"Ask me about it again and you'll be sent to the stockade."

-Dalinar Kholin

"...was a thief on the fifth level, but she's been caught by Aladar's guards," Adolin finished in his report.

These briefings were a regular part of life in Urithiru, and while quite formal, they were a good way to see his father.

Still, this time he was more in the mood to rush through it, rather than relish the familial meeting.

After all, he had a date to get to.

Adoln's father nodded, taking in the new information the same he did most things recently: carefully. "What is Aladar going to do with her?"

This was the last thing on the itinerary, and Adolin didn't want to spend all day on the topic. He wanted to go to a bar and be with his wife and his boyfriend. "He isn't doing anything, not yet. Some of her victims are claiming they saw two of her running in opposite directions, so we're looking into if she can make illusions or if she simply has a twin sister."

"Inform me when we know more."

Adolin let out the breath he'd been holding. That was clearly permission to leave, right? He turned, still with a formally rigid posture in respect to his father's office, but he was stopped with a word.

"Adolin?"

That wasn't Dalinar Kholin asking as the ruler of Urithiru, Bondsmith to the Stormfather and possible savior of Roshar.

That was a voice Adolin didn't hear as often: Dalinar Kholin, father of two.

He couldn't just keep walking away, after hearing that. "Yes, Father?"

"Captain Kaladin mentioned that you and your wife were seeing him this evening."

A taboo had been broken.

There was no doubt for Adolin that his father knew he and Shallan had added the Windrunner into their relationship. However, months of dating hadn't led to a single conversation about the subject.

Which was fine with Adolin, honestly. He loved his father dearly, but romantic advice was one rare area where he felt infinitely more qualified.

Kaladin had somehow spilled information about their date to his superior officer. That was a story he'd have to grill the adorable bridgeboy for later.

"Yes, that...is the plan." Adolin said it cautiously, hopefully avoiding toeing the line into rudeness.

Dalinar nodded. "Be sure to treat him well, as well as you do Shallan."

"That was...also the plan." As far as Adolin could tell, his father didn't seem upset. "You...approve?"

His father blinked. "Why wouldn't I? If there was one man in the world I'd trust you with, it's Kaladin. What you two...or three, I suppose...do in your spare time isn't my business."

"Thank you. And you don't need to worry, Father. I don't intend to let him get away from me."

There was a shared nod, and then Dalinar went back to work, calling in a scribe with a spanreed so he could get the latest report on Singer movements.

It wasn't as though Adolin felt like he needed his father to approve of his romantic life. If Dalinar hadn't liked the news, that would have been his problem, not Adolin's. But that support...it did add a little skip to Adolin's step.

"He's what? With who?! After what he...oh, the Captain is not hearing the end of this one."

-Drehy

"You wanted to speak to me, sir?"

Kaladin looked up to see Renarin had entered the otherwise empty barracks, and as usual he had no clue what the lighteyes was thinking about.

Not in the general way that Kaladin struggled to understand those in the upper classes of Alethi society. In the specific way that, well, no one really seemed to understand Renarin, aside from Adolin.

The fellow Radiant had always unsettled others, from what Kaladin understood. His behavior never really matched anyone else's, and the fact he could see the future hadn't done him any favors either. Once upon a time Kaladin himself had been unsure what to make of him.

But he had joined Bridge Four, and Kaladin had gotten to really know him. He still didn't truly get Renarin in the same way his brother did, but then again no one did. At the very least, Kaladin could see that behind his strange behavior and uncomfortable silences, there was a mind that could rival Shallan's and a heart as open as Adolin's.

He'd wanted to hear what Renarin thoughts were regarding the training methods and selection process for the Windrunners, as Kaladin was always looking for new ways to build up his Order, and Renarin had a talent for seeing what so few others did.

The few suggestions he'd been giving were good ones, and Kaladin hoped they may bear fruit.

For the first time in ages, however, there was a strange tension pervading their discussion.

Namely, the unspoken fact that Kaladin was dating Renarin's brother, as well as his brother's wife.

In all the time since Kaladin had entered the relationship, the two had never spoken about it.

Why would they? Neither was exactly an expert at casual conversation, and the topic wasn't an easy one.

Even as Renarin was suggesting a new method for scoping out potential squires, Kaladin wondered how that conversation would even go.

'Hello, Captain. How is your relationship with my brother going?'

'Oh, good. I actually find it hard to sleep without him there next to me now, and Syl is pretty sure I'm in love with him.'

'That's fair, Adolin is very lovable. But...did you just say you've been sleeping with him?'

'Yes. He, Shallan, and I spend as many nights together as we can. Even when we aren't having sex, it's the most relaxed I've ever been.'

"Captain, are you okay?" Renarin asked, looking concerned.

