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“Teagan and I both know how to cook, as well as Chess. He’s great with spices and herbs. I think it’s the trokav in him,” he responded as we turned down a corridor.

“Really?” I asked, surprised.

He nodded. “Our mother wanted to make sure we’d be able to take care of ourselves in every aspect. That included cooking. Teagan and I have even taken to teaching Margo, when we find ourselves with a spare moment.”

A strong pang of sadness shot through my chest, and I could tell he was thinking about his parents. Sometimes I forgot he’d lost loved ones, too.

“As for Chess, if I remember correctly, his late sister taught him. He’s kind of a jack of all trades, but plants are his specialty.

After his sister passed in the war, he joined our army as a trokav, just as his sister had been.

He was always one of our top performers, and my family and I have worked with him for years.

Once I started ruling, I offered him the royal trokav position.

He was so shocked I think he almost cried,” Robyn explained.

I listened intently, genuinely interested in learning more about his friends. I opened my mouth to respond, but then I heard the sound of multiple voices at the end of the hall, and my nerves hit me all over again.

Robyn and I came to a stop right before we reached the open door, and I could already smell the aroma of fresh bread and herbs and something sweet I couldn’t place wafting out into the hallway.

I took a shaky breath, attempting to calm my nerves, when Robyn gently placed a finger under my chin and lifted my face to meet his eyes.

“There’s nothing to be worried about, my love, I promise. They just want to get to know you,” he said softly.

I nodded, taking another deep breath, finding comfort in his gaze. I watched as his eyes flicked down to my lips, then back up to my eyes.

That warm feeling returned in my chest, and the air between us suddenly felt electrified.

Quickly, he dropped his hand from my face and took a step back. He ran a hand through his hair, mussing it, and I couldn’t help but imagine how soft it must feel.

He smiled uncertainly at me, then quietly reassured me everything was going to go perfectly. He placed a hand on my lower back, leading me as we walked into the dining room together.

A piece of me melted inside from that small gesture.

I made sure my spine was straight, my shoulders were set, and my wings were tucked in before walking into the room.

Conversations quieted as we approached the table, and I noticed they made sure to prepare a basic meal—slices of some type of meat sat in the middle, with an array of different vegetables on the side, as well as the fresh bread I had smelled earlier, and some type of pudding for dessert.

I smiled at the effort they put into the food. Most of the food I’d been presented with in the South had been strange and unfamiliar, but all of this food appeared to be simple, staple foods from the North.

“Sorry it isn’t anything fancy—we weren’t sure what you liked, so we went with the basics,” Teagan said, the first to break the silence. I could see a small bit of flour still clinging to the hem of her gray shirt.

“We’re glad you could join us,” Ezra said, grinning from his spot next to Quinn.

“Took you both long enough,” Quinn mumbled, and I watched with fascination as Ezra lightly elbowed her in the side.

“The guest of honor has arrived! Can we eat now?” Margo asked, obviously excited to get this dinner started. I noticed that her little hands were still bound in the same brown leather, despite it being time for a meal.

Maybe there’s more to her than meets the eye.

My smile widened, and I took a moment to glance at the different people surrounding me. People who cared enough to take into consideration what I might prefer to eat. People who weren’t scared of me, despite what they saw this morning.

It was almost enough to bring a tear to my eye.

“Thank you. All of you,” I said, looking between each of them. My eyes landed on Drayven last, and he dipped his head slightly in a show of respect.

Robyn walked closer to the table, and for the first time, I noticed that while everybody else had an ordinary high backed chair, the chair at the middle of the table—where I presumed Robyn wanted me to sit—wasn’t a chair at all, but a wooden stool. One without a backing.

“I noticed how uncomfortable you were that first day I met you, in the carriage. I’ll make sure to get some custom made chairs just for you in order to accommodate your wings when we return to Cairnyl,” Robyn said, his voice soft. “I hope this is alright for now.”

My mouth fell open slightly, stunned into silence that he would even think about something as small as the space my wings take up, or even remember my discomfort that first day.

This time, I had to make an effort not to allow the tears to well in my eyes.

Not knowing what to say, I reached for Robyn’s hand and gave it a small squeeze. I looked up into his eyes, and hoped that he could see in them how much I appreciated this small gesture.

