Night had fallen fully over the ancient castle. Cold winds from the north drifted softly past stone pillars, carrying a thin mist that shimmered gently under the glow of candlelight in the castle's inner halls. Beneath a gray sky, the stars of this world appeared pale, holding riddles no ordinary human could hope to understand.
Sylvia stood on the balcony of her chamber, both hands resting on the cold, rough stone railing. Her black dress fluttered lightly in the night breeze, and her black hair drifted in the wind, faintly gleaming under the reddish moon that hung far closer than the one from her original world.
Her face was calm, but her eyes were empty. She stared at the night sky in silence, as if hoping for a voice, a signal, or a whisper from the one she missed most.
Sofia.
