The courts band together to stop Hybern, and when the NC inevitably sees what’s up, they try to come in at the last minute like heroes, but no one’s having it. They were holding their own without NC warriors, so if Rhysand doesn’t want to fall in line, he can leave and get his blowjobs elsewhere. Nesta and Elain still end up slaying the King of Hybern somehow, Cassian makes no deathbed declarations that he forgets, and Nesta/Elain/Lucien see that the NC is not necessarily the best place to be if they want peace and unity in Prythian.

The other courts, seeing how well they worked together, join each other to form a coalition in rebuilding efforts for all the courts, starting with Spring. Tamlin is enveloped in love and understanding and acceptance by everyone else, who all come to understand that Rhysand is a POS and Feyre’s sole account of all that happened between them is not to be trusted. They help him rebuild and return Spring to its former glory, supporting Tamlin with inter-court treaties and relations as needed. With time, Lucien grows curious and checks in on Spring. Tamlin apologizes, Lucien accepts his apology, and they work to rebuild their friendship. Eventually, Lucien gives up on Elain and returns to Spring as its emissary. Tamlin bans Rhysand and his IC from Spring indefinitely so no one can try to grab Lucien without it being treated as an act of warfare from Tamlin and his allies.

Summer and Winter never give Rhysand the time of day and also ban him and his IC from their courts indefinitely. Eventually, with the backing of a newly re-empowered Spring and an almost complete coalition of courts, Tarquin is able to demand the return of his half of the Book of Breathings, which was never chucked into a void, before he re-issues the blood rubies. It is returned to him by Nesta, one of the only ones the NC can think to send who isn't banned or a backstabber. She and Cresseida become fast friends when Cresseida notices she's wasting away. She encourages Nesta to stay in time for a ball Summer is throwing the other courts excluding Night to thank them for helping rebuild Adriata. At the ball, Nesta runs into Eris again and dances with him almost all night. She sees Lucien, who doesn't ask after Elain, and becomes friends with him as well. Before she leaves, she has invitations to visit Spring, Summer, and Autumn whenever she wishes.

Nesta returns to the NC to find her apartment demolished and has no choice but to go to the House of Wind. A lot of SF proceeds as it did, where Nesta is forced to train and work in the library. She befriends the House, Emerie and Gwyn. Lucien, in his official capacity as emissary to Spring, arrives at Velaris with armed guards to extend a formal declaration from Tamlin regarding reparations talks with Night in light of Feyre's destruction of Spring and to warn them (because he's a good guy who never hated Feyre) that a similar delegation would be arriving from Summer and Winter not too long after. Everyone is surprised and upset when he asks after Nesta and doesn't bring up Elain. They attempt to dangle Elain in front of him, but he doesn't rise to the bait, although his pain and longing is evident, so they refuse to allow him to see Nesta. He leaves her a letter explaining that he and Tamlin wanted to know how she was doing, but no one gives her the letter.

Summer and Winter arrive around the same time to setup details for the reparations talks. Letters from Cresseida and Eris are written for Nesta, but Feyre holds on to those too. The IC hold a vote as to whether they should give Nesta the letters. Some say it might be good for her to establish footing in other courts to try to ease the tensions toward the NC, others say Nesta can't be trusted not to spill secrets out of spite. The results of the vote are to not tell Nesta that anyone is worried about her and wants to see her. Since she's an idiot, Feyre doesn't burn the letters, and Azriel (who was always sympathetic toward Nesta and becoming closer to her because of his attraction to Gwyn) decides to swipe the letters long enough for Nesta to read them before returning them. She learns that the IC held a vote on her friendships and decides enough is enough. She, Gwyn, and Emerie discuss ways to get Nesta out of the NC.

At first, they threw themselves into training so Nesta could brave the 10,000 steps in one go. Then, after Nesta's nightmare, they decide that she needs to leave sooner rather than later because her powers are growing out of control and the NC is not helping her, so they ask Az for a sleepover on a day Cassian is gone. He agrees and flies Emerie to the House. When Azriel leaves, the House packs them three large bags of supplies. When Nesta notices the three bags, she doesn't understand initially. Gwyn and Emerie tell her that after thinking about it, they've decided to leave with her so they can all be together. Emerie's already packed all her valuables and taken all the money from her shop. Nesta tries to talk them out of it, but she's unsuccessful. Together, they spend the night going down the stairs, taking them a thousand at a time and resting in between. After several hours, they make it to the bottom and move through Velaris as quickly as possible. Nesta finds an old friend from her drinking days who shelters them for the rest of the night and sends a letter to Lucien for Nesta. Later that day, the entire city is looking for the three of them. They're worried about being found by Azriel, so they stay in the sunniest room in the house, but that can only work for so long. Someone knocks insistently on the door and they think they're discovered. But instead of someone from the IC, it's Eris. Lucien told him about Nesta's letter since Eris was already scheduled to meet with Rhysand that day. Eris somehow convinced Rhysand to show him Velaris. Rhysand agrees as to not tip Eris off that anything is wrong, and Eris gives him the slip long enough to find the three girls from the letter's directions, winnow them to Spring, and then winnow back. They all settle into Tamlin's manor, and when Nesta opens her bag, it contains a small book that, when placed in her bookshelf, imbues her room with the same magic as the House of Wind. The magic seems to recognize her as it immediately conjures three pieces of cake and a smutty book, so Nesta's happy.

Months go by and Rhysand is furious. Three courts openly hate him, Feyre's upset that Nesta is gone and Azriel hasn't found her, Cassian is upset that Nesta is gone and Azriel hasn't found her, and he and Feyre have to halt building plans on their vacation home in the Illyrian Steppes due to all the pending reparations talks. He and Feyre go to Helion for help convincing the other courts to back off, only for Helion to tell them he'd seen Nesta with two friends at Calanmai in Spring just a few days before. This year, all of the courts except Night had been invited. Feyre winnows directly to Spring but before she could approach the manor, sentries stop her. They recognize her and remember what she did to them and start screaming at her about how much of a horrible person she was to them when they had been so good to her before demanding she leave. She refuses and demands to see her sister and tries to threaten them with her power. More and more people arrive and begin yelling at her to get out of their court, she wasn't wanted there. Feyre tugs on the mating bond, but Rhysand doesn't come right away for some reason.

Someone runs to get Tamlin and he arrives, dismissing everyone until it is only him and Feyre. Feyre starts screaming at him about how she wouldn't let him lock Nesta in his manor like he did to her, how she'd rescue her. Tamlin tells Feyre that his home was a safe haven to Nesta after she was rescued from Feyre. He points out her hypocrisy at daring to be upset at him for doing to her the same exact thing she did to Nesta. Feyre tries to spin it as her protecting Nesta from endangering herself, and it being a last resort after Nesta refused all other attempts at getting through to her, but Tamlin again asks what was so different since he also had been trying to keep Feyre from endangering herself and that had been a last resort for him as well. Feyre went quiet. He apologizes to Feyre for hurting her and expresses that after everything, he needs her to realize that was the last thing he was trying to do, the only thing he never wanted to do. He also says that the deterioration of their relationship wasn't only on him, and that as much as he locked her out of his trauma and didn't communicate with her, she did the same to him. Feyre acknowledges that he was correct and says she'll think on his apology and where they go from there. She apologizes for barging into his court but can't bring herself to apologize for anything else he said because she doesn't know if she thinks it matters. She still asks to see Nesta, just to make sure she was okay. Tamlin says he asked Nesta if she wanted to see Feyre when the sentry first went to get him, but she said no. However, he says that if that ever changes, he will allow Feyre and only Feyre to visit if Nesta doesn't want to go to her. He assures her that Nesta, Gwyn, and Emerie are all safe and happy and that he'll do everything he can to ensure it stays that way. He asks her, just to be sure, that Rhysand makes her happy, truly happy. Feyre wants to blow up at the thought that he believed otherwise, but in a moment of maturity and clarity, doesn't. She puts herself in his shoes for a moment, thinks about how everything must look and feel from his pov, and sincerely tells Tamlin that no other could make her happier. It hurts to hear, but Tamlin tells Feyre that's all that matters, that she lives long and stays happy. He'll pray to the Mother that remains true for her no matter what. Rhysand finally shows up, begins threatening Tamlin, but to his surprise, Feyre stops him and convinces him to take her home.