He smiled in response, and I could see some of the tension leave his body, as though he was worried I wouldn’t appreciate his efforts.

I squeezed again.

He pulled the stool out for me, and though I was continuously shocked at his actions, I sat, realizing the red cushion on top made it much more comfortable than it had appeared.

Robyn sat next to me, the rest of the Valwain following suit. Rayven sat on the other side of Robyn, and Teagan on the other side of me. Margo sat across from Teagan, next to Quinn, and Ezra sat across from Robyn, leaving Chess to sit across from Rayven.

We filled up the eight person table perfectly.

Teagan made an effort to try to serve everybody individually, but soon enough the formalities dropped, and everybody was helping themselves. I waited until almost everybody had gotten their fair share, but Robyn insisted I get my servings before he did.

I gathered a small amount of every dish onto my plate, and dug in.

I listened as they all talked about how their training had been going so far, and how Chess pranked Ezra by discretely placing a caterpillar on his shoulder in passing—just to hear Ezra start screaming a moment later. Apparently, Ezra was not fond of bugs, despite his seemingly infinite knowledge.

I listened to Margo as she explained to Ezra exactly why bugs weren’t scary, and how most of them were actually quite friendly. Though, Ezra didn’t seem all that convinced.

I watched as Chess animatedly explained how he almost set fire to the vegetables as he and Teagan were cooking, and listened as Robyn let out a hearty laugh that brought a smile to my face.

I learned that besides training with Robyn, Rayven had been in daily contact with the officials back in Cairnyl via Lark, and everything was going as smoothly as expected back at The Haven—at least for now.

It seemed long-lasting peace might be achievable, after all.

“Aviva,” Margo said, catching my attention. “You were scary awesome this morning. I’ve never seen anything like that before! Could you do it again sometime?”

I nearly choked on my food, coughing so it didn’t go down wrong.

I heard Teagan shush her little sister, then cleared her throat. “I think what Margo is trying to say is, does this mean you’re finally ready to train with us?”

I took a sip of water, then nodded. “Definitely.”

“Why didn’t you tell us you had zirilium in the first place?” Ezra asked, though his voice carried a tone of genuine curiosity, no sense of foul play.

At his question, I gently set my fork down. I felt Robyn shift his leg closer to mine until our legs touched, and I knew he was offering me silent encouragement. I used the feeling to ground myself, and took a deep breath.

“From the moment my father realized I could wield, he kept me hidden away. I was kept out of the public’s eye, and didn’t even have my own set of servants or guards.

He wanted to keep my abilities a secret, because he wanted Dimitri, my twin, to be crowned his heir.

The only other person who knew was my best friend,” I explained, keeping my eyes downcast.

“Why didn’t you tell anybody your zirilium was getting backed up? This morning could have been avoided all together,” Quinn stated, her voice holding an edge to it.

“I’m not used to depending on other people or working in a group. I’ve always had to handle things on my own, and I thought I could handle this, too,” I sighed. “But this morning was a turning point for me. I won’t make the same mistake again.”

“Stars, you’re complicated.” Quinn said, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Good try. Now tell us the real reason.”

I snapped my head up and gaped at her, taken aback at her bluntness, but a small part of me knew she was right.

“Quinn,” Rayven, of all people, said her name as a warning. But Quinn didn’t break eye contact with me, waiting for an answer.

I realized then that she was challenging me. And I refused to keep hiding.

“I’ve hurt people in the past with my zirilium, and I was worried if I let it out, I might hurt one of you.

I realize now that was a flawed way of thinking, but the pain was so intense at the time, I wasn’t thinking rationally.

” I paused, looking around the table now instead of solely at Quinn.

“I apologize for putting you all in danger.”

The table was quiet for a moment, but all eyes were on me. Then, in a quiet voice I heard Margo asked, “Who got hurt?”

In an instant, Robyn jumped in. “You don’t have to answer that—" he started, but I held up a hand to stop him.

“It’s alright, Robyn. Things have to change, starting now.”

I slowly got to my feet, and I could feel the emotions welling up in my chest as I thought back. Guilt, sadness, and grief choked me, but I swallowed it down and looked around the table once again as I spoke, making sure to meet everybody in the eye.