The celebration for the new gate had bled into a deep, satisfied exhaustion. For three days, a palpable sense of accomplishment hung over Aethelburg, thick as honey. The completed archway stood as a powerful symbol of their resilience, its moon-silver bolts a silent testament to a conflict transformed into strength. The people of Stone Creek worked with a new, earnest energy, no longer as prisoners or uneasy guests, but as provisional members of the community. The rhythm of hammers and saws was no longer just construction; it was integration.