Nesta and Emerie visit Cresseida in Summer often (Gwyn was too shocked by the sudden change from Night to Spring that she spends all of her time in the manor). Emerie and Cresseida immediately hit it off as friends, and after one drunken night, they all have a threesome. Once was enough for Nesta, who just wanted to know what being with two women was like after being with two men, but Emerie and Cresseida keep it going. Soon, Emerie visits Summer on her own and Cresseida visits her in Spring when she can. They're not necessarily in love at this point, but they do have fun encouraging others to join them in bed. Their greatest conquest so far has been Tamlin, their toughest sell has been Eris. They never ask Gwyn but she shows interest and they figure it might be only a matter of time. They fantasize about people they'd never ask but who might surprise them in bed (mainly LoA and Viviane, but also Feyre and Rhysand…separately, never together). They turn down Helion often just because they feel his ego needs to get knocked down a peg or two.

Nesta has been exchanging secret letters with Eris. Finally, on the Autmnal Equinox, he invites her to Autumn. They don't dare put on a show while Beron is watching like they did in Summer, but he did have them dance once. They were amazing, and Beron finds reasons to keep inviting her back to Autumn. Eventually, he orders Eris to seduce her and make her his wife. Eris tells Nesta what Beron told him, they laugh about it, but take the opportunity to visit each other freely in each other's courts. During one overnight visit in Spring, Nesta had a nightmare and her room caught on fire. Eris was right down the hall and was able to smother her fire with his. When she woke up in three days, he offered to train her in her magic as best he could. Lucien offered to help also. The three of them spent lots of time together, training magic and playing with Eris' dogs. Nesta bonds with one of the puppies. Eris decides to trust them and let them in on his plan to kill Beron and become the next High Lord of Autumn. Unfortunately for Eris, Gwyn and Emerie were on their way over with a picnic basket for lunch, and they had dragged Tamlin along, so all three of them heard. But it didn't matter. Lucien and Nesta vouched for their trustworthiness and pledged to help Eris no matter what. Gwyn and Emerie pledged to help Nesta no matter what, so they were in, too. After staring Tamlin down for a while, he begrudgingly joined in. They all made bargains with Eris not to say anything to anyone about it until after it was all done.

During one training session, Nesta noticed Lucien's magic acting funny. He tried to play it off as him getting sick, saying he always felt worse in wintertime. Nesta asks if maybe they should consult Viviane about it, because she'd know what to do about wintertime sicknesses. Lucien declines her offer. Later, Eris asks Lucien to take a walk with him and he finally tells him the truth about his parentage. At first Lucien is pissed Eris kept it from him, but he also feels relieved. Beron raised him, there was no getting around that, but to know he had a shot at having a good parental relationship made him happy. Eris assured that he would always support Lucien as his brother, not only because they shared a mother and an upbringing, but because he chose to be his brother. Lucien made fun of him for being so sappy, but he appreciated it and told Eris he'd always have one supporter as High Lord of Autumn. He also asked Eris to be there when he went to see Helion. Eris agreed, and joked that Lucien should feel lucky Helion never propositioned him. Lucien was so disgusted that Eris would even bring that up that he refused to speak to him for a month.

Nesta thinks about Cassian sometimes. She feels him hurting through their bond, but is still angry at him for never sticking up for her or acknowledging her in front of the IC and continuing his weird relationship with Mor while saying he wanted her. She's also angry about his complicity in her forced removal to the House of Wind. So she doesn't respond to his letters and refuses to visit Feyre in the NC. However, she does eventually allow Feyre to visit her in Spring. When Feyre comes, she brings Elain. The sisters are all tense at first, and there's a lot of yelling. Accusations are thrown around, feelings pour out, and they fight (verbally) until their mouths are dry. Feyre and Elain leave. Gwyn and Emerie are there to comfort Nesta, but she's smiling. She assures them that she finally knows everything will be okay. Sure enough, the next morning at breakfast, Tamlin informs Nesta that Feyre wrote a letter asking him to inform Nesta (not ask her) that she and Elain would be returning in a week. The next week, they come again. Tensions are high, and there's more arguing and snide comments, but not as much as the week before. Weeks and weeks go by, and the sisters all meet in Spring on the same day. It happens gradually, but they learn to smile with each other and enjoy each other's company again. Feyre shows her sisters her favorite spots when she lived in Spring, though she was never allowed close to the manor again and sentries watched their every move. Eventually, they open up to each other. Nesta tells her sisters about Tomas and what he did to her, what their mother and grandmother did to her, and how she often thinks about her pain and suffering until she knows nothing else. She apologizes to Feyre for how mean she is, and tells her that she's only mean to others because of how much she hates herself. Feyre, shocked to realize how much Nesta had been through and how much she wanted to die all those years in the cabin, accepts her apology and gives her one of her own for both giving back as good as she got and for not being there for Nesta in the way Nesta needed her, back then and more recently. Nesta and Feyre continue apologizing back and forth, while telling the other they have nothing to apologize for that now that they understand each other better. Elain finally gets tired of it and tells them to knock it off before also apologizing to Feyre for her years of weaponized incompetence and to Nesta for packing her stuff and not protecting and sticking up for her the way Nesta always protected and stuck up for Elain. Feyre apologizes to Elain (and Nesta again) for devaluing all the work they did in the house while she hunted, and Nesta apologizes for smothering Elain. Apologies were given and accepted, and the sisters spent weeks talking about their childhood and how their lives looked from each other's point of view up until that point. They still fight sometimes, and they steer clear of a few topics (like their father, Tamlin, and their mates), but their bond as sisters was stronger than ever.

Elain loves it in Spring. She spends a good chunk of her days picking flowers to bring back to Velaris. She's able to successfully plant a few of them, but the majority are linked to the magic of the SC and die as soon as they leave the SC. She also finds the NC smothering. Once, while Feyre was teaching Nesta to paint, she wandered the fields of Spring on her own. She came upon a river. It was a warm day, and she decided to dip her feet in. Just as she reached the riverbank, Lucien popped up from under the surface, completely naked. She shrieked and ran away. Her sisters laughed at her when she told them what happened, Nesta asking her to describe exactly how terrifying his chiseled abs were. Elain complains about Nesta noticing Lucien's abs, and Feyre says it's not like they're blind. Lucien is one of the hottest guys in Prythian. Elain is dismayed that Feyre, a mated woman, is so open about it too. Seeing Elain's jealousy distress, Feyre asks her why she doesn't just reject the bond outright. Elain doesn't have a good answer to that, something about the thought of being bonded to someone when her last relationship went bad. She doesn't know anyone who had a good relationship or outcome with someone they were promised to (everyone purposefully ignored the elephant that was Rhysand and Feyre), and being Fae meant that whatever they had was forever, something she could not get out of no matter what and that scared her, but not enough to reject something that could possibly make her as happy as it made Feyre, so she was at an impasse and just shut down whenever Lucien was around. Nesta admonished Elain, saying she's not some weak little girl who can't hold her own. She was thrown into that Cauldron and came out someone High Lords were scared of, just like Nesta. Mate bond or not, Elain makes her own choices, everyone else be damned, and if she didn't think she and Lucien made a good match, then that was that. But there was no way to know if she didn't get to know him.

