“If you’ll excuse us,” he said to Kallik. The older man still wouldn’t meet Florian’s eyes, but nodded at them.
“Go on, then,” he said, waving with one hand, and Kade led him back out of the dining room. They walked in silence back up to their room. Florian collapsed onto the bed almost instantly, groaning.
“Yeah, it’s a lot,” Kade chuckled, coming to sit next to him. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Florian sighed, turning his head to look ruefully back up at him. “Families are... weird.”
“Yeah,” Kade agreed, but the soft smile remained on his face. “They are.”
They sat in silence for a moment, interrupted only by the sound of Florian breathing against the blankets. After a moment, Kade placed a soft hand on his back—with how cold the room was, his hand felt as warm as the sun.
“Our room has a big bathtub,” Kade said. “Want to go soak for a bit?”
“What? Of course!” Florian laughed, leaping to his feet. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
Their time in the wolf kingdom ended up being much more leisurely than Florian had first expected. Kade’s parents seemed to be the only real points of contention—any time they were around, Florian could feel their eyes lingering on him—but luckily, they only really saw them around meal times, which were all large family affairs. Even breakfast usually had at least one set of cousins, aunts, and uncles gathered around the long table.
Within just a few days Florian met what seemed like the whole of the wolf clan; if not everyone, then at least all of Kade’s immediate relatives. Where the Winter Court had felt somewhat reserved and isolated, here it seemed everyone knew everyone else, and they were all intimately involved in community life. He supposed that was the difference between being a guest and a king; at least, he hoped that was the case.
He also noticed many more children here than at the Winter Court. Even at the feast Jerah held for him, where nearly every citizen had been present, he could have counted the number of fae children that he’d seen on both hands. Here, children ran in the streets, peered at them curiously from windows, and followed them around as they walked--sometimes chattering at them and sometimes simply following idly. It seemed like half of Kade’s cousins and other relatives had small children, too. Florian couldn’t recall ever having been around so many babies in his life.
On the fourth day, though, Kallik asked them at breakfast to stay and talk with him afterward. When they joined him at the end of the meal, in another room that looked like a study, he collapsed heavily in a chair before turning to face them.
“Sorry,” he panted, breathing hard despite the short walk. “Not as spry as I used to be.”
“Are you okay?” Kade asked, brows furrowing as he stepped closer; but Kallik shook his head and waved him back.
“I’m fine, I’m fine,” he said, and started rummaging around in a desk drawer. Florian worried his bottom lip between his teeth, glancing over at Kade; but the taller man was looking at his father in steady concentration. “Ah, here it is.”
From the drawer he withdrew a few stacks of paper and set them on the table, then started flipping through them. A few he separated from the others and held in one hand.
“Old letters from Jerah,” he explained without looking at them. Florian gave a start, craning his neck to try and get a better look. “Never got many, but a few. I was looking through them to see if he had written anything about the ritual to find the hag... Here. This is one that mentions it.” He pulled a sheet of paper from the small sheaf that he had made, holding it out. Kade was closer and grabbed it; but seeing Florian’s nervous interest, he handed it over to him without reading. His hands trembled as he held it up.
Kallik -
My friend, I hope this letter finds you well. Congratulations again on the birth of your son, I eagerly look forward to meeting him. I’ll be heading to the wolf kingdom sometime in the next few weeks, so likely not long after you receive this letter, if all things go according to plan. Inessa and I have scouted out the swamp where I believe this witch to live; it’s the next closest place to the Winter Court not touched by the Blight, so I feel confident this must be it. Her home is well-hidden, requiring a ritual to even locate the door. A gift must be presented by all who wish to enter; unfortunately, it seems that it cannot be any ordinary trinket. If my understanding is correct, it must be an item of sentimental value. However this witch’s old magic works, it seems to hold such value in high regard. We can discuss this more when I arrive, but perhaps start thinking of an item that might be suitable... I dread having to break the news to Torsten and Tetsuo, but I know they received my first missive, and I intend to have them join us, so I suppose it can’t be helped. I can only hope that perhaps the witch will kindly return our gifts upon our departure since she requested our presence in the first place... One must have hope, after all.
I will see you soon.
Your friend,
Jerah
Florian looked over the letter once more, before handing it to Kade.
“Do you remember what you brought?” he asked, glancing back over at Kallik. The older man winced, but this time he met his eyes, the first time he’d done so since their first meeting. “For the ritual?”
“I do remember it,” Kallik sighed, eyes flicking between Florian and Kade. “It was right after Kade was born, so I brought the little blanket we first wrapped him in.”
Kade frowned, but his eyes remained on the letter, reading silently.
“Do you know what my dad brought?” Florian asked, softer this time.
“Hmm. A trinket Inessa had given him, I think. It was a long time ago, now.”
Florian nodded, considering. What did he have that was sentimental? The picture of his parents Jerah had given him was the first thing that came to mind, but it made him sick to his stomach to even entertain the thought of giving it away. No, that was more than sentimental now. Maybe the flower Kade had first given him, the midnight princess—he had carefully dried it and pressed it in a book before it could start to wither, where it remained in his new room at the Winter Court. That might work better, but he would still be sad to see it go.
“We’ll think of something,” Kade murmured, handing the letter back to him. “Let’s just worry about the Arrow first.”
