When she thinks she can see him without crying again, she holds her baby close and walks silently back to Rana's.
The room has been replaced with - something else. She has no idea what this means. She has nobody to ask but Rana. Everything she asks places her further in his debt, of course, but it hardly matters now.
She steps inside.
Snuggle.
"Don't wanna just - accept you being sad without even thinking about what I can do about it."
"I want to support you and your family, and protect you, and I don't know what that even means, here."
Horses are in fact kind of neat! She's never been allowed to ride one before and rectifying this is pretty great.
If they could roam the prairies on horseback foraging for food he'd think Colorado was pretty okay.
Sadly, this doesn't work very well with raising five children.
No, not really.
Unfortunately Colorado Springs is... kind of difficult for her too? She doesn't really have anything important to do or anything to offer anybody. Can't even deliver poems anymore.
The kids, meanwhile, can tour the Air Force base! And ride in a plane! And visit the Air and Space museum and learn about the first Air Force planes and the World War II planes and the Vietnam planes and the modern planes.
The kids are mostly compliant on this trip. They are forced to admit that America has far superior firepower. This changes their priorities but does not really make them excited or happy? They mostly really wish their sister Vigdis was here, Vigdis would probably have some idea what to do about any of this.
Except Frey. Frey just thinks that planes are great.
Planes are pretty cool. Maybe tomorrow they can do things that will make them excited or happy.
And he can ask their parents about Vigdis when they get back from their horseback riding trip.
Hopefully not in Rána's earshot?
"She's their half-sister. My niece, her parents were the emperor and my sister. She's - my responsibility, sort of, but I didn't know whether she'd want to leave, or who you thought I had any business taking."
"She's - her father is planning to marry her the next time he jumps bodies."
"Yes. It's - complicated, I would feel much better if she were somewhere else, but she likes Scandinavia and her father, and will want to - figure out how to use any information she gains to make Scandinavia more powerful.
"...and I kind of suspect she would be miserable here."
"Then maybe let's see if we can get into a situation where she wouldn't be miserable, first."
"She wants to do things that matter. Wants to have power. Wants to be respected and admired. Wants to - be able to change the course of the world around her. Her father can offer her that."
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