They rode until the forest thinned and the land dipped low, mist clinging to the ground like a second skin.
Only when Kael raised his fist did the horses slow.
"Here," he said.
Aelira scanned the clearing. "This looks like nowhere."
Kael's lips curved faintly. "That's the point."
He dismounted first, then turned to help her down—but she landed on her own, steady and composed.
He noticed.
She noticed him noticing.
Neither commented.
A low whistle cut through the trees.
Aelira stiffened.
Kael didn't.
Instead, he answered with two sharp clicks of his tongue.
From the shadows emerged three figures.
Weapons lowered.
Eyes sharp.
Smiles unmistakably unimpressed.
"Well," drawled a broad-shouldered man with a scar through his eyebrow, "you disappear for half a season and come back with a princess."
Aelira blinked.
Princess.
Kael sighed. "Rook."
Rook grinned wider. "Commander."
A woman stepped forward next—lean, dark-haired, gaze assessing. "You look like hell," she said flatly to Kael.
"Lyra," Kael replied. "Good to see you too."
Her eyes slid to Aelira. "…And you must be the reason the palace bells are losing their minds."
Aelira inclined her head politely. "I do try to make an impression."
Lyra snorted.
The third—youngest, sharp-eyed, with a bow slung across his back—tilted his head. "Wait," he said slowly. "Is this the Aelira?"
Kael closed his eyes. "Jax—"
"The one the Queen's calling a traitor?" Jax continued. "The one you weren't supposed to—"
"Yes," Kael said flatly.
Jax's gaze dropped—to Kael's arm, still hovering just behind Aelira's back. Protective. Unconscious.
Then he grinned.
"Oh," Jax said. "That explains it."
They made camp quickly—efficient, practiced, quiet. No fire. Just wards and watch rotations.
Aelira sat on a fallen log, cloak pulled close against the chill.
Rook plopped down across from her. "So," he said cheerfully, "how long have you two been doing… whatever this is?"
Kael stiffened. "Rook."
Aelira raised a brow. "That depends," she said calmly. "On how much gossip you enjoy."
Rook laughed. "I live for it."
Lyra leaned against a tree, arms crossed. "He rode two days straight to get back to the palace."
Aelira turned slowly. "He did?"
Kael glared at Lyra. "You weren't supposed to say that."
Lyra shrugged. "You weren't supposed to fall for a princess."
"I didn't—" Kael stopped.
Silence.
Jax's eyes widened. "Oh this is better than I thought."
Aelira's lips curved. "Commander Draven," she said softly, "you rode two days for strategy, I assume?"
Kael met her gaze. "Yes."
She nodded. "Of course."
A beat.
Then Rook burst out laughing. "She's terrifying. I like her."
Later, when the others settled into watch positions, Kael joined Aelira near the edge of the clearing.
"They're loyal," he said quietly. "But they don't know restraint."
"I noticed," she replied dryly.
He hesitated. "Are you—uncomfortable?"
Aelira looked up at him, eyes steady. "No. Just… adjusting."
"To what?"
"To freedom," she said. "And to being seen."
Kael's hand brushed hers—hesitant this time, careful.
"No one here answers to the crown," he said. "They answer to me."
She smiled faintly. "Then they answer to a man who already disobeyed it."
"Yes."
Silence settled—easier now.
From the darkness, Rook's voice carried.
"Just so you know," he called lazily, "if you two start brooding romantically again, at least warn us."
Lyra added, "Or get a tent."
Aelira covered her mouth, laughing softly before she could stop herself.
Kael groaned. "I hate all of you."
Rook grinned in the dark. "You love us."
Aelira glanced at Kael, eyes warm. "I think I do too."
For the first time since the bells rang—
Kael smiled without restraint.
They were hunted.
They were wanted dead.
But here, under broken stars and borrowed freedom—
They were not alone.