"Oh my spirits, that is certainly a way to keep oneself warm. How big are the domed habitats?"

"They vary. Miles across, most of them."

Stephen is very impressed.

"I don't think that we could do something like that even we had all nobleborn in the world working together. Even if witches worked with us."

"There was a lot of math involved."

"Any good engineering projects does. Have you ever participated in the construction of one of the domes?"

She shakes her head. "I'm way too young, and none of my powers are especially suited."

"Oh, of course. I forgot that your magic works different from mine and that you don't mature as fast. Which, as a parent, makes me jealous of your mother."

"How old are you, anyway?"

"I am forty-four, and you?"

"...You're younger than me. I'm sixty."

"Yes, I'm definitely jealous of your mother right now. Is there any chance your agelessness can be shared?"

"If there is I don't know it, and Mother doesn't either or she wouldn't be in Fairyland, she'd be in the Mortal Realms saving people."

"The Deep South is lucky to have her."

"Damn straight. The Deep South as a political entity wouldn't exist without Mama. She's the one who got the domes built in the first place."

"Remarkable! Nobleborn are limited to do this sort of thing, but it's appealing."

"She wanted power and didn't want her father to die; rendering a previously unlivable area inhabitable and petitioning for a new Lordship was the obvious answer."

"It's that a common thing for fairy nobility to do? What is your grandfather like?"

"My grandfather is Vraikis, the High Lord of Sarafel."

He looks at her, inviting her to elaborate.

"He's...I've never had to explain him before. He's good at politics? He has a number of political opinions that are highly indicative of his character but which wouldn't make much sense if you don't know fairy politics? He's married? I don't see him very often but whenever I do he has an understated but thoughtful present for me."

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it. Or if you want to say things that you wouldn't normally say. I won't judge and we might never meet again. Honestly, I'm just curious because I am collecting stories for my youngest."

"I'm pretty sure at this point you're not a ploy by one of Mother's rivals but not sure enough to say anything that could be used against her if you were."

"Wise of you. Is there anything you would like to ask me?"

"So what's it like where you live?"

"The Southern Lakes had always been... self-sustainable, a lot of isolated villages in the lakes away from major conflicts and never experiecing hunger as long they had fishing nets... Okay, since none this is incriminating even in the unlikely event you are part of some mind control spell to take information of me. I am just going to say: my kingdom used to be a large collection of swamps and marshes that was very unruly and disorganized until the last two lords before me started working to improve it from being the backwater part of the empire. Since then we managed major strides on infra-structure, you can guess how my earth generation power is very suited for the creation of roads, bridges and dams."