And so I did, leaving not a single detail out.
Moments later, I found myself in the lounge with Byn, Teagan, Quinn, and Margo.Quinn, Margo, and I sat on plush chairs and sofas that felt much too comfortablefor the amount ofdiscomfort in the room.
Byn and Teagan stood near the bookcase on the other side of the space, whispering furiously to each other. They obviouslydisagreed about how to handle the situation, and theyweren’texactly doinga good jobof hiding it. I could feel Byn’s urge to protect his younger sister at all costs rising within him.
“Why is everybody being so weird?” Margo asked me, shifting to sit closer to me on the sofa, then leaning over to rest her head against my arm.
Thankfully, the sofa we sat on was one of the larger ones inall ofThe Haven, allowing me enough space to stretch my wing out just enough to wrap it around Margo, drawing her closer to me.
“Sometimes we have different ideas of how a certain situation should be handled,” I explained, my voice just above a whisper. “I think, right now, your brother and sister are figuring out how to work past that.”
Margo looked over at my wing around her, then up to meet my gaze.I stared back into her big, caramel-colored eyes, trying to let her know without a word that everything was going to be alright.
“I’m telling her, with or without you, Robyn,” Teagan finally said, her voice rising to a normal level.
“Teagan, wait—” Byn reachedouta handto try to grab his older sister as she walked toward us, but she was out of reach before he could stop her.
“Tell me what?” Margo whispered to me.
“I guess we’re about to find out, aren’t we?” I whispered back, watching as Teagan came and sat on the low table in front of the sofa, directly before Margo.
I felt Byn deflate before I saw it, his resolve crumbling.
I knew he just wanted to protect Margo for as long as he could, but she was a curious one. She would have found out eventually.
I envisioned myself running a soothing hand along the bundle of emotions ofhisthat sat in my chest—the ones thatseemed to shinea forest-green color in my subconscious. I just wanted him to know hewasn’talone.
I felt a hint of his gratitude at my small act as he took a deep breath, then crossed the space and perched himself across from me on the table next to Teagan.
I shifted my legslightlyso our knees touched, trying to help ground him through the anxiety I knew he was feeling. Though I could feel his appreciation, outwardly, his attention was purely on Margo.
“Margo, there’s something we’ve been keeping from you, but I think it’s about time we tell you,” Teagan began, her voice somehow light but firm.
She’dmake a great mother of her own, someday—if she so chose.
“Now, recalling some of this might hurt a little, but know that we’re all right here for you, alright?” Byn chimed in,leaning inslightly closer to his sisters.
It was an intimate moment—one I was incredibly honored to be apart of as Margo slid her little gloved hand into mine.Though she didn’t look my way, I knew just holding her hand in mine was a comfort forher in itself.She needed to be grounded, the same way her brother often did.
And I was happy to be that forboth of them.
“You… remember the most recent battle, correct?” Teagan began.
Margo shrank back into my wing, which was still loosely curved around her small frame. But despite her obvious discomfort with the topic at hand, she murmured a small,“Yes.”
“I know you remember what happened to Ezra—you’re still having nightmares about it,” Teagan said, her voice the gentlestI’dever heard it.Her usual firm tone had vanished.There was no room for that side of her rightnow.
My heart ached as Margo’s bottom lip jutted out into a sad pout, and I could tell she was trying her best not to cry. Even so, she nodded.
“Well…” Teagan glanced at Byn one last time before revealing the news to their little sister. “When the group went back for Ezra’s…body, after the battle had ended, it… wasn’t there.”
At that, Margo’s eyebrows furrowed, her expression shifting fromsadto confused in a heartbeat.
“That’s who Quinn and Aviva were talking about, in the corridor,” Byn added, his voice as soft as Teagan’s.
At that, I glancedtowardQuinn, who had moved toward the far bookshelf at the front of the room, obviously giving us space. Thoughtalkinghad been an understatement.
Teagan took a deep breath before finally saying, “Ezradidn’tdie that day, Margo. The Stars knowhe’sbeen through a lot, but he lived.”
