There was a knock on the door. “Come in,” Pisha called from where she sat on the couch. Thailyn said he’d leave the door unlocked. Ann walked in. “Is Dad here?” “He went to the clinic for a moment.” She frowned. “He said to meet him here.” “He just went to get something. He said he’d be back.” “Okay. How are you feeling?” “Not too bad. Thank you for your help.” Ann nodded. “Anything for family.” “But you didn’t know me.” “I knew Ruzi. And I know what it’s like to be alone and trapped.” “I still thank you. We shouldn’t take family for granted.” Ann nodded. “Is there anything you need to be done?” “Nope. Ruzi had the house spotless and he and Thailyn have been cleaning up almost before they can make a mess.” “That’s Grandfather’s influence. He’s a very particular man. It comes from being a black dragon and everyone always looking up to you. You keep your standards high so you don’t let anyone down.” “Being a white dragon can’t be any easier.” “I’m an impossibility, a freak. I’d rather avoid anyone looking at me.” “That must be difficult being a princess.” Ann frowned. “I’m not a princess.” There was a moment of confusion then as Pisha pieced it together, Thailyn entered. “Drepal, good morning.” “Drepal?” Pisha asked. Thailyn frowned. “Have you been pretending to be Ann again?” “No, Sir.” “She wasn’t. I made an incorrect assumption.” “I’m sorry. I’m used to people being able to tell us apart,” Drepal admitted. “I didn’t think to introduce myself.” She turned to Pisha. “I’m sorry for not introducing myself. Pisha tre Vobro, I am Drepal va Darina Thailyn. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” “I’m glad to meet you too. Your father speaks highly of you. I want to thank you for helping me.” Drepal smiled.” You already did that.” “I did, didn’t I?” Pisha smiled too. Pisha was happy Drepal hadn’t introduced herself. Her preconceived notions would have clouded her judgment. Perhaps Drepal had realized that would happen and let her assume she was Ann. “Drepal, what brings you here this morning?” Thailyn asked. “You asked me to come.” “I did?” He frowned. “You said we needed to talk.” “I didn’t mean right away.” Drepal frowned. “I’m not having a good morning. I need to go back to sleep.” “Aren’t you supposed to help with Tercala?” “Yes. I didn’t say I would go to sleep.” “Since she’s here, we could talk to her,” Pisha said. Thailyn nodded. “Drepal, Pisha and I are considering becoming mates.” “I got that impression.” “Do you have a problem with that?” “No, I agree with Ann. You need someone. But what about the law?” “I’ve already applied for citizenship. Once that’s approved, that won’t be a problem,” Pisha assured her. Drepal nodded. “Good. You did tell her about your heart, didn’t you?” She asked Thailyn. He nodded. “I told her when we first met and again after she woke up, in case she forgot.” “Good. Did he tell you, if you two mate, you’ll be related to half the kingdom?” Pisha nodded. “We discussed relations at length yesterday. And he said he saw Menthanla as his clan.” Drepal cocked her head. “He’s Menthanlan now. I suppose it is. Did he…” “Drepal, enough. I’m not keeping anything from her. Go see Jo and Tercala.” Drepal grinned as she stood. “Fine, but you know Ann’s going to ask about this stuff too.” “No, she won’t.” The way Thailyn said it sounded more like a warning than denial to Pisha. “I’ll see you around. It was nice meeting you.” Drepal dipped her head and left. “She seems like she could be a handful.” “You didn’t see her as a teenager. Since she’s been working with Jo, she’s improved so much. I tried to help her but I don’t have the gift Jo does.” “We can’t all be great at everything.” “No, but she’s my daughter, my responsibility. It’s my fault she’s like she is.” “You said she was taken by Lyra at birth.” “If I hadn’t let Darina come to Sen-gan alone, none of it would have happened. If I hadn’t been such a coward, I could have gotten to her before it was too late.” Pisha could feel his guilt and regret through the bond. “Thailyn, stop beating