He raised both hands innocently as he descended the steps. “I’m just saying, there are actual walls for that sort of thing.”

  Imogen practically bounced toward him, grabbing his wrist with uncontained excitement.

  “Shut up and look!”

  She thrust her hand in front of his face and there it was, catching the light like it had been forged from dragonfire and moonlight itself.

  A peppered diamond, dark flecks glittering against pale silver. Ancient and beautiful.

  Axel blinked. “Whoa. That’s…”

  “We’re engaged!” Imogen blurted, face glowing brighter than the sky.

  Axel stared for a beat.

  Then grinned wide. “Well I’ll be damned, look at that!”

  Darius gave him a look, but didn’t bother pretending he wasn’t smug.

  Imogen beamed, cheeks pink, eyes shimmering. “We didn’t plan it. He just- He did that stupid perfect thing he does!”

  Axel laughed. “You’re literally glowing. Like you might float off into the clouds.”

  “I feel like I might,” she said, but she was grinning too hard to care.

  “Where’s Malachite?” Imogen asked suddenly, her eyes darting around the courtyard.

  Axel, still caught halfway between smiling at her ring and replaying everything from earlier in his head, blinked. “She’s home. I walked her back to her quarters after we cleared the tunnels.”

  He glanced away, a little too quickly, rubbing the back of his neck.

  Imogen narrowed her eyes. “You’re blushing.”

  “No, I’m not,” he muttered.

  “You so are.”

  She didn’t wait for a response; she was already halfway up the stairs.

  Axel didn’t even try to stop her. Just watched her go, grinning and flustered all at once.

  Imogen reached Malachite’s door and knocked sharply. “Mal!”

  The door opened immediately.

  Malachite stood there eyes wide, posture tense like she'd been bracing for something else entirely.

  For a split second she looked disappointed.

  Imogen saw the flash in her eyes, the subtle drop of her shoulders. Like she’d been waiting by the door… but not for her.

  But in the next breath, Malachite recovered, all alertness and concern.

  “Are you okay? What’s going on?”

  Imogen held up her hand with a grin that could’ve lit the whole keep.

  The ring sparkled in the evening light.

  Malachite froze.

  Then gasped.

  “OH MY GODS?!”

  Imogen nodded, practically vibrating.

  Malachite shrieked an actual shriek and grabbed her hand, dragging her outside before either of them could start ugly-crying on the stone floor.

  They ran down the steps together, laughing as they tumbled into the garden courtyard.

  The sun had nearly dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows and golden light through the trees.

  Imogen twirled, holding her hand high like she was showing off a royal treasure. “He just dropped to one knee and bam!”

  Malachite clutched her chest dramatically. “Finally! I thought I was going to have to propose for him!”

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  They both collapsed onto the grass in laughter, wrapped in the kind of joy that made the world feel untouchable for a little while.

  Across the courtyard, Darius and Axel stood leaning against a pillar, arms folded.

  “They’re gonna blow out their voices before the next strategy meeting,” Darius murmured.

  Axel shook his head fondly. “Worth it.”

  They watched as Imogen and Malachite threw their heads back, laughing like nothing else existed like for one moment, the war could wait.

  And maybe it could, just a little longer.

  Axel crossed his arms, a small, crooked smile tugging at his lips. “You ever think we’d end up here?”

  Darius raised a brow. “You mean standing guard while our terrifying women spiral into squealing chaos?”

  “Yeah,” Axel said. “That.”

  Darius snorted. “Honestly? No. I thought I’d be dead before I ever got the chance to love someone like that. Someone who makes the entire godsdamned world feel different.”

  Axel was quiet for a moment.

  Then: “She waited by the door.”

  Darius turned to him.

  Axel kept his eyes forward, voice low. “When Imogen went to see her… Malachite opened the door so fast, it caught me off guard. Like she’d been standing right there, waiting.”

  He paused, his smile flickering with something quieter. “And for a second, she looked… disappointed. Just a flicker, but I saw it. Like she thought the knock was me.”

