Kire slouched as she sat, nodding at his question. “Not as frequently of late, but yes. I’ve had it a lot.” She sighed. “It’s one of those dreams where I wake up and, for a horrible few moments, I feel I’m that young girl again who had to be pulled from the ruins of my home, newly-orphaned. So. I don’t know if it would’ve been better to have that dream or the one I just had.” She gave a wry smile at that, shrugging her shoulders with a huff. “I suppose, wherever those dragons may be, long-dead or not, they wouldn’t be too happy with some other deity wreaking havoc around here in their place.”

She stretched her arms as she yawned, then lazily fixed her hair. “Mm. Okay. Coffee. Coffee and breakfast sound really good right now.” She glanced at Ruli’s hair and ran her fingers through it to fix it, then smirked and ruffled it, messing it back up. “Can I have it at the dining hall? Put it on my tab for the wards,” she said, grinning.

--

Ed looked down at Ysaryn as she drew close and challenged him, a brow raised at her as he met her declaration with a smirk. He watched her, unable to hide the hungry look in his eyes as she circled him and asked what he was here for. “I’m here to make sure she doesn’t wake too late—but I think she can wait,” he answered with a grin. “Are we sparring in the same place as last time?”

"Personally, I'd rather the first dream." Ruli commented. "At least you know where you are, and where to go. I wouldn't know what to begin in the new one. Especially with a dragon destroying my escape route." Ruli leaned over and kissed her cheek, nodding before he scoot himself to the edge of the mattress. "Come on, then. Let's feed you, then we'll grab Gavin and follow you to Amria."
Ruli inhaled, her hummed. "Maybe we'll meet you later. I need to wash."

Outside, the wind carried a chill that threatened another incoming storm from the sea. Ruli swore and tucked his arms close to himself as they headed to the hall, turning his head to glance at her. "You alright?" He wondered, seeing the distant look on her face.

Not long after, they stepped into the mess hall, which had very few people waiting outside of it at this hour, and with the storm rolling in. He opened the door, and stepped in to start the fire, circling to gather the supplies he wanted. "Feel like anything in particular? Or just food?" Ruli asked as he filled an urn for coffee.

~

Ysaryn smiled at him, her eyes narrowing. "Beach." She decided before jerking her head south. "The Ziadi side. I will fetch our sparring blades." The sand would add difficulty, but it wouldn't be as cold as the cliff tops. "Six minutes, I shall meet you down there." Ysaryn promised before she disappeared.

“Anything that’ll help wake me up,” Kire replied, picking a table, likewise happy to get out of the chill from outside. The incoming storm had reminded her of her dream, and her thoughts wandered off for a while until they had entered the hall. “Probably better to meet later, too, at the Tower. After interrogating Risa, I’ll go hunt down Narda for Envy. She’s not at the Capital at the moment, but I’m sure she’ll want to be back in a pinch if he’s coming along.”

Once the coffee was ready, Kire got a cup for herself and Ruli, sitting back down at the table nearby to nurse her cup. Not long after, though, she noticed the few other patrons gathering around the windows, peering curiously outside. Finding herself curious, too, she brought her cup along and sidled up to them to look. Kire squinted, then almost coughed out the coffee in her mouth. “Holy shit!” After the initial surprise, Kire grinned wickedly. “Didn’t think Ed would actually ask for a rematch today.”

Down at the beach, Ed waited for Ysaryn to reappear with the sparring blades, setting his own down beside him as he fixed his hair, tying it back, and rolled up his sleeves. The air was chilly, but it helped keep him alert. The sparring would warm him up pretty soon, anyway. He didn’t have long to wait; as soon as the elf returned and he was given the practice blade, Ed shifted into fighting stance. Ysaryn was like a cat, watchful of her prey and quick on her feet. He had the disadvantage of not having gotten proper sleep, but he had survived on worse on the battlefield. And this time, he was determined not to yield to her.

