"Don't you think it's too late to ask?" Aeron said, lowering his eyes.
"I am sorry," Ronan replied. "Sorry for not asking before. Sorry for ignoring you all this time, for not seeing your pain."
Then Yvarra stepped forward and said. "You have been alone since you returned, Aeron. Your heart and mind are carrying a heavy burden. I am sure it is one you want to share, even if you are afraid to. Please share it with us, as you always did before. Let us help carry some of it for you. You don't have to suffer alone."
Aeron looked at them for a long while. His chest rose and fell heavily. At last, he went forward and leaned back against the trunk of a tree. He let out a breath and began.
"Many things happened at the palace," he said slowly. "Some good… but most of them were terrible. So terrible that I don't even want to remember. I don't want to accept that they are real. But I cannot escape them."
He paused, then continued with a trembling voice.