Feyre kept mostly silent, not only because she felt it was inappropriate to comment on their mate bond considering how she'd treated it in the past when she wanted to punish Lucien, but also because she noticed how vehemently Nesta was talking about disregarding mate bonds. Things were fraught at home, with Rhysand and Cassian raging over all that's happened. She never even brought up her weekly visits, just had them, went home, and went on about her life as if nothing happened. But she couldn't deny that Nesta looked happy, which was why (in addition to finally having the sisterly bonds she'd wanted her whole life) she refused when Cassian tried to get her to pass along messages to Nesta. She just wished Nesta felt comfortable enough telling her what, or who, was making her feel that way.

Nesta made a bargain with Elain. Every time Elain spent a week in the manor with her, Nesta would spend a week at the Townhouse in Velaris with Elain. Elain was delighted at the thought and accepted. She ran ahead to the manor, insisting on starting her week right then and there. Feyre was happy for them, but sad she'd never be allowed to join. But she insisted that she visit when Nesta was in Velaris and that Nesta would come to dinner at the River House at least once. Nesta begrudgingly accepted, not knowing how she'd deal with Cassian.

Elain and Gwyn hit it off, and she immediately recruits Elain into their smutty novel book club. They now have four members. At dinner one night, while everyone was talking, Elain shocked Lucien by responding to something he said. He didn't speak again for the rest of the night, but in the morning at breakfast, he did ask about her night. She responded, and the two of them awkwardly picked up their conversation from the night before. By the end of the week, both are looking more comfortable yet more frustrated around each other.

Tamlin's not too happy about the new arrangement, which was made without his knowledge or permission. As much as he's come to tolerate and sometimes even appreciate Nesta, he wasn't comfortable with yet another Archeron in his court after what happened with the first one. But he couldn't deny Lucien's happiness, and so he tolerates Elain's presence and gives Lucien a nod when Elain asks Lucien about when she could return.

The last day of Elain's visit comes. True to her word, Nesta prepares to go with Elain to Velaris. Eris comes by, and she tells him she'll be gone a week so they halt their lessons. Eris gives her the puppy she'd grown attached to, both to remind her of him while she was in the NC and to send word if she needed help. She could give the puppy a letter and it would know to get him or Lucien if he couldn't be reached.

Feyre is waiting for Elain and Nesta at the border of the SC and winnows them to Velaris. For the first three nights, no one bothers them. On the fourth night, she accepts Feyre's dinner invitation and goes to the River House. It's awkward, but no one is rude to her. After dinner, Azriel offers to walk them back home. When they're getting their coats, Cassian comes up behind Nesta and quietly asks if he could walk with them. She agrees. To her surprise, the boys only walk them to the door in silence, say goodnight, then leave. When the week is up, Cassian meets them for breakfast at the Townhouse after clearing it with Nesta. He asks when he'd see her again. She says it's up to Elain. Elain comes down the stairs with a bag, having already decided she was going with Nesta back to Spring again. Nesta tells Cassian she'd see him in a week. Azriel gives them a letter to give to Gwyn from him.

Gwyn and Azriel start exchanging letters, and she grows to miss him. She's been venturing out little by little, by herself, with Nesta and Emerie, with Elain and Lucien, even with Tamlin once. Eventually, she asks Nesta and Elain if there was room at the Townhouse for her if she wanted to visit. They told her that there was. She went with them on their next visit to Velaris and spent some time with Azriel, who was happy to see her. He took her to the library where she could speak to some of the other priestesses and let them know she was well. She promised to visit whenever she was in Velaris. When she got back to the SC, she doesn't leave the manor for a month, but she feels hopeful for the future anyway.

Eris continues teaching Nesta while she's in Spring. With Emerie in Summer half the time, Gwyn holed up inside writing not-so-secret love letters, and Elain spending more and more time with Lucien, she begins spending overnights in Autumn at Eris' private estate. They grow closer, and one night, Eris kisses her. She's over the moon about it, and ignores the forlorn feeling coming through her bond.

Reparations talks finally happen. All the courts are in attendance, and Helion hosts everyone in Day. New treaties are signed, and they hammer out exactly how Feyre and Rhysand can pay back the people of Spring, Summer, and Winter. Surprisingly enough, Tamlin is the most forgiving, seeing as how his court was the wildest and lowest maintenance of all the courts and never needed much anyway. Out of respect for his new understanding with Feyre, and maybe some penance of his own, when Tarquin and Kallias go a touch too hard on the NC, he convinces them to let up just a smidge. Feyre notices this the third time he does it, and he feels her asking permission to enter his mind. He drops his shield just a bit, she thanks him, he nods, then slams those shields right back up. They'll never be friends, or even on good terms really, but they can begin putting things behind them for good. Finally, after a month of extensive treaty-ing, the new agreements are signed. Feyre and Rhysand enter into extensive, specific bargains with every other High Lord that no one will act against them or challenge their rule so long as they pretty much leave everyone and their minds the fuck alone and don't lie to/steal from them ever again. Part of the deal is Amren (who never lost her powers) also entering into bargains with every court that she'd never act against a single person from that court unless it was okayed by at least 3 other High Lords excluding Rhysand, which she agrees to. With that, the other courts stop freezing out the NC. Viviane is ecstatic that Mor can visit her once again, Varian is happy that he and Amren can resume their relationship, and Tarquin is just happy that he no longer has to be angry and can put away his rubies. He'll never 100% forgive Feyre and Rhysand, and he'll never trust them again, but at least he can stop being angry. It's against his nature to hold onto anger. Tarquin and Kallias drop their bans, but Tamlin (understandably) keeps his. To celebrate, Helion suggests an orgy that night, led by him and Mor. Mor halfheartedly laughs, but once the drinks start flowing and people start dropping clothes, she finds herself between Emerie and Cresseida. After the sex, Emerie convinces them to join the smutty book club. They now have six members.

At the ball that follows (before the orgy), Lucien finally works up the nerve to approach Helion with Eris at his side. Helion is shocked, and he gazes at LoA longingly. Lucien and Eris realize that Helion and their mother are mates. Helion steels himself, turns to Eris, and tells him to hurry up and kill his father before Helion challenges him to a Blood Duel and does it for him. Lucien assures him there's a plan in place. Eris smacks Lucien upside the head for giving that info so easily. Helion laughs and pledges himself as an ally before shyly asking Lucien to visit Day sometime so they can get to know each other. Lucien agrees, and when Elain hears about it, she says that she'd love to visit DC, and so every other time Lucien goes, he brings Elain with him to help smooth over any awkwardness.

