With the Voidfell refugees now filling Iantas, Talasyn manages the castle’s suddenly busy household and finds the work less daunting than expected. She then returns to the royal chambers she must share with Alaric, since Nenavarene custom would invite gossip if the married rulers slept apart.

Talasyn and Alaric awkwardly discuss the bed and the letter he did not answer personally, while their closeness revives the unresolved tension between them. Alaric promises to write back himself if Talasyn writes again, but before either can act on the charged moment, Queen Urduja’s messenger eagle arrives with word that Urduja and Prince Elagbi will join them for supper.

At dusk, Urduja and Elagbi arrive at Iantas and greet the displaced villagers. Talasyn reflects on Urduja’s effectiveness and distance as a ruler, then struggles not to laugh when Alaric makes a dry comment about Elagbi’s elaborate appearance. Their private humor briefly strengthens Talasyn and Alaric’s fragile ease with each other, though Urduja’s disapproval quickly sobers Talasyn.

During the stiff family dinner, Urduja remarks that it is good for the alliance that Talasyn and Alaric are getting along, which Talasyn recognizes as a warning that the marriage must remain strategic. Elagbi invites himself to stay two more days so he can observe Talasyn and Alaric’s eclipse training with Daya Vaikar and the Enchanters. Urduja also reveals plans for a masquerade at Iantas after the Moonless Dark, and Alaric reluctantly agrees to be fitted for a bright, complementary costume despite his discomfort with Nenavarene fashion.

After dinner, Alaric leaves Talasyn alone with her family, and Urduja criticizes Talasyn’s decision to house the villagers at Iantas instead of sending them to transient homesteads. Later, Talasyn storms into the bedroom and vents to Alaric, who supports her judgment. Once they settle into the same bed, both are acutely aware of the intimacy and danger of sharing space, and Alaric privately doubts that either of them will rest easily.