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Even the Starlit King looked down at me with concern.

“I’m all right,” I said, assuring everyone as I looked at the king. I shook out my arms and rolled out my neck. “What did you do?”

“Your magic was stuck, and I cleared the pathways. Your power stream should be far more reliable now.”

“W-what…” I gasped, unsure what I was even asking.

“I directed the power on your behalf and showed your mind what needed to be done. You’ll now be able to moderate the starlight better, especially if you practice.”

I gaped at him, still stunned. That had been unexpected. Dramatic. And he should have warned me. But there was no denying what he’d done had immediately changed me. Energy flowed with new ease. His description matched how it felt, as if the flow of my magic finally had an easy path.

I examined my palm and reached for the light. It came at my softest command, slowly growing brighter as I asked it. No flickering, no chaos. Simple, easy, and under my control.

“It works.” I whispered.

He waved his hands awkwardly toward a the bench. “Why don’t you take a few minutes to settle.”

Still a little lightheaded, I complied. Rhett neared, and when the Starlit King didn’t rebuff him, he lingered a few feet from me, as if braced for me to collapse at any moment.

I didn’t look that bad, did I?

Zayne’s worriedly probing mind told me otherwise.

Vision swimming, I turned my palms up in front of me. “You made it easy.”

“It would have been easy for you too, if you’d been allowed to develop your powers as a child.” He huffed, sitting beside me. “I disapprove of the practice of part-fae being raised south of the Rift. It’s too dangerous when their magic inevitably breaks through.”

I drew my lips tight, uncomfortably aware that in additional to the normal barrier, my mother had also gone through the effort of blocking my magic.

“It is fortunate I found you,” he continued, his voice lowering. He looked meaningfully, first to Rhett and then me. “Mostwouldn’t have been able to help wield the power of my daughter.”

I stilled, my brain repeating what he’d just said.

His daughter.

I must have misunderstood. I squinted up at him, searching his face, but where I sought differences, I saw his antlers and the shape of his face, both mirroring mine.

“You’re kidding,” Rhett leaned forward. “My cousin isn’t—”

The Starlit King lifted a hand. “I know.”

Rhett sputtered, “You must have her confused with someone else—”

“I myself ensuredAida’sforgeries were approved.”

Rhett stammered, and in the shadows, Zayne crept closer.

My mind struggled to work. The Starlit King was my father, and he knew who I was.

Does he also know where I’ve been?

“I mean no disrespect—” Rhett finally managed.

The king waved him off. “I’m not angry, merchant prince. If anything, thank you. It was a relief to discover you’ve been caring for Ayla this whole time.”

He didn’t know. Or at least, he was pretending as much. I forced myself not to look at Zayne for support, relying on the tether instead.

The Starlit King—myfather—leaned closer. “I wanted to tell you earlier, but the time was never right, and you…” He searched my face. “Some part of me had hoped your mother would find the decency to tell you herself.”