Page 157 of Iron Hearts and Dragon Magic

River wasn’t sure why she was saying that. “You all heard me tell you that I controlled that other dragon and made him kill Naia’s brother.”

“You were the vessel then, and Cynon has powerful magic. Now it’s different.” She stared at him. “You don’t understand, do you?”

“Obviously not.”

“Many will say that the noxious fae were exiled due to their role in helping Cynon.”

Noxious. He couldn’t even move his arms, or else he’d consider slapping her. “Can you not use that term?”

“Sorry. They say that’s the reason the Ancients were exiled, and yet, it doesn’t make sense. There were Ancients fighting on both sides. The thing with Cynon, that was an excuse to isolate you. You know why? You’re the only creatures who can subdue a dragon. It was fear, not justice.”

“I see. As someone who cares about justice, that’s why you did your part, and made sure we got our freedom back. Oh, wait.”

She looked down and shook her head. “It was a long time ago. I used to trust the High Council back then. It’s incredible how much you can see once you get out of the box. I’m truly sorry I didn’t come back for your people. I was trying to protect Ircantari’s child—children. And I thought the Ancients were safe.”

“Well, tell your dragon friends then that most mindmelders are dead, it’s a dreadful power, and they can stop fearing us.”

“I might. But I’ll make sure nobody ever knows what you are. It must be kept a secret.”

River nodded. “Can we go? I want to embrace Ircantari’s daughter.”

She smiled and they appeared in the king’s office in the Royal Fort.

Naia was the one to find him first and wrap her arms around him. “I was so worried.”

“I’m… almost fine.”

The Umbraar king was not there, and neither were Leah and Fel. There was a woman standing at the corner, looking anxious. The Frostlake Queen. Leah’s mother.

River felt that at least his arms could move and held Naia tight.

A few seconds passed, and three people appeared in the room: King Azir, Fel, and Leah.

The time had come. River whispered in Naia’s ear, “I have some reparations to do.”

He approached Azir and kneeled, even though it hurt to do that in his state, looking down at the ground. He’d never humiliated himself like that to anyone before, but he knew that this was the honorable thing to do after his mistakes.

“Your Majesty. I, River of the Second Dynasty, pr—” He choked, unable to sayprince. “King of the Ancients, or White Fae, as you call us, humbly approach you to apologize.” His heart was beating fast.

He realized that this position, staring at the floor, didn’t let him see Azir’s expression. It was perhaps comfortable for when someone was speaking from a place of great shame, but it just made him anxious, unsure how his words were being received.

River continued, “In my foolishness, I convinced your daughter to escape Frostlake, to leave her family, leave everything she loved, for me.” Now that his mind was his own, he didn’t understand how she hadn’t punched him in the face. “It caused her great grief, and I assume must have caused you grief as well. As much as perhaps I wasn’t totally myself then, I was committed to protecting her, committed to making sure she stayed safe. I told myself that was why she had to be sent away from everything, but I didn’t realize that it split her in two.” Talking about this was hard. Not only confessing his mistakes was difficult, it was even hard to express what exactly had gone wrong, and why he’d done all that.

“Get up, River,” Azir said. “I’d rather face you when I speak.” River was up in a second, staring down at Naia’s father, who wasn’t angry. He asked, “You’re their king?”

This was the last thing River would like to talk about, but there was no way around it, so he tried to make it short. “I plan on abdicating my crown soon.”

Azir sighed. “River of the Second Dynasty, future ex-king of the Ancients, I’m absolutely certain that you would never have convinced Naia to do something she didn’t want to. She has a mind of her own. I do hope you noticed that.”

She was observing them in silence, and smiled with her mouth closed when hearing this.

River agreed with his point, but it didn’t free him from his own responsibility. “I know. But I played my part in all this. Had I never asked her to escape with me in secret, had I approached you and asked for her hand like any decent human man would have, it would all have been different.”

“River,” Naia finally intervened. “You were not yourself.”

He waved a finger. “The only part in my mind that was clear was the one concerning you. I knew I had to protect you, even if I wasn’t sure from what. And yet protecting shouldn’t turn someone against their family.” He turned to Azir. “Apologies are a great deal for us.” He bowed slightly, with his head only. “I apologize.”

Azir pointed to Naia. “Apologize to her.”

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