After the ruling, the silence felt intentional.
Not avoidance.
Not exhaustion.
Integration.
Aaliyah noticed it in the absence of emergencies. No frantic calls. No rushed clarifications. The framework, now reinforced by precedent, was being folded into routine with the quiet efficiency of something that had always been there.
"This is the dangerous part," Elise said during a low-key check-in. "When people stop reacting and start normalizing."
Aaliyah nodded. "Dangerous for resistance. Stable for everyone else."
Rowan leaned back in her chair. "You don't look relieved."
"I'm not," Aaliyah replied. "Relief implies release. This is continuity."
The first international inquiry arrived two days later.
Not official.
Not diplomatic.
Academic.
A regulatory scholar from another jurisdiction requested a briefing on "temporal accountability frameworks" and their legal durability.
Aaliyah read the email twice before responding.
Happy to share documentation.
No pitch.
