"So I hear. Thanks for dropping by."

"You're welcome."

"You should do it once in a while even with your sister home, I love hearing from you."

"I plan to. I shall grant that she provides an acceptable source of being verbally exasperated with your family but I have grown beyond the shallow days when I thought that was your primary conversational virtue."

"Oh? But what else could I possibly offer?"

"Wit, charm, verbal exasperation with my family..."

"Oh, no, have they done anything?"

"Nothing genuinely objectionable. Mostly it's just Ahya being silly over Tyelcormo."

"Nothing that'd be helped by talking to him -"

"Some of it is stuff she probably should talk to him about it but that stuff she's going to of her own initiative, the rest of it is mostly composing songs to the effect of 'blond hair is so much prettier when the brain under it is not a Vanya and other reasons Tyelcormo is great'."

He giggles.

"I'm not even joking, I'd offer to sing the relevant one but I wouldn't be at all surprised if someone overheard and took it the wrong way."

"That is a risk of singing songs insulting whole nations of people."

"I mean, the song doesn't technically say anything worse about Valimar than 'collectively really not Ahya's type,' but yes."

"And they are not around to take offense. She is probably safe enough."

"I expect so. And yet: I am still not going to sing it in the palace. If nothing else one of your cousins could hear."

"Or the King's wife!"

"I will ensure Ahya also knows not to sing that one in the palace. Not that it was likely before."

"She is lucky to have you looking out for her."

"And vice-versa."

"Of course."

"I complain about her but she's amazing, really. I love her more than anything else in the world. I don't say that enough."

"It comes through all the same."

"Oh. Good. I'm glad. She's the best. And I'm really happy for her, regardless of what worrisome shenanigans led to it."

"They make each other very happy, don't they."