Oliver remained motionless while staring across the enormous stone hall surrounding him.
His smaller body felt unfamiliar and restrictive as warm golden light reflected softly across the polished white floor beneath his feet. The strange tightness lingering within his chest refused to dissipate, and although his mind remained clear, the body he occupied no longer responded entirely according to his will.
Tiny fingers remained wrapped around the hand of the woman standing beside him.
Or rather, the woman whose face he could not see.
No matter how intently he focused, darkness completely swallowed every trace of her features, as though the memory itself deliberately refused to reveal them. The shadows veiling her face shifted unnaturally beneath the golden light surrounding them.
Yet despite that, her presence alone felt warm, safe, and familiar.