Nesta visits Velaris every other week because Elain is in Spring every other week. At first, Cassian steered clear. Then, he started coming around, but not speaking to her. Finally, he'd make small talk with her then leave, not wanting to crowd her. She got tired of it and cornered him. She demanded he speak to her. Cassian drops to his knees in front of her and begs her forgiveness for treating her the way he had. He had no good excuses so he wouldn't give any, but he wants to make things right. Nesta wanted to be pissed, but she could feel how tortured Cassian was through their bond. She admonishes him, reminding him of all the time they spent together when she was human, how they should be more than this, at the very least friends. Cassian feels hopeful at the thought of being friends and asks her if she's sure that's what she wants. Nesta says that what she wants is to sit on Cassian's face, but they're not quite there yet, so they could be friends for now. She does kiss him, and it's a good kiss.

Tamlin is patrolling his borders and one of the Children of the Blessed gets too close. He feels an irresistible pull toward her and gets scared, so he tries to glamour her and send her home, but she shows up again the next day, straight up asking one of his sentries for "a guy with blonde hair, green eyes, and a larger chest than hers". He tries to glamour her again and again, but it doesn't work, so she keeps popping up at the Wall to hang out. Eventually, he tells his sentries to leave her be, but make sure no harm came to her and that she made it home safely every time she left the Wall. She stops coming one day, and Tamlin gets worried.

Nesta's trained her magic as much as she could with Eris. Now, they spend more of their time making out and dry humping than they do with their fire. Beron is getting restless, wondering why Eris hasn't proposed to Nesta yet. To deflect from his anger, Nesta formally requests that Eris be her travelling companion, as she wants to visit her sisters in the NC but doesn't want to be trapped. Beron agrees and tells Eris not to come home until she has either a ring on her finger or a baby in her belly. Eris pretends to be put out, but later that night celebrates by giving Nesta the best head she's ever gotten until she passes out. When she wakes up, she decides she wants to visit all the courts now that Eris is temporarily free from his father. He agrees.

They take Nesta's dog and start their celebratory tour of Prythian in Summer, where they visit with Cresseida and Emerie. Something big has happened in Summer, but no one will speak about it. Emerie's convinced Cresseida to take other Lesser Fae into their bed and Cresseida caved. Their sex life is better than ever, which pisses Nesta off, not because she's not having off the walls sex, but because they're neglecting this month's book club book. She snaps at them to get it together.

They move on to Winter. Mor is visiting Viviane. She and Nesta are still awkward around each other, but Nesta decides to offer Mor an olive branch. They couldn't have members of the book club at odds with each other. So she asked Mor how she was enjoying this month's book. Mor had lots of thoughts, many of which Nesta disagreed with (big surprise). Viviane drops in on the conversation and becomes curious about the book. They invite her into the book club. They now have seven members. She manages to finish reading the book before Emerie and Cresseida do. She loves it and wants to recommend a series they have in the WC that's been on her TBR for a while, but since she's the newest member, she has to wait her turn to recommend something.

They go to Dawn, which is a bore even though Thesan is nice and the sunrises are pretty. Eris spent most of their time there talking to the alchemists. Nesta tries to amuse herself by bothering Thesan and tempting his lover with a smutty novel. She doesn't succeed, but she leaves one on the table before she leaves, just in case. The dog had a blast, though.

They backtrack to Spring to meet up with Elain and Lucien, who accompany them to Day. Somehow, they convince Gwyn to join. Helion is glad to see Lucien but not so glad to see Eris, who he believes is dragging his feet with Beron. Helion also flirts with Nesta, who entertains the idea of sleeping with him because she is horny and he’s one of the hottest men in Prythian (top 3 for Nesta, if she were being honest). Eris puts his foot down and refuses to let her sleep with someone mated to his mother. As much as it pains her, Nesta admits it's a very good point, but refuses to be held responsible for her actions if she ever gets too deep into her cups again.

They leave Elain and Lucien in Day and finally head to Night with Gwyn, who meets up with Azriel immediately and goes to visit the library. Eris and Nesta go to the Townhouse, where Cassian was waiting for Nesta. She casually goes up to him and gives him a long heated kiss hello, then retires to her room before dinner. Cassian and Eris size each other up, then agree that may the best man win. All bets are off after that, and both spend all their time in the NC and beyond wooing Nesta: buying her chocolates, buying her smutty novels, touching her knee, complimenting her, fiddling with her braid. At night she goes to bed alone, but leaves the door open and makes as much noise as she possibly can while pleasuring herself, knowing they both can hear her and are wondering which one of them drove her to that point that day.

Emerie comes to visit, but immediately leaves the Townhouse that reeks like unfulfilled hormones. She wants to go to Illyria. She knows the shop is either closed or taken over by her family, but there are a few women and children she left behind that she'd like to see. Nesta offers to go with her. To their surprise, one of the other women in their camp took over Emerie's shop, watching it for her until she got back, fulfilling orders and stuff. Her husband had died in the war (good riddance) so she had no chores to hold her back like the others. Nesta threatened Emerie's family away from the shop for good, and Emerie told the woman the shop was hers. They slept there that night, and even though it was a far cry from the lavish palaces and seasoned meals they'd gotten used to the past few years, it was comfortable to the two of them in a way that nothing else would be. They made unrushed, unhurried love that night until morning.

They visit the camp later and come upon a blacksmith who recognizes Emerie and offers to let her and Nesta make weapons. They do, then go back to the Townhouse for the rest of the week. Eris and Azriel winnow them all back to Spring.

They'd only been home for a few days when sentries come to Tamlin's manor saying that Feyre and Cassian were at the border of Spring demanding to see Nesta, that it was urgent. Nesta and Tamlin meet them at the border where they throw the weapons Nesta had made (wrapped in lots of layers of spelled cloth) at her feet. Tamlin hisses and steps back. Nesta picks them up with no problems. Feyre said the blacksmith gave them to Rhysand, refusing to be anywhere near them. When they found out they were Made weapons, Feyre immediately sought out Helion, had him spell a bunch of cloth, had Cassian wrap them, and brought them to her. Nesta pulls out the simple sword she'd made, which gleamed brighter than a sunrise in Dawn, and named it Ataraxia. Later, Emerie and Gwyn looked at the other two weapons, and despite everyone warning them, picked them up. They had no trouble wielding them either. Nesta loves how shiny they are and makes seven more weapons for fun before Tamlin roars at her to cut it out. The weapons are driving the animals from the forest and scaring the SC citizens (and him too, if he wanted to be honest).

Eris visits Dawn one last time and convinces Thesan to ally with him. He finally has the backing of all the courts, or at least a connection to them, and starts poisoning the food at the Forest House. Nuan gives him enough antidote for himself, his mother, and trusted nobles and servants. A civil war breaks out, and Beron tries to go after Eris, who's attempting to get his mother out of Autumn. Helion arrives on four pegasi and proceeds to beat the shit out of Beron. Tamlin appears to take LoA to safety in Spring. All of Eris' allies fight against those opposing him. Nesta shuts all that shit down by showing how she's now in control of her powers. Elain creepily tells them that if they didn't stand down, she saw fire burning their dicks from the inside out until they all died. Everyone stands down, and Eris and Lucien haul Beron to the dungeons. Beron, weak as shit now, dies after a long drawn out torture session that lasts weeks. The magic flows into Eris and crowns him High Lord. He threatens his brothers and nobles by withholding the antidote until they swear fealty to him and enter into bargains promising to accept his rule forever. He runs out of antidote and goes to Nuan for more. She agrees...if he asks Nesta for another smutty book. She read the one she left for Thesan's lover and loved it. Eris rushes to Nesta, who gives him a copy of this month's smutty novel, and instructs him to invite her into the smutty book club. Nuan happily accepts. They now have eight members. Eris makes it back right as his brothers were about to die and gives them, and everyone else, the antidote. He honors all the deals and bargains everyone made with him, and all treaties made with Eris as a prince are now valid inter-court treaties with Autumn. Nesta sucks his dick as a job well-done, and he gives her that fire dick for a week straight.

