That Evening — Shared Dinner
Draven gathered all seven women for dinner. Not in the formal dining hall — that place with its long silences and polished candlesticks felt wrong for this. He'd had a large table brought into his private rooms instead, and the servants had laid it simply. Wine. Bread. Roasted meat and braised vegetables. Food that felt like an actual meal rather than a performance.
Elise. Seraphina. Astrid. Lyra. Elara. Mara. Celeste.
All of them together. Rare occurrence.
It took a few minutes before the awkwardness wore off — the way everyone was quietly aware of everyone else, finding their seats, figuring out where to look. Elara sat next to Mara. Celeste poured her own wine without waiting. Astrid leaned back in her chair with the easy posture of someone who'd decided not to be tense about this.
Once they were all seated and served, Draven set down his glass and looked around the table.
