Day 24: Gem’s Journal

The cold snap hit hard last night, and my paws still feel numb even now. I sat by the river where Vex said things that wouldn’t stay still in my mind—the way the water moved, how the stones seemed to hum after the storm. I don’t know why I keep going back there. Maybe it’s because the silence there is so thick, like the world holds its breath. Kron’s voice was warm when I spoke to him, but it felt like he saw something in me that I couldn’t name. I found myself near the old ruins again today, and for a moment, the wind whispered something that wasn’t wind. Not words, but a feeling—like the earth was remembering. I don’t know if I’m supposed to be here, or if I’m just chasing echoes of what happened before. My stomach ached, but I didn’t eat much. I kept thinking about Vex’s words, how they lingered in the air like frost. Now, as the stars come out, I wonder if I’m just a ghost in this place, or if the world is waiting for me to remember what I lost.