The next evening, Eli decided to pay a visit to Dad. He made sure Nel knew to stay put— or face the consequences— and then ventured out into the tunnel, walking up the familiar way to Dad’s door. He didn’t bother knocking, though for some reason he felt the urge to.

“Dad?”

He found Dad’s presence, strong and sturdy. It flared in delight when Eli’s mind brushed it.

“There you are. Come in, I’m in the kitchen.”

Eli plodded into the room, where Dad sat enjoying a platter of fish. Mouth full, Dad gestured at the chair across from him. Eli sat and heaved a sigh.

“Want some catfish, son? It’s your favorite.”

“No. I’m good.”

Dad ate for a moment, studying Eli’s face.

Eli picked at his nails.

“Something’s worrying you, son.”

Eli put his hands on the table. “No. I’m alright.”

“It’s the Guardianship, isn’t it?” Dad pushed the plate away and wiped his mouth with his hand, rubbing his fingers in the water to get the residue off. “You’re worried about how long it’s going to take.”

Eli guarded his mind. Though Dad was the stronger Taker, Eli had learned from his teenage years how to guard his thoughts against unwanted intrusions.

“It is worrying me. I can’t not think about it.” Eli shrugged. “It’s been my life for so long.”

“Almost 5 years,” Dad reminded him. “The youngest Guardian in nearly two centuries. That’s a feat to be proud of.”

Eli didn’t respond. He wasn’t sure where their conversation was going, but it was making him uneasy.

“I wanted to let you know I’ve been talking to Dom, like I said I would. He’s going to give you back your Guardianship a bit early.”

“Really?” Eli forced a surprised smile. “When?”

“After the coming new moon. He figured two months was enough punishment for that bloody nose you gave him.”

Eli snorted.

Dad watched him, the shine in his blue eyes fading. “Aren’t happy?”

“Of course I’m happy.” Eli laughed, partly to feign joy, partly to release the tension he felt building between them. “I’m just a little shocked. That’s all.”

“Did you think the brat was going to hold it against you forever?”

Eli raised one eyebrow and grinned.

“Come on, Dad. You know Dom. He’s always holding those dramatic royal grudges. And with me…well, I figured he wasn’t going to let me off so easy, seeing as we’ve been at it since our toddler years.”

Dad chuckled.

“It’s true.” He smiled and stood. “You’ve been working hard to regain your honor. I see your efforts at training. I want you to know I’m proud of you. You’ve been working through the pain to get it back the right way. That’s something many Tognir don’t have— integrity.” Dad clapped him on the shoulder.

Eli fought to keep a smile on his face.

“You should be proud of yourself, too.”

Eli looked down at his feet and chuckled.

“Thanks, Dad.”

Dad shook his shoulder.

Eli stood. “Well, I’m gonna go work on my training.”

“Don’t work too hard,” Dad told him. “You’re on leave, after all.”

Eli smiled and then left, knowing Dad was following him out the door with his eyes.

I can’t keep lying to him. He thought of his blues, the Guardianship, what he’d spent his life training for, and groaned. But what choice do I have?

“Eli.”

Almost as soon as he’d left the archway, Ana’s familiar voice assaulted him.

He turned to see her coming down the tunnel and bowed. “Good evening, milady.”

When he straightened to look at her, she frowned at him and crossed her arms.

“Not a good evening?”

“All you do is train anymore.”

“I do have a Guardianship to get back.”

She sighed. “I know. It’s just…after all this happened, you became so aloof and angry all the time. It’s just so confusing. Some of the nobles are with you, and some are against you, and now with Dom’s craziness…” She shook her head at the ground. “I feel like I’ve lost my grounding. Everything has changed. We don’t ever talk anymore, and I feel like you’re hiding something from me.” She looked at him, her amber eyes pleading. “What is going on?”

Eli rolled his eyes. “Nothing’s going on. Besides the fact that Dom’s being an idiot, but that’s old news.”

Ana chuckled, but her smile faded fast.

“You were so jumpy and scared when I came to visit before, and you said something, a person’s name—”

“It wasn’t anybody’s name,” Eli said. He quelled his rising panic and barricaded his thoughts against her prying concern. “It was just the first sound that came to my mind.”

