“I forgive you,” I tell Bastian, letting the words sit on my tongue for a moment to truly ensure I mean them. “But only if you fight with me tomorrow. I’ll stand by you as you face Kaven, and you by me as we face the king. Fear is part of life; all that matters is what we do with it. So think of the people who are counting on us. We have a chance to fix this.” I can tell he’s mentally processing the gravity of those words as his lips press together and his head dips. Quietly, he says, “I’ll stand by you.”
