Oh, a food blanket!
“A picnic,” Cora corrected.
Are there apples?
“You want apples after everything that happened in…where was it? Eternal spring?”
Teryn frowned. “What’s this about eternal spring?”
“I’ll fill you in,” Cora muttered.
At the same time, Valorre gleefully conveyed,I always want apples!
They reached the blanket, which sure enough had three very non-poisonous apples, one of which Teryn handed to Valorre.
Valorre internally sighed, then took the apple from Teryn’s palm, munching away at once.He really is the best of men, isn’t he?
Cora chuckled as she and Teryn settled back onto the blanket. “All right, Valorre. You’ve got some explaining to do. Tell us more about your travels.”
* * *
SEVEN YEARS LATER – FAE REALM
Once upon a time, Mareleau had considered herself to be a woman without a heart. Or, if she’d had one at all, it was surely a shriveled thing, smothered by brambles and thorns. She now knew that had never been the case. She’d always had a heart; she’d simply kept it closed off for too many years. But love had helped break down her walls, and not just love for her husband. He’d been the first to breach them, but even Teryn had helped weaken them when she accepted him as her brother. Cora had shattered them the rest of the way, barreling into her heart despite neither of them wanting her to be there.
After that, it had been easy to love. Or…easier.
She’d repaired the burned bridges between her and her mother.
And she became a mother herself.
Now she knew what it was like to have a piece of her heart exist outside her body. First, it had cried, then it had crawled. It was most frightening when the piece of her heart had learned to toddle. She’d soothed many bruises and falls then, but just like the organ that beat in her chest, the child that represented her external heart recovered from every spill.
Noah was seven years old now, perched on a stool beside his father. Mareleau grinned as she watched the pair peering into a crystal cylinder that gave them a view of the stars overhead. They were outside on the rooftop terrace above their suite at Ailana’Auro Palace. The grand home of the Morkara had finished construction a year after the tear was sealed. Mareleau reclined on a cushioned divan, sipping Faeryn honey wine, while Ferrah dozed peacefully beside her, taking up a good half of the terrace.
The night was dark yet the stars glittered like rainbow shards, more brilliantly than they ever did in the human world. Larylis pointed out a constellation, conveying lore and facts about the stars that comprised it. Her husband had been right; El’Ara had provided ample interest for him. He relished learning all he could about the world. He’d become fluent in the fae language a year before she had, and now worked with Garot to record human history. Or as much of it that Larylis knew and could recall. Which was substantial, to be honest. Garot still served as the chief pathweaver in service of the Morkara, but his work with Larylis allowed him to explore his love for stories. Even taboo ones, like human history.
Mareleau took another sip of wine and turned her gaze to the heavens. The stars looked so different from how they had back home. Well, back at her previous home. This was her home now, and she, Noah, and Larylis had important roles here. Even Helena had adapted, and was now a member of Elvyn high society, mingling with the other esteemed mothers.
Regardless, the differences between El’Ara and the human world begged the questions…what exactly were parallel worlds? Were the two realms on different planets? Different planes of existence? Several prominent truthweavers had their own theories, but it seemed not all of them agreed. The whispers of their weavings often conveyed ideas that conflicted with one another’s findings.
Those conversations always made Mareleau smile. She knew firsthand just how flawed prophecies and truthweavings could be. The prophecy that had tangled her life had made it seem like her son would be front and center, a chosen one born to battle darkness and save the world. In truth, Mareleau and Cora had played the most significant roles. Yes, Noah’s birth had set everything into motion, but he hadn’t physically performed any of the feats the prophecy had spoken of.
Which was exactly what had brought the prophecy to fruition.
Mareleau and Cora, two women Darius had underestimated, had defeated him in different ways. Cora took control of Lela using intel he’d given her. Mareleau took his life.
Mareleau’s sense of victory, however, was always clouded with a pang of longing. She missed her friend terribly.
Noah giggled at something Larylis had said, then turned the crystal cylinder for a change of view. Their son was aging as normal human children aged, which was supposedly somewhat faster than the Elvyn did. He was growing so quickly, his looks already taking after Larylis’. His hair was several shades lighter than his father’s, a rosy gold to Larylis’ dark copper. Meanwhile, Larylis’ tresses reached his nape in loose waves and a short beard graced his chin. It suited him well, giving him a roguish-yet-scholarly look.
Noah averted his gaze from the cylinder, and his shoulders sank. Mareleau was immediately on alert, attuned to his moods like the admittedly overprotective mother she was.
Larylis noticed too, pushing the cylinder aside to face his son. “What’s wrong?”
Noah glanced from Larylis to Mareleau.
She was already on her feet and tried her best to keep her composure as she closed the distance between them. Crouching beside them with a gentle smile, she asked, “What is it, my love?”