Ana raised an eyebrow.

“You know,” Eli insisted. “Everybody has a word they say when they get scared. That’s mine.”

Ana snorted. “I’ve never heard you say that word before.”

Eli smirked and took a step closer to her.

“Have you ever seen me scared before?”

Ana rolled her eyes, but more than a hint of a blush darkened her cheeks. She refused to look at him.

He felt the urge to take her hands, to apologize. Here she was, risking her own social status just to make sure he was okay. She had always been the kindness in his life, the softness, the gentle light glowing in the darkest times. And he couldn’t even tell her the truth.

So he listened to that urge. He grasped her fingertips and squeezed tight.

She looked up at him, her blush deepening, her eyes questioning.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I’ve been dealing with a lot, and some of it’s stuff that I can’t tell anyone about, not even you. Not even Dad. I just have to deal with it on my own.”

“Hey.” Ana pulled her hand from his grasp and ruffled his hair. “You are scared, and that’s okay. You’re scared you won’t get your Guardianship back. You’re scared about what kind of hell Dom’s going to put you through to get there, and that’s a lot to deal with. I get it.” She squeezed his arm. “Just know I’m here to help you deal with it. Just like always.”

Eli smiled. “Thanks, Ana.”

She smiled, too, but her eyes widened and it faded. “My father. He’s calling me.”

“You’d better go, then.” Eli released her hand.

She turned to go, but something in her aura, some unanswered question, made him reach out for her again.

She looked back at him and the question brightened and clarified. What it asked made his stomach tie itself in knots.

He had never considered Ana anything more than a friend. But the idea she presented, colored bright with yellows and pinks, lifted his heart out of the sea of guilt and dread it had been buried in. She loved him, had loved him for years, and had been waiting for just the perfect time to tell him.

He looked at her amber eyes, glistening with hope. Now was far from the perfect time, but it had come out, and now he had to turn that question in on himself. Did he love her? Could he love her like she loved him? Their being seen together everywhere had never been questioned, that was true. They’d had each other’s backs for so long. She had always been his biggest fan, and had even learned to fight with him.

He smiled at their shared memories, glowing with the soft golden light of nostalgia. He and Ana. They could be happy together. Once all this was over, once he got his blues and got Nel out of the picture, once everything settled down again and he was back in the nobles’ good graces… His smile faded.

“But I’m nobody right now,” he whispered.

“Eli, I don’t care.” Her amber eyes blazed. “Dom asked me to marry him.”

Eli’s heart plummeted. “What?”

“I turned him down.” She touched his face. “I turned him down because I love you.”

He grasped her hand. She shouldn’t have done that. Not for him. “Ana—”

“Listen to me. I don’t care what Dom has or doesn’t have. He’s a liar and a power-crazy tyrant. Yeah, Dad would kill me if he found out I turned down a chance to be queen, but I don’t care.”

“You know I don’t have anything right now. I’ve got my house and that’s about it.”

“That’s all we’ll need.” She grinned, stroking his face with her thumb. “Do you think I’m so spoiled that I can’t make do with the Guardian’s place?”

Eli chuckled. “Says the woman who loves being fought over.”

Her aura was all rose, her eyes sparkling in the light of the violet glowstones in the tunnel. For the first time he took in her beauty, her lashes long and dark against her cheeks, her gently-curling hair drifting like a halo around her face.

He could be happy with her. He pulled her closer.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, eyes closed and face upturned in expectation.

How long she’d waited for this, he didn’t know. But he wouldn’t make her wait a second longer. He brushed a soft kiss against her lips.

Her aura exploded into a firework show of fuchsias and golds. She smiled, and to his surprise, put a finger to his lips as he bent to kiss her again. “No more.” Her radiant smile faded just a bit as they both heard her dad’s call.

Eli released her, though as she turned to go she grasped his hand.

“I’ll see you at training tomorrow.”

He grinned. “Tomorrow.”

He watched her go before retreating to his house, heart racing and thoughts spinning out of control.

He and Ana. Together, as a couple.

He could get used to the idea.