She wouldn't object. (Though, they had wanted to talk to the Sixth more about the poetry book...)

"Provisionally accepted, but we need to talk about the book of poetry she showed you yesterday."

"...What about? - Or would this be a better conversation in private?" She glances at her Warden, too.

Follow their lead for now.

"Privacy would be desirable."

To the Sixth's quarters, then? Or the Ninth's? 

Ninth's are closer.

Lead the way.

To the rooms, where they can sit around a low table holding the book of poems.

"This is... difficult to explain. To know where to begin. What- is known of the Ninth, of our duty, in the other Houses?"

"You guard the Locked Tomb, which contains the enemy of God," she says after a moment of thought. "Some say you worship it," mostly the Eighth say that, though, and their opinion is of dubious value, "Others that you hold back the end of - well, everything, through keeping it safe from the enemies of the Nine Houses." That's more or less the official orthodoxy. "Some say you guard all secrets, and keep knowledge that's not permitted to the other Houses." She's heard that one on the Sixth a few times, mostly from people who suspect the Ninth has some key to their research and simply won't share it. "Nobody agrees what's actually in the Locked Tomb, either - some don't agree on if it's even a physical thing." She thinks. "You also manage and guard the worst criminals, and you accept penitent sinners who wish to repent through vows and service."

"The Second runs the prison," Ellyn says. "It's an orbital installation. All the Ninth guards, all that we are, is the Tomb. And that which is contained within. We have-"

"-a connection to it. We know what sleeps behind the stone." We being specifically Ellyn and Gideon but if the Sixth doesn't catch that little slight of hand too bad for them.

So the obvious guess is... "Is it a woman, in the Tomb?"

"Yes. The one you saw. She follows us around, sometimes. We found this book here on the First, and. She. It's related to her."

She holds the book on her lap - and she opens it to Tamerlane; she's created a bookmark for it out of black lace. "Her name - what we call her - is Tamerlane. It's from a poem in this book - and... We think the Emperor also called her Annabel Lee, from another poem." She flips to the front, and turns the book so Palamedes and Angerona can see the inscription -

Lily ■■■■■■■■■

~&~

My Annabel Lee ♡

" - Holy shit."

"Talk about the mother of all breakup dramas, huh."

She smiles at that, for some reason. 

" - You called her harmless, after the Warden saw her."

"She - she just watches us, mostly. She's been more active since coming here - but she's only been helpful. She's the one who gave us Cytherea's name; I guessed that Cytherea was a Lyctor based on the age implied by Tamerlane knowing her."

"Did she do anything else during that fight?"

"At the end. She told us to - finish."

"...And she cried."

"...I see." About what she expected, explains the last minute spurt. Crying is- unexpected? Note it as a possible character insight.