Ardlac's knock was answered by an older woman whose dark braided hair was heavily touched by gray. When she saw Ardlac her expression grew to one of surprise. She said something in the language of Nairiume, and Li caught the sound of Ardlac's name.

Ardlac nodded. "Hello, Ilya," he said in the common Trade language. "I heard of Father's death and thought it best to return and settle things."

The woman didn't question how he had learned of the death, and Li assumed it was quite common for the Asirim to know such things when they were connected to the dead as Ardlac was. He was thankful she did not question it and did not ask if Ardlac's father had been the one to inform him of his death. Surely, if Ardlac knew her so well, she knew of the rift between father and son.

She opened the door fully and allowed them to enter. She gave Li a curious look when he followed Ardlac into the house, and when she spoke again it was also in the Trade language. "I'll send word to the palace that you've returned. They have been trying to locate you. It was believed you'd gone into shipping, but it wasn't known what ship had employed you. All that was known was that you were living and at sea."

Ardlac nodded. "I joined a privateer from Mahlon," he explained. He reached out and placed a hand on Li's back. "This is Li, my love, and he has come to offer me his support. Li, this is Ilya, the caretaker of my father's home. I've known her all my life."

Li gave her a smile. "I'm happy to meet you."

She smiled warmly at him. "I am happy to meet you, as well. Whatever either of you may need I will provide. This is a difficult time and I will do whatever I can to make it easier."

"Thank you," Ardlac replied. "Did Father keep any of my things? I suppose I should be more presentable when I visit the palace."

"He kept everything," she answered. "He was certain you would change your mind and return, even until days before his death."

"Was it sudden?"

Ilya seemed a bit surprised, perhaps that he didn't know how his father had died yet knew that he was gone. "It was. He was arguing with a merchant who had supplied poor quality material to the palace tailors. The healers say his heart simply gave out."

Ardlac nodded. "Thank you." He took a deep breath and nodded again. "I believe it would be best to start with a bath."

"Of course. I'll prepare them for you."

She gave him another nod, then walked away. Li turned to Ardlac and hugged him, feeling the tension in Ardlac's posture ease slightly.

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"Come," Ardlac finally murmured after several moments of the silent embrace. "Allow me to give you a brief tour of the house."

Only once Li had released him did he truly take in his surroundings. He entranceway they stood in had a high ceiling, the roof a great domed window above them. Several comfortable chairs sat by tall, painted glass windows around the open space. The painted scenes on the glass depicted pink and white flowering trees. There were potted plants of many varieties, some flowering and some simply green and leafy. The floor was made of gleaming stone but a carpet intricately woven with gold and silver thread against a red background led to a curving flight of stairs. A hallway continued on beyond the stairs, ending at a great door made of dark wood.

"The kitchen and dining area are behind the door," Ardlac explained. "I'll show you those later." He took Li by the hand and led him up the stairs, which were lined with the same carpet as the one downstairs.

The hallway upstairs was also lined with carpet, the walls with paintings and tapestries. There were some small statues of beautiful women and handsome men on stands along the hallway. One showed two men apparently killing each other, another a man and a woman apparently engaged in violent sex.

"My father was fascinated by legends from the Second Era," Ardlac explained. "Something about the implied brutality of the era appealed to him. He spent a small fortune over his lifetime collecting books of the legends and art depicting them. I have always found the legends rather disturbing. Now, the room at the end was my Father's room. The room to the right, closest to his, was mine. The other three rooms were used for guest rooms, as Father had never gotten the number of children he had wanted. He used to entertain merchants while establishing contracts with them to provide for the palace needs. The stairway there, between my father's room and mine, leads to the bathing chamber and a secondary door to the kitchen and dining hall."

Li continued to follow Ardlac to his old bedroom. Li had expected it to be covered in dust and cobwebs, but it seemed Ilya had either cleaned it in anticipation of Ardlac returning, or had kept it clean all along. A large window let in the afternoon light, painted with the scene of an ocean coastline where waves crashed against a beach dotted with stones and driftwood. A cushioned bench sat below the window. A great bookshelf filled with books took up an entire wall, and immediately to Li's left was a large writing desk. Another wall was taken up by a wardrobe and more shelves, these holding a collection of different objects, including a small wooden ship. Li had the impression Ardlac had been interested in the sea before he had joined the Gryphon and that told him why Ardlac had looked to join a ship at all after the fight with his father.

In the center of the room was a bed with an ornate chest at its foot. It was not a terribly large bed, but it was much larger than the bunk they had been sharing on the Gryphon, and it was covered in soft blue bedding that matched the large rug covering most of the floor. This was similar to the red carpeting, but the blue contained only silver thread in twisting patterns, not gold.

"I didn't expect to ever return here," Ardlac said quietly.

Li put his arm around him. "I know."

Ardlac turned to him and Li embraced him again, holding him tightly. After several moments he pulled away. "Thank you."

Li leaned in and kissed him softly. "I love you. I'm here with you for anything you need."

Ardlac nodded and pressed his forehead to Li's shoulder for a moment. "Thank you," he repeated. "I love you and I'm not certain I could be here without you with me."

"I'm always here for you."

Ardlac took a deep breath. "Thank you," he repeated yet again.

Li squeezed his shoulder. "Of course."