Page 154 of Black Wing and Shadows
“I don’t think I am ready to mingle,” I admitted, my voice small.
“You don’t have to,” Zane said. “Not yet.”
He led me toward the wide bed draped in dark furs, the smell of cedar clinging to the heavy blankets. I hadn’t protested when he pulled me down beside him, his arms wrapping firm around me, anchoring me in the storm.
My back pressed to his chest, just as it had every night I’d fallen asleep in his arms, his breath steady against my hair. The bond between us hummed, warm and sure, tugging the knots loose in my chest.
I felt safe. I was safe. Sure, there were unknowns, but I was safe. My eyelids grew heavy despite the weight of what waited for us tonight.
“Rest,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to my temple. “We’ll face them together.”
The palace could rage, his family could question, and the dinner could turn into chaos. But wrapped in his arms, exhaustion won.
And I let sleep take me.
By the time Zane and I entered the dining hall, it was already chaos. The long table stretched beneath glittering chandeliers, flames from a dozen candelabras flickering against polished silver and crystal. Footmen weaved between chairs with trays of steaming platters—roasted game hens, spiced root vegetables, bowls of broth that smelled like heaven itself.
But the food was the background. The noise came from his siblings.
Arkin had already been halfway through a dramatic retelling of some “harrowing duel” in the training yard, gesturing so wildly that he nearly elbowed Theodora in the face. She hadn’t flinched, only rolled her eyes and kept sipping her wine. Helena was arguing with Eli about whether griffins or dragons made the better war mounts, both of them getting louder and louder until Elizabeth squealed for them to shut up. Aeliana tried to keep some order, but her presence couldn’t quiet them all at once.
“Gods,” I said under my breath, hovering at the threshold, “this makes the dining hall look peaceful.”
Zane chuckled, his hand at the small of my back as he guided me forward. “Welcome to dinner at Ashwynd, I told you it was chaos at home.”
The moment they noticed us, six voices overlapped.
“About time!”
“You nearly missed the soup.”
“Don’t sit next to Arkin—he spits when he talks.”
“Do sit next to Arkin—I want someone else to suffer.”
“She looks nervous. Stop staring at her.”
“She is nervous, look at her face!”
Heat rushed to my cheeks. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
“Enough,” the duke’s voice cut through the din, calm but carrying. Instantly, the siblings quieted, though smirks lingered on their faces.
The Duchess rose slightly, smiling at me. “Come, Auri. Sit. Eat. Let the noise wash over you—it always does.”
I let out a shaky breath, sliding into the seat beside Zane. Across the table, Aeliana caught my eye and winked, as though to say welcome to the family circus. The footmen poured wine and passed platters around. Conversation roared back to life—questions hurled at Zane about the college, sly jabs at each other, debates over politics and war tactics thrown in between bites of bread. And somehow, through the chaos, I found myself laughing. The nerves hadn’t vanished—but maybe, just maybe, I could survive this.
The meal had already been a blur of sound and motion by the time I had a plate in front of me. Arkin kept reaching over people to grab food thatwasn’t his. Elizabeth had been sneaking candied nuts into her pocket when she thought no one was looking, and Adrian had been loudly insisting that Drusearons could outfly griffins.
“Blasphemy,” Nikolai said into his wine, and the table erupted again.
I found myself smiling, actually laughing, despite the knot in my stomach. It felt… chaotic, but familiar. Like Feather Wing in the dining hall back at the college, just louder and with better food.
Helena leaned across the table, her sharp eyes catching mine. “So, Auri,” she said, voice deceptively light, “what was it like the first time you felt the bond with Zane? Did you know what it was?”
My fork froze halfway to my mouth. “I—” My chest tightened. That hadn’t been something I really talked about.
Before I could find an answer, Aeliana chimed in, smiling but with that same piercing look. “Your father is—General Blackcreek, right?”