Kaladin blinked. Had he...this was becoming too distracting. Hard as it may be, Kaladin had to put his boyfriend out of his mind, at least until the meeting was over. "I'm fine. Continue."

After a moment's hesitation, Renarin did just that. "In addition to observing those with a stronger affiliation to windspren, I think you should avoid recruiting only from the army and scribes. Honor can be found in many places, after all, so you should widen your net as much as possible."

From there, things went smoothly. Kaladin had almost forgotten the incident when, the main topic over, Renarin didn't immediately leave.

Clearly unsure of exactly what to say, it took Renarin almost a full minute to get a sentence out. "Adolin's been even happier than usual lately. I thought you should know."

That was apparently all that had to be said, because Renarin wasted no time in leaving the room as quickly as he could after that.

Adolin...was better off for being with Kaladin? That just didn't add up.

"He's right, you know. You're not the only one benefiting from the bond you've joined," Syl said, zipping through the air and landing onto one of Kaladin's shoulders.

Kaladin didn't say anything back. The idea...was too odd to take seriously.

But, at the very least, he could pretend for a little while that he was actually helping someone.

"I don't know him very well. They say he's an honorable man. So long as he doesn't wrong my lady, he'll remain an honorable man with ten fingers."

-Vathah

"Shallan, a word."

It was always 'a word' with Jasnah Kholin, though in actuality it tended to be far more than one, strung together into a lecture or a lesson or a diatribe.

There was a time when Shallan would have said that aloud without thinking first.

There was also a time when she would have avoided saying it, out of fear of how it would make her look.

"In my experience, you tend to have more than one. Perhaps you should say, 'Shallan, a paragraph.' instead."

Now, they'd reached a time in their relationship that Shallan could say overly smart things just because she felt like it, with a little mental workshopping first, with the knowledge it would bristle her mentor. Even if said mentor was also a Queen.

This time, all she got for her trouble was a slight tightening of the muscles around Jasnah's cheeks, but no verbal admonishment.

Shallan would count that as a win.

They were in a corridor, coming from opposite directions, though exactly how Jasnah had found Shallan in the enormous labyrinth they lived in, she couldn't tell.

"You've allowed the Windrunner into your marriage with Adolin."

It wasn't a question. And there was something harsh about how she said it.

Shallan set her jaw. "I did not allow anything. Adolin and I invited him in. Storms, we practically had to drag him by the back of his shirt like an unruly child!"

How many conversations had it taken to convince Kaladin that no, really, they really did want to be with him? That it wasn't a trick, or a joke, or scheme? Storms, for all Shallan appreciated about Kaladin, the combination of his paranoia and stubbornness could be infuriating.

Something flashed across Jasnah's face: realization. This happened sometimes. Shallan was getting better at reading the elder scholar's mood, and it was fairly common for the woman to realize she'd offended someone without intending to.

"My choice of words was poor." It was the closest she'd get to an apology. "I merely want to confirm that nothing untowards is occurring."

For a second, Shallan didn't understand she meant...until she remembered that Adolin was her cousin. They didn't seem incredibly close, but she knew one of the few things Jasnah truly valued in life was family. "You don't need to worry about Adolin. Kaladin cares about him, a lot, and I don't think he'd ever do anything to-"

"At what point," Jasnah interrupted, "did I mention Adolin? I'm asking for your sake."

That was a surprise.

"My sake?"

"Of course. Adolin has been in numerous relationships, I have no doubt he can easily handle anything that brute can throw at him. But your luck so far is more...mixed."

Considering her first crush almost poisoned her, Shallan couldn't really say she was wrong.

Well, except that... "I know you don't like Kaladin." An understatement, if ever one had been made. "But he's good for me. He...understands me in ways Adolin can't." Two broken Radiants, dating a perfect prince. "I still love Adolin! But...it's good. The relationship with Kaladin isn't better or worse, it's just...different."

"I am aware of the arguments for polyamory." Of course she'd studied the subject. What was there that Jasnah hadn't studied?

Jasnah sighed. "I am going to trust your assessment of him, provisionally. But should he ever give you reason to complain, simply tell me."

There was something in her words that promised a dark fate for Kaladin Stormblessed, should he incur her wrath.

That seemed to have been all that needed to be said, because Jasnah walked away without another word.

"No lies," Pattern said, from a nearby wall. "From you or her."

That was something to chew on. Trying to untangle exactly how Jasnah felt about Shallan felt like an impossible challenge, one she tried not to complicate with her own attraction to the woman.

Still...it must say something, that she'd be that protective of her.

At one time, Shallan might have seen it as a sign of pity, that Jasnah saw her as a weak girl who needed outside help to live her life.

But things had changed. Instead...Shallan thought it might just be a sign that Jasnah cared about her.