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My eyes snapped up to meet his, shocked by the new nickname I’d just heard come from his lips. He had the decency to blush slightly, but his hand remained outstretched, waiting.

I wondered for a moment if he knew avi meant love in Nolvym—a term of endearment.

Slowly, I put my hand in his, and together he guided our hands toward Atlas.

The wolf lowered his head even more, meeting us halfway, our hands falling directly between his eyes. I gasped softly as I felt how soft Atlas’ fur was, and gently stroked the markings that were there after Robyn lifted his hand away.

Atlas, seemingly content with my presence now, moved quickly as he reached out and licked the side of my face, leaving behind a trail of wetness.

I squealed in disgust and surprise, while Atlas’ tail had once again began wagging.

Robyn laughed—a deep, rich sound. “That’s his way of saying he likes you.”

“Tell him to keep it to himself next time,” I grumbled, desperately trying and failing to wipe my face dry.

“Here, let me,” Robyn said, still chuckling, and stepped in front of me. I lowered my hands, daring to look up into his eyes, only to find he was already staring into mine. There was a sparkle in his eyes I hadn’t noticed before now.

Likely just the sunlight.

With movements gentler than I thought possible from him, he gripped my chin, tilting my head to the side to expose where Atlas had licked. He lifted the hem of his soft shirt up and used it to wipe the remnants off my face, painfully slow.

My gaze, betraying me for just a split second, flickered down to where his toned stomach was now exposed, then back up to his eyes.

Though his gaze was focused on my face, I knew by the smirk he now wore, with that dimple on full display, that he hadn’t missed what I’d done.

Despite my best efforts to control my embarrassment, heat crept up into my face and ears.

A moment later, he dropped his hands from my face, allowing his shirt to fall back into place. It wasn’t until he took a step back and said, “There we go,” that I realized I had been holding my breath.

I cleared my throat, murmuring my thanks, as Atlas rose to his full height and led the way towards the rest of the Valwain.

Everybody in the group seemed to work together like a machine—Ezra was verbally listing everything they needed and making sure everybody had placed their luggage on a wolf or horse.

Quinn was saddling all of the horses. Teagan and Margo were preparing Lychen, who was still lying flat on the ground.

Robyn had begun preparing Atlas, equipping him with a saddle and our bags.

Chester was bringing the last of the bags outside. And helping him, I spotted a new face.

He was unlike any male I’d come across before.

His deep, rich olive skin showed just how much time he spent in the sun, and his curly, dark hair fell into his face.

His pointed ears were longer than anybody else’s I’d ever seen, and he had a scar running horizontally across his face, over his nose and covering parts of his cheeks, slicing through the scruff on his jaw.

His eyes were so dark they looked like they absorbed the sunlight, and his full black leather gear and cloak matched perfectly.

Obviously having seen me staring, Ezra said something to Quinn, then came to stand next to me.

“That’s Drayven, but we all call him Rayven.

He’s from the Ocrein Isles, over to the west. They mostly keep to themselves nowadays, but over the centuries their people have slowly mixed with ours here in the South, and they’ve always been a powerful ally.

Well, they were before they sealed their borders.

The Isles is actually where shadow wielding originated from—the South was only able to obtain it by breeding and passing it down to their children.

A lot of the noble families have shadow wielding in their bloodlines.

It’s strategic, I believe,” Ezra explained as we both watched Rayven cross the small clearing to help Robyn and Chess load the last of the bags onto Atlas.

I nodded, then tilted my head to look at Ezra. “I appreciate you always making the effort to fill in the gaps for me. It’s been… quite a learning curve, coming here,” I admitted, making an effort to be honest for once instead of guarded.

A small smile fell upon his face as he said, “It’s my pleasure. I love sharing knowledge, and we all want you to feel welcome.”

Before I knew it, Robyn had come over and led me to where Rayven was strapping bags onto Atlas, who was now laying down like Lychen.

“Rayven, I want you to officially meet Aviva. Aviva, this is my top spy, most loyal companion, and one of my closest friends, Rayven. Rayven, this is our new queen and my wife, Aviva,” Robyn said, motioning between Rayven and I as he introduced us.

I couldn’t stop the pink blush that crept up my neck and face as I listened to him call me his wife.

Obviously, I knew what we were to each other, but this was the first time I was hearing him actually call me his wife .

