Honeyed Pasture nowhere left for me to go

The fall of the spear — it hit him, but not as hard as it might have if his feelings were not so muted right then. Depression had taken its toll, but the blows he suffered were as numbed as his joy, lately. He had found, however, a new sort of contentedness with Marina.

"That's wonderful," he said, at first stunned and then quickly warmed by the news of Katmai and Kinusi. He gazed blankly at Alaric before a new smile broke his face in two. "That is — that's wonderful," he repeated, subsiding back into his thoughts for a moment. It seemed just right that Katmai had found love with Alaric's progeny.

"Hopefully, we will soon be in-laws," he suggested, his smile growing enough that his eyes crinkled at the corners. "He treats her well?"