Spring couldn't have arrived faster. Without Inej, without his starlight, Kaz was stressed and pressured and depressed. It didn't seem different from how he usually was, but the fact that she was missing made it five times worse. His heart ached and he had hardly any motivation to do anything.

The sun cast long shadows among the Ketterdam streets, the mist hung high over the city. Ocean waves could be heard crashing against the docks even from the Slat. The air smelled fresh, clean. It was almost a relief.

He had just returned to his room after a brawl with some of the ex-Dime Lions. It seemed as if someone was in his head, pounding a rock against his skull. His room in the Slat felt too hot, too humid.

He closed the door behind him and kicked off his shoes, then pulled off his suit jacket, letting it fall to the floor. He peeled off his gloves, tossing them onto his desk, then he unbuttoned his vest and let it drop beside his suit.

The city seemed so... bright that day. Kaz wished he knew why.

He shrugged his suspenders off and reached for the first button of his shirt when he was grabbed from behind. Startled, Kaz reached for his cane but paused at the smooth lips that were trailing up his neck.

"Inej."

She spun him around and smiled. Her eyes seemed brighter, fresher. Her caramel skin now glowed with sea-salt and clean wind.

He couldn't fight back the soft whimper that slipped from his mouth as he collapsed into her embrace. Inej wiped at one of her own tears before wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I missed you," he whispered, unable to get enough of that smell of home, that comfort of her embrace.

"I missed you, too," she replied, kissing his cheek.

After a few more moments of Kaz holding Inej like she was a stack of money about to slip away, they broke apart.

Inej smiled that beautiful, beautiful smile. It was almost enough to send Kaz crawling across the ground towards her. "I have... news."

"News?"

She nodded, glancing out the window. Shadows danced in her gorgeous brown eyes. "My... my parents want me to... start a family."

He raised an eyebrow.

"My cousins have all settled down, married. My parents know what happened at the Menagerie, but... they want me to have a family."

"Oh?"

"Kaz quit it!"

"Quit what?"

"Playing dumb! I can't ask you for anything but... if I'm going to start a family, it's going to be with you."

He couldn't exactly say he was shocked. Unless she had some secret love back in Ravka, Inej didn't seem like she would have picked anyone else. "So, what do you want to do?"

She glowered at him. "We're getting married."

"I didn't agree to this."

"You don't have a choice unless you want me to marry some rich Ravkan. If I'm not married within the year, I'll be forced to go back to traveling with my parents."

Kaz clicked his tongue. "Why is that?"

"A while back, my parents signed a contract with the circus operators, promising that I would be married by the time I turned eighteen or I would be thrown out of the circus. Since I've returned, they told me that if I wasn't married by the end of the year, I'll have no choice but to travel with them and turn my back on Ketterdam."

Turn her back on me. She didn't have to say that part, not when he read it in her eyes.

Before she had left, he had told her he loved her. He still did, perhaps always would. But marriage was a lot. And... he wasn't going to lie to himself, if he would marry Inej, he wanted to ask her properly.

"If I marry you... I'd have to quit running the Dregs."

"Why? The Crow Club supplies a lot of money. You're practically a rich businessman, even if you run a gang."

"So we get married and we abide by your parents' rules and have kids. You want to raise children here, in Ketterdam, with a demon for a father?"

Inej rolled her eyes. "We don't have to... you know..."

Kaz snorted. "Your parents expect you to have kids."

She shouldered him, stalking to the window. "Don't make this difficult."

"I'm not. I'm just saying, whatever child I try to raise will end up pretty messed up."

"Why do you think that?" She demanded. "We could do it together."

"Inej, getting over past traumas and raising children are two very different things."

She glared over her shoulder at him. "Then is it settled? I'm going back to Ravka to perform my whole life and never amount to anything?"

"Inej, I... I want what's best for you. There are better men out there. I am one person."

"Yeah, the one person I love. I don't want a Ravkan prince or a rich man or anything. I want you, gang or not. It's your choice."

He reached out, toying with the end of her braid. "Children. That could be... very interesting."

She turned towards Kaz, placing a hand on his. "Think on it. I'm going to catch up with Wylan and Jesper."

