When Sophie turned up in school the next day wearing the diamond necklace Fitz had gifted her, many heads turned. Some of the girls immediately started requesting their boyfriends buy them something like that, and the jealousy was evident. People came from all angles not to admire Sophie but to admire the necklace, which Sophie found a little insulting, but she allowed the stares.

By the time she stepped into Telepathy, though, her face was red with embarrassment. She couldn't do anything without being seen the entire day. She'd even found three girls waiting for her outside her toilet cubicle.

She sighed as she plopped herself down next to Fitz. "It's been a tiring day," she said.

Fitz winked. "I hear the necklace was the talk of the school. But don't worry, it'll quiet down. Wait till you see what Dex made for Marella."

Sophie grinned. "I suppose it has lots of safety measures."

Fitz's eyes twinkled, waiting.

Then it hit Sophie. "Is Dex asking Marella out?"

Fitz grinned and gave her a thumbs up, right before Tiergan slapped the table. "Yes, enough teenage romance. First, as Granite," he went on, "I have to tell you that the meeting with King Enki has been cancelled. The Black Swan decided it was too risky."

Sophie blinked. "Oh, okay." She'd have to figure out how to tell that to Nubiti later. And she still hadn't agreed to Tarina's alliance. She groaned slightly.

Tiergan frowned. "You were looking forward to it?"

"Nah, got sidetracked for a moment. So what are we doing today?"

"So, have you gotten to the part where you tell each other to work on the emotions?" Tiergan asked. Oh, right! The Cognate Inquisition!

"There... was nothing to work on," Fitz said.

"And the part where you open your mind completely to each other?"

"We always open our minds completely to each other," Sophie pointed out.

Tiergan looked even more surprised. "Then your level of trust is far more than I thought. Tell me, Sophie, would there be anything you would hold back from Fitz?"

Sophie paused, and slowly, ever so slowly, she nodded.

"Are you holding something back at the moment?"

Sophie shook her head vigorously. She'd let Fitz know everything.

"Alright, now tell me," Tiergan commanded, "what would you hold back from Fitz?"

Sophie paused before admitting, "Stuff regarding Alvar, or anything that would make Fitz really angry and upset and sad."

Fitz's eyes welled up. "You don't have to do that, Sophie."

"I know, but I... don't like seeing you like that."

The tears spilled over and Tiergan cleared his throat. "Now, Fitz, would you hold anything back from Sophie?"

Fitz thought for a moment. "I wouldn't hold anything back indefinitely," he said, "but let's say if someone close to Sophie died, I would wait till she was strong enough to take the news before telling her."

"Both of your secrets are reasonable," Tiergan nodded in acceptance. "Now open your minds completely to each other and let me see. I won't access the memories but I'll see the structure you're showing each other."

Neither Fitz nor Sophie understood, but they did as they were told.

And Tiergan's mouth curled into a smile. "Ah, I see."

"See what?" Sophie asked. But when Fitz turned slightly pink, she knew something was off.

"You're holding something back from Sophie, Fitz," Tiergan said quietly.

Fitz turned pale. "No, I'm..." But there was no lying.

"And you know why Sophie never found it?" Tiergan asked.

Fitz shook his head.

"Because she's never truly probed you," Tiergan explained. "She left you with your own choice and never pushed past any blocking. She trusts you, Fitz. I think you should show her what you're hiding."

The immediate thought that slammed into Sophie was that he didn't actually like her.

But the way he didn't look that scared, only guilty when he finally showed the walled-off part of his mind to her, she knew it wasn't that.

And it was all the emotions he'd been hiding from her.

She'd thought that the hurt she'd felt from him when she did Alden, Della and Biana's names had been harsh, but this hurt slamming into her was gut-wrenching and she cried for him. Sadness, hurt, betrayal, none of it from her, all from his family, but it crashed against her in waves. Then there was lostness, he didn't think he was good enough for her, and he struggled with low self-esteem, and he thought that Sophie would stop liking him and start going out with Keefe.

She didn't realize she was crying as though she'd been injured badly until Fitz grabbed her shaking arm and steadied her.

"You're feeling all that?" she choked out. "And you never told me?"

"I didn't want to worry-"

"Okay, stop there. Fitz. From now on, I want to be worried. I want you to tell me everything. And I mean everything. I'm not keeping anything from you."

Fitz looked at Tiergan.

"She's telling the truth," their Telepathy mentor said. "She really isn't hiding anything from you. Open your minds again."

And this time, Fitz wasn't hiding anything from her.

Tear tracks glistened on Sophie's face and she pulled Fitz into a tight embrace. "Next time, please tell me," she whispered.

He had promised her that before. But this time when he promised her, she knew he meant it.