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After a few hours, the sun comes up, and things go by very quickly.
Lucy makes breakfast. Nico eats most of it. When our friends notice the shimmering sigil of the Goddess on my chest and the faint mating mark on my neck, they bombard us with questions.
Helena tells us we're crazy for having done what we did. Mark makes an inappropriate comment about Tristan and me that has Amara smacking him on the head. My father protests that once the curse was lifted, we could've had a proper ceremony and hosted a celebration. My mother tackles my mate with a hug so energetically that Tristan's strength and size are the only reason she doesn't knock him over.
A few days after that, the conclave gathers in the war room, and the five kingdoms that fought in the war become united into a single pack called the Baneless Moon. After that, a treaty is drawn between them, Nightwalker Clan, and the Rovers Pack, and it becomes known as the Nameless Alliance.
Despite my protests, I am declared the Sole Queen of the Baneless Moon Pack, Luna of the Rovers, as well as princess and official heir of the Nightwalker Clan. My first order of business is appointing a council to help me rule and maintain the peace among the three lands I am not linked to. Fortunately for me, everyone I could have wanted is already there in the room with me.
One week later, I find myself all packed up and saying a tearful goodbye to my parents. My father insists that even though I decided to live in the Villa du Lac with my mate, I will always have a home in the nightwalker's court. My mother insists that I come and visit at least once a month, and Tristan reassures her that she is always welcome in the Rovers' territory whenever she wants. She replies that, in that case, we should forget about monthly visits and get together once a week.
I expect I'll be doing a lot of commuting between the three kingdoms, but considering I won't be making the trip alone, I don't mind. I have my pack, my friends, my family, and my mate by my side. The world will continue to change in strange and unforeseen ways, but whatever comes next, I know I will not face any of it alone.
After what feels like a lifetime away, we return to the Rovers' village, and those who stayed behind during the battle come out and greet us on the streets. Sunlight glistens on the smooth surface of the crystalline lake in the distance, the day crisp and bright. The door of the Villa du Lac opens of its own accord, the magic of the mansion welcoming me back, and I'm reminded of the first time I ever saw this place. Never in a million years could I have imagined how much would happen and how different I would be. Never in a million years could I have guessed what this house would mean to me.
This strange, enchanted house with its self-cleaning kitchen that used to confuse me so much, the massive balcony where Amara taught me to fight, the courtyard where Lucy and I would have brunch, the garden filled with enough beauty to bring tears to my eyes, the winding path out back that led to the lake where a mysterious voice once called out to me, and the room where I used to sleep with the door open.
Now, I'll be sharing my mate's room, and we will most certainly have to lock the door to keep our marvelously meddlesome friends out. Now, the people of this house are so much more than kind strangers, and the magic of these lands fills me with wonder instead of fear. Now I have a name, a past that I am proud of, and a future I am so unbelievably excited to share with the love of my life.
Now... I'm finally home.
Epilogue
Tristan
I follow the sound of anxious whispers past the sliding glass doors and out into the garden of the Villa du Lac. I could sense the nervous tension that had been building over the past few days in my mate, but I couldn't see her just yet.
I'd tried talking to her earlier, but she'd just brushed me off, and I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something troubling her. Uncertainty, excitement, and strange anxiety echoed to me through the bond, and I could feel her trying to shut me out.
It was unlike Iris to push me away, and it was even more unlike her to act so secretively. After a disastrous attempt to throw Nico a surprise party for his birthday, we'd all realized just how terrible she is at hiding things. Before we mated, before the broken curse and the war, Iris had tried to keep things from me. She'd been ashamed of her scars, and she'd done everything in her power to drive distance between us in an attempt to protect me. It's a good thing she never felt inclined to lie to me outright.
My mate wears her emotions on her eyes. She's absolutely rubbish at hiding them, particularly from me and especially now that our bond is complete. Her feelings radiate off her like a soft glow, and her thoughts often tickle the back of my mind.
My senses are flooded with the intoxicatingly sweet scent of flowers in full bloom in the garden. Life seemed to thrive under her touch, and the blossoms of our home have never looked lovelier. I round the corner and find Lucy and Iris sitting on the edge of the little fountain. They're leaning in close to each other, their foreheads almost touching as Lucy whispers something excitedly.
I can be quiet when I want to be, but Iris's lips go still, her eyes flickering up from her friend as she senses me approaching. Her gaze darts back to Lucy as the two of them straighten and go quiet as if I hadn't just walked into something I wasn't supposed to see.
"Hey, boss," Lucy says with a too-eager smile as Iris avoids my gaze. "I thought you were out hunting with Mark."
"We came back early. I've never known a wolf with such a terrible sense of smell as your brother. It's a good thing Nico is our tracker. Mark couldn't even find one rabbit," I say carefully, monitoring their reactions.
Lucy snorts in amusement, unable to disagree with my playful jab at her brother's tracking skills.
Iris clears her throat. "Lucy, would you mind giving me a minute alone with my mate?"
Lucy's eyes widen momentarily as she looks between Iris and me, the corners of her lips twitching.
"Of course. I'll go see if Amara needs any help in the library," Lucy says at last.
The vicious gash on Amara's face has all but healed, but her left eye will never open again. Despite this, she remains as graceful and proud as she was before, and she's taken to reading in the library in a supposed effort to exercise her good eye. But she's happy to spend her days surrounded by books even without the excuse.
I watch without a word as Lucy bounces up and slips past me, hurrying away before I can ask her anything.
"Sit with me, my king," Iris says softly, her lilting voice drawing my attention back to her. She pats the stone beside her, a patient smile gracing her perfectly plump lips.
I can feel her excitement through her bond, but she's trying to hold it back, putting up a wall around her mind to keep me from seeing whatever is causing it. She's never shut me out like this before, and the attempt at secrecy is clumsy and obvious. It feels like if I just scratched at the edge of that wall, it would collapse like a dam, and whatever thought she is holding back would flood out.
