"And what's with removing your mask?" Wild Tiger skates around in front of him to stop Barnaby from walking away. "A hero should never reveal their secret identity!"

Barnaby rolls his eyes at the old-fashioned notion and he's about to respond, but there's an insistent tugging on his finger that makes him look down instead.

His Thread is visible. Not just visible, but...

He looks up slowly, following the bright red Thread to its other end, which is standing out against the dark blue fabric of Tiger's gloves.

Barnaby can only stare. He knows logically what this means, but his brain refuses to process the information.

Tiger gapes at the Thread between them, looking from his hand to Barnaby's and back again, blinking in confusion. "What the hell?"

Barnaby watches at the confusion on Tiger's face turns to realization and then to something he can only describe as horror.

Well, he never expected his soulmate would be horrified to meet him. Then again, the feeling is mutual.

Barnaby clenches his fist and yanks it down to his side; the Thread is still taut enough that the movement jerks Tiger's hand away from his face.

Tiger takes a step toward him. "Hey—"

"No," Barnaby snaps. "Absolutely not."

He stalks away as fast as he can without slipping on the ice, ignoring the insistent tugging on his finger until he's far enough away from Tiger that the sensation fades completely.

Absolutely not.