Seeing the Camelia in the midst of preparations for war was far different from seeing it in the midst of anything else. This was when its military roots really shone. The streets were constantly filled with drilling soldiers or supply runs, horns blew three times a day to keep everyone on schedule, and Chenzhou and Mingzhe never seemed to stand still.
Eirian didn't really either, but she didn't really notice that. Everyone was moving at speed, and even when Eirian had been helping Eric and the Imperial Army when she lived in the capital, it hadn't been on this scale.
There were so many officers rushing around with the sole goal of keeping everything on schedule that Eirian couldn't remember any of the ones that had been introduced to her.
Thankfully, they seemed too busy to care.
Brendan seemed oblivious to it all, and Eirian found she was rather happy about that. He spent his days faithfully following Min's children around and clinging to Chenzhou or Mingzhe whenever they were around.
He and Eirian mostly just stared at one another when they were together, and he seemed entranced by their matching hair colors.
Funnily enough, Yuze was his favorite person. He broke out into gibberish and awkwardly ran to the man anytime he entered the room, and excitedly waved whatever he found interesting that day at him.
Yuze took it with grace, nodding along seriously and shooting Chenzhou and Mingzhe smug looks whenever they were around.
Brendan always cried when someone took away the knife Yuze had given him as a welcome gift, and while Chenzhou and Mingzhe were wary and Min was always quick to reassure them he hadn't figured out the latch on the sheath yet, Eirian had been touched by the thoughtfulness of Yuze's gift.
She'd been given her first sword the day she was born, and it seemed fitting to continue that tradition.
Chenzhou and Mingzhe had spent that night in her rooms and just never left. Mingzhe occasionally returned to his family home, but he was serving as Chenzhou's second in command, and his younger brother and sister had taken over most of his family responsibilities.
Eirian hadn't met them yet, but his sister and sister-in-law had both sent her notes thanking her for taking care of Mingzhe. Eirian wasn't sure what she was doing that was taking care of him, but she appreciated the sentiment, and the notes seemed more sincere than most of the correspondence she'd had with friends in the capital. Mingzhe was terribly close to his family; it was obvious every time he spoke about them, and Chenzhou especially seemed to soak up his stories of childhood shenanigans and adventures with his siblings.
Apparently, there had been a few years where his younger siblings, who were twins, were so identical that Mingzhe couldn't tell them apart, even with their different genders, and they'd abused that fact mercilessly until they'd entered puberty and their bodies gave them away.
Eirian and Eric hadn't exactly been known as calm or quiet when they'd been growing up together, so she could sympathize, and there were more than a few members of the City Guard who'd celebrated when they were both old enough to watch themselves.
Yuze had taken to disappearing for days at a time, helping to pick up the extra work that had fallen on his agents when he could. Two of the three outposts Mingzhe had left hadn't reported in on time, and Fox had turned around and headed right back out after they'd heard.
Snake, who was never far from any of their minds, was reportedly on a mission in the borderlands, and Yuze couldn't risk pulling her back now.
Finn, Patrick, and Emmy, who still smelled faintly of beer, had returned to the Vault, doubling down on their work there. They'd managed to find the spot for the necklace Emmy had seen, confirming they'd marked it present when they'd first started cataloging everything, which at least gave them a three-week window for when it could have been taken.
They'd also found several other items had been taken in the same period, which had led to Captain Li pulling guard roosters and reassigning people to try and identify where and how they were getting in and out of the vault.
The fact that Snake had the necklace in her possession was strong evidence, but it didn't necessarily guarantee she was the one who took it from the Vault.
In the wake of Snake's betrayal and Beng Shai's double cross, it felt like no one could be trusted, and paranoia permeated everything.
It made Eirian angry, thinking about all the work she'd done to destroy the miasma, and now something just as bad was back. People who worked and lived together couldn't trust their friends and neighbors.
It wasn't a healthy environment, and it was taking its toll on everyone, including Eirian, who collapsed into bed every night exhausted, with Chenzhou and Mingzhe, who were usually already asleep.
It was a good thing she had a huge bed because neither of them seemed to know how to sleep with another person. Sprawled out and dead to the world once they were out.
Not that Eirian was any better, but it was her bed, so she figured she got to be the one who complained.
It was nice to have people nearby, though. To wake up to someone facing the same challenges and failures and triumphs.
Just having another heartbeat on the same rhythm.
She'd never considered herself to be lonely. And there were plenty of times when she needed to be by herself because people were just too much.
It used to be that Eric and her Uncle were the only people she'd never needed a break from.
Chenzhou hadn't yet spoken about Anna, other than to say she had returned to her family. Yuze had been silent too, though he's made it clear it was out of respect for Chenzhou more than anything else.
Eirian could put the pieces together, though. Hurt people often lashed out, and Marian was among many who'd noticed Snake and Anna speaking on more than one occasion.
It wasn't hard to realize Anna had probably told the spy something she shouldn't have, and now that Snake's treason was known, Anna, intentions aside, could easily have been tried right next to her. It wasn't surprising that Chenzhou would want to spare her after their years together, and Eirian herself didn't necessarily agree with executing someone for what was most likely ignorance and, at worst, emotional lashing out.
She'd definitely never have trusted her again, and Chenzhou wasn't so foolish that he would have either, but he'd shown mercy, more than Eirian would have. More than most people probably would have.
~ tbc