He nodded, pressing a kiss to her lips before she slid out the window. He watched as she descended onto the streets and disappeared among the crowds before turning back to his desk.

The door unlocked from the outside and he was instantly alert, leaping to his feet.

Nina emerged, a grin spreading over her face. "Kaz is gonna make some babies!"

"No, I'm not."

"Sure. You're like a dog, following her scent and rolling over whenever she wants you to."

He snorted. "Whatever."

"So, you're just gonna let her walk away after she practically proposed to you? You are such an idiot."

"Thank you, Nina Dear. Now, can you leave me in peace?"

"No. If you break my friend's heart-"

Kaz kicked his chair aside. "I would never do that. I just... I want Inej to have someone who's good for her."

"Stop that! Stop acting like you aren't good enough for her. She told you she wants to get married to you."

"She didn't exactly say that. She says that she has to marry someone before the year is over and she would prefer to marry me."

Nina's eyes bulged. "You're hopeless. The girl of your dreams-"

"I don't have dreams."

"-just proposed to you and you declined."

"I'm supposed to be thinking about it but you're here."

Nina turned and started back out onto the landing. "Why she wants to marry you, I'll never understand." She disappeared.

I'm an idiot, Kaz thought.

****

Inej hadn't returned to the Slat until Kaz was already relaxed on his bed, reading over a few business reports for Wylan.

She slid in through the window and said nothing, just sat beside him and rested her head on his shoulder.

That pounding began in Kaz's head again, his eyes burned, his throat seemed to be scorched-

"Breathe," she whispered, running a hand down his cheek. "You're okay."

He kissed her brow. "I know."

"Did you... did you think about it?"

He couldn't answer her. He couldn't break this beautiful, gentle creature's heart. "I love you."

She frowned and sat up on the bed. "I'll see you in a little while."

She disappeared out the window.

Kaz tossed the reports aside, rolled over, and punched a hole through the wall.

****

The next day was torture. Inej had gone off with Nina and Jesper, leaving Kaz and Wylan by themselves. Kaz was currently talking to the boy about business, but Wylan seemed half asleep, even after four cups of black coffee.

"Wy, are you even listening to me?"

He yawned. "No."

"Let's do something else."

"I need to go shopping."

Kaz rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

Wylan gripped his bare wrist and pulled him out of the mansion and all the way to a fancy shop in uptown Ketterdam. Instead of heading towards the clothes section, Wylan dragged him over to the jewelry.

"You need to pick out a ring."

"Why?"

Wylan peered through the glass. "Well, you have to propose to Inej."

Kaz decided not to argue with the boy. He examined the rings, narrowing it down between two rings. He ended up choosing the one that looked like twining tree branches encrusted with diamonds.

Wylan argued with Kaz for a few moments about paying for the ring until Kaz backed off and let him pay.

"She'll like it," Wylan promised.

"If she doesn't, I'll push you in the canal and see how well you can swim."

Wylan doubled over from laughter.

Kaz yawned as he was shaken awake, batting at the hand on his shoulder.

"Wake up," Inej growled, pulling him out of the bed and onto the floor. "Get up, Kaz."

He groaned and took her hand, stretching as he stood. "I was having a good dream."

Inej just shrugged. "My parents will be here soon. To see... how we're doing."

She hadn't been well lately, frequently throwing up, feeling extremely hungry...

"How are you today?"

Her hand twitched as if she wanted to brush it over something, but she replied quietly, "I don't feel that great."

He pulled on his pants, wrapping an arm around her waist. "What is it, love?"

Inej eyes glinted with tears. "Before my parents get here... I... I'm..."

She didn't finish. Kaz kissed her forehead lovingly. "You can tell me."

She rested a hand on her stomach and flinched.

"Oh."

She blinked, a tear sliding down her cheek. He immediately brushed it away. "It'll be okay. You'll be okay. You don't even have to tell your parents."

She just shook her head, leaning into his embrace. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry."

He rested his chin on her head. "We'll figure it out."

For some reason, he wasn't so sure.

****

"Maezon! Get down from there! Jordan, stop attacking Meren. Where's Jayleth?"

