"That's very kind of her."

"I'll tell her you said thank you! Enjoy your dinner!" Off he scampers.

Mmm dinner.

It's tasty dinner.

The next morning, Kioh's mother has a boat and two friends all ready to take Ambela to Southport. They would be delighted if she'd sing a little along the way.

But of course.

Her singing is lovely and the ocean is also lovely and all in all it's a pretty good trip. They arrive around midday, and the three villagers point her in the direction of the airship docks.

She thanks them, strolls that way to look at airships, and then finds somewhere to busk.

The people of Southport manage not to completely block the street listening to her, but it's a near thing. She will have no trouble affording a ride to Skygarden.

And she gets to keep her jewelry! ...can she get an adequately pretty change of clothes and a way to wash what she's got?

...an adequately pretty change of clothes, maybe, if she busks for a while and then shops around.

She's not in such urgent need that she can't shop around for something nice and maybe a sewing kit to tailor the prettiest thing to fit if it doesn't already.

Then she will be able to acquire an outfit she would not be ashamed to walk around Valinor in!

Good. Trip to Skygarden?

Trip to Skygarden: absolutely affordable! The airship captain has heard of her and would be thrilled to have her aboard, especially if she plans to sing.

She will sing them all the way there if they like.

Crew and passengers are so pleased by this outcome!

Oh good.

The city of Skygarden is beautiful.

Oh, it's clear enough that Elves don't live there - a lot of things are dirty or in poor repair, there's litter and so on - but underneath the wear and tear of use, most of the architecture would hold its own in a Valian design contest. The gardens visible along the sides of the island are gorgeous. The palace in the middle is huge and sprawling and exquisitely lovely, made all of stone that rises from the ground in a single seamless piece, with courtyards and fountains and greenhouses and ivy-clad towers and a low outer wall to mark out its territory.

Oh good! So good.

The airship comes in to land at the western docks. The captain recommends Ambela a good hotel nearby.

She appreciates that. How affordable is it?

Not trivial, unless busking is even more lucrative up here, which it might be. But she could definitely stay there and have some money left over to save up and buy more pretty clothes with.

She gets a room. She finds a garden to sing in.

Passersby are super impressed. She attracts a crowd pretty quickly.

Hurrah.