Ethan chose, in the end, to stay in Palatine and try to get pieces of his old life back.
Chris had insisted he return to Saha with him and Dax. He'd insisted the way Chris always did, protective of the others feelings while pretending it was only logic. He even tried to blackmail Tania, saying the tiger would miss Ethan, like that would be the final emotional nail.
It hadn't been pressure. Not really. It had been Chris's way of saying: 'you're allowed to leave, but you're also allowed to come back. I'm still here.'
Ethan had stayed anyway.
And then Sirius happened.
Sirius was… an odd alpha. That was the kindest word Ethan had. An even odder prince. He kept his promise. Ethan's name fell out of the headlines within days, like the palace had quietly redirected the entire media machine onto a different scandal with better angles.
Which should have been the end of it.