  Darius didn’t speak, just watched the way Axel’s jaw tightened slightly, how his hands flexed where they rested.

  Axel exhaled, softer now. “She covered it fast. As soon as she saw Imogen, she lit up. Like the disappointment was never there.”

  Darius slowly nodded, he said, “She’s been taught to survive more than she’s been taught to receive.”

  Axel glanced at him.

  Darius didn’t look away from the courtyard, where Malachite and Imogen were sprawled on their backs, pointing at stars they could barely see yet.

  “She grew up with a blade in one hand and silence in the other. Every time someone got close, it cost her something. So yeah… she’ll wait by the door. And yeah, she’ll hide the hurt when it’s not who she hoped for.”

  He turned then, meeting Axel’s eyes.

  “But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t want you there. It just means she doesn’t believe she’s allowed to.”

  Axel blinked, caught off guard by the weight in those words.

  Darius gave a half-smile the kind only someone who’d spent a long time earning his peace could receive. “If you want her, Axel… don’t just show up when she calls. Show up before she does. Even if she slams the door in your face a dozen times.”

  “She hasn’t yet,” Axel said quietly.

  “Then don’t give her a reason to.”

  There was no lecture in his voice.

  Just the quiet truth from someone who had already walked through the fire for the person he loved.

  Axel looked back out at the courtyard to Malachite laughing, wild, alive in a way he hadn’t seen in so long.

  “I’m already hers,” he said, barely louder than a breath. “I just hope one day she’ll let me say it out loud.”

  Darius nodded once, firm.

  “She will.

  There was a moment of silence between them, not heavy, just... full.

  Then Axel glanced sideways. “Y’know... your parents would be proud.”

  Darius blinked. “Of what?”

  Axel shrugged slightly. “Of you. The ruler you’ve become. The man you are now. You’ve kept the realm from tearing itself apart, you’ve protected the people and let them love you for it. That’s not easy.”

  Darius said nothing, but his jaw worked slightly.

  “And then there’s Imogen,” Axel added, “Fate didn’t just claim her. You chose her. You gave her your mother’s ring, the one she said was for ‘the right one.’ That’s not just a proposal. That’s legacy. That’s... faith.”

  Darius looked down at his hands, then to where Imogen sat tucked under Malachite’s arm, still showing off the ring, still glowing like a flame that had finally been given air.

  “She is the right one,” he said quietly. “She always was.”

  Axel smiled. “They would’ve loved her.”

  A pause.

  Darius’s voice was rough when he finally said, “Yeah. I think they would’ve.”

  They stood there for a few breaths longer not needing to fill the silence.

  Because sometimes love didn’t shout. It just stood beside you and didn’t leave.

  Imogen flopped back into the grass beside Malachite, still holding her hand up toward the sky so the peppered diamond could dance with the stars.

  “Ugh,” she sighed dramatically. “It’s so pretty. I want to stare at it forever.”

  “You’re so obnoxious right now,” Malachite muttered, only half-annoyed.

  “I earned this obnoxious,” Imogen shot back. “Years of trauma, emotional growth, and resisting the urge to kiss Darius mid-training. You will let me be sparkly.”

  Malachite snorted.

  There was a brief silence between them the kind that only existed between two people who knew exactly when to let it settle.

  Then Imogen tilted her head, eyes narrowing. “So…”

  Malachite groaned. “Here we go.”

  “You opened your door really fast earlier,” Imogen said, too casually.

  “So?”

  Imogen shrugged. “So it looked like you were already standing there. Waiting.”

  Malachite didn’t respond.

  Imogen sat up and leaned in, eyes sparkling with mischief. “You were totally hoping it was someone else knocking, weren’t you?”

  “I was not,” Malachite said flatly.

  Imogen gave her an innocent blink. “Just... y’know. You and Axel went scouting. Alone. In dark, echoey tunnels. And then you opened the door like someone had lit a fire under your boots.”

  Malachite flushed. “You’re insufferable.”

  “I know,” Imogen beamed. “But I’m right.”

  She gave her a gentle nudge. “So... what happened in the tunnels?”