Aalto POV

The dull wing beats of Amaya filled the air as we settled down outside the door to Rivendale's castle. Amaya sauntered over to the stables, her almost iridescent scales glittery in the wind. She was majestic, it's no wonder I was drawn to her early on.

"Aalto!" Ari smiled, rushing forwards. Her brown hair was tied in a messy bun on the top of her head,  my deep blue hoodie hugging her frame. Thin wire reading glasses perched themselves on her nose, the green tint of them only highlighting the green of her eyes more. "If I'd have known you were gonna be early, I would've made tea."

I smiled, looking between the delicate ocean silk of my own dress to the comfy cotton of her joggers and hoodie. "I'm starting to think I'm overdressed..."

She only chuckled, waving me inside and gesturing me to a seat in the dining hall. "No, no! You're dressed... well... you're dressed like you! You're being natural, I've never actually seen you wear comfy clothes unless we're together." She sat opposite me, reaching up and brushing the silver strands of hair out my face. "Either way, you look beautiful."

I felt my face flush red, hers mirroring mine. I forgot where I was, my heart fluttering in my chest. She was beautiful, more beautiful than anyone anywhere else. I shook myself, smiling as heat settled over my cheeks.

"So... it's a casual meeting today, right?" I said, tripping over my words.

She blinked. It was like she also forgot where she was, her eyes twinkling with a bright affection. "Yeah, yeah. Indigo's covering for Hyperion in his... absence. Tsuki knows everything happening in Darcy's empire so they're covering there. Caspian covering for Aeron is kinda obvious." She smiled. "We're just really discussing whether we're alright and we've got enough resources for the influx of people."

That's right... the third wave of people coming from Collosus was arriving in a week. The first wave was us, the second our advisors and our court. The third, the citizens. People from all six districts of Collosus, coming across the Barrens to make their homes here.

I hummed in response, fiddling with the shells on my bracelet. I was far from ready. My advisors were far from ready. Still, I grew up around the people of the Coryan district- fishermen, sailors, and advanced seafarers- so I should be all fine...

"Anyways..." Ari broke the silence, bringing me back to earth. Her aide, Iris, set down a tray of tea and biscuits. "The others should be arriving in the next half hour, so we can start the meeting..."

There was a half-awkward silence between us. Neither of us knew what to say, really. Tensions had been growing strong between Aeron and Ari before the dinner at Werrenville, and now Aeron had been gone for a week or more. Ari blamed herself, even if she didn't admit it out loud, it was obvious to me. Her nervous wringing of her hands, the way she chewed the inside of her cheek; nervous habits of hers.

I lay my hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up from her lap. "You'll be fine, angel. Breathe. We'll talk to Indigo, and Caspian, and Keith. It wasn't your fault."

She smiled up at me, the twinkle back in her eyes. There's the girl I fell in love with.

The intimate moment was broken by the knock on the door. Tsuki's deep lavender hair was barely sticking over the window. "Come on in." Ari chuckled.

Indigo and Tsuki both burst in, followed by a nervous Caspian and a slightly confused looking Keith. Keith was Aeron's advisor and was looking after the empire in his absence. He was short, even shorter than Indigo, a crown of cyan hair framing his face.

"How are we all doing?" Tsuki smiled, tucking their hair behind them as it sat in their chair. They seemed to be coping fine with the absence of their three best friends, but there was a hint of something other than fatigue and sleep deprivation behind abyss' purple eyes.

"Coping." Caspian said, sliding into his own chair. He'd let himself go the past week. His hair was unbrushed, dark circles framing his eyes and tear streaks, probably permanently imprinted onto his cheeks. He definitely was not coping.

"Well, Mythland's decent." Shrugged Indigo. "I heard the next group of people will have Pixandria's advisory team, so that's gotta help, right Cas?"

There was a flicker of something resembling joy in Caspian's eyes as he turned to Indigo. "Did they tell you who it was?"

Ari raised an eyebrow at me. Caspian hadn't told anyone other than probably Indigo and Aeron that they didn't have an advisory team it seemed. That means he'd been running Pixandria all by himself. Gotta admire his tenacity.

Indigo chuckled. "Some pair of twins. Sapphire and Emeryld Horizon, I think." That explains everything.

Sapphire and Emeryld weren't exactly popular in Collosus. They'd caused a lot of trouble within the governing system, so Caspian requesting them as his advisory team would have, naturally, had a fuckton of obstacles. Still, I wonder if their gifts would be more suited here.

"Aren't they Aeron's cousins?" Ari asked, raising an eyebrow. She was getting back into the swing of things, her regality coming back to her. I'm glad she was. It's hard for me to see someone I love so much be so broken.

Tsuki nodded, fiddling with a bright blue gemstone. "Yup. Caused a hell of an uproar when Aeron's sister died. Apparently they stormed the grandmaster's building. No idea why, though." It smiled.

Caspian had fallen silent. The others seemed to be talking about the new arrivals coming soon. Ari was regaining confidence, Indigo laughed, Keith pointed out some things about his trip from Collosus. I found myself staring at Caspian, the saddened eyes, the cracked skin on his hands. How long had he cried for when the three emperors vanished?

"I hope I get some people who are half way decent at fighting. Bordering Werrenville is a full time job."

"I want some good mages. Or at least people I can teach magic to."

"I just hope I get people." A new voice. One we hadn't heard in a week or two. One that sent Caspian's head up and a smile across his face.

"AERON!!" He rushed forwards, throwing his arms around her. Fae winced back, bleeding from umpteen places. Caspian backed away, concern written on his face.

"Hey, Cas..." His voice was quiet, dangerously quiet. He was injured gravely. I found myself shooting to my feet as Darcy and Hyperion appeared, supporting him.

Darcy smiled, waving at Tsuki and Indigo. Hyperion didn't look very happy. Darcy spoke up.

"Someone call Juno-"