Wyn was ending an impromptu  meeting with a group of the city's men and Lyana when Nerini and Shiar walked into the manor part of the keep. Grinning thoughtfully, she shook hands and gave last minute instructions as well as farewells to the Sellexun as they left, trying to keep her enthusiasm at bay. Lyana was beaming, scribbling happily on some paper in front of her, looking  more confident in her position as every day went on.

"High Lord Shiar, I must say you really made my job easier here." Wyn gave him a casual bow, motioning to Lyana. "Not only have they already begun the meal house project here in Couth, but they've added adaptations for your climate and differences in the taxation systems that may have taken me months to sort through."

Shiar smiled easily and offered a small shrug. "I just followed your directions and input from my sister. Then passed on the orders here and made land and resources available when I arrived home."

"You also brought in men from Porsend and had them all here waiting for us when we arrived." Lyana allowed, finally looking up to him. Then she paused, her gaze looking to Nerini, "what happened to your face?"

Nerini offered a shrug. "I slipped and fell."

Wyn narrowed her eyes at her friend. "You're not on the ground for an hour, and you're already falling into fists?"

Nerini shrugged and moved to the table, picking up a piece of paper, to idly look at, "you're here less time and already you're working to set up another meal house..."

"How is that worse than you?" Wyn rolled her eyes and bit back her annoyance. "You aren't going to be able to eat in a couple hours, your jaw is already locking shut."

"It's not but at least you've admitted that your work is far more important than mine." Nerini grinned, dodging her friend's frustrated smack with a laugh. She danced back from the table before stopping to rub her back with a wince. "I definitely need to be a little more careful with how heavy other people are."

***

Wyn smiled as she sat at the head table of the long meal hall that was part of the Couth Keep. Spread out across the room and into the next dining hall and converted ball rooms, soldier's quarters and the practice yards where large tents had been set up, were huge tables and long rows of benches. And at those tables, the citizens of the port city attended to a meal that was provided by the High Lord, assisted by the richer merchants and lesser Nobles of the area. 

She shared Eric O'Vara's fascination in the differences of culture and found no shortage of such differences in Sellexu. Such as how, instead of pledging gifts to the Regent himself, the community came together and everyone who had gave and shared to those who did not, to celebrate the coronation. Everyone who cycled through the keep also received a gift from the High Lord as an extension of the Regent, food and money depending on the size of the family they belonged to.

Wyn took a sip of the heady dark wine that was a specialty to northern Sellexu, watching Lyana move through the crowd, greeting everyone she could, pausing and healing those who were ill or injured.

"She's magnificent, isn't she?" Eric said thoughtfully, nodding to Lyana, his stormy grey eyes not leaving her form as he spoke. Wyn wondered idly if he even knew who he was speaking to.

"She's definitely a saint, I would say." Wyn offered gently as she looked at the younger man. Eric was a taller, lighter, version of his older brother, paler from time spent inside amongst his books and papers, but an easier smile on his features.

"A dream, like one of those ancient nymphs of the forest. She's overwhelming with her ability to just, I don't know, be enthusiastic about everything. She listened to me for three days straight on the ship, on my theories of joint royal descent and the merging and fissure of our cultural heritage. She told me I should write a book about it."

Wyn laughed and reached over to place a hand on his forearm, he was more like a younger brother than the real one and he had a firm place in her heart. "You are a delight to listen to, Eric, I don't think it takes a special person to listen to you, but she's right. I think, along with this library you'll be helping with, you could really contribute to our understanding of our joint histories."

"I'm just sorry I'll be heading to Alliance, instead of travelling with your party now." He said softly, offering a careful shrug. He paused and blushed at her look, shaking his head. "No, not only because of Lyana. But I had really wanted more exposure to Sellexu, to the folk tales, the people, the parts of their life that you can't read about in books."

"I'll promise to keep a journal for you, and everything interesting or different, and any stories I hear, I'll write them down, so you can have a point to start from, and research once you rejoin us." She murmured softly and looked to him, reaching out to squeeze his forearm.

Eric smiled wide at her words."That would be absolutely outstanding, Wyn. You don't know, how helpful that would be. I was thinking of asking Rini to do that, after hearing mother's talk about needing to take down a record of what has been transpiring to create the Alliance."

Wyn smiled in return, his enthusiasm contagious. "You'll probably get anecdotes on war and dirty drinking songs she heard but I think she'd be just as happy to do that as well."

Eric looked back out into the crowd, his eyes searching the room with an indiscernible intellectual hunger, drinking in everything about the night. As much as he loved books and the knowledge they contained,  Wyn knew that he could see that living right here and now in this time was showing him more than he could ever hope for.