"That’s probably for the best," Noah said, stepping aside to let me through. "He’s been pacing that big room like a caged beast. Having Lyra there might actually get him to sit still for five minutes."

It was already morning, so everyone had quite a nap, except Fenric and Noah, who were on watch duty the whole time.

"You two can rest easy for now," I said as I stood up, my legs feeling a bit shaky after the long night, and walked over to the cots.

Lyra was already awake, sitting up and staring at the door with those big, knowing emerald eyes. She didn’t make a sound; she just reached out her arms when she saw me.

I scooped her up, her warmth against my chest helping to settle my own lingering nerves.

​"I’ll be back soon," I said, looking back at Thalor.

​He was watching me with a tired, slightly confused expression, his violet eyes still soft from the fever. He didn’t try to say anything else—probably because I’d nearly smothered him a second ago—but he gave a small, weak nod.

Fenric settled back into his chair, his red eyes already returning to their watchful guard.

"Take a nap, Fenric, you need it."

"And leave the children to make a mess? I’ll pass." He said over a light laugh, and I laughed too. Raiden and Phina were awake as well, and they would start to make a mess.

So both fathers couldn’t even rest, even if they wanted to. Someone has to look over the children.

​I walked down the hall toward the Sovereign Wing, Lyra’s little hands patting my shoulder. The palace felt different in the daylight—less like a bunker and more like the home I’d envisioned. The scent of cedar was stronger now that the sun was warming the wood.

​When I pushed open the doors to our room, the first thing I saw was Damar.

​He wasn’t in the bed. He was standing by the window, his silver hair catching the morning light as he looked over the world we were building.

He looked a bit pale, and his posture wasn’t as sharp as usual, but the moment the door creaked, he turned. His eyes went straight to me, then to Lyra, and I saw his shoulders finally drop.

​"Ari," he called softly, as if he had not been grumpy from the moment he woke up. Noah’s words, not mine. His voice was still a bit rough from the root he’d chewed, but the coldness from last night was gone.

​"Sorry I didn’t come early," I said. "I had to make sure the ’he’ was stable," I didn’t mention Thalor’s name so as not to trigger a morning feud.

I walked over to him, and before he could say another word, I stepped right into his space and tucked Lyra into his arms.

He adjusted instinctively as he held our daughter. Lyra immediately buried her face in his neck, let out a satisfied little huff, and closed her eyes.

​"He is awake, then?" Damar asked, his gaze drifting toward the door I’d just come through.

​"He is. And he’s already terrified that you saved him for some ulterior motive," I teased, leaning my head against his shoulder. I reached up and touched his cheek; he was cool in his normal temperature, and his complexion was much better. "Thank you, Damar. Truly."

​He was silent for a long moment, watching the beavers work in the valley below.

"I did not do it for a thank you, Ari. I did it because I did not want you to grieve." He said, his voice tight. "You would be sad, and I did not want to watch your sadness helplessly when there was something I could’ve done to stop it."

That was so like him. Putting me first.

​"I know. But he wants to thank you himself anyway." I said, though I didn’t mention the fact that Thalor might end up pledging himself to him, haha.

Let’s not go there.

​Damar let out a low, dry hiss of a laugh. Ah, you may not know this, but his laugh terrifies me when it’s not a warm, sweet chuckle.

Anything else is just a threat that I feel down to my spine, even though it’s not directed at me.

"Tell the fish to stay in his bed. If he comes near me with gratitude, I might actually change my mind about skinning his tail."

​I smiled, closing my eyes.

"Oh, you," I purred.

The tension between them wasn’t gone—not by a long shot—but the weight of the death that had been hanging over us was lifted. For the first time in months, we were all under one roof, alive and mostly in one piece. Yeah, mostly.

This calls for a celebration, you know.

​"Alright, none of that," I murmured, feeling the soft wool of the bed behind us. "Now that you’ve experienced a ’bed’... what’s the verdict?"

​Damar looked at the massive pile of furs and pillows, then back at me, a small, genuine spark returning to his emerald eyes.

"It is dangerously soft, Ari. I feel as though the land is trying to swallow me."

​"Well, consider yourself swallowed," I laughed, pulling him toward the edge of the mattress so he could sit down. "Because none of us are moving for at least three hours."

Damar sat down, Lyra still cradled against his chest, and for a moment, he just looked at the bed with a mix of suspicion and awe.

I followed him down, leaning into his side and letting the exhaustion of the last twenty-four hours finally wash over me. The silence of the Sovereign Wing was a luxury we hadn’t had in months.

​"Three hours?" Damar murmured, his fingers idly stroking Lyra’s hair. "And what of the wall? The beavers are already moving stone."

​"The beavers have Oryn. Oryn has his pride. I have a husband who is currently sick from being promoted, and another husband who strained himself to save the poisoned one because he loves me too much to see me cry," I said, poking his ribs gently. "The wall can wait for three hours. The Queen says so."

​He let out another one of those dry, raspy hisses—the one that sounded like a warning to the rest of the world but felt like a confession to me.