Epilogue Ginny

GINNY

20 NOVA-YEARS LATER

I straighten the two bandoliers across Kao's broad chest. Outside in the dusty area, the crowd roars as the initial entertainment dies down.

"Mum," he grumbles. "Don't fuss."

"Can't a queen assist her prince?" I pat him and then run my fingers through the scruff under his chin, something he has adored since childhood.

Kao is the absolute image of his father. Once he fills out further, I think he might even be bigger than Asteron.

"I need to go, Mum," he says, but he doesn't leave.

It's the day of the warrior trials. All eligible young Xnosson males and females can take part. Those who are successful, no matter what clan they are from, can go into a number of different defense or community sectors.

"You'll do fine, Kao," I say, pulling him in for a hug he doesn't want at this moment but he will appreciate later.

"Mum! Mum! Mum!" The twins, Theo and Ariadne, come running up as I release Kao. They slam into his legs and also hug him, although he makes an effort to shake them off.

"Seriously, I need to go," he says, exasperated at his youngest brother and sister.

"Let your brother go. He has to be a warrior today." I chuckle at the pair as he finally manages to extract himself from their kraken-like embraces.

"Good luck, Kao," my second eldest, Astro, says as he mooches up next to me. "You'll need it."

"Now, Astro. Be nice, it'll be your turn next year." I say.

Astro is the complete opposite of Kao and Asteron. Dark and wiry, he's yet to fill out at all, but I'm sure he will, and beneath his moody exterior beats a good heart, given he's currently entertaining the twins by pointing out the other competitors.

"I love you, Kao. Your father loves you too, and you know he'd be here with you if it wasn't for…"

"I know, Mum. He can't show favor to his son." Kao rolls his eyes and shakes his horns.

"Who says?" Asteron's strong voice rolls around the waiting area as he strides up to his eldest son and claps a hand on his shoulder. "I will always be here for you, my son." He grins.

My two older daughters, Delphine and Persephone amble in behind him, with wicked smiles on their faces.

They've obviously been egging their father on. The three of them, including Kao, have always been as thick as thieves. After all, they were all born in very quick succession.

Yes, Asteron kept his word, and he kept me pregnant. Something I can't deny I enjoyed. We agreed to take a break after Astro was born, two nova-years after the first three, but then we went on a second honeymoon for our fifteenth nova-year anniversary and were careless.

Which is when Theo and Ariadne came along. Carrying Xnosson twins was both the best and worst experience of my life, and I vowed never again…

I watch as Asteron and Kao speak in low voices together until Asteron pulls him in for a hug, and when released, Kao steps back and smartly salutes his father with an arm across his chest before he heeds the call to the trials and marches out of the ante chamber into the arena.

I link arms with Asteron.

"He's going to be fine. He's trained hard, he knows how to fall. He'll make the grade," I tell an anxious father.

"I hope so," Asteron rumbles.

"Come on ," Delphine exhorts. "Or we'll miss the start."

"You mean you'll miss ogling all that bull flesh out in the arena," Persephone snorts.

Delphine ducks her pretty head and scurries out.

"One particular bull I think," I murmur to Asteron.

"My daughters are not meeting any bulls until they are at least thirty nova-years old," Asteron says loudly. "They know this, and all bulls with any designs on them should know it too."

"Asteron!" I give him a playful slap.

"They are far too young to be thinking of mating," he says, nuzzling me as we make our way up to the royal box in the stands, our children rushing ahead of us with ill-disguised excitement. "Unlike us."

"Oh, you think I'm going in the stall tonight, do you?"

"Like every night, little queen."

"Especially tonight," I reply salaciously as we mount the steps into the box.

The crowd roars as Asteron appears which means he can't question me further, even if he does give me a searching look before he raises his arms and the assembly goes even wilder.

I give him a smile and push the calm I'm feeling down our bond, meaning his shoulders relax and he can concentrate on starting the games with Delphine.

My eldest daughter, willowy and beautiful, makes her way shyly to Asteron's side. He hands her the flag with the royal standard. I see her glance first at her brother, and then her gaze moves over to a handsome black bull, a member of Clan Roaan given his colors. He straightens as he sees her gaze.

Then she drops the standard and they all race away in the first contest of the day. I have a feeling I'm witnessing the next generation on its way, and as I gaze at my handsome Xnosson bull husband, I wonder how he'll be as a grandfather.

If it's even half as good as he's been a father and a king, it'll be more than enough. Xnos has flourished under his rule. Trade has increased as the clans worked together rather than fighting each other, and trials like this, which involve everyone, have brought the entire planet closer together.

I didn't think it was possible, but that's because I am human and the idea of all of my own species working together is almost unimaginable.

But the Xnossons are not human, and it's something I rejoice in every day. Especially today.

Asteron pulls me into his hip and inhales deeply.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" he asks, the bond resonating with concern.

"You know the trip we took to the royal lodge last month?"

The bond fills with desire and lust. "How could I forget?" he says with a grin. "Did we see much of the royal forest at all?"

"That's the thing," I reply. "We maybe weren't as careful as we should have been."

Asteron leans back and stares at me unblinking. "You mean?"

"I'm pregnant, my love. We're going to have a baby. Again."

I'm lifted into the air and spun around in a circle.

"I'm going to be a father…again?" His bond is filled with joy and love, as are his eyes.

My children are looking at us quizzically, our behavior distracting them from the games.

"Your mother is going to have more young!" Asteron bellows. "More brothers and sisters for you."

All of them rush at us, and we become a ball of cuddle. "Kao won't know what's going on," I half laugh, half sob.

"He's concentrating," Persephone says. "We can tell him the good news later."

"You're all happy about this?" I say, hesitant.

Telling Asteron the good news is one thing, but it's been a long time since I was pregnant, and with my daughters coming of age…I wasn't sure how they would take it. But they're all grinning like mad, and the twins are jumping up and down, singing about having a new sibling.

Asteron wraps his arms around me.

"We are family," Asteron says. "And more family is a good thing. It always will be." He leans into me, cradling my face in his huge hands. "I love you, little queen, forever."

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