<h4>Chapter 382: Your Mother Is A Princess</h4>


    <strong>Eira’s POV</strong>


    Everything finally felt as though it had settled into its rightful ce.


    For the first time in a long while, there was peace.


    I hoped my parents, wherever fate had kept them all these years, could finally breathe knowing their daughter stood alive before them. Just as my own heart had steadied when Raven was returned to me.


    Kael had already exined everything to Raven about the new rtionships we had discovered here. But I wanted to introduce him myself.


    I knelt slightly in front of my son and ced a gentle hand on his shoulder.


    "Raven, these are my parents. Your grandparents. Grandpa Gerald and Grandma Iris."


    I saw it instantly. The way their faces softened. The joy that filled their eyes.


    Raven looked at them quietly.


    "That old woman and the man who imed to be your grandparents before were not real," I exined gently. "They were not my parents or grandparents either. But these ones are. And they love you."


    Then I gestured toward Evan.


    "And you already know Uncle Evan. He is my brother. You can call him Uncle Evan, alright?"


    Raven nodded.


    "We’re already good friends," Evan added warmly. "I can tell he likes his uncle. Right?"


    Raven nodded again.


    I smiled.


    I had watched them earlier. Evan needed no words from Raven to understand him. He listened with patience. He responded with kindness. They did not feel like strangers meeting for the first time.


    Evan carriedpassion naturally.


    Soon my parents and my brother excused themselves, leaving me alone with my mates.


    "Caldwell," Rafe saidzily as he settled on the sofa, "I must admit, you spared us a great deal of emotional drama by behaving so maturely. Quite unlike you."


    I shot him a re.


    "Watch your mouth," I warned. "This is my parents’ home. I could have you thrown out of this pack. Or locked in a dungeon."


    There was a hint of pride in my tone now.


    For once, I was not the powerless one.


    He let out a theatrical sigh. "Power in the wrong hands always bes abuse. You are proving that beautifully."


    "I can do whatever I want," I replied haughtily. "You can go fuck yourself."


    "If I leave," he said with a faint smirk, "I wonder whether you’ll miss that wonderful massage I gave you yesterday. The way you were begging me to fuck you—"


    "Shut up," I snapped sharply, raising my voice before he could finish.


    Thankfully, Raven had gone with Evan. He did not need to hear Rafe’s nonsense.


    I shot Kael a look ofint. "He’s angering me. And our baby."


    Kael turned his gaze toward Rafe and slowly raised both hands in mock surrender, as though washing himself of the matter entirely.


    I could not help the cheeky smirk that curved on my lips.


    Having Kael beside me was afort I could not describe. With a single word from me, he could silence anyone in the room. The quiet authority he carried made me feel secure in ways I had never known before.


    Roman came and sat beside me on the bed.


    "Feeling better now that you’ve spoken with them?" he asked gently.


    I nodded.


    Then I looked at all five of them. "You already knew."


    They nodded in unison.


    Lucian stepped closer. "We needed to bepletely certain before telling you."


    "It’s alright," I replied softly. "Finding my parents now does not change who I am. It only tells me where I came from. It tells me I was not some abandoned child found in the forest, like those two old hags imed at the council."


    That truth alone felt healing. <i>No one wants to be an abandoned child.</i>


    "We’re happy for you," Roman said sincerely.


    And I realized I was happy too.


    My hand moved unconsciously to my belly. After all the emotional waves and conversations, exhaustion crept in. Along with it came hunger.


    "Hungry?" Kael asked immediately, noticing the gesture.


    I nodded.


    "What do you want to eat?" he asked.


    I turned to Lucian first. "Pancakes."


    Then my eyes shifted to Jason. I hesitated, but I did not need to say it aloud.


    "By the time you finish the pancakes, it will be ready," Jason said calmly, understanding me without words.


    I nodded again.


    Pregnancy cravings were relentless. When I wanted something, I wanted it for sure.


    Lucian and Jason left the room without another word, already prepared to cook for me even here in my parents’ pce.


