Cinders [Completed]

Postlude

"Pick one."

The voice is muffled through the mahogany door of the royal wing. As I finish making my way down the hall, the conversation continues.

"Which one do you like most?" Orion asks, "I think they're all very nice."

"Hmmm, what's your favorite color?"

"What about purple?" he suggests.

I walk in to find Orion sitting cross-legged across from Mitena on our living room floor, a mess of childish eyeshadows and lip glosses laid out between them.

"Mommy!" Mitena greets me, standing up, racing forward, grabbing my hand, and pulling me towards the mess.

"I'm doing Daddy's makeup!" she declares, "Is it pretty?"

Orion tilts his head towards me, closing his eyes so I can take in the full effect. It looks pretty much exactly what you'd expect from a 5-year-old's hands. One of his eyelids is painted a garish orange, and the other one has a small, barely visible sheen of pale green. A purple-tinted lip gloss covers the right half of his bottom lip.

"It's very pretty," I tell Mitena. "I like the colors."

Mitena grimaces. "Daddy chose the colors. You really like orange?"

"I like the orange," I confirm.

Orion kisses me on the lips and cheeks and nose, spreading sticky blue-berry flavor purple lip gloss over my face. I try to push him off, laughing,but I end up pulling him in for another real kiss.

Just as Mitena is making an exaggerated grossed-out noise, we're interrupted.

"Is that a little cretin I smell?" a voice calls from the hall.

We turn to find a figure, tall and strong, standing in the doorway, dark golden curls pulled up in a refined bun.

"Aunt Lucy!" Mitena squeals, standing up and tackling her.

"Hey there, Mittens." Lucy catches Mitena in her arms and makes a big show about how heavy she is.

I don't know when it happened, but in the last few years, Lucy got four inches taller than me. She has spent years happy and it shows in the simple confidence of her walk, in the tilt of her head.

"Henry?" Mitena asks Lucy as she plays with the hummingbird charm on her necklace.

Lucy's mate, Henry, is a short omega boy from Colorado. She met him when Orion and I took her on our annual Californa to Colorado trip. She was only 14 - which was just too young for me. But I've learned to love her mate over time. I don't think he would ever hurt her.

Still, the mating blade that Lucy has had affixed on her hip for years was from me.

"Uncle Henry's coming right now," Lucy promises her. Mitena grins. As Lucy casually tickles Mitena, causing her to run away squealing, she turns to face us.

"Well, Orion," Lucy laughs, "that is definitely a Look™."

Orion smiles, wiping away the makeup with a cloth.

"Very handsome," I agree.

"Jonah wanted me to tell you hello," Lucy tells me, "He called to let us know that he would see us tonight, but he wouldn't have time to come see us before it starts. You know," Lucy rolls her eyes, "busy with beta duties, I'm sure."

Lucy is being facetious because, lately, Jonah has been less busy with beta duties and more busy with dodging the press. Last year he was named the country's third most eligible bachelor. He's as famous as Orion, at this point. He hates the attention, but he doesn't really seem to mind not having a mate. I think, even after all this time, some part of him is afraid he's like Dad.