-Darius- Katherine had a point. I couldn’t hide forever. I couldn’t act like we weren’t needed yet, because we were. Just this letter from my brother spoke of how he was clearly pushing the people again, because who would pay for his war? Who were the ones who had to give up the money and the men? Acan wasn’t the one going into battle. He wasn’t the one joining the men out there. He knew how dangerous the Dark Ones were, and so he hid behind his high walls. He made others do the dirty work. He made them sacrifice everything for him. It was disgusting, and it only fueled my anger towards him. I didn’t want to go back, though. I didn’t want to risk Katherine or my son. Henry deserved to grow up somewhere safe where he didn’t have to put on a well-practiced mask to please the people around him. He deserved to be a young boy, running around and riding, chasing girls, and learning how to use a sword. He shouldn’t be burdened with social conduct and politics. He shouldn’t be burdened with

-Darius- Pregnant… Did I hear correctly? I knew how long it had taken the other Katherine and me to have their first child… or our first child, and now Katherine was telling me she was pregnant. She was pregnant! I could hardly wrap my head around it, and I kept looking at her, unsure what to say. My thoughts wouldn’t come together. I just kept looking at my beautiful wife, who seemed so confused that I wouldn’t answer her, but I sat there like a mute person. I hadn’t expected that. I thought we would wait years for a new baby, but now Katherine was pregnant again. She was making our family grow, and that happiness completely overwhelmed me. I had not expected how much it would stun me. Not because I was sad. I was just so overjoyed that I didn’t know how to respond. "Darius?" she called again. "Yeah…" "You sound disappointed," she whispered, but I shook my head, finally coming back to myself. I pulled her closer, then kissed her over and over, shocking her as I did. She let out a

-Darius- Coming back to the castle did not bring us any happiness. As we rode through the big gate, listening to the wheels running over the stones as we neared the big staircase, both Katherine and I grew more and more tense. Outside, there were many people waiting for us, making it seem like we were the king and queen coming back from a long trip. I knew my brother was doing extra to truly make it seem like he wanted peace with me when we both knew he didn’t. He wanted his soldier and smartest advisor back, because I knew none of those older advisors could tell him what to do in this war. If they could, they would have done it, but no, they had not managed to give my brother the advice he wanted and needed. Therefore, me coming home meant he might just win the war after all and become the great king who took care of the Dark Ones even though he never set foot on the battlefield. But that was how stories worked. They were fabricated by those in power and those who survived the war.

-Darius- Going to this dinner, I knew, wasn’t going to be fun. Acan and Silver were already there with their boys. Henry was sleeping with his room guarded. No one would get inside, or we would know, and we would make them pay for even trying to come for our son. The tension was once again very thick and uncomfortable. Acan tried to seem cheerful, but Silver stayed mad. We didn’t care, though. Katherine and I sat down beside each other, and we began eating a little. It was so silent, though. No one said anything. We just kept focusing on our food. I had no idea what to try to come up with. It wasn’t nice being in that room. I didn’t even feel very hungry because the energy was so thick and awful to sit in. I chewed slowly, and every bite seemed to cost me energy. "How about going riding with me tomorrow?" Acan suddenly suggested. I smiled and nodded. "Sure, brother." "Will give the women some time to reconcile as well," he pointed out, but Silver now glared at her husband, and Kat

-Katherine- So many of the people were angry at Acan and Silver. I had taken guards with me before I went to the city, but I listened to complaints all day. I made sure they felt like they had someone they could come to to talk about their struggles. I listened to everything they had to say and began feeding them ideas about taking down Acan and Silver. I was never straightforward about it. I just left small breadcrumbs that I hoped would turn into more. I hoped they would follow my little trial and see the benefits of getting rid of Acan and Silver, and I did seem to awaken something in them. A need. A fire that glowed in their eyes and told me they were considering it. It felt so good to see, because it was like watching the dream house that Acan and Silver had built only for them to have to watch it crumble. It gave me a sick, satisfying feeling knowing their lives would be destroyed. It made me feel incredible to know I would be the cause of it as well. I would be the reason why