Chapter 132

SERAPHINA The dining room smelled amazing—Mama's cooking always did. She'd made butternut squash soup with homemade wheat bread, exactly as promised. “Look at you!” Mama beamed as I walked in under my own power. "Walking downstairs by yourself! This is wonderful progress, dear.“ ”Baby steps,“ I smiled, sitting carefully at the table. ”Literally.“ Papa chuckled, placing a bowl of soup in front of me. ”Your mama and I are very proud of you, princess. You've been handling this with such grace.“ ”I have a good support system,“ I said, looking around at them. ”I couldn't do this without all of you." We were halfway through lunch when Kaelos burst through the door, looking slightly panicked. “Sera—oh.” He stopped, taking in the scene of us peacefully eating lunch. “You're downstairs.” “I walked down myself,” I told him proudly. His expression immediately shifted from panic to proud concern—if that was even possible. "You should have waited for me. What if you fell? What if—“ ”Kaelos,“ Bastia