“Fuck, he’s serious now,” Kire said, grinning as she watched from the hall. Even from this vantage point, she could see clear enough from Ed’s movements that he intended to win. He didn’t give Ysaryn an opening, even as he searched for weaknesses in her defense. Kire wasn’t sure who she was rooting for; had she been in Ysaryn’s shoes right now, she doubted she would win this match.
“Ooh, is this the day I get to see Ysaryn hit the ground?” Gavin’s voice piped up from behind her. The lad had just made his way down, and from the look of it he, too, had a restless night.
“You alright, lad?” Kire asked.
Gavin shrugged. “Finished Envy’s charm. Then couldn’t really sleep, weird dreams.” He left the window to go greet Ruli and ask for coffee.

"Thanks." Ruli said, gathering the cup she offered and going to work on his cooking. Nothing too fancy, as he felt too groggy still to put much effort into his work. A simple dish of vegetables and fried eggs was enough. As he was finishing with the vegetables, Kire's attention was caught by whatever was outside the window, and Ruli glanced at her as she went to look.

"Oh." He said when she explained that it was Ysaryn and Ed. "Let me know who wins." He stated, continuing his task to avoid overcooking anything.
But he listened. Beyond Kire exclaim about the fight, as well as the local pair that were watching with interest, entirely forgetting that they showed up here for a meal. When Gavin arrived, he nodded in greeting before pausing for his coffee. "Might want to take a close watch, it may be the only time you'll ever see her lose." Ruli warned Gavin, though he looked back up when Gavin mentioned weird dreams. "You, too? Out with it. I'll feed you for the details. Plates up." He added with a slightly raised voice, and the local couple turned from the window only long enough to drop coin and take their plates back to the window to watch.

Gavin raised his brows when Ruli asked for details on his dreams. Kire, too, turned her attention to him, glancing out the window now and then as she waited for his explanation. “Er—okay.”
“Go ahead, this’ll take a while, they’re too evenly matched anyway,” Kire said, finally tearing her eyes from the window.

“Uh, sure.” Gavin turned to the two of them. “It’s mostly nonsense. I had the dagger with me, the one you gave me, Kire, and I was standing in front of the Red Tower. Then when I looked down, the dagger wasn’t in my hand but in my chest. I wasn’t bleeding or feeling any pain or anything like that, but I remember just staring at the dragon carved in the handle, like I was just confused about how the knife got stabbed into my heart.” Gavin unconsciously touched his chest, as if still checking if the knife wasn’t still embedded there.

“A moment later, I was inside the chamber with the gate, only all the windows had gates in them. I picked a random gate, and
stepped out onto these—ruins? I dunno where it was, but it looked like some sort of temple broken into pieces. The skies were red, and I saw people on fire. Not like—not like they were set on fire, but they seemed calm?” His face scrunched up, knowing he wasn’t making sense. “Then I felt something pulling me back into the gate, and whatever it was pulled me back to the Tower with its claws, all the way through the floors and down into the ground. I woke up then, feeling like I was buried under earth, then realized I buried myself under my pillows. It’s almost funny.”

Behind them, the couple watching the sparring match gasped. Kire peered out the window again and grinned. “Looks like Ed gets his revenge,” she said, before turning her attention back to Gavin. “Did you see who, or what, pulled you back into the gate?”
Gavin shook his head. “I’m not even sure if it really was claws that grabbed me. Whatever it was, it was much bigger than me.”
“Hm.” Why did he dream of the Tower, though? Is it just the gate? Kire went to sit, taking her plate but waiting for Ruli to finish before she started on it. “So no dragons in your dream?”

“Dragons?” Gavin frowned again. “Nope. No dragons, besides the one on the knife.”
Kire huffed. “There is not enough coffee in both worlds to make any of this comprehensible at the moment.”
“Is it supposed to mean anything?” Gavin asked. “Did you have weird dreams, too?”
“Yeah. But the hell if I know what they mean.”

Ruli listened as Gavin spoke about his dream, his hands busy with handing out the plates. A few times, he glanced toward Kire to see if her reaction gave away any of her thoughts. Aside from the grin on her face at Ysaryn"s loss, he couldn't read much.

He finished cooking, pulled aside the wares, and settled with his own plate, noting the way Kire waited for him before she began to eat her own. Knowing how often she dove into meals headfirst, it was touching that she'd wait.

