A boy lay asleep in a bleached hospital bed, curly hair still wet against the pillow from his brief interval in the suspended-animation tank. The cold white light overhead highlighted his slightly crooked nose and the fresh scar that cut across his temple. Pimples plagued his youthful, olive-toned skin. He appeared only nineteen or twenty years old, too young to endure all I knew he'd gone through. The doctors had given him a drug to keep him asleep after his treatment. I couldn't help but feel grateful as I waited in a stiff chair beside the bed. I needed time to myself to think.

Those last few hours… I wasn't sure what to make of them. So much had changed. Nothing had gone to plan. It was anyone's guess what would happen now. Everything was down to the queen's court's verdict: either Adam and I would be free to go wherever we wanted–and I had a mental list which grew by the minute–or he'd be locked up forever and I'd never see him again. I closed my eyes and prayed that the former would become true.

When I looked down at Adam again, he looked back. A gentle smile crept across my lips as I recognized the chocolate gaze.

"Hello, Mr. Tier."

His nose crinkled. "We haven't gone back to that, have we?" he joked. His voice was lighter, younger than I was used to. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or shudder.

"Depends," I replied.

"On what?"

"Whether or not I like the new Adam."

"New…?" His eyes widened in understanding, and his image shimmered. In a breath, I was sitting next to the Adam I knew again, sleek black hair and marble cheekbones. But it didn't feel right, knowing what lay underneath and not being able to see it.

My discomfort must have shown on my face, because Adam frowned. "What's wrong?" he asked.

I felt my ears warm, and I answered apologetically, "I think I prefer New Adam." After a pause, I added quietly, avoiding his gaze, "There aren't any lies on him."

Adam winced, and New Adam reappeared. "Better?"

"Why do you wear the glamour?"

He sighed, pushing himself up in the bed to lean against the headboard. "You never run out of questions, do you?"

"Only when you run out of secrets."

"That's fair." He rubbed his face, a habit that looked out of place next to his boyish features. "You remember I told you I was the youngest thaumaturge? Well, the others would always make fun of me for my age, so I glamoured myself to look older. Simple as that."

"Then why wear it away from work?"

Adam shrugged. "I got into the habit of wearing it all the time. I knows it's childish, but it makes me feel more…" He seemed to search for the right word. "In control. It's easier to feel confident when you have a mask to hide behind. If you could make yourself look however you wanted, wouldn't you do it?"

I picked at my skirt, frowning. "Why didn't you fight back?"

He tensed and pinched the sheets beneath his fingers. "You know why."

My breath caught, but I had run out of tears to shed. "I thought you were dead, Adam." I knit my brows, and fire tinged my repetition: "I thought you were dead."

"I'm sorry." He took my hand in his and squeezed softly. "I didn't want you to have to go through that."

I studied him. I didn't know how to read his new features, but he seemed sincere. And why wouldn't he be? I forced myself to remember that just because he looked—and sounded—different didn't mean that he was.

"So—why aren't I in a prison cell right now?" Adam scanned the room as if expecting someone to jump out of nowhere and handcuff him.

"You needed treatment in the suspended-animation tank, and they couldn't legally lock you up until I'd given my eyewitness defense. Or whatever it's called."

He jerked upright. "You testified? Bell, I told you I don't deserve that. I can't–"

"I told you that I wouldn't let them lock you up if I could do anything about it."

He ran a hand over his face again. "What did they say?"

"They haven't given the final verdict yet. There was some 'disagreement', so they've kicked me out until they come to a decision." I tried for a confident smile but found that my lips wouldn't work. I settled for a grimace.

Adam nodded solemnly. "How are the droids? Is Chip fixed?"

"Pots and Lumi are fine. They're…waiting…somewhere." I waved my hand vaguely. The exhaustion had caught up with me, and my brain had begun to fuzz. One heavy sigh later, I continued, "I asked the queen to fix Chip if she had time, and she said she would. That's all I got."

"You look tired."

"You think?" I laid my head on the sheets beside Adam's arm and let my eyes drift closed. "I had a busy day," I mumbled.

"Sorry."

"It's not your fault." I giggled, bordering on delirious. "Well, I guess it sort of is."

"You need sleep."

"Yep."

He said something else, but the words bounced uselessly from my ears. A gentle hand stroked my hair, now dry but still messy from my swim in the lake. My lips barely had time to curl into a sleepy smile before a timid rapping came at the door.

"Come in," called Adam.

I lifted my head from the bed to see a palace servant standing stiffly at the door.

"The council has reached a verdict," he said.

"What!" I jumped from my chair, all trace of weariness running from me like the night from the sunrise. "What did they decide?"

The servant's gaze flickered anxiously to Adam. "Thaumaturge Tier has been pardoned for his crimes."

"Yes!" I screamed, pumping a fist into the air. "Yes, yes, yes!"

"All charges have been dropped," the servant continued. "The thaumaturge is a free man."

"Ha!" I threw my arms around Adam's neck and planted a kiss on his cheek. "I told you we could do it, Adam."

He laughed and returned the embrace. When I pulled away, his eyes were full of a joy I'd never witnessed in them before. His face shone brighter than Luna itself. Then, quick as a flash, he leaned forwards and pressed his lips against mine. My heart jolted, feeling as though it would leap from my chest. But if it had, I wouldn't have cared. I probably wouldn't even have noticed. The kiss was over as quickly as it had begun, and I was left blinking into the shining eyes of Adam Tier, the thaumaturge. The criminal. The villain. Only he wasn't any of those things anymore. He was free—we were free. Free to do anything, to go anywhere. This was the beginning of our adventure.