    For a brief second, I wondered if that was appropriate.


    Then I decided I did not care. They were my mates. And they would cook for me anywhere in the world.


    -----


    After a short afternoon nap, I woke feeling lighter.


    Now that I knew this ce was not merely a grand residence but my birthce, I wanted to see it properly. I also wanted Raven to see it. To walk through halls that, unknowingly, once belonged to him as well.


    The six of us set out on a small tour, with Evan as our guide.


    Alpha Gerald and Luna Iris chose not to apany us. Perhaps they wished to give us space. To let us explore freely without the weight of their presence.


    I appreciated that.


    Though they were my parents, they were still strangers in many ways.


    Evan, however, felt easier to be around.


    We rode through the estate in open vehicles simr to the ones at Kael’s home. The wind brushed through my hair as Evan guided us from one section to another, exining the purpose and history of each part of the estate.


    Gardens stretched wide and perfectly maintained. There were the training grounds were the royal guards trained. Old stone corridors connected different wings of the pce like arteries of history.


    But the ce that truly captured my attention was the grand council hall.


    It was vast and magnificent.


    At one end stood an enormous throne, elevated by several steps. The architecture was ancient, carved with intricate patterns that spoke of centuries of power and authority. Even standing there, one could feel the weight of its legacy.


    "Is it still used?" I asked Evan.


    He nodded. "All important meetings with leaders of our pack are held here."


    I could easily imagine Alpha Gerald seated upon that throne,manding the hall with quiet authority.


    "One day, you’ll be sitting there," I said, looking at Evan.


    He did not shy away from the statement. Instead, he hummed softly, confidence evident in his expression. He had been raised for this responsibility.


    Then Evan nced at Raven.


    "Want to sit on that throne?"


    Before Raven could respond, I spoke quickly. "Wouldn’t that be disrespectful?"


    "It would be," Evan replied calmly, "if any of us sat there."


    He paused, then smiled slightly.


    "But grandchildren are allowed to sit on their grandparents’ shoulders. What is a thronepared to that? Believe me our father wouldn’t mind it."


    I let out a softugh, imagining Raven perched proudly on Alpha Gerald’s shoulders.


    Evan gently led Raven up the steps. He helped him climb onto the massive throne, while he himself remained standing beside it. He would not sit there yet. Not before his time.


    Raven looked tiny against the grandeur of the seat.


    His legs dangled in the air, too short to reach the floor. His small hands could not stretch wide enough to grip both armrests at once. Yet his eyes sparkled.


    "Did you like it?" I called up to him softly.


    Raven nodded eagerly from the throne, and I could see the spark in his eyes.


    He was an Alpha’s son. It was only natural that power called to something instinctive within him.


    "Do you realise your mommy is the princess of this ce?" Lucian asked him, "so, you are a prince as well?"


    Damn! I didn’t think it that way yet. Me, who lived as a nobody, turned out to be a princess. Am I living in the fairy tail? A scary one at that.


    Raven looked at me, and said, "Yes, you are a prince."


    He seemed to have liked the idea.


    After leaving the grand hall, Evan led us through the vast gardens. The pathways were lined with trimmed hedges and flowering trees, their fragrance carried lightly by the wind. We continued toward the rear end of the pce grounds.


    "What is that sound?" I asked, pausing mid step. "It’s... pleasant. And the air feels different here."


    "You’ll see," Evan replied with a knowing smile.


    We soon stopped before a massive stone wall that formed the boundary of the estate. It was built from enormous blocks of stone, ancient yet immovable.


    "There’s a staircase," Evan pointed. "We have to climb."


    We all began ascending. Raven was already in Evan’s arms, his uncle having imed full responsibility for him. Kael stayed close to me, one hand hovering protectively at my waist.


    He offered to lift me, but I refused. "It’s just stairs," I reminded him.


    Still, he remained close enough to steady me if needed.


    The moment I reached the top, my breath caught.


    I froze.