"You didn't wander into Amria and find yourself in a forest or desert, did you? No?" He looked around to Kire, stuffing his mouth in between. "If the dreams are effecting him in Persis, it's definitely concerning." The couple by the window gasped at last and turned away from the window, muttering. While not full of the animosity the Ziadi used to hold toward elves, they still seemed pleased the elf had lost to the pretty blond. "I'll talk to Envy while you're with Risa."

Outside on the beach, Ysaryn growled from the sand, her hair plastered to her face and neck from the ocean mist. She gave Ed a wolfish smile before relaxing on the shore, chuckling. "Thank the Gods. You are worth it." she breathed, reaching up to take his offered hand. Once on her feet, she brushed her hair from her face without bothering to brush off the sand.
"How long before your Chieftess needs to be fetched?"

Gavin, too, was now curious. He had dismissed the dream as something his mind had scrambled together from the strange events in Amria, but now that there was a possibility that it was intertwined with Kire’s dreams and tied to some external force, he now starting thinking more about what he had seen. “Well, maybe I got the dreams because I’m tied to the gate, too,” Gavin put in, mouth half-full. “It was my blood and Kire’s that stabilized it, and your blood that got it started. Haven’t heard anybody else here in Úvano waking up from weird nightmares or having visions, save for us.”

Kire nodded, considering it as she continued with her meal, silent as she mentally prepared herself for her conversation. When Ruli said he would talk to Envy while she went to Risa, she nodded again, then realized something. “I suppose I better catch Ysaryn and ask to be taken to Risa before she whisks Ed away, or asks for a rematch. Or both.” She wrinkled her nose at that. Gavin chuckled at that. Kire ate a bit faster, then finished what was left of her coffee. “Alright, I’m off. I’ll see you both later for the wards, say, for lunch? My turn to feed you, or have someone make something to feed you.”

She rose to her feet, then leaned to kiss Ruli on the cheek. “Thank you for breakfast, love—” She clamped her mouth shut, eyes wide as she blushed, realizing what she had just called him. She cleared her throat. “Um. Right. See you later,” she muttered, before quickly turning to leave.
Gavin was grinning wide, looking from her to Ruli, wondering with glee what his mentor had thought of the term of endearment.
--

Ed grinned back as he tugged Ysaryn to her feet. “I should hope so. I’d hate to have to prove it again,” he said with a cheeky smirk. “[i]I’m just here to make sure she’s awake and ready to start her day. She mentioned needing to talk to the princess here last night, so I assume she won’t be returning home until that task is complete. Why do you ask?[/i[“ He grinned again, though only for a moment. “What about your father, though? I don’t want to be the source of a rift between you two.”

Not long after, though, he heard Kire clear her throat behind them. “Begging your pardon,” she said, smiling at them. “I hate to interrupt, but I was just wondering if you’d take me to Risa, or at least point me in her direction. I’ll try to be as quick as I can so you two could—spar again,” she finished, smirking.

Ruli looked up from his plate when Gavin mentioned his ties, as well as their own ties, to the gate due to their blood. He'd completely forgotten about that aspect, and suddenly alot was clicking into place. The Dragon Empress, the Blood Mage, and the Sand Mutt. They were all tied together in the thread that held their two worlds together.
And Ysaryn, well, her people were altogether a mix of the Five originals. Perhaps she was just unfortunate enough to be on the edge of this dark storm.

As Kire excused herself to chase down Ysaryn, Ruli nodded and waved, his mouth full of food. And then that word happened. He froze, sensing Kire do the same before she bolted. Slowly, Ruli swallowed a bite he really should have chewed a bit more, glancing toward the door. Love. Had she really ... but she couldn't have ... but she could really ....
"Wipe that off your face or I'll have you gutting fish for a month." Ruli snapped at Gavin, though the tone behind it didn't fit the threat. Ruli bent himself over his plate again, resuming his meal in hopes of avoiding further conversation for the moment.

Ysaryn chuckled when he asked why, but her glee vanished when he asked about her father. Not in anger, but thought. "It is my burden to challenge him, Ed." She explained. "If I do not fight him, then I am too weak to be Chieftess. To fight about strategies, about loyalty, about who I decide is worthy of my bed." She shrugged idly. "You are worth this fight. But you must keep being worthy, or you only become another lesson."

