Sanria sat in her office, staring out over the castle grounds to the north from the large window. From there she could see Star Mountain and the various trails that wound up its side and through it. Beyond was the ice cream parlor where, the day before, she had met with Orn and Ror. The moment when her only concerns were wishing Orn liked Ror better than he did. Now, in the span of a day, things had gone from relatively under control, to outright insane. But, what was new?
She had gone back to the cavern, slinking into the place in what she hoped was silence, but Thasmudyan had found her. They sat and talked for quite a while, and she was informed that having Ror help raise Nioma while Thasmudyan was there made him quite upset. He wanted a chance to be in Nioma's life... and hers. They spent time arguing, discussing, and...
And things that sent her packing to the castle in haste. Things that sent her to visit with Colin. She spent the evening talking to him, discussing the past and Emalia, their children, Orn and Leandra, the fact that Colin was going to be a grandfather and already was one. They spent time reminiscing and discussing, and...
And when Orn walked in to deliver his father a plate full of food in the morning and saw his mother and father together, Sanria had a hell of a time telling him it meant nothing. But she knew, then, as did Orn, that she could no longer be with Ror. She could barely stand her own self, her own weaknesses, but there was nothing more to be said. She had guaranteed herself a life alone.
She rose from her desk and had Enmach bring Nioma to her. She would ensure that there were no accidents. She would stop by the temple of Lathander and meet with Gilean. No more children. Then... she would stop by the tree and talk to Ror. She would have to end things... she couldn't drag another man through what she had already done to three others. At least she'd stop things before they went any further.
Sanria appeared at the temple and walked in to see not only Gilean, but another priest with a small girl at the hem of his robes. It was here that she and her daughter stumbled across the other side of her conversation with Thasmudyan. In front of her was Maya's daughter and Nioma's half-sister, Lyvinnia. Things had suddenly become far, far more complex.
