The halls of Hollow Mountain echoed with laughter. Not screams. Not alarms.

Children ran wild, squealing as they chased each other around newly carved pillars. The murals, soot-dark and cracked from the last siege, had been lovingly scrubbed and painted over. Wolves pranced between human forms, tails wagging.

Hunter leaned against the threshold to the dining hall, arms folded, watching a pair of pups tumble across the floor in a wrestling match that would make Logan proud.

“They’re ...