And then, one day, the Tortallan knight opened his eyes. He found himself in a fairly small stone room.

A fair-haired girl peeked through the door at him. She blinked hazel eyes rapidly, before calling, "Mama, he's awake!"

A hand pulled the young child out of the room.

"Don't excite your mother like that. Goddess knows why you are so eager for him to wake." Joren grinned, recognising Neal's resentful tone.

"But, he really is awake. I seen him."

"I saw," was her reply. "Not one word about your father. She'll only get worked up."

Sitting up in bed, Joren was only able to catch snatches of the downstairs conversation, though he was listening intently.

"I think he'll wake up soon."

"I hope he doesn't."

"Nealan of Queenscove, don't you dare give the gods ideas."

"Do you really want him to wake up? He might not love you."

"I'll enjoy my hope, thank you very much."

"Why do you love him?" Joren lost the drift of the talk, and then picked it up again.

"Come to Corus. You're a hero, after the war."

"Heroine, Neal. No, Joren needs me."

"Joren needs no one."

"Then I'll rephrase it. No, I will not come until Joren is awake."

"Fine, I'll leave it there before I get thrown out."

Through the floor, he could hear Kel's rueful laugh. "I take it Merric told you?"

"You can't fault someone for expressing an opinion."

"I wonder if I cared to hear Queen Florence's opinion before she died."

Neal chuckled. "Very subtle. Anyway, you and your family are invited to stay with Katherine and me soon." He hesitated. "That includes Joren. IF he wants."

Joren heard no more, as he fell back into darkness.

--

The next time he woke, someone was in the room. He relaxed when he saw the glaive in her hand; it was Kel. He smiled, remembering her dawn exercises, which had never been broken that he knew of.

He got out of bed. The room spun, and then settled into place. He wrapped his arms around Kel. "Finally," she murmured, tilting her head back to kiss him. "Did I take too long, then?"

"A month."

"When did the war end?" She gave a mysterious smile.

A reproachful voice from the door spoke instead of her. "You promised you'd tell me when he woke up."

"'He' only just woken up this minute," Joren told his daughter.

Her hazel eyes, so like Kel's, lit up. "Jodi," Kel said. "Come and meet your father."

Joren knelt. The only other person he had ever been unsure with was Kel herself. After all, he had left because he thought that she was too nice to tell him that she didn't want him around. Now it seemed she hadn't wanted that at all.

Jodi had none of his inhibitions, however, and ran into his arms, shrieking with joy as he lifted her up. "Mama, does this mean we're a family?"

Kel took her child off Joren. "Stop asking questions. Off to bed." A blank expression had overtaken her features as she ushered the girl out of the room. Just before she closed the door, she turned back. "You should sleep too." A smile, sad as it was, lit her face as she spoke.

--

Joren could hear Kel and Jodi talking quietly. "Isn't he staying? Why do I have to go to bed now? Do you want him to stay?"

"You, my girl, are turning into Neal. He's only woken up a while ago. I don't know what will happen." Jodi seemed to be satisfied by this; she agreed to go to bed.

Kel slipped into Joren's room. Hands on hips, she faced him. "Well?"

"Well what?"

"Have you reached a decision?"

He made his right then. "Yes."

She turned away. "Oh. Then, could you leave as soon as possible? I don't want Jodi getting too attached. She...she..."

"Kel?" Awkwardly, Joren stood. "Am I not allowed to stay?" She whipped round, tears on her smiling cheeks.

"Stay? I thought-" "I would like nothing better." Her face relaxed, and that little space between them; the coldness of years, vanished.

--

It was awkward, Joren found, slipping into an established family. Though there was only two of them, they had a close-knit routine, that Joren seemed to manage to upset at every turn.

Eventually, they managed to settle down, to accommodate Joren as well - but as soon as that came along, Kel discovered that she was pregnant again. With twins.

"If either of them are anything like Jodi," Kel said drowsily, one night in front of the fire, "I think we're going to need a lot of help."

Joren simply smiled in response.