Chapter Twenty-Two
All too soon, the sun reached its peak in the sky, and Byn had to depart to carry on with his tasks for the day.
He’d invited me, but I’d told him I had something else I needed to tend to before the dinner tonight with the Ashfords.
He’d asked no questions, his trust in me apparent; he’d simply pressed his lips to mine in a loving, gentle kiss before walking back towards the main part of The Haven.
Sighing, I headed back inside, leaving the balcony, flowers, and sunlight behind me. Pausing, I looked at what had become of our space.
When I’d first arrived, right after our wedding ceremony, I’d entered to find that Byn had swapped everything he could to reflect that of the North and what I was used to. The bedspread, the curtains, even the hardware on the doors and on the wardrobes had been swapped from gold to silver.
Now, it was a mixture. I wasn’t the same terrified female I’d been that night. Byn and I had begun to grow together—and I could see that development in the different gold and silver, green and blue hues throughout our shared space.
Smiling at the realization, I headed toward the wardrobe. I shuffled through the clothing I had—an interesting combination of my older Northern attire and my newer Southern clothing. The difference was striking, but I found it fun to try to mix the two cultures when it came to clothing.
With what I wanted to wear already picked out in my mind, I shuffled through the different items of clothing until I found what I wanted and donned it all, one piece at a time.
For the base, I picked a soft blue dress, the hue light to match my left eye.
It just barely brushed the floor as I walked, and the flowing sleeves rested just off my shoulders.
On top of the dress, I laced up a brown under-bust corset—one that was made mostly of leather and had an elegant floral pattern lightly carved into it.
Thanks to its flexible boning, I’d still be comfortable throughout the remainder of the day.
To match the corset, I slid on a pair of brown leather boots that went almost up to the knee, and were only visible when seen through the slit in the bottom half of the dress.
Aside from that, I decided to wear my silver circlet—something I was still trying to get accustomed to wearing casually—atop my braided half-up hairstyle.
The crescent moons at each end near my temples faced each other, as though enjoying a conversation only they could hear.
I wore the silver chain around my throat that my moon stones had once hung from—the chain now bare, but still lovely.
I buckled on a belt that held a sheath for a single dagger.
There weren’t enough places to hide my usual dozen in this sort of attire, and I didn’t imagine I’d need them today, anyway.
Besides, I was becoming a weapon myself.
Into the sheath, I slid the dagger that Dimitri had supposedly found in our mother’s things.
I still questioned in the back of my mind just how my brother had found it, and what the second crest on it meant.
I knew one side was engraved with the Ashford family insignia—but I’d never discovered whose was on the other side.
Or what it meant.
And I imagined if anybody were to know more about Mother’s past, it’d be the Ashfords.
Pausing to catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror, a small smile found its way onto my lips. I had a glint in my eyes I hadn’t possessed a month ago.
As I ducked out of our chambers, I tucked the gloves with my moon and sun stones into the pockets of my dress. But as I walked, my smile slowly fell as I thought about what I needed to do before dinner.
It was time to check in with Ezra—and to make a decision.
We’d been back from our scouting trips for a couple of days at this point, but the Thorntier royal advisors were not happy with Byn for leaving them once again.
Teagan staying behind while we went on our recent scouting missions had helped, but the advisors were very demanding.
So immediately upon returning, we’d been thrust into meetings where we’d filled them in—albeit vaguely—on what we’d discovered while away, and where we planned on going to next.
Teagan had attended these meetings, but we’d made an effort to pull her aside afterwards and fill her in fully with details we’d left out.
With that keeping us busy—so busy that I hadn’t even gotten to see Margo outside of brief meals—today had been our first day since our return that we’d had to catch up on ourselves and our general tasks.
Now that I had a moment to breathe, I desperately wanted to check on Ezra. And provide him with what was being kept from him—if need be.
The walk across The Haven was quieter than usual—as though everybody had settled down for lunch all at the same time—though I didn’t mind it. It meant less fae would see where I was heading.
While Quinn used to stay on the top floor of Cairnyl’s barracks, that now solely served as her office.
