Ishita bustled into the kitchen at her usual early hour, apron already in hand, and stopped dead in the doorway.
There, standing at the stove with a dark apron tied around his waist, was the Lycan King himself. Derek was whistling a cheerful, slightly off-key tune while flipping pancakes. His sleeves were rolled up, and a smudge of flour dusted one cheek.
"Your Grace!" Ishita gasped. "Oh, no, no. What are you doing?"
Derek glanced over his shoulder and grinned—an actual, bright grin that made him look years younger.
"Cooking breakfast for everyone. Sit down, Ishita. Today, I’m the chef."
"Please, let me. This is my job. You shouldn’t be—" Ishita hurried forward, reaching for the spatula.
Derek shook his head and lifted the spoon out of her reach, whistling on. "Not today, Ishita."
"But—"
"Sit."
Ishita hovered, wringing her hands, and finally took a seat. It’s not that she hadn’t seen her King cook before, but it was the amount of food he was preparing. Derek had never cooked for anyone except the Queen.
Seeing him make so many dishes for everyone, Ishita felt something good must have happened.
As Derek started to reach for an ingredient, Ishita shot up, ready to help, but Derek shot her a mock glare and she raised her hands and sat back down.
Soon, voices drifted in from the hallway.
Nana came first, leaning on Dot’s arm, and stopped short. Claire came in behind her and blinked. Then Declan, then Connor, and Gavin trailing after, and every one of them halted in the doorway wearing the same expression, the look of people who had walked into the wrong house.
Ishita rose to her feet, bowing slightly to the people who had entered.
Nana’s eyebrows shot up. "Am I still dreaming, or is the King of Dravengard the one preparing the breakfast we’ve all been invited to?"
Derek turned from the stove, beaming, spatula raised like a sceptre.
"Good morning, everyone. I’ll be your chef for the day."
Claire let out a bubbly laugh. "Well, this is a lovely surprise! Good morning, Your Grace."
"Good morning, Lady Claire," Derek said. "Pleasure meeting you, by the way."
Claire beamed. "The pleasure is mine."
"Sit, sit," Derek went on cheerfully, waving them toward the table. "Ishita, you as well. Off your feet. Enjoy being served for once."
Ishita lowered herself into a chair, perching on it as though she wasn’t sure if all of it was real.
Declan blinked several times. Connor’s mouth twitched like he was fighting a smile, and even Gavin, usually so composed, looked genuinely stunned.
Nana settled into her chair, grinning from ear to ear. "Should we call Dr Lorenzo again?" she asked. "I fear the fever’s gone to his brain."
The whole kitchen burst out laughing. Gavin laughed openly, then caught Connor’s eye and pointedly stopped, which set Declan off again.
Derek chuckled along with them, sliding a stack of golden pancakes onto a serving plate.
"Very funny, Nana. I’m perfectly fine. Better than fine, actually."
"Are you now?" Claire said, settling in beside Nana, her eyes twinkling. She was every bit as bright as her daughter, and it showed. She tilted her head, studying Derek with a playful glint in her eye.
"Darling, you’re in an apron flipping pancakes like a man who just won the lottery. If this is what domestic mornings look like in Dravengard, I might have to move in permanently and demand breakfast service every day!"
Nana let out a loud cackle, slapping her hand on the table. "You’re crazy, Claire. I like you. I like you very much."
Claire grinned. "It runs in the blood. You needed to see my father."
Nana patted Claire’s hand affectionately. "Oh, I can see exactly where our Kira gets all that sunshine from. You two are like twin rays of light."
Claire laughed, warm and easy. "She got the sunshine from me. The stubbornness, I’m afraid, is entirely her father’s fault."
"Hmm," Nana hummed, eyeing Claire suspiciously. "Are you sure about that, or are you pushing the whole blame on the poor man because he isn’t here anymore?"
The two women fell into easy, laughing conversation, heads bent together, and Derek watched them for a moment over his shoulder, something soft moving across his face.
His grandmother and Kira’s mother, thick as thieves already, chattering away. It was such an ordinary, impossible, precious thing. Months ago the whole of Dravengard had been ash and grief, and now here they were, arguing over whose fault Kira’s temper was.
"More eggs?" he asked, already ladling them out. "Declan, eat. Connor, you look like you haven’t slept, sit down. Gavin, you too, don’t hover by the door like a sentry, you’re making Ishita nervous."
Gavin bowed and sat. Connor sat as far from Gavin as the table allowed, on principle.
"This is... unexpected," Declan said, taking a bite and nodding approvingly. "But good. Very good."
