Arvus wrapped an arm around him, tugging him close, and Trill sagged into him, trying to relax.
“If that happens, honey, then the Prince and Cormal—and I believe even the Queen—will still advocate for you and Perian and Yannoma. If the worst happens, then please believe that we weren’t speaking idly when we said we would defend you. Brannal is the strongest Mage in the castle by far, and he would have me, Molun, and Cormal at his side at a minimum. It wouldn’t be easy, but the country is big enough that we can go hide if we need to.”
Shocked, Trill turned to look at him properly. “Go hide?”
Arvus simply nodded. “Of course.”
“But…” Trill blinked at him, but Arvus just waited patiently for Trill to find words. “But you’re Mage Warriors. You’re meant to be here. You’d just… leave?”
Arvus’s expression softened, and he leaned in to press a soft kiss to Trill’s lips.
“Yes, we’d leave with you. We’d never abandon you. And if something goes entirely wrong and you’re not safe here, then we wouldn’t want to be here anyway. We were ready to leave when Brannal went after Perian, but he convinced us not to. We wouldn’t make that mistake again.”
Perian’s eyebrow quirked. “Molun’s still looking for a sex estate?”
The laugh that exploded around the room was a little more forceful than the comment really warranted, but apparently they’d all been looking for a way to release some of that tension.
The Princess said, “Asex estate?”
From Perian’s expression, he’d kind of forgotten she was there. “Yes, well, it might be really easy for me and Brannal to have sex wherever we want at my place. Molun liked that.”
Her face twisted into one of disgust. “You’re going to clean everything really well before I come visit, right?”
Perian laughed. “Yes. Promise.”
Trill wondered if Yannoma had envisioned anything like this when she’d told him that he was an idiot for considering coming to the castle. Did she think that his idiocy had resulted in her winding up here, too? Probably. And yet… it wasn’t all bad, was it? At least not yet? The doctor was sitting next to her, and if Trill wasn’t mistaken, she was trying to distract her with some arousal. Trill admired the subtlety, especially given that the Princess was in the room. It was just enough for Trill to detect, a small amount that Yannoma could consume.
They were all pulled into a discussion of the birthday party that the Princess wanted to redo now that Perian was back, and they all gamely pretended it wasn’t possible that he would be gone for good soon. The Princess’s plans got more and more elaborate, eventually involving the need for Arvus to reshape some of the stone to make room for… Trill thought it was perhaps a giant sculpture in the quadrangle? Trill was trying to pay attention, but it wasn’t going that well.
He didn’t know how long it had been before the Warriors at the door knocked and announced that the Council wanted to see Brannal.
Brannal and Perian exchanged a look, and then Brannal rose to his feet.
He turned to Arvus.
“With my life,” Arvus said firmly. “You know that.”
Brannal gave a nod, leaned in to press a soft kiss to Perian’s lips, and then he was gone.
Now it was just Arvus to protect Trill and Perian if something happened. Well, and the Mage Warriors at the door for the Princess, but he didn’t know for sure if they would defend the two children of two worlds or the carnalion. The Warriors probably would, since they seemed sincerely fond of Perian, but there was only so much they could do against Mage Warriors if it came down to that.
The Princess said, “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
It took Trill a moment to realize she was talking to him, her face fierce and earnest.
“Oh, thank you.”
“I mean it,” she told him. “No one will want me to get hurt. I’ll stand in front of you and make sure they can’t get to you. Promise.”
Trill felt tears prickle in his eyes. They scarcely knew one another, but she loved Perian and would clearly do anything for him, and she’d been kind enough to extend that protection to Trill, to believe in him and not condemn him for an accident of birth that he had no control over.
“Thank you, Princess. That means a great deal.”
“You should call me Renny,” the Princess suggested. She made a face. “‘Princess’ is so stuffy.”
“I’ll… try?” Trill said, since this felt like a step too far today.
She grinned at him.