She and Ezra had picked out their own quarters there within The Haven, just before the Battle of Shadows, apparently.
I wasn’t sure where Ezra had stayed before that, but now they were situated near the library for him, but also down the hall from the closest exit to the barracks for Quinn.
The two worked well together.
As I neared the door I’d been told was theirs, I almost hesitated—but instead of giving into my anxiety, I knocked without letting myself think twice. If my information was right, somebody from the Valwain—besides Quinn—should’ve been with Ezra right now.
Having used the familiar series of knocks I’d picked up from the Valwain to signify the person knocking was also of the Valwain, Rayven appeared relaxed when he answered the door, leaning against its frame.
He was never the most expressive of us, but even I could tell the calm on his face was forced.
It looked like Rayven was following what Quinn had told all of us.
Which was to tell Ezra nothing.
We all knew she meant well for her husband; Chess had said Ezra needed minimal stress. But if I knew Ezra at all, he was likely losing his mind being holed up in their chambers while he healed. And when I’d said exactly that, well… Quinn hadn’t exactly gone easy on me.
I guess I didn’t learn, though, if my presence at Ezra’s door meant anything.
Rayven’s eyebrows lifted at the sight of me.
“What can I do for you, my queen?” he asked, his voice low—likely so Ezra wouldn’t hear from farther inside.
“I volunteered to sit with him for the next couple of hours until Quinn got back, but I think I have to cut it a tad short. Can you return just before dusk?” I requested, trying to keep my voice light.
“Aviva, I’m not sure this is—”
“I’m just checking on my friend,” I reassured Rayven.
He crossed his arms over his broad chest, not moving from the doorway.
“If I get in trouble, I won’t tell anybody you let me in,” I sighed.
“When you get in trouble with Quinn, I’ll be by your side,” he said, reaching out and gently resting a hand on my shoulder.
Shocked at his words, I looked up to meet his eyes, searching for the trick or lie there.
But I found only genuine concern in his gaze.
“I don’t think her stance on this is right, either, but she’s my peer. I don’t want to overstep any boundaries. But supporting my queen, especially when she’s doing something I believe is right? That’s something I can—and will—always do.”
With that, he stepped past me, allowing me to take his spot just inside of the doorframe.
In an act of respect and gratitude, I placed my fist over my heart as I faced him.
He mimicked the motion, then bowed slightly.
“Before dusk,” he promised, then dissipated into wisps of shadow, disappearing from my sight before I could utter a response.
Loosening a breath, I shut the door behind me and made my way down the short corridor that led into the chamber’s main space.
They had decorated it in warm colors—shades of gold, red, and orange covered the space and made it feel inviting—though I supposed the small flame in the fireplace could have something to do with that, too.
Their bed was tucked into the far corner, thin drapes hanging from the top of the four posts and blocking most of it from view.
Toward the front of the main room was a comfortable lounge area, and in the opposite corner sat what I imagined was Ezra’s desk, as the surface was completely covered in paper, books, and what looked like maps.
“Aviva?” I could hear the pleasant surprise in his voice as he called out, having just walked out of the washroom, the door sliding closed behind him.
He looked better than I’d been expecting.
There were no gaping wounds on his skin from what I could see, but I knew most of the wounds he’d been dealt had been in places he could cover up.
He had on some loose cotton pants and a button-up shirt colored in cream and deep orange stripes, and his hair was wet as though he’d just taken a bath.
The white streak running through his strands was bright again—not dirty and bloody, like it had been when we’d found him.
He appeared put together. But I knew wounds didn’t have to be physical for them to still hurt.
“Hey there,” I responded, a soft smile on my lips. I slid my hands into my pockets to stop from picking at the skin around my nails, but before I knew it, Ezra was crossing the lounge towards me.
Swept up in his arms, I gasped at the sudden contact as he squeezed. I wasn’t sure he’d be feeling up to a hug, let alone whatever that was.
I wrapped my arms around him in return, though I wasn’t exactly sure what was happening. I’d been expecting him to abhor any kind of physical contact, not initiate it.
When he pulled back, resting his hands on my shoulders, and saw my puzzled face, the beginnings of a small smile haunted his mouth.