"You needn’t sound so astonished," Derek scoffed.
"But I’m astonished," Declan said. "Should I be worried? Is the world ending? Is this the calm before something dreadful?"
Connor smirked, taking a bite. "Never thought I’d see the day our King showed his comic side."
"Can’t a man cook breakfast for his family in peace?"
Gavin, ever the polite one, simply thanked him quietly, though his eyes held a hint of surprise.
Derek untied the apron and finally sat down among them, looking around the table with clear satisfaction. For the first time in weeks, the weight on his shoulders felt a little lighter.
Kira was giving him another chance, their pup was growing, he would soon be a father, and the people he cared about were here, laughing together again.
"You know," he said between bites, a thoughtful look crossing his face, "we haven’t had a ball in a while. Should we have one? Something grand, to celebrate... well, everything that’s going right for a change."
Nana’s eyes lit up immediately. "A ball? Now you’re speaking my language! Claire, my dear, we must plan the decorations together. I have to inform Angelica, she loves those things!"
"Claire beamed. "Oh, I would love that! I do enjoy a good party."
"It has been ages," Nana said, her eyes gleaming with sudden mischief. "And it would give me a chance to finally announce to the whole kingdom of the coming prince. We should have more blue decorations."
"She will be a girl, Nana," Derek said.
"I know, dear. Blue."
The table dissolved into laughter again.
"What did I miss?"
Kira stepped into the kitchen, one hand resting lightly on her still-flat stomach. She paused in the doorway, taking in the lively scene with wide eyes.
"It sounds like a party in here!"
The entire kitchen erupted into cheerful greetings.
"There she is!"
"Morning, Your Highness!"
"Kira, my darling, come, sit, sit!"
"You’re just in time, the King’s been playing chef!"
Kira laughed softly as she walked further in, her gaze landing on Derek.
The moment their eyes met, a faint blush crept up his neck. Kira’s lips curved into an amused smile. Derek rose from the table and went over to her, holding out his hand.
"Good morning, husband," Kira said sweetly, and rose onto her toes to kiss him.
It was meant to be a quick kiss—a little peck for Nana’s benefit, a picture of the happy couple.
But the second her lips touched his, something deeper took over. Derek’s free hand found her waist and pressed her flushed against him.
The kiss lingered, turning slow and passionate. Kira’s fingers curled into his shirt as warmth spread through both of them, the world narrowing to just the two of them for a blissful moment.
Lux practically sang. Leo who had been withdrawn for a while now, surged forward, howling in ecstasy.
"Alright, alright!"
"Oh, for goodness’ sake."
"Get a room, the pair of you!"
Declan was covering his eyes. Connor stared very hard at his eggs. Gavin looked like he wished to be anywhere else on earth. Claire was fanning herself dramatically, and Nana was cackling into her tea, delighted beyond words.
Kira broke away first, breathless, her cheeks flaming as red as Derek’s had been. Derek looked thoroughly, unrepentantly pleased with himself.
"Right," Kira said, smoothing her top and moving away from him, her legs feeling wobbly. "Anyway. Breakfast."
Derek immediately pulled out a chair for her. She quickly dropped onto the chair before her legs decided to finally give out.
The table settled back into its warmth, plates filling, laughter easy, until Claire tapped her fork against her plate.
"So," she said, passing the fruit bowl around, "have we decided on the gender of this little one yet?"
"A princess. A boy." Derek and Kira said in unison.
They looked at each other.
"It’s absolutely going to be a prince," Nana said.
"We won’t want a boy with his father’s temper. A cute little princess is every royal palace dream," Declan said.
Connor and Gavin nodded in agreement.
"I second that," Connor said.
All the women exchanged amused glances.
Kira’s glared at the men. "Traitors! All of you!"
"He must be a sweet little boy," Claire declared.
Thank you," Kira said, gesturing at the women.
The debate went back and forth with plenty of teasing and laughter. Derek reached under the table and gave Kira’s hand a gentle squeeze, his thumb brushing over her knuckles. The simple touch sent a quiet rush of warmth through him.
This, he thought, this is what I want every morning.
The easy chatter continued until Nana suddenly set her teacup down.
"By the way," she said, and something in her voice quieted the room. "I need to see Crane."
The laughter died.
"I’m ready now," Nana went on, her old eyes holding Derek’s. "I’ve put it off long enough. I want to see that man."
The table fell quiet. Derek stiffened, his grip on Kira’s hand tightening. The lightness in the room vanished in an instant as old shadows crept back in.