"I can't say I did. I've been trying to plan a war, here."

"Well, if you win the war, you could kiss the boy, what do you think about that?" 

He desperately wishes Aroden would get back to them and this conversation would be over, that's what he thinks about that. "I am not expanding my harem for men because then I would neglect my wives even more," he says instead, which isn't what he meant to say at all but whatever.

"You are a ridiculous little boy."

"I always take romantic advice from people with that opinion of me."

Leareth goes to find Malduoni. Waits briefly until he's finished his current task. Gets his attention, signals that it's important. 

"Nefreti will help with the Worldwound. But she wishes for an - apology? From you. She said that you would know what you did." He's very curious but is not going to ask, if his alt doesn't want to say it's up to him. 

To his surprise, Malduoni breaks into a smile. Not a very wide one, but - gentle, fond. 

He's silent for a long moment.

Leareth waits. He's very confused, which is not usually how he feels around Malduoni. 

"- Well. She is not wrong. And - I had hoped we might speak again, someday, when I knew enough to judge it safe." 

Is he going to say what he could possibly have done? 

"So you will go to her and apologize, then?" 

"If she is willing to come to Azir, that is of course ideal, but if not, I suppose another Gate to the winter palace is not too hard on you." He lets out his breath. "And - I could use a few moments to gather my thoughts." 

Leareth nods, waits respectfully. When Malduoni acknowledges that he's ready, he contacts the pharaoh again to ask if Nefreti Clepati is willing to transport herself to Azir or if she would prefer that Malduoni Gate over to the shielded room in the palace they used before. 

" - a minute before you contacted me she walked right out so I think probably she is willing to transport herself to Azir. Even she will have to leave the Dome first, so you'll have a little time, probably."

"Ah. Thank you. She is - disconcerting, that way." He's relieved not to have to do a Gate; he's very efficient, and he's got a lot of mages across now who are trained in Gates and doing the brunt of the troop transport, but he's still using magic a lot and it adds up. 

"You could say that, yeah."

"Well. Should I contact you to confirm once she has been and gone, here?" 

"Sure. Thank you."

"You are welcome." And he goes to alert Malduoni of this. 

"Of course. I suppose there is no point in going back to our work when we will be interrupted again shortly, so." He sits down. Doesn't make any offer to invite that Leareth do the same, but he doesn't have to. "Tell me. Have you ever had a student of whom you were very proud, and who also frustrated you greatly, and - the tides of events in the worlds pulled you apart..." 

"...Vanyel. A little. Then we - made our own tides, I suppose. Or were doing our best." He can't help but smile. "Though if reality is trying to hint that Vanyel will grow up like Nefreti, I am rather dubious." 

"No, no, I think theirs are still different stories, as it seems Nethys would put it. But - I did miss her. And wondered, sometimes, if I were being very foolish, afraid of my own shadow. I - could not afford to take the risk and be wrong, given the circumstances, and by the time I was strong enough to be difficult to threaten, it had been such a very long time..." 

Nod. Leareth understands what he's pointing at, even if not the exact analogue. 

They wait in comfortable silence, occasionally making asides to each other that would sound very non-sequitur to anyone listening, which no one is because Malduoni's office is EXTREMELY SHIELDED. 

And then there's a knock on the door.

Malduoni rises to let her in. "Nefreti." He does not say 'you've grown' even though this is very tempting.

"Aroden. You know, there is a world, not this one, where I went to Heaven every Fireday to have tea with Iomedae, and Arazni, and Milani, and complain about you."