>>Aelin
Her little smile grew just a bit, proud and bashful all at once.
Tala stood beside us silently, his presence calm and grounding, like the mountains themselves. I knew he was giving me this moment. Letting me take in what I had lost—what I had somehow, impossibly, found again.
I reached forward and tucked a strand of hair behind Asha's ear, my hands still shaking.
I had mourned her every day. I had dreamed of her every night.
But now…
Now I had seen her.
Now I had held her.
Tala stepped closer, his voice gentle, low with the weight of centuries. "You know," he said, eyes settling softly on Asha still nestled in my arms, "because of her purple eyes, she's very loved here."
I looked at him, still holding my daughter against me, her warmth pressed to my chest like a memory I never wanted to release. Tears stung my eyes again, the kind that didn't ache, just flowed—quiet, overwhelmed, grateful.