As they heard a throat clear, Ysaryn peered over Ed's shoulder to spot Kire, and her eyebrow arched. "To Risa?" The elf repeated, skeptical. But she redirected her gaze back to Ed. "Meet you in your bed?" She asked, tilting her head toward the house on the cliffs. "Bonus if you are not wearing clothing." She winked before strolling past him to join Kire.
"So. Risa." Ysaryn sighed, glancing over herself. Her clothing was disheveled slightly, and covered in grains of sand. Her hair was a mess, her face flushed. Perfect for meeting with the princess of vanity. "Dare I to ask 'why'?"

Kire averted her eyes when she heard what Ysaryn asked Ed to do, then walked beside the elf after she joined her. "For her lovely company, of course," Kire replied. With a snort, she shook her head. "Still learning more about this goddess. Risa just might know who else around here is a worshipper of hers." She ran a hand through her hair. "Both Gavin and I had strange dreams tonight that might be tied to the whole affair. He wasn't at the forest with us, which concerns me, but he thinks his ties to the world gate made him susceptible to them."

She glanced at Ysaryn, then grinned. "For someone who lost a sparring match, you are taking it pretty well."

"Both?" Ysaryn questioned, furrowing her brow. "That does not sound nice." She sighed, starting toward the cliffs and up the stairs. "I am in castle now and again, I have seen strange dress people. But, to me, Risa dress very strange." Ysaryn pointed out as they climbed.
She began to brush some of the same off her arms as Kire asked about her sparring, and Ysaryn grinned brightly. "A loss in the spar against Ed, but a victory all together." The elf answered. "Is a good thing to have lost. My people do not back down. That I lose to him," Her smile widened. "it is to win him. This, I am happy about."

As they neared the top fo the cliffs, Ysaryn ceased her half-hearted attempts to brush herself off and turned toward the castle that perched on the edge of the cliffs. "And you?" She wondered, looking back over to Kire. "You are to stay more often now, yes?"

Kire grinned. “Well, I’m glad my cousin redeemed himself. Honestly I’d be pissed too if I knew it was that easy to beat him. Reflects badly on my skills,” she said with a chuckle. To her other question, though, Kire looked ahead, remembering her gaffe earlier. “Uh. I mean. I would love—like to,” she said, wincing at the word. “Things seem to be going well. I think. Except perhaps for just a tiny fraction of a blunder I made at breakfast today.” She cringed. “I, uh, accidentally called him, uh, ‘love’,” she said, saying the last word in a whisper as if it was a curse. “Don’t tell him I told you, and don’t make a big thing out of it. I’ve got a sun goddess to worry about already.”

Ysaryn tilted her head, curiously. "I do not understand." She stated. "This is not a thing you want? Is it not a good thing?" Ysaaryn studied Kire's face. "I have not yet felt this word, but I imagine I would be happy if I did. Especially with Ed." She commented, then shrugged. "Maybe humans are different. But," She frowned at Kire again. "I would excuse, most men live short lives. Not you, nor Rulitus. So you are not so selective."

A wave of her hand, Ysaryn dismissed the topic as they ducked into the castle. It was shaded and cool, the space far too large to make warm and welcoming yet. The bare stone walls had measly tapestries hanging here and there in an attempt to rid the corridors of drafts with little luck. During foul weather, it was miserable.
There was no one about, but Ysaryn didn't need any assistance in wandering the halls, leading the way through a long corridor, up a worn set of stairs, then along a windowed hall that led to a closed door. She knocked, then waited rather impatiently.

"Enter."
With a not so subtle eyeroll, Ysaryn pushed down the ancient handle and stepped in.

It was a sizeable room, not likely one usually designed to be a royal suite, but instead something more of a large library. There were tall windows that were stained in brilliant hues that made grand figures dressed in priest robes holding glowing lanterns. The majority of the walls here were adorned with tapestries, the heart lit and the braziers that stood in the corners glowing warm.
It appeared this was the room best suited to keep warm, and therefor the room Risa had taken residence in until enough repairs were made throughout the rest of the castle.
Risa was sitting in a recently reupholstered fainting chair, wrapped in a thin robe of pale cream. She frowned when she saw who entered her chamber, and she sat upright to pull her rob closer around her, as if unwilling to let them look at her. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

Kire was relieved Ysaryn dismissed the topic, though the elf’s question did linger in her mind. Was it a bad thing? I won’t be empress after a few years…. Kire shook her head, similarly pushing the idea aside. When they entered the castle, Kire was reminded of how the Palace had felt after the Black Storm, and after they had reclaimed it from the Gemini. A tad too lifeless to be comfortable yet. She followed Ysaryn in silence, observing the place. In a way, she couldn’t really blame Risa for stubbornly clinging to the trappings of authority. She had known no other life, and after losing everything, Kire could understand the need to desperately grasp anything that could be within her power to control. Still, when Ysaryn rolled her eyes after Risa bade them enter, Kire suppressed a snicker.

