Redsand Canyon judicium

His response caused Towhee to blue screen for a moment or two before her brain rebooted, yelling louder than ever. It was clear he sanctioned the marriage, though that wasn’t what sent a literal shiver down her spine. “And you would be a mother with Ruenna…” She hadn’t let herself contemplate this possibility but with it spelled out on Germanicus’s lips, Towhee found she wanted nothing more in the whole wide world than that.

A breath shuddered in and out of her throat as the Praefectus tried to compose herself and answer the Imperator’s question. I think you said it yourself, the last time we talked about this. Any husband I take would be made to fall in line, not just with my aims but Mereo’s as well… That made her think, however briefly, of Reyes, and just how she’d dealt with an unruly husband and father.

I know we talked about an outpost, even Maxim and myself heading one. But after having time to think about it, I’ve decided I want to stay in Mereo. I would much prefer to remain close to Rue and your kids, even if that meant giving up on the thought of my own kids… But now it sounded like Towhee might be able to have her cake and eat it too. Her stomach flip-flopped, wondering if that’s really what Germanicus was saying to her right now.