruit from her pack. He caught it mid-air with effortless grace and an unnecessarily dramatic bow.
"Impressive," she said, deadpan.
"I do my best. We vampires are nothing if not elegant under pressure." He bit into the fruit and made a face. "Except when we're fed trail snacks instead of, you know… something with a pulse."
"Deal with it, Your Highness," Ayame said, crossing her arms. "You're in hiding, remember? No feeding on anything that screams."
"I wasn't going to feed on anyone," Ren said, mock offended. "I have self-control. Mostly."
Ayame gave him a look.
"…Sometimes," he corrected with a grin. "Okay, occasionally."
She laughed then, a real one. It surprised both of them. The sound lightened the air like a gust of wind, clearing some of the weight they'd both been carrying.
Ren tilted his head, watching her. "You should laugh more."
"You should stop flirting."
"But where's the fun in that?"
Ayame shook her head, standing to gather her things. "We should move again at sunrise. The Circle's going to be tracking us."
Ren's mood shifted just slightly, his eyes narrowing with that quiet alertness she was beginning to recognize. "Then let's make the most of the time we have now."
He stepped toward her — not threatening, not too close — but enough that she felt the tension ripple between them again. Not fear. Something else.
"You don't have to be afraid of what I am," he said softly. "I'm not the monster they say I am."
Ayame held his gaze, her voice just as soft. "And you don't have to hide from what you feel."
For a heartbeat, the room felt suspended. No fire. No Circle. No curses.
Just a hunter. Just a vampire. Caught in something they didn't have words for yet.
"Careful," Ren said with a crooked smile. "You're starting to sound like you don't want to kill me."
"Don't push your luck, fang-boy."
But she didn't step away.
And neither did he.