The room they entered wasn’t too terrible, considering the repairs the castle needed. Better than the camp in the mountains, at least. Kire kept her face blank when she stood before the princess, and when the woman addressed them, she put on a polite smile, one she had often displayed when in meetings with people she had to be cordial with. “Your Majesty,” she said, inclining her head. “I am glad to see you well, and radiant as ever.” Her tone was friendly as she said this. “I was hoping you would deign to answer a few questions I have about Solaralai and her religion. If there are still worshippers here that could shed more light on her worship.”

Risa turned her head slightly away, glancing at Kire from the corner of her eye as if waiting for some backhanded compliment or a straight out insult. When none came, she lowered her head, tightened the sash that held her robe together before rising to her feet. "The Goddess Solaralai." She corrected, patting the folds from her robe.
Folding her arms over her chest, Ysaryn loitered near the door, letting Kire and the princess speak on their own, her cat-like eyes watching closely.

"There are still followers here in Úvano, yes. I take their company a few times a week. But I would ask why some stranger parading as an empress in a land that isn't hers would be asking?"

“The Goddess Solaralai,” Kire repeated, correcting herself after Risa did. She waited politely, standing with her hands behind her back as Risa rose to her feet. “I don’t mean them any harm, Your Grace,” Kire answered. “There may be signs of a similar religion budding on my side of the world. I wish to simply know more about it, if my own people begin worshipping the same goddess. How I might accommodate them and their new beliefs. There are people who may not understand, and I don’t want them to come to harm.” Which was all very true, at least.

Risa pursed her lips as Kire spoke, then over her shoulder to Ysaryn. When the elf's expression gave nothing away, her brown eyes went back to Kire. "In your world." She repeated, as if she still didn't quite believe the fact. Behind Kire, Ysaryn smirked, amused by the knowledge that Risa had no idea what lay beneath the cliffs.
"I suppose I could arrange such a meeting. Afterall, passing on the Goddess's warmth can only be a good thing." She inhaled and squared her shoulders. "When did you wish this? Not one of us is suited for proper company, at the moment." Risa said, passing a glance at Ysaryn again, and the sand that fell to the floor whenever she moved.

Kire ignored the looks Risa threw their way, especially at Ysaryn. “If tomorrow evening would be convenient for you, Your Grace, I would greatly appreciate that,” she replied with a warm smile. “I am grateful for the opportunity.” She waited to see if the princess would be amenable to that, then, once agreed upon and dismissed, bowed her head politely again and turned to leave with Ysaryn.
“That wasn’t so bad—but perhaps because it was so brief,” Kire commented with a grin. “Alright, I’m heading back over to see if Daryll had found anything and come back for lunch to fetch the sorcerers.” She wrinkled her nose at that, remembering her joke about calling Ruli the High Sorcerer. “I’ll leave you with my other cousin. Enjoy.”

Downstairs at the Tower, she was greeted by a sleepless Daryll—his clothes and hair more disheveled than usual, his eyes tired, and three mugs of coffee in front of him. But the moment he saw her, he perked up, a serious look on his face as he shoved a manuscript at her. “Er—what am I looking at?” she asked, holding the large tome in her arms.
Daryll flipped a page and jabbed his finger down the middle. “The old noble families of the Wild Meadows. Look at the coat of arms. Three down after Narda’s family.”

Under his finger was a coat of arms that had a green field with blue stripes. In the middle of it were two roses: one white, one red. Kire frowned at it. “The noble house of Glenn,” she said, looking up at him. “What about them?”
“The roses, Kire.”
She looked down at the coat of arms again, then her eyes widened. She looked sharply at him. “Are these the ones you saw on the woman?”
Daryll nodded. “I know it’s weird but—those roses were vivid in my memory. That’s them.”

