Jon's POV
The explosion of shadows threw him back.
Jon hit the ground hard, snow and ice splintering beneath him. Pain lanced through his ribs, his breath ripped from his lungs, but he didn't care.
Because Katrina had been there.
For just a moment—just one fleeting moment—he had seen her.
Her golden eyes, hers, filled with desperation and something raw, something real.
She had reached for him.
And then—
The shadows had ripped her away.
Jon groaned, pushing himself upright, ignoring the pain, ignoring the numbness seeping into his fingers from the cold.
The air was thick with smoke and darkness, swirling around her—no, him, the thing wearing her skin.
Jon's stomach turned.
Katrina was in there, somewhere.
And he had to get her back.
Before he lost her for good.
⸻
Reynolds' POV
Reynolds scrambled to his feet, his heart racing, his pulse roaring in his ears.
Okay.
So.
That had not gone well.
Jon was still on the ground, shaking off whatever the hell that blast of shadows had been, but Reynolds' attention was locked on Katrina—or rather, the thing pretending to be her.
Because now, she wasn't moving.
She was just… standing there.
Her golden eyes were wide, distant, flickering between two shades—her father's cold, cruel gold, and hers.
Like she was fighting.
Reynolds' breath hitched.
"She's still in there," he whispered.
Beside him, Arya twirled her dagger in her fingers, her expression unreadable. "Then we just have to make sure she wins."
Reynolds exhaled sharply. "Yeah, sure, no pressure."
Arya smirked. "Wouldn't be fun otherwise."
Reynolds shot her a glare, but there was no time to argue—
Because Katrina moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
Jon barely had time to react before she lunged—
And then she was on him, slamming him back into the ice, her hand wrapped around his throat.
⸻
Katrina's Father's POV (Inside Katrina's Body)
Jon Snow was persistent.
Annoyingly so.
The way he looked at her, at Katrina, the way he refused to let her go—
It was a problem.
Because Katrina was still fighting.
Even now—even now—as he held Jon down, as her fingers tightened around his throat, she was screaming inside her own mind.
Screaming his name.
It would have been pathetic.
If it wasn't so damn dangerous.
Because if Jon Snow kept reaching for her, if he kept believing in her—
She might just believe in herself.
And then—
Then everything would fall apart.
So, it was time to end this.
Before it was too late.
His grip tightened.
Jon gasped, his jaw clenching, his hands gripping her wrist, trying to break free—
But then—
Jon's dark eyes locked onto hers.
And he spoke.
Low. Soft.
But strong.
"Katrina."
A flicker.
Her body shook.
His grip weakened.
Jon didn't look away.
"You can fight this." His voice was steady, despite the lack of air, despite the pain. "You're stronger than him."
No.
No, she wasn't.
She was his.
She had always been his.
But Katrina—
Katrina was crying.
Inside the dark prison of her mind, she was crying.
And suddenly—
The walls he had built around her began to crack.
⸻
Katrina's POV (Inside Her Mind)
She felt everything.
The ice against her skin.
The burn in her muscles.
The weight of her father's control crushing her.
And Jon—
Jon was beneath her, looking at her like she was still herself, like she was still worth saving.
Like he believed in her.
And gods, she loved him.
She loved him so much it hurt.
And she would not let her father take her away from him.
"GET OUT!"
Her fire roared inside her.
The shadows cracked, her father's grip slipping, weakening.
She fought.
She burned.
And then—
She shattered.
⸻
Jon's POV
The second Katrina's eyes turned back to hers, Jon moved.
He grabbed her wrists, pulling her down, rolling her off him—
She hit the snow, her body shaking, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
Jon barely had time to sit up before she screamed.
Her entire body arched, flames erupting around her, the shadows peeling away, her father's roar echoing through the valley—
And then—
The fire died.
Katrina collapsed.
Jon was on her in seconds, pulling her into his arms, his heart slamming against his ribs.
She was burning up, her skin fever-hot, her breath shallow.
"Katrina," he murmured, pushing her hair from her face. "Stay with me."
Her golden eyes fluttered open.
Jon exhaled sharply, relief crushing him.
And then—
She smiled.
Soft. Small.
But hers.
Jon's throat tightened. "You're back."
Katrina's voice was barely a whisper.
"I never left."
Jon crushed her against him, breathing her in, feeling her alive in his arms.
She had fought.
She had won.
But deep in the ruins, beneath the frozen ground—
Something stirred.
And her father's shadow whispered:
"This isn't over."