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‘That’s Dratos’ description of himself, because he hid in the grass, trying to draw the whole thing. Bastard waited hours to help me out.’

Thea and Wren exchanged a glance and burst into hysterics.

Anya was shaking her head, her eyes gleaming. ‘I never did get that chicken, either.’

That only made Thea laugh harder. ‘You win,’ she conceded. ‘Worst name day ever.’

Wren smiled widely at both of them. ‘Perhaps one of these days we’ll be able to celebrate one together. As a family.’

‘Perhaps,’ Thea said at the same time as Anya. Though Thea didn’t remind Wren that she only had one more name day up her sleeve.

As the wee hours of the morning approached, slowly but surely, different groups retired, while others cleaned up the leftovers in a comfortable quiet. Dratos and Gus had fallen asleep on twin lounges, their arms flung over their heads in exactly the same way, their wings draped carelessly beneath them.

Wilder came to Thea’s side and pressed a firm kiss to her lips. ‘I’m going to the aviary with Talemir to send word to Torj. I’ll be back in a little while. According to Wren, Audra is somewhere around here, if you wanted to see her?’

‘Audra’s here?’ Thea gaped. How had it taken so long for someone to mention it? ‘Why didn’t she join —’

‘You’ll have to ask her, Princess,’ Wilder murmured against her mouth before departing with Talemir.

Thea didn’t have to guess where Audra was; she knew on instinct. She headed to the library, the one just outside her and Wilder’s quarters.

Thea had never been overly bookish, having always preferred the outdoors and the weight of a blade in her hand, but even she could appreciate the sheer vastness of the shelves. She hadn’t had the chance to take it in the night before, but now, with all the torches lit, she let out an appreciative whistle. Soft golden light flickered from glass lanterns and the hearth at the far end of the room, casting a warm, ethereal glow upon the countless rows of shelves. They stretched tall and wide, laden with leatherbound tomes and yellowed scrolls.

Thea spotted the Thezmarrian librarian perusing the stacks by the fire, murmuring softly – not to herself, Thea realised, but to Malik, who sat in one of the armchairs before the flames as he did back at the fortress, Dax sleeping soundly at his feet.

At Thea’s approach, Audra looked up, and though the stern-faced older woman didn’t smile openly, there was a spark of joy behind her spectacles.

‘So you became a storm-wielding Warsword after all, Althea…’ she said by way of greeting.

‘You told me I had to choose,’ Thea replied, raising a brow.

‘And so you did… You chose to be exactly what you are, nothing less.’

Thea stared at her former warden. ‘Did you know? What would happen in the Rite? What would be asked of me?’

‘How could I? Not even I’m that knowledgeable.’

Thea reached for the jewelled dagger at her belt and held it out to the older woman. ‘Thank you for this.’

Audra didn’t take it. ‘Did it make a difference?’

‘I think it might have made all the difference,’ Thea said.

Audra didn’t flinch at the sight of her scar, nor did she question Thea about the Great Rite at all. Instead, she simply pushed the dagger back to her. ‘I’ll have it back when the war is won. I have a feeling you’ll need it again before long.’

Thea knew better than to argue with the librarian, so she sheathed the tiny blade at her waist again and turned her attention to the rows of shelves around them.

‘I suppose this is far more impressive than Thezmarr’s library,’ she ventured, running her fingers along several spines. ‘Even for a fallen kingdom…’

Audra scoffed, moving towards the shelves. ‘Half the books here are love stories,’ she retorted. ‘I don’t know what Starling has done with the academic texts, but there are more romances here than history books. He always was a dreamer.’

Thea’s brows shot up in surprise, but she didn’t comment further. Instead, she peered around the library. ‘You can’t find what you’re looking for, then?’

‘I’m not even sure what I’m looking for yet. I’ll know it when I see it.’

Audra’s attention lingered on Malik by the fire. His huge frame took up the entirety of the armchair as he stared into the flames.

‘I asked if he needed anything,’ Audra said quietly.