He shifted his weight and clasped his hands behind his back, forcing a business-like tone, “First, however, you wishedto discuss something potentially volatile with me? Something you would like my advice on, concerning either Winter or Zayn, hence you asking me to come here alone?”
“Yeah.” I gestured to my seating area, and as he settled onto the edge of my couch, I took a seat opposite on one of the pastel-blue chairs, the coffee table unfortunately needing to be between us right now.
“With how painfully tense things were at Winter’s family home, I didn’t want to risk mentioning this there. Also because of the source being high-level, closely guarded Dracoryn Realm intel.Andbecause of what Winter’s going through. Telling him this now, I’m worried it will make things seem like even more of an uphill battle, like another trial and—”
“Stakes noted. I’m with you, Evira.”
I sat forward and told him, “When I was in the Dracoryn Realm before we knew Winter had been abducted or any of this about Ruxnoth, I was told by my dad and grandmother that House Athyras—the Wind Dragons—had sensed a coming destabilization rooted in death magic. And that it was a threat that Winter would need to see to alongside Sylas.” I screwed up my face. “To spread the risk, they’re seeing Winter as a shield for Sylas, almost cannon fodder, which is disgusting on so many levels. That being said, the reason my abdication is being referred to as temporary is because my family believes that Winter stepping up will change how he’s seen by the Dracoryn Realm. They think he will then be seen as an asset, as essential, thereby transcending the fear and distaste of him beingdeath incarnate.”
“I see.”
I grimaced. “I should have mentioned it during that discussion with everyone in the living room, shouldn’t I? Or even right when we got there? Or even when Zayn and I werewith Remnant being benched while you and Sylas and company tracked Winter down?”
He held up his hand. “First, you didn’t need to mention it to them at all. Cassius has been monitoring the Dracoryn Realm closely ever since Torvek attacked Winter. He knew about your abdication less than an hour after it occurred. That means he has someone on the inside. I believe it’s the Inter-Realm Ambassador, Cornelius Martel. Not only Ariana’s grandfather, but him and his husband, Warlow Boyd, being surrogate fathers to Velra herself. They will know of this already. Also, the threat aspect was vague, and we’ve since learned a great deal more from other sources. So Winter and his family are not lacking information. Only the political situation regarding Winter’s status-of-acceptance in the Dracoryn Realm is likely still unknown intel.”
He smiled, then went on, “Second, mentioning it to anyone else when tempers and emotions were high would have been received negatively in all likelihood—especially to Winter.”
“You… I don’t… how do you know all of this?”
He lifted a shoulder. “Observer extraordinaire, if you recall.”
“Even inside their home?”
“When emotions are high, mistakes are more likely to be made. We both know this won’t be seen as a positive thing by Winter at this juncture. On the surface, the idea of the Dracoryn Realm accepting him sounds wonderful. But the conditionality of it is the poison to him. Conditional legitimacy. He’s already burdened by that.”
“Not telling him, though, is it too similar to his family keeping the existence of Temperance from him? I mean, even with that, I can see both sides of it.”
“Because there was no correct way forward in that scenario. At least not at the time. Sylas claimed he intended to tell him once he’d completed Winter’s necromantic training to its fullest.At that point, not doing so would have been keeping vital information from a fully empowered individual for the mere reason of not wishing to hurt his feelings.”
“Yeah, and this serves no purpose at all other than to emphasize what already causes Winter so much heartache. At least until it can be reframed for him.”
He reached out and took my hand. “Do you remember what I told you? About where we all hail from?”
I nodded. “From poison.”
“Yes. Products of what used to be—persecution, injustice, violence, and terror. The tide is close to turning in that direction once more, this situation with Winter being worrying living proof. Things are at a tipping point. Pushing that tide back, overcoming it, needs to start at the top—with those in command. They must set the example, one that will then radiate downwithlegitimacy from those in power who are already trusted and believed in.”
He stroked the back of my hand with his thumb. “Whatyoudid is already a step forward, a stand, Evira. From those in command. Abdicating and the reason for doing so, not accepting the stance against Winter and refusing to bow to pressure and break from him was a political statement—whether you’ve allowed yourself to recognize the weight of that or not. You are not just anyone. You are the dragon princess—title or not at present.”
I smiled out at him. “Vaxan.”
“Well, you deserve to see the importance and courage of what you truly did, beauty.”
Something occurred to me with the way he was talking. “You’ve already done the same thing, haven’t you? You took a political stance for Winter as Basilisk High Lord Heir of the Excetra Crown. You knew they’d feel it, knew the statement you’d be making—and without permission too?”
He winked. “I told you, even as heirs, you and I have the power to affect change without actually being in the seat of power.”
“And the consequences?”
He lifted a shoulder. “I’m sure they’ll be forthcoming.”
I shook my head in dismay.
“I have no regrets.”
“Winter doesn’t know. He would have reacted similarly to how he did with my abdication.”
“No. And precisely. Winter will continue to react in ways similar to that now until we can pull him back.”