Kire scanned the book again. “This is an old list. We haven’t heard from their House in ages. Didn’t they run out of heirs at some point? They weren’t a big family, and I don’t remember them being associated with magic at all. But still. It might be worth a look. We can ask Narda. By the way, Ruli, Gavin, and possibly Envy will be over here by lunchtime, we can discuss that with them.”

Come lunchtime, both Kire and Narda crossed over the gate, the two of them still in conversation about what happened in the forest and Daryll’s slim lead. “Are you sure Envy will be coming along?” the giantess asked.
Kire grinned. “We’ll know in a bit, Nard. Sit tight.”

Ysaryn smirked as they left. "She is in a calm mood." She stated, guiding the way through the halls again, then smiled crookedly. "Gladly. We will see you at lunch." She sang before she tore off in the direction of the house with a hop in her step.

Upon Kire's return with Narda in tow, the immediate chamber was empty. Just outside, Envy raised his head, his ears picking up their voices. "Is that Narda I hear?" He inquired. He rose from where he sat in the shadows and wandered toward them, hand on the wall for guidance. He wore a mustard yellow knitted shirt and bright blue trousers. His hair was bound back in a braid that was uneven and crooked; courtesy of one of the children. Around his neck on brown twine, he wore the charm Gavin had made for him.
"Not that I am uneager to see you, Kire, but your presence has been quite common as of late." He added with a smile. "Ruli is in his house laying down, if you wouldn't mind fetching him. He developed a bit of a headache after we attempted to dislodge his memory." Envy said, stepping up to Nard and reaching for her hand to kiss. "And how are you, my dear?"

Kire grinned sheepishly at Envy’s comment. “I feel I should apologize for that. Narda’s my peace offering, though,” she said, though when Envy said Ruli was resting from their attempt to look into his visions, her smile disappeared into a concerned frown. “’Attempted’? I suppose that means it wasn’t entirely successful? Alright, I’ll go fetch him.”
As Kire went off towards Ruli’s house, Narda smiled warmly at Envy. “Besides the new riddles being thrown our way by fickle gods? My days have grown uninteresting. Peace does that, but better uninteresting than bloody.” She chuckled, taking his arm in hers. “But of course, my days are never dull whenever I have the pleasure of your company.”
She hummed a little in thought, glancing the way Kire had gone. “You’re right about her spending more time here. Is that something that concerns you?” she asked. “Forgive me if you find that a rather prying question. I promise I won’t speak of your answer to her.”

--

Kire knocked on Ruli’s door, wondering how bad the headache was. Her thoughts went back to the word she had blurted out earlier, as well as Ysaryn’s response to that. The last thing she wanted was for him to think she was making assumptions again, or that she was overly eager to rush things—but…Is it a bad thing to feel? She sighed, frowning, shaking her thoughts free from it. The moment the door opened, she gave him a warm smile. “Hey. Envy says you got a headache. Are you alright?”

Envy shrugged his thick shoulders as he started toward the chambers in which he resided, where they could wait for Kire. "I'm torn, admittedly." He answered. "He's been broken often, but Kire seems good for him, and good on her world that she would be sure. She really seems to like him. He seems happy." Envy sighed. "This arrangement between them seems strange to me, but if they're satisfied, who am I to really butt in."
His head turned toward Narda, a soft smile on his face. "I, of course, likewise enjoy your company. I wouldn't object to some arrangement where we can enjoy dinner together once in a while. Though I am no where near the cook he is."

~

Ruli opened his eyes when he heard the knock. At once, he knew it to be Kire. Envy wouldn't wander out, Gavin knocked quickly, and Zeke knocked as if he meant to toss the door down. And Ysaryn rarely knocked at all.
All of them, he would have ignored, but for Kire, he rose and opened the door, squinting slightly at her. "M'alright." He answered. Freshly washed, Ruli smelled of a smoky flower, and his hair was clean and unbound. "Lunch time already? I must have napped a bit."

Leaving the door open, Ruli ducked back inside to sit on the edge of the bed, pulling his boots toward him. "How's Daryll? Any luck on his end?"