I guess Briallyn and Koschei make an appearance? Briallyn tries to provoke Tamlin by dropping the human girl into the Cauldron, which makes a surprise appearance last minute. She becomes Fae, and the mate bond snaps immediately for both of them. Seeing what happened to her and Elain just to provoke a High Lord happen to another innocent girl to provoke a different High Lord, Nesta goes nuts. She starts beating the shit out of Briallyn and straight up steals the completed ancient Dread Trove from her. Elain had gone to the NC when this all started to go down, and she returns with Feyre, Rhysand, the IC and a bunch of Darkbringers and Illyrians. They wage war on the army of the dead Briallyn called while Nesta battles her. Lucien returns with Eris, Helion, and AC and DC armies. They fight as the battle ramps up. Feyre and Rhysand work to free the minds of the living that Briallyn controls with the crown. The rest of the courts show up. Elain beats the shit out of a zombie with a bouquet of tulips Lucien had gifted her. Emerie and Gwyn help Nesta fight Briallyn with their Made weapons. Nesta's dog bites a lot of ankles, friend and foe. Nesta finally kills Briallyn with Ataraxia. Everyone relaxes.

To Nesta's surprise, after the battle, she sees Mor and Cresseida holding two of the weapons she Made. They needed weapons, saw them in a pile, and picked them up. Elain, Viviane and Nuan also held glowy weapons, though Elain never used hers. And best of all, Feyre held one too, similar to Nesta's in almost every way, though she struggled to keep firm hold of it.

The NC apologized for breaching the SC's lands with the ban still in place. Tamlin let it slide since they helped save his people and protected his newly turned mate. So he temporarily lifted the ban to allow the NC to recuperate, and quietly suggested to Feyre that tonight she could be with her sisters in his manor, and they could revisit the ban in 50 years. Feyre was grateful.

Later, when the Archeron sisters cuddled in Nesta's room, Feyre shyly admitted that she'd been keeping tabs on Nesta and Elain because she felt left out. With their new lives, Mor and Azriel leaving the NC more and more, Amren spending all her time with Varian, and Rhysand and Cassian being so pissed off that they spent most days fighting and fucking each other to oblivion, Feyre was lonely. And she couldn't be where her sisters were and do the things they did, but she could look into their interests. So she took care of Elain's garden at the Townhouse when she wasn't in Velaris and read whatever smutty novel the rest of the book club was reading. Nesta and Elain were touched, and they spent the rest of the night discussing their opinions on the sex scenes. They now had nine members. The sword gave Feyre no more problems, and she took it home with her to the NC, where no one else could get near it.

Years later, Tamlin began showing Briar around the SC. She loved it there, but wasn't quite ready to fall in love with Tamlin yet, no matter how hot she found his beast form. He respected her need for space, and on the days his frustration reached new heights, he fucked Lucien until he could think straight again.

Elain had an elaborate mate-acceptance. They had a ceremony in every single court before going to the human lands, where Elain finally presented Lucien with a feast she prepared herself in Graysen's old manor.

The bond snapped for Emerie and Cresseida in the middle of a threesome with Mor, which only made them want her more. Mor was okay with this, and they had fun whenever she was in town. Whenever she wasn't, they found other thirds (and sometimes fourths) or kept to themselves. Cresseida decked Emerie in pearls and researched ways to restore her wings. Emerie learned to cook phenomenal meals with SC spices that made Cresseida's tongue sing.

Azriel and Gwyn became closer. She now let him take her on vacation in different courts, and she loved to hold him close when he flew with her. His shadows loved her. He swore he could hear her voice even when they were in different courts, and she never shied away from his burns. She was nervous about having sex with him, but Emerie and Cresseida slowly introduced her to a world of pleasure, which made her gain confidence. She had a long night with Emerie and Nesta before she felt she was ready to tackle Azriel.

Nesta set up shop in the Forest House. Last time she was in Velaris, the House gave her another book, and Nesta placed it in the library in the Forest House. Eris was shocked when his home came alive, and he felt uncomfortable even getting naked, let alone touching Nesta, when the House could be watching. Nesta assured him they just had to ask for privacy, but he still took her to his former estate whenever he wanted to have sex with her. So Nesta asked the house for another book, put it in the library at that estate, then winnowed to the NC for a month, which she spent with Cassian. They spent time in Velaris and Illyria equally, where Nesta was only too glad to strike fear in the hearts of misogynists, who called her the Lady of Bloodshed, Queen of Queens, Lady Death, and so much more. Cassian and Eris spent the next few centuries wooing her in their respective courts, but when she needed a break, she knew she was always welcome in Spring.

Feyre began drafting legislation to address the inequality between the CoN and the CoD. She flew to Illyria to hear the people's concerns, and when they told her how they felt about her wearing their wings, she immediately apologized and stopped. She went to the Hewn City numerous times, and eventually, young unmarried girls became bold enough to seek her out and beg her to take them away from their families. She did, every single time, and set them up with Mor, who had created a boarding school in Velaris for girls fleeing violence where they could learn in a safe environment warded by the High Lady herself.

The big secret in Summer was...a wedding! A new Lesser Fae who was working at the palace bumped into Tarquin and the bond snapped for them both. Tarquin spent months convincing the High Fae in Adriata to accept Lesser Fae before he married his mate. He is now pushing for equality across all the courts with the help of his mate, his new cousin, and Tamlin (who ruled the only court that wasn't racist). They spent the majority of their time in the NC, followed by the AC. Tarquin called in his bargain with Eris to support Fae equality, while Tamlin appealed to Feyre's better nature to garner her support. When all else failed, and they needed to resort to the threat of violence, Nesta ecstatically volunteered every time. They called her in for a disturbance with an inmate in the Prison who tried to convince her that they could rule the world together and have great sex doing it. It got her so worked up that she fucked him right there, and the pleasure had been mindblowing.

Then she killed him and left.

As for the wedding, since there was peace between all the courts, everyone was invited. And this time, when Helion proposed an orgy in honor of the new couple, most people participated. Funny enough though, he himself didn't. He, like Tarquin, smiled at the revelry then retired early to his rooms, where the former LoA, now the LoD, sat reading, waiting for him. She earmarked her page to preserve her spot, then put the book on a far table next to the glowing dagger she used as a night light before joining Helion in bed.

The gentle hum of holiday music echoed through the joyful chatter between the guests that were seated around the various tables provided, their faces illuminated with merriment. Overall, the room exceeded exactly what you were going for. Enchanting yuletide charm and holiday season magic.

Of course, you had your reasons for trying to impress. After your closest friend, Tensei, was injured by The Hero Killer: Stain, he insisted that you lead Team Idaten. It came as a shock, and thinking about it still filled you with an indescribable rage.

