Chapter 44 Tamsin
Tamsin
The manor is louder than usual.
Not in a chaotic way, though Liri’s shrieks echo through the halls as she chases after Yla with a flower crown, but in the way of something alive, something returned. Whole.
The children are home.
They fill the corridors with footsteps and laughter and too-loud singing. Even Imara hums now. I hear it in passing, soft and surprised, like she’s still not sure the sound belongs to her.
I’m not sure the sound belongs to me either. But here I am. Still standing.
Still… home.
Marienne touches my arm as we round the corner toward the parlor. “Are you ready?”
I nod.
The children are waiting inside, legs swinging from the velvet settee, Vess tucked into a blanket in Margot’s lap. They’re all eyes and restless limbs and sticky jam fingers.
Marienne clears her throat. “We wanted to speak with you all.”
Yla gasps. “Is it bad?”
“It’s not bad,” I say, to my own surprise. “It’s good.”
Marienne glances at me. I nod again, and she smiles. That soft smile she only uses when it’s just us.
I hope the children never notice it.
Or maybe, I hope they do.
“I asked the Court to approve Ser Tamsin’s permanent reassignment,” Marienne says. “To Bloomhill.”
Callen blinks. “So she’s staying?”
“Yes,” I answer. “If you’ll have me.”
There’s a beat of silence, and then chaos.
Imara doesn’t speak, but she crosses the room and presses her forehead lightly to mine. That’s enough.
Siven just nods solemnly, like it was inevitable, like she knew. Yla starts chanting, “Ser Mum! Ser Mum!” until Callen joins in, giggling.
I groan. “That is not my title.”
But it’s already spreading like wildfire. Liri throws her arms around my waist, and I catch her with one arm, careful of the still-healing wound beneath my shirt.
“Ser Mum,” she says softly. “Don’t leave us.”
My throat tightens. I clear it. “I’m not going anywhere.”
I look up. Marienne is watching me with something shining in her eyes. She mouths it, too soft for the others to hear:
Home.
I nod again, just once.
“Yes,” I say, “I think this might be it.”