Common

The earth squelched under her feet as she turned, waiting for him. A smile brushed her lips, her whiskers twitching as he admitted he longed for companionship and was weary of solitude. She understood the feeling intimately. Before the Cove, before Solomon, her life had been a nomadic journey, briefly anchoring in the Badlands before finally finding solace here. The Cove; a place of frigid winds and unforgiving land, yet undeniably home. She inhaled deeply, the very earth a part of her, as inextricably linked as she was to it.

She listened, rapt, as he introduced himself as Assassin, explaining the origin of his name. As his story unfolded, his steps slowed, and she mirrored his pace. Her keen eye followed his gaze, tracing the ocean's surf to the distant horizon. The Queen cleared her throat. "Assassin, you are no coward," she stated, her gaze locking with his."You obeyed your mother's command. She knew she couldn't make the swim."

A knowing smile touched her lips. "We mothers...we'll do anything for our children," she murmured, lost in thought. She knew, without a doubt, that she would have done the same for Killian, Gavriel, Thalia, Vesna, Kimber, or Evadne. She would have sacrificed anything for them all.