Tensei out of all people didn’t deserve to have such a fate and for his pro-hero career to be abruptly stolen from him. Yeah, maybe those were the risks of being a hero. However, some might argue that death is better than watching your life’s work shatter into nothingness overnight.

Although a bit rough at first, Tensei remained positive throughout the whole ordeal. In addition to trusting you to lead his agency, he entrusted Tenya, his little brother, to carry on his hero name. In that sense, you were almost certain that Tensei only chose you to be leader until you deemed Tenya ready to take over in your stead.

So, in retrospect, it was more of a temporary promotion if anything. Still, you couldn’t deny Tensei, and it wasn’t just because he was your closest friend. There was another reason, but it was one that you didn’t dare speak for fear of ruining what you had created with him over the years.

Yet it seemed that you were constantly faced with moments like these, where love and devotion were highest and begged you to just confess already. Valentine’s Day and Christmas seemed to be primary holidays where this overwhelming feeling was the strongest, yet every year you did nothing.

Apart from fearing that someone else would take him away from you, that is. What a life. Anyways, the reason you had rushed to put together this elegant little shindig, a day before Christmas Eve no less, was because Tensei had thrown a holiday party every year to celebrate his team and let them know he appreciated them.

Furthermore, it allowed the team members who couldn’t make it home for the holiday to at least feel like they had a family at Team Idaten. As such, you wanted to make sure everything was perfect and that your unofficial guest of honor, Tensei, would be amazed when he stepped, or uh, rolled through the doors of his former agency.

When that moment finally occurred, he glanced around the room, taking in every little detail while grinning ear to ear. “Wow, you guys went all out,” he turned to look over his shoulder at Enigma, one of his former sidekicks.

She had a rather unique appearance, with long black hair styled into two braids and straight-cut bangs that rested against her forehead. Her eyes, be them a tad creepy, were oval-shaped and completely blacked-out. No pupil or iris to be seen.

In contrast to her rather dark appearance, she wore a festive dress colored red with a string of lights encircling her body that flashed various hues of green, yellow, and blue. She looked at Tensei and nodded. “That’s awesome!” He declared, looking around the room again. “I can’t believe Y/n organized this,” he said, chuckling softly.

“Hm…” he turned his wheelchair, facing Enigma. “I was stoked when I got the invitation, and I thought-” Well, he thought you would be the first to greet him when he arrived. Then again, he bore the weight of his former agency on your shoulders when he was forced to retire, so it was understandable that you were too busy to greet him.

Still, that wouldn’t stop him from asking “Where is Y/n?” Enigma tilted her head before pointing across the room. Tensei knitted his eyebrows and turned his wheelchair to see you engaged in conversation with someone else. Maybe another hero or the newest addition to the agency that he hadn’t met yet.

Either way, his stomach churned, and the faintest frown spread across his face. The two of you had been friends since your Yuuei days, you shared countless memories and struggles. You helped him pick his hero alias and were the first person to support his idea of creating an agency solely out of sidekicks.

He was grateful to you but never knew how to show you that. But one thing was always true, nothing separated the two of you, at least so far. It was funny to think that he had been more worried about losing you than his own life or career when Stain rendered him...useless.

At least temporarily. But in the end, everything worked out. Well, almost everything. As he stared at you, a longing sigh escaped him. He knew the holiday season was usually filled with miracles, and boy could he use one to finally capture your heart.

“Mmhm, yes, and I-” you paused when you happened to glance across the room and noticed Tensei. Your body stiffened and your heart immediately skyrocketed, pounding against your ribcage erratically. Shivers ran through your body, leaving goosebumps in their wake and your hands feeling clammy.

You tried to steady your breathing which had become shallow and heavy. “E-excuse me,” you said and quickly walked across the room. It was unbefitting for a leader to appear nervous or uncertain, but as far as you were concerned, your feelings for Tensei were well hidden underneath the facade that you two were nothing more than friends.

Taking a deep breath, you flexed your fingers as if trying to get rid of the nerves and smiled at him. “Hey, I’m glad you could make it!” You exclaimed, leaning over to hug him. His embrace, as always, was loving and gentle despite feeling the curve of his muscles as he curled his arms around you.

His musky earthy scent filled your nostrils and reminded you of the crisp outdoors. You hoped that he couldn’t feel the fastened pace of your heart, but even if he did, you could always make up some excuse for it. Even if you detested lying to the person your heart yearned for.

“Sorry I haven’t kept in contact, it’s been a little crazy lately,” you explained as you leaned back and crouched down, laying your hand on one of his armrests. It was then that you examined his outfit more closely. He was wearing a sharp, tailored blue suit accompanied by a white shirt underneath it.

This created a striking contrast to his overall polished but casual appearance. A silk tie colored midnight blue hugged the collar of his shirt, and polished dress shoes adorned his feet that remained on the footrests of his wheelchair and completed his ensemble while instilling a touch of the famous Iida charm along with it.

He smiled at you, that same gentle smile you had fallen in love with over the years. “That’s alright,” he replied, his eyes beaming with happiness. “Actually…I know this is short notice but…” he paused and rubbed the side of his neck.

“Would you like to join my family for Christmas Eve dinner?” You tilted your head, surprised Tensei hadn’t asked you that sooner. “My mom’s been asking about you, and she’s also a little worried given how busy you’ve been lately.” You couldn’t help but smile. Yeah, that was Mrs.Iida for you.

Although you had gotten to know his family well over the years, it was a surprise that they hadn’t proposed that you marry Tensei. “Sure, it would be an honor,” you replied before the sound of the front doors and a loud “Yeeeeah!” drew your attention away.

The first one that caught your eye was a short boy with a messy crop of green hair, freckles colored his cheeks, and he was wearing the standard gray Yuuei uniform. Next to him was a familiar face, that of Tenya. He looked as he usually did, with his hair combed and neat and polished glasses on his face.

He, too, was wearing his Yuuei uniform. Between them was a face you hadn’t seen before, however. A young girl with long, white hair that was pulled back and separated into pigtails. Her eyes, colored bright red, were wide, and a small amount of fear or maybe social anxiety filled them.

You quickly assumed she wasn’t used to attending parties thus she was a bit shy when it came to crowds. In addition, you noticed that a small horn poked out of the right side of her forehead. She was wearing a fuzzy red Santa hat, which matched the red dress with the white trim she wore.

On her legs were black tights and white trim also lined the boots she was wearing. She glanced around the room once more cautiously stepping behind the boy with green hair. “Hey, it’s o-okay Eri,” he said, looking down at her.

She returned his gaze but said nothing. “I agree!” Chimed in Tenya, his hand chopping through the air at rapid speed. “There is very little to fear, for you are surrounded by the best-known heroes!” He announced, causing a few heads to turn his way and Tensei to chuckle.

“That’s my little brother for you,” he said in a soft tone, and a smile on his face. It was nice to see that he was proud of Tenya regardless. “I-it is?” Eri asked, looking at him but seconds later, she jolted involuntarily when Hizashi laid his hand on her head, affectionately ruffling her hair.

Despite being raised by several of the teachers, plus Mirio and Izuku for a few years she was still getting used to a kind touch. “There’s nothing to worry about!” He announced with a big wide grin, letting his hand fall to his side.

