The sun was up again in Bel’s private domain, and he and Oisin were both out in the front garden, walking among the flowers there. They’d been beautiful by starlight, but by daylight they were a stunning riot of color, and the sun’s warmth coaxed a thousand fragrances out to perfume the air. Bees hummed about the blossoms, and all of it made Oisin wonder just how this strange realm worked. Bees didn’t come out at night, for one thing, so how were there bees here at all? Perhaps someday he’d ask, but just now he was feeling too lazy for intellectual pursuits, and Bel seemed much in the same mood.
They held hands as they strolled, their fingers intertwined. Bel sometimes lifted his other hand to touch the sun amulet, gently, almost in wonder. He said nothing, but he squeezed Oisin’s hand a
