It was dark by the time Avond woke up.
He could see it from the window, which was pitch black. The smell of the room told him he was at the main house, in his old bedroom where most of his things were left untouched from his college days.
The room was comfortably warm, and all he wanted then was just to lay down, stay down forever. He felt his whole body relax, as if his muscles had turned to pudding after a long sleep.
But the calmness didn't last long. He immediately remembered what day it was, who he was, where he should be at the moment.
"You should rest, sleep it off," Tiel said, his voice soft.
Avond pushed himself up, finding his little brother sitting in one corner of his bedroom. In the armchair where his mother used to sit when he was much younger.
His hair was messy, and his eyes were swollen from crying. His hands held a book he had just started.
