Page 105 of A Monarch's Fall

He smiled proudly, “It is.”

“Can I meet him?” I asked.

He nodded and turned his attention to Ana.

“Are you coming too?” he asked, waving Ana forward.

I walked towards Rosemary and turned back to see my father patting Ana on the shoulder and the two of them exchanging pleasantries.

Rosemary seemed tired, her hair falling messily out of her bun, but she smiled so brightly at me and opened her free arm to greet me with an embrace.

“I’m so happy to have you home,” she said.

“I missed you all so much,” I told her as she released me and I looked down at my brother in her arms.

His eyes were both green, and he already had light brown hair, but he was still so small.

“Galan,” Rosemary said.

“His name?” I asked.

She nodded.

“For calm seas,” Father said beside me.

Irene, the unofficial speaker for the community, walked towards me.

“We want to celebrate that you’re home with a bonfire tonight,” she said.

“That’s a wonderful idea,” Rosemary agreed for me, and I smiled in return.

I was tired, I wanted to wash and change into something that actually fit me, and then hold my brother and learn everything I could about him before sleeping. But a bonfire just for me? It was something special. An honour. I wasn’t worthy of any honour, but I wouldn’t turn down the gift from my people.

I walked over to Ana and nudged her shoulder.

“Everyone, this is my friend, Ana,” I said. There were a number of greetings, and people introducing themselves. Ana looked a little overwhelmed.

We went back to my old home. The little blue house was smaller than I remembered, and it smelled different. That upset me. It was like I didn’t fit in the space anymore. It wasn’t that Iwas unwelcome; it was that I was a guest in a place where I once wasn’t. It made the empty feeling in my chest worse.

“We kept all your clothes. I wouldn’t let your father give them away. I knew you’d need them one day,” Rosemary said as she brought out a box of all my old clothes for Ana and me so we could wash and change.

“Just because she needs them now doesn’t mean you were right,” Father called through the house.

“Yes, it does,” Rosemary said to us before calling back to my father. “I knew she’d be back.”

Her superior smile made me laugh with happiness.

“I’m very thankful that you kept these, Rosemary, but you don’t need to keep all of them. Maybe just a spare outfit or two, and then you should give the rest away. I won’t need them,” I said. There was always a need for clothing in the village; there was no point in hoarding my old clothes.

“Maybe,” she agreed. “Now go get showered and dressed for the bonfire,” she encouraged. “And you can come with me, while you wait your turn for the shower, I’m making cheese scones and could use some help,” she said to Ana, taking her hand and leading her away.

“I’ll shout when the shower is free,” I told her, trying not to laugh at the panic on Ana’s face.

I was hoping that she would fill Rosemary and Father in on everything that had happened so far. Selfishly, I didn’t want to have to do that. I didn’t want to see my father’s disapproving look or hear his comments, and I didn’t want to worry Rosemary. Ana would be better at explaining things.

Father called me aside when I entered the living room, and Ana went for her turn in the shower. It felt so odd to be wearing an old, ripped pair of jeans and a patchworked woollen winter jumper and hat. It had been so long since I had worn somethingthat felt handmade, multiple times over, due to the repairs. Selene provided me with far more than anyone really needed.

“Your friend tells me that you joined The New Foundation!” he growled angrily.