"Of course they did." Brynn grabbed for the coffee, needing something to do with her hands before she died of embarrassment. Because apparently her magic had responded to his touch with enough intensity to make the ward-stones light up. Perfect. Nothing said "we had incredible sex" quite like making magical architecture glow.
"Lord Vex looked rather put out when the news reached his court." Naia's tone turned dry. "Apparently, he'd been hoping you might choose differently. The spirits say he spent an hour ranting about 'predictable dramatic declarations' and 'showing off.'"
Good. Let Vex be disappointed. She'd made her choice. Had screamed it loud enough for the entire palace to hear, apparently.
"Vex can—" Brynn stopped herself, sipped the coffee instead. Let the warmth settle her nerves and chase away the embarrassment. "What's the situation? Battle preparations?"
"Straight to business." Naia's amusement softened into something closer to respect. "The palace is mobilizing. Every fighter who can hold a weapon is preparing. The other Death Lords' forces are assembling at their convergence points. Shadow-guards are being deployed to critical positions." She paused, her translucent form flickering slightly. "Word is you're going to Nightfall first."
"We need their support." Brynn studied the formal attire again, her mind already working through the problem. Calculate the variables. Find the angle. Execute perfectly. "But showing up in court finery would be the wrong move. They'd see a noble playing dress-up, not someone who understands what they've survived."
"You're thinking strategically." Approval colored Naia's voice. "They need to see you as one of them. Someone who knows what it means to survive in a realm designed for suffering. But they also need to see you as the Lady Companion. Powerful enough to stand beside the Reaper without being consumed by him."
Consumed. The word sent warmth curling through her. Because he had consumed her. Devoured her completely. Made her burn and break and beg until there was nothing left but sensation and his name on her lips.
Focus. War first. Melting into a puddle of remembered pleasure later.
Brynn moved to the wardrobe, ignoring the way her body protested. Sore muscles could wait. The realms couldn't.
She sorted through the options, looking for something that would work. Practical enough for Nightfall. Authoritative enough to command respect.
She pulled out black leather pants, reinforced at the knees and thighs, designed for someone who expected to fight or run. Then a fitted shirt in silver. The colors of Dante's court without being too formal. A reinforced leather corset to go over it.
The outfit said she belonged to the Forsaken. To the Reaper. But it also said she'd earned her place through more than just sharing his bed.
Even if sharing his bed had been absolutely incredible.
"And this." Naia's voice went quiet. Serious.
Brynn turned.
Naia held a circlet of dark metal, ward symbols etched into its surface, black roses etched alongside them. Their stems intertwined with small carved bones. Designed to rest across the forehead like a crown. Like a declaration.
Her breath caught.
"The Lord Reaper had this commissioned during the night," Naia said softly. "He left it with instructions to give it to you this morning. Said you'd need it for Nightfall."
Tenderness flooded her chest.
During the night. While she'd been sleeping off exhaustion and satisfaction in his bed, he'd been thinking about her. About what she'd need. About how to protect her and mark her as his simultaneously.
She crossed the space between them, thighs protesting, and reached for the metal. Her fingers brushed the surface, and the symbols flared immediately, responding to her bloodline.
But underneath that pulse of recognition, she felt something else.
His darkness.
Woven into the metalwork, reinforcing the structure from within. A blend of their magic. Her ward-architect bloodline, his shadow. Her light and his dark, forged together into something that was neither and both.
Not just jewelry. A statement.
He couldn't say the words easily. Struggled with vulnerability like it was a physical threat. But this spoke volumes. Everyone would know she was his.
She'd be safer this way.
So perfectly him. Protective and infuriating and hers.
"Help me get ready," Brynn said, voice rougher than she intended. "We have work to do."