yourself up. You’re already having a bout with your heart. Are you trying to make it worse? “We all make mistakes. Shades, look at what I did. I fell in love with a human and had a baby against the law. I hid him from everyone and then abandoned him. I left a five-year-old all alone. I’m lucky he survived.” “How did you come to terms with that? Because I struggle every day with what I did.” “Come to terms? Shades, I’m just grateful he’s still alive. I gave up hope years ago. I don’t know how he doesn’t hate me. He’s going blind because of me.” Thailyn frowned and rubbed a hand over his face. “We’re feeding off each other. We need to do something else.” He stood and handed her the cane. “Time for some therapy. Come.” He helped her up. “Where are we going?” “For a walk. We’ll go visit next door. Dae or Sapphire is always there with the little ones.” He led her outside and across the yards. “The fence used to divide the two yards, but we took it down for more space to take true form. Bremul, Pt’this and Sapphire’s oldest, can’t wait to take true form. He wants to fly so badly.” “I imagine it would be hard for someone who should fly to have to wait.” “Have you ever flown?” She shook her head. “I’ve never even seen a dragon in true form up close.” “We can fix that.” Thailyn smiled and stepped away from her. He changed to a deep violet dragon. She gasped. “I have never seen anything so beautiful.” He smiled. “Thank you. Would you like to go flying?” She hesitated so he took human form again. “Some other time. Not everyone likes flying.” “I would like to try it sometime,” she assured him. “When you’re ready. What you want, when you want, and nothing you don’t.” He moved to kiss her. She pulled away. “Thailyn! Not out in the yard.” “It was just a kiss.” “Just a kiss? Just a kiss where everyone can see.” She couldn’t believe he’d do that. Hurt came through the bond. “Are you ashamed of me?” He asked. “What? No. But kissing in public?” “You don’t want to kiss in public?” “Dragons say ‘what you want when you want.’ elves say ‘look, but don’t touch.’” “Really?” “Have you ever seen elves kissing?” He shrugged. Sure. I’ve seen Shunati and Sinta kiss and Vor and Deyama too.” Now it was Pisha’s turn to be surprised that the queen would do that. “I’m sorry. I’ve been learning about elves, but it’s slow. If me don’t want to touch you in public, I won’t except when I’m helping you walk, if that’s okay.” “You can hold my hand too,” she offered. “Thanks. Shall we continue on our journey?” She smiled and nodded. “So, how public is too public for a kiss?” He asked. “Do we need to be in your room for that too, or is the sitting room okay?” “I guess it might be okay if there weren’t a lot of people.” “Just a quick peck on the cheek?” “What’s a peck?” He kissed his hand to demonstrate. “That would be okay.” He grinned. “What about the kissing tree?” The amusement that flowed through the bond made Pisha ask, “What’s the kissing tree?” “There’s a tree in the middle of the palace that’s hollow and you can’t be seen in it unless you’re right next to it. People slip out there during parties to get cozy. Pt’this and my sister used to get quite cozy.” “Are you serious?” “They were pretty bad. It’s his addiction.” “What about hers?” “Gossip.” “Gossip? That’s rare.” “She spent too much time with courtiers growing up. Can I ask what your addiction is?” “Mine?” “For an elf to be allowed to attend the college against her family’s wishes, she’s strong enough to need one. Or is that something elves consider too private?” “No, I’m addicted to knitting.” “Knitting?” “Yeah, silly isn’t it?” “No worse than gossip. We’ll get you some needles and yarn.” “Thanks.” “Ready for some steps?” Pisha nodded. “I think.” “Remember, step up with your good leg.” She nodded. She still leaned heavily on him and her cane, but she made it up the steps. He knocked on the door, and she reminded herself that humans did that. A dragon woman in elf form opened the door. She smiled grandly. “Hi, I’m Dae. You must be Pisha. Come in.”