Yelena smiled a little and motioned toward the inner corridor. "Come on. Your parents are waiting."
Cassian and Elara did not meet him in one of the public reception halls. Instead, they waited in a private family chamber overlooking the inner docks, where only a few trusted guards and secured systems were present.
The room itself was quiet and formal without feeling cold, the kind of place meant for important conversations that were never supposed to leave the walls.
Aurelian entered, stopped at the proper distance, and bowed.
"Father. Mother."
Elara moved first.
For a second, he thought she would keep things formal because of the others standing nearby.
She didn't.
She crossed the room and hugged him.
Aurelian stiffened automatically for half a breath before finally relaxing into it. It had been longer than he realized since he was hugged like this, and maybe it was mainly because she was worried about him.