Kaz raised his eyebrows at Inej as she rushed through the Slat, searching for their children. It was... cramped, but nice. The Dregs loved the Rietvelds and spent a lot of their time ogling over the children.

Inej scooped Meren, the youngest of the bunch, into her arms and kissed his head. He was the youngest, only four years old. Jordan, who was six, frowned at her mother. Maezon slid down from on top of the wardrobe with a displeased growl. At nine, he was the oldest, albeit the shiest. He was the most like Inej, with his caramel skin, bony frame, short legs. He had Kaz's sharp cheekbones and pointed nose, but he was like his mother in every other way possible.

Kaz immediately knew where to look for Jayleth, the schemer of the group. She was eight but taller than Inej. Unlike Maezon and Jordan, Jayleth didn't know how to walk the tightrope. She had instead taken up learning how to pick locks and steal things. After spending a whole day with Wylan and Jesper, she had begged Kaz to let her learn chemistry. He finally agreed, allowing her to stay with Wylan for a few days at a time.

He opened the wardrobe Maezon had been perched upon to reveal the young girl. She grinned up at Kaz, pale cheeks creasing as she gazed up to him. She had her mother's sympathetic eyes but her father's sharp nose and cheeks. Her hair was naturally curly, cropped close to her head. The raven strands glowed as she slid from the wardrobe.

"When can we go out?" Maezon asked, rushing in circles around Kaz. "I'm bored."

"Yeah," Jayleth agreed, shouldering her brother when he walked by her.

Inej just shrugged, cradling Meren in her arms. "Do you want to go to Wylan's for dinner?"

"Yes!" Jordan cried, hopping up and down at her mother's feet. "Yes, please!"

The Rietvelds made their way to the Fahey Mansion and walked in without even knocking.

Wylan was standing in the large foyer, codling his and Jesper's youngest child. The young girl was still but a baby, her eyes hardly opened. Jesper shushed them as they walked in, holding their other child, a two-year-old boy named Kallium.

Kaz tugged off Meren's shoes before gently setting him on the ground, ruffling the boy's brown hair as he did so. Meren scampered past Wylan before rushing into the kitchen to beg the servants for a snack.

Jordan was already curled on the couch, Jayleth rolling her eyes at her younger sister. Maezon was pestering Jesper to tell him a story.

"How is she?" Kaz murmured to Wylan, reaching out to take the sleeping child from his arms.

Wylan seemed immediately relieved as he handed the baby to Kaz. "High maintenance."

"And you're not?" Jesper said.

Wylan rolled his eyes before turning back to Kaz. "She cries a lot."

"Have you named her?"

Wylan shook his head, russet curls bouncing. "We've been thinking."

Jesper nodded, kissing Kallium's head. "Perhaps by Solstice, we'll have a name picked out."

Indeed, Winter Solstice was a few days away and the Fahey household was buzzing with activity. Servants could be heard chattering in the kitchen, while other servants were stringing garland up on the mantel, staircase railing, and any other surface that needed decoration. Candles were set in front of windows and bows were hanging in every doorway. Kaz didn't fail to notice the mistletoe dangling in the doorway to the kitchen.

When the tiny child let out a wail in his arms, Kaz quieted her, humming a tune he had sung to his own children. She instantly calmed down, reaching out a tiny hand to press to his face.

"If he could, he would take her home," Inej murmured, ruffling Kaz's hair.

Kaz laughed quietly, squeezing the baby's hand before gently handing her back to Wylan. The child immediately started screaming and flailing, her face squishing up and turning red. Wylan frowned, holding the child back out for Kaz. Once the baby was back in his arms, she quieted and stilled, her eyes closing.

"Who knew that our child would live Kaz so much," Jesper snorted.

"That's kinda scary," Wylan murmured, smiling at his child. "I wonder how she'll be in a few years."

Kaz just shook his head. "I'll make sure she turns out alright."

Jesper rolled his eyes and said, "What should we name her?"

Kaz looked down at the child, at her puffy cheeks and creased eyes. He glanced up at his friends and whispered, "Hope. We should name her Hope."

Wylan wiped away a tear. "Hope. I love it."