Henry nodded, looking consideringly at the children. "Will you let me do a bit of research, son?" he asked, smiling, "and get back to you on it? I hate to be cryptic, but I want to make sure I'm right before I send you on a wild goose chase."

"I think that's just fine," I sighed, scooping my daughter into my arms as Rafe rolled over and burbled at Jesse, who squeaked with happiness and laughed, reaching for his cousin's shirt. "I don't think I have the energy for anything new right now."

"You're right," Cora sighed. "We should let you rest. But… could I just…"

I looked up to see my sister clutching her hands to her chest, biting her lip—clearly dying to hold the baby but hesitant to take her if I wasn't ready.

"Cora!" I laughed, holding Ariel up. "Of course you can!"

Cora sighed happily, gathering Ariel into her arms and murmuring sweet things. Of course, she'd held Ariel before, but this time it was as an aunt, not a doctor. "Hey, sweet baby Ariel," Cora cooed, smiling down at her first niece as tears welled in her eyes. "I'm so excited to meet you!" She leaned forward and kissed Ariel's head. "I'm going to be your favorite," she whispered.

"No way," Roger countered, leaning close to study our little girl. "She's going to be a daddy's girl, so favorite clearly transfers to the nearest uncle."

Cora rolled her eyes, but I smiled, loving to see my family playfully argue over who would love our daughter most.

Cora and Roger spent a few more minutes with Ariel before passing her to Henry, who gently rocked her as I leaned my head against Sinclair.

"She's very beautiful, Dominic, Ella," Henry said, looking up at us with moist eyes. "How lucky you are."

"We are lucky," Sinclair agreed, scooping Rafe into his arms as he became a little rambunctious with Jesse. "Little family of four. Sounds familiar, Dad?"

Henry grinned at Sinclair, but Roger laughed, scooping up his own happy baby. "You know that makes you the girl in that scenario, right, little brother?"

"And is that a bad thing?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at my brother-in-law as Henry handed Ariel back to me.

Roger laughed and blushed, instantly realizing his mistake.

"All of that ends right now," I said, pointing at the men. "Ariel is going to have enough trouble growing up as the youngest girl cousin with Rafe and Jesse—I'm not going to tolerate any comments about what she can and can't do because she's a girl."

Roger nodded, smiling, clearly on board. Sinclair, however, surprised me by sighing and turning toward the windows. "As progressive as we'd like to be," he said quietly, "I do wonder how pigeonholed she's going to be by being a princess. The world will enjoy a tomboy princess for a couple of years, if that's how Ariel turns out, but eventually… I think our dear girl is going to face a lot of expectations regarding pretty smiles, silk dresses, and tiaras."

I sighed and leaned closer, realizing he was right. Our family could only do so much—Ariel would receive messages about who she was supposed to be from the rest of the world, just like the rest of us.

"We'll just have to do our very best," Cora said with a firm nod, and I smiled up at her.

"Actually," Henry said, his voice thoughtful, "before you rest, Ella…"

"Hmm?" I asked, turning toward him, curious.

"Well," he said, hesitating, looking me up and down and clearly assessing my appearance, "they've been waiting out there for hours."

"Oh," I said, my eyebrows rising as I turned toward the windows, realizing he was right. Our people—they had been gathered for a long time, hoping for a glimpse of her.

"She just gave birth," Cora protested, holding up her hands. "Ella should be allowed to rest."

"No, Henry's right," I said, sitting up and swinging my feet over the edge of the bed. "They've all been so nice, wanting to see the baby—"

"Ella," Cora hesitated, her voice worried. "As your doctor—"

"As a magical self-healer," I said dryly, standing up. "I'm fine to go onto the terrace for a moment. Will you help me put on something nice?"

"Something nice?" she gasped, her eyes widening.

"Like a nice robe," I said, rolling my eyes and handing the baby to Sinclair. "Honestly, this whole thing will take four minutes, and then I'll be back to bed!"

My sister rolled her eyes, clearly objecting, but three minutes later I was dressed in a pretty white robe, my hair neatly tied back, my crown perched on my head—more as a practical headband than a serious accessory. My hair wasn't perfectly neat, and the crown served as a useful headband.

Sinclair passed the baby to me and wrapped an arm around my waist, Rafe on his hip, as we left our bedroom. As we walked down the hall with Cora, Roger, Jesse, and Henry following, I frowned at Sinclair's crown and then Rafe's—which he surprisingly agreed to wear.

"Ariel's going to need a crown too," I murmured, feeling jealous for her sake.

"She can have six, if she wants them," my mate replied, smirking. "But if she's as much of a tomboy as you're projecting, I don't know if she'll wear them."

"True," I sighed, smiling down at my little girl and dropping a kiss onto her head. "You be as girly as you want, little princess," I murmured, and she scrunched her face sleepily, making me laugh. "But yes, you're going to get some pretty crowns. And Mama will get more, all matching—"

"All right," Sinclair said dryly. "This is starting to get expensive."

"Don't get cheap on us now, Sinclair," I replied, bumping my shoulder against his as we reached the front of the palace, where the crowds were starting to shout. Guards were already lining the terrace.

"I would never," Sinclair sighed, moving his hand from my waist to my shoulder and leaning down to kiss me quickly. "Ready?" he asked, looking from me to Ariel to Rafe—our whole little family.

"Ready," I said, nodding, and swiped a finger down Rafe's chubby cheek. He squeaked happily and bounced in his dad's arms, waving at me. I blew him a kiss before turning toward the doors.

Sinclair glanced over his shoulder at his father, the Duke and Duchess, and their son, then, smiling, pushed open the double doors. Together, we stepped outside.