“It’s true, you’re surrounded by the coolest kats. Don’t worry now, Aizawa put me in charge, ya dig?! I wouldn’t let anything happen to ya!” he said, trying his best to encourage Eri. Although he hadn’t spent as much time with her as Mirio, Izuku, Shota, or Toshinori had.

He continued to try and make a connection with her. She needed as much comfort and love as she could get, and well, he couldn’t just sit aside and ignore her. Still, she seemed to have enough sense to believe his words.

“Mm, o-okay,” she replied but only grew more anxious when you walked over with Tensei rolling close behind you. “Hey Tenya,” you greeted happily, and he bowed in respect. “Good evening, Y/n!” He declared, once again chopping his hand through the air.

“Thank you for the invitation, we are very honored to attend such a festive celebration!” He stated. “Oh yeah?” you replied before glancing at the green-haired boy who looked just as nervous as the little one. His posture stiffened and he bowed.

“H-hello!” His voice fluctuated and that stutter didn’t help. “M-my name is Izuku Midoriya! I’m in Y-Yuuei’s hero course, C-class 3-A!” he announced, and your eyes sparkled with recognition. “Oh yeah, I’ve heard of you.” Turning to Tenya you said, “Is this the Midoriya you talked about before?” He nodded.

“Yes! Midoriya has been a wonderful example of a hero student and has inspired me to become a hero I can be proud of!” He announced, causing Izuku to flush furiously. “I-Iida I d-don’t think I mean…I j-just try my b-best and…” you chuckled.

“Well, sounds like you two are good friends,” you commented, and Tenya turned to Izuku and Eri. “This is Y/n, my brother’s closest friend and leader of Team Idaten,” he explained and felt some amusement when Izuku’s eyes lit up.

“W-what? N-no way, y-you’re the leader of…I h-have so many q-questions!” He blurted out, causing you to snicker. “I’d be glad to answer your questions…another time, tonight I’d like you to enjoy yourselves as guests of Team Idaten,” you said before looking at Tenya.

“Also, you forgot to mention one thing,” he looked at you with knitted eyebrows, he was certain he had not forgotten anything when he introduced you. “I’m only the temporary leader of Team Idaten, when Tenya is ready, he’ll become the new leader. Until then I’m going to be pushing him,” you said, punching him in the shoulder.

“He’ll get there, don’t worry,” Tensei chimed in, rolling closer to his brother to lay his hand on his arm. Tenya stiffened, it was still a little hard for him to see his brother in this state, even years after the fact. He took a deep breath and laid his hand over Tensei’s.

“T-thank you, brother,” he replied and while they were having a family moment, you looked at Hizashi. “So, Aizawa couldn’t make it?” you asked, and he shrugged. “Nah,” he said, waving his leather-covered hand through the air.

It seemed that he didn’t want or didn’t take the time to dress up for the party considering he was wearing his usual hero attire, complete with directional speaker encircling his neck. “Said he was busy with something else, so I’m covering for him,” he explained.

“Hm, okay so…” you glanced down at Eri who shivered when she locked eyes with you briefly and shyly looked away. The corner of your lip curled into a smile. She reminded you of yourself, at least until you met Tensei who helped you come out of your shell.

You placed your hands on your knees and leaned toward her even though she remained hiding behind Izuku. “Hi,” you said in a soft and friendly voice, but she continued to look away. “What’s your name?” you asked. Yes, you heard it earlier, but might as well be polite.

“U-um…I…” She latched onto her lip, chewing it nervously. “This is E-Eri!” Izuku said as he placed his hand gently on her back. “It’s okay, Y-Y/n is a hero too!” he reminded her. “Eri is a wonderful name, a pretty name for a pretty girl,” you said, hoping your compliment would butter her up enough to at least speak a few words to you.

“Uh, mmhm,” she replied. Well…that was better than nothing. “Heh,” you continued to smile and slowly stood up before looking at Hizashi again. “Well, I hope you guys enjoy th-” You paused when you heard someone calling your name.

Sighing, you muttered, “What now?” under your breath. Turning around, you saw Onemu Shiny, another member of your team running up to you. She was a short woman with equally short hair that fell to her ears in gentle curls.

She also had two distinct horns on the sides of her head. Her usual cheongsam mini dress and domino mask were replaced with a tight-fitting, maroon-colored dress. The front of it was adorned with sparkles that reflected the light in the room.

The air around her seeped with thick tension and you heard her catch her breath before speaking. “Explosions are occurring in the city district of Naruhata, several are injured, and four separate villains are on the loose.” That thick tension increased, almost suffocating you and silence fell over the room.

Your heart raced and the weight of everyone’s eyes fell on you, the leader. The one that would now call the shots, and how the operation of this mission would go. You glanced at Tensei, who was wearing a stern expression, Tenya who stood next to him mirrored it.

There was no longer any merry chatter echoing, and several guests were looking at you with interest. There was a mixture of curiosity and judgment in their gazes, and it caused a small amount of anger to brew inside of you. Who were they to judge you anyway?

The corner of your lip turned up, and a disgruntled smirk followed. It was amusing to think that before you would have cowered to others like them, those who thought you couldn’t properly fulfill your duties as a leader. But just like back then, you were ready to show everyone you had what it took.

Your hands curled into fists, and a sense of determination washed over you like a violent wave attempting to sink a ship in the middle of a thunderstorm at sea. Then your voice pierced through the air, “Team Idaten!” Like a well-oiled machine, the members of your team formed three lines in front of you.

Each line represented their role on the team. The first line was those that would stay at the control center of the agency, monitoring everyone’s actions and relaying messages and instructions back and forth between Team Two.

Team Two, as you can imagine, were the members that made up the front line. They would be the ones facing, fighting, and apprehending the villains in question. On occasion, they’d help Team Three with support and damage control.

Team Three mainly specialized in evacuation and tending to the injured, however. A sense of pride filled you. In moments like these, you were reminded how much you loved being a leader, working together as a team, and most of all, saving people.

After receiving instructions, the teams hurried to their designated stations, and you were about to run off as well. But a strong hand pulled you back causing you to stumble in response. You turned, ready to yell at the one who dared hold you back.

Instead, you latched onto your lip forcing your momentary anger down when you realized it was Tensei. His eyes locked with yours before speaking. “Take care of yourself,” he said before looking at Hizashi. “Do you want to take your students on this mission?” he asked, and you glanced at the man in question.

“Why yes! I believe this would be a wonderful opportunity to display the heroic skills that our prestigious school has taught us! We are licensed heroes, and it would be an honor to work alongside Team Idaten!” Tenya announced much to your and Hizashi’s dislike.

So much for being guests and enjoying a relaxing festive evening. He placed his hand on his hips, sighing. “Yeah yeah, I guess that’d be alright,” he replied before looking at Tenya and Izuku. “But don’t ya guys mess up, ya dig!?” He shouted, his voice vibrating off the walls and causing the tables and chairs to tremble.

The guests immediately covered their ears, hissing in response to the hero’s quirk. However, Hizashi seemed to ignore this given he was far too used to people, mostly students, reacting to his quirk in such a manner. Instead, he pressed his hands against his chest. “I’ll supervise ya alongside Y/n,” he stated with a large grin.

Tenya nodded while Izuku looked uncertain. “Well,” he said, placing his hand on top of Eri’s head. She looked terrified, more than likely because she didn’t want to be left alone in a strange place. “What…a-about Eri? W-we can’t just leave her an-” Tensei slowly inched over to the two of them and looked at Eri with a smile.