It just made it that much more real, but instead of feeling dread like before, it almost felt… right .

“It’s great to finally meet you.” I smiled at Rayven.

Rayven nodded, and said with a deep, rough voice that sounded like it didn’t get used much, “Same to you, my queen.”

Out of nowhere, a bird squawked above us, and Rayven lifted his arm up so his elbow was facing away from him. Suddenly, a large black bird landed before us on Rayven’s upper arm.

I took a step back, startled, but Robyn was there in an instant, lightly gripping my upper arm to keep me from stumbling.

Rayven looked at the bird and lightly pet the top of its head before saying, “This is Lark.”

He offered no further explanation.

Robyn, picking up where Rayven lacked, said, “Lark is Rayven’s personal corvid.

Him and I are the only ones who are allowed access to our corvid perch, besides their caretakers, here in Cairnyl.

We’ve helped to raise and train them to be messenger birds for all corners of the South and even beyond.

They’re much more intelligent than people give them credit for, I assure you. ”

I stared at the bird for another moment, then simply responded, “We definitely don’t have those in the North.”

Rayven and Robyn both let out a hearty chuckle, then Robyn and I headed back over to Atlas.

“Ready to go?” Robyn asked, offering me a hand, as if to assist me in hopping onto Atlas’ back.

I stilled, not having thought to talk with him about this before. The tips of my ears flushed pink.

“Actually, Robyn… if it’s alright with you, I’d really prefer to fly,” I said lowly.

His eyes widened slightly, and I could feel his surprise in my own chest.

Feeling the need to over-explain, I rambled on, “I mean, truly, if it’s alright with you. It’s just, I’ve been cooped up in The Haven like a bird in a cage, and I dearly miss feeling the wind in my hair and wings. I miss the sky.”

Robyn shook his head slightly, then let out an awkward laugh.

“Yes, yes, of course that’s alright. Truthfully, I’m not sure why I hadn’t thought of that before now.

That’s no problem at all. I apologize for not considering how cramped The Haven must’ve felt for you.

I hope you enjoy yourself up there,” he said, though I couldn’t help but notice the slight look of disappointment in his eyes, matching the feeling radiating from him into my own chest.

I nodded, feeling a tad embarrassed.

Robyn turned to face the rest of the group, then smiled. “Alright, my Valwain. Let’s get going!”

***

Turns out, traveling to Diorum was much more enjoyable than I had thought it would be.

The sky was clear of clouds and endless, as if I could fly forever.

The wind pulled stray hair from my braids that whipped across my face, but I didn’t mind.

The feeling of freedom that flying gave me was euphoric.

More than once, I paused mid-air, wings pumping, and simply tilted my head skyward towards the sun, feeling the air currents slide between the feathers of my wings and wrapping around me like a hug from an old friend.

I observed the group from above the entire day.

I noted how Rayven stayed close to Robyn, how Lark stayed close to Rayven, how Teagan and Robyn led the way on their wolves’ backs, and how Chess brought up the rear.

I noticed how Ezra had decided to ride with Quinn together on one horse, him holding onto her waist from behind.

And I couldn’t help but notice how Margo often looked up at me, awestruck.

At one point, I watched as Margo seemed to get increasingly more upset. I lowered my height in the sky, flying close enough to hear her as she begged Teagan to let her fly with me. When I vouched for her to Teagan, promising to be careful, she gave me a wide, toothy grin.

Teagan had been hesitant, but I learned Margo had a secret weapon in her arsenal—puppy dog eyes. Teagan had folded in an instant.

When I’d neatly tucked Margo’s small frame into my arms, I shot up into the sky in a spiral, causing her to let out a series of giggles.

I couldn’t help but smile as we leveled out and I heard her gasp.

She hadn’t been able to believe the sight of her kingdom from that angle, how the forests and hills were so vast they disappeared into the horizons.

We only remained a few moments, as I could see Teagan was visibly anxious, before I placed Margo back in her spot upon Lychen’s saddle.

Besides that, I made sure to use as much air zirilium as I could without tiring myself out too much. I only used it when I was high enough I knew nobody could make out what I was doing, and I didn’t use any other zirilium for fear of being spotted by the group below.

Why I was so fearful, I couldn’t place. It was just instinct, to hide that part of myself.