However, that terrified look remained on her face, and he partly understood why. Tenya had shared a few details about her previously and he knew that while it was okay to be afraid of the world, you relied on heroes to make it just a little less scary.

Like many others, Tensei, despite being retired, had the heart of a hero and even now, it continues to shine fiercely. At that moment, he wanted to be Eri’s hero and if he made her feel welcome and safe, then he had done his job. “I’ll watch her,” he insisted, and Eri looked at him in disbelief.

“B-but…M-Mr. Deku…” she said looking up at him, but he smiled and crouched down beside her. “It’s okay, I-Iida-san used to be a h-hero. One of the g-greatest heroes, and y-you can trust him!” Tensei nodded and grinned as he extended his hand out to Eri.

“What do you say? We can have fun together until my little brother and Midoriya come back,” he suggested. Eri once again looked at Izuku before stepping toward the man in the wheelchair. She looked at it curiously. “W-why are you in a chair?” Tensei kept a smile on his face and rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling softly.

“That’s kind of a long story,” he said and one he didn’t feel like sharing, at least not to her. There’s a chance it would frighten her and well, he couldn’t have that. Not when he was trying to make her feel safe and gain her trust for the time being.

So instead, he grinned. “Hey, I have an idea!” He said, rolling his wheelchair back an inch or two. “Why don’t I give you a tour of the agency? You can sit on my lap while I wheel you around, it’s the best seat in the house!” He joked, smiling yet again.

She tensed up a bit, unsure of his request until she felt a gentle hand on her back. “Huh?” She turned, seeing Izuku smiling down at her. “Go a-ahead,” he encouraged her and though she bit her lip in response, she stepped forward and awkwardly sat on Tensei’s lap, her hands fisted into the front of his suit.

“Don’t worry, we’ll have an awesome time,” he assured her, and you couldn’t help but smile. Tensei was very kind, and he extended that kindness to strangers and children alike. “Ready?” He asked, keeping one arm draped over her shoulders while he turned his wheelchair around and began rolling toward the nearest hallway.

Eri looked at Izuku who waved her goodbye as she left the room with Tensei. In a way, it was probably best that she be separated from the party given her shy nature. “Alright, come on,” you said, clapping your hands. “There are people in danger, we cannot waste another moment,” you instructed and Izuku tensed up.

“R-right!” he exclaimed, and Tenya nodded. “Apologies! Let us proceed without delay!” he stated and Hizashi grinned as he walked past them. “Time to get to work, kiddos!” He announced. Crime stopped for no one, and villains didn’t care what day of the year it was, they would do what they pleased.

Fortunately, their rein was about to come to a screeching halt thanks to the efforts of you, your team, and of course, the extra help provided by Hizashi, Izuku, and Tenya. “Heh, sorry this must all be new to you, right?” Eri paused and looked at him, a small pout decorating her lips.

“Have you ever been to an agency before? Heh, they’re pretty cool. I remember when I first opened mine.” A smile came to his face when he thought about you. “I had doubts about it, I spent a lot of time worrying if I’d be a good leader, but Y/n always put those doubts to rest,” he commented, getting a dreamy look in his eye.

“I don’t know what I would have done withou-” he paused when he noticed the look Eri was giving him. “Oh right, sorry,” he chuckled. “This is about you,” he continued rolling down the hallway which, much like the main room where the party was occurring, was lit up with festive lights that flickered.

The sound of the holiday music was faded but still audible. “Hm…” he came to a stop in the hallway. “What can we do…” he needed something to distract Eri and tapped his lips a few times before inspiration struck him. “I got it!” He announced, pointing his finger toward the ceiling.

He grinned at Eri who had gotten startled by his sudden outburst. “Why don’t you write a letter to Santa?” he chuckled. “I’m sure that’ll pass the time until everyone returns,” he suggested. Eri’s reaction wasn’t what he expected, however.

She frowned and looked away from him. “I…I don’t know what I want…” she said, even years after being free from Kai’s clutches she remained with emotional scars and those emotional scars often made her reluctant to receive gifts or to ask for anything.

Tensei furrowed his brow, but after a moment, he smiled. “Yeah, that’s hard to decide sometimes, especially when you feel like you don’t want or need anything,” he commented, placing his hand on top of her head. She trembled and looked at him even as he continued to smile at her.

“But sometimes you have to remind yourself that you deserve a gift too,” he said before lowering his hand. “Santa is the one person who won’t judge you no matter what you ask for,” Eri knitted her eyebrows. “…Santa?” She repeated. “Yup! I’m sure he visited you last year,” or so he assumed.

“He visits everyone and leaves them gifts, and I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if you wrote him a letter telling him what you wanted,” he said as he resumed rolling to the end of the hallway where your office was. After carefully opening the door and rolling inside, the room was illuminated with light and a sense of nostalgia washed over him.

He couldn’t help but look around, and though it may sound selfish, he was happy you hadn’t changed anything. You could have done anything with it, painted the walls an entirely different color, or replaced all the furniture. Instead, you left it alone.

He wondered if that was because this used to be his office and you didn’t have the heart to change anything. All the walls were white, except the furthest left one which was adorned with framed calligraphy of the Team Idaten logo which resembled what Tensei looked like in his hero suit encased in a circle.

Underneath it, the words ‘Representative: Turbo Hero Ingenium’ were displayed. “You can sit at the desk, I’ll go find some paper and pens,” he replied, Eri hesitantly slid off his lap and cautiously approached the large wooden desk that appeared polished and had a stack of arranged documents on the far-right corner.

It rested in front of a large window that overlooked the bustling city below which was illuminated against the dark evening sky, causing various colored hues to peer in through the window. The smell of freshly cut pine and cinnamon was now replaced with a faint aroma of green tea.

The source of this was the small hot water dispenser, with delicate teacups, that sat on a low table in the right corner of the room. Zabuton cushions surrounded said table and its main purpose was for last-second meetings, usually informal.

Most of the time you found yourself using it to get a moment of peace when you felt overwhelmed by your workload and needed some freshly brewed tea to keep going. Eri carefully pushed the chair back and climbed onto it, laying her hands on the cool surface.

The sound of several drawers opening and closing echoed through the room as Tensei searched through them. He managed to find a few blank pieces of paper, and while he had found some pens, upon second thought, crayons would be more appropriate for Eri to use.

“Ah!” He exclaimed when he finally found some buried at the bottom of one of the drawers. Although they were broken in half, they were still usable, and he smiled before placing the items on his lap and rolling over to the desk.

He placed the papers down before sliding one in front of her and placing the crayons on top of it. He offered her a smile in response to her confused expression. “Mm…” she looked down and grabbed a red crayon, tapping it absentmindedly against the paper.

“Heh,” Tensei continued to smile, and waited a few minutes for her to begin writing but alas, she only wrote ‘Mr. Santa,’ and nothing else. He assumed she still didn’t know what she wanted to ask for this year. “How about I write a letter too?” he suggested, maybe if she saw him writing one it would inspire her.

He smiled and took another piece of paper before grabbing a blue crayon. “Hm,” he tapped it against his lips a few times, he knew what he wanted but how could he write that when Eri was watching him so intensely? Then again, honesty was best.

If he didn’t wish from the bottom of his heart, how could he be a good example for her? The only problem was how to convey what he wanted on paper…to Santa. Well, the only way to find out was to do it. So, without delay, he began writing his letter.