"Thank you." She opens it, trying not to get her hopes up.

Dear Belrun,

I have thought about it more and I want to bring you north. I miss you and I have found myself desperately wishing that reuniting would be the correct move, which is at least evidence of what I want, and I also think your research is of great value and you will presumably be more effective if you are not suffering a broken lifebond. I do intend for both of us to be very, very careful, at least until we have more information on the various Powers at work here and Their goals; I want to relocate all of your research to the north, and plan on neither of us leaving the secure facilities there. 

If you do not have any counter-considerations that you think I should consider, I instructed the mage who brought you to Haven to stay there in order to Gate you directly back. 

Love,

Leareth

:Amshalan we're going north:

:- Oh! I didn't want to get my hopes up, but - gods - I'm so glad to hear that. Do you want to leave right now? I can say goodbye to everyone quickly, they knew I might head out on short notice: 

:Yeah, right now, I didn't pack much to begin with:

Savil is still watching her expectantly. "Good news...?" 

"He wants me up north."

"Oh! That's a relief to hear. Are you going now?" 

"Right away, yeah, there should be one of his mages around somewhere?"

"Just a moment, I'll ask Kellan– He's coming, he'll meet you out front of the building." 

:I'm still saddled up, ready to go: 

Belrun joins Amshalan and waits, shifting her weight from foot to foot in readiness to walk through a Gate that isn't there yet.

The mage catches up at a run, looks around, and then just uses the doorway for a Gate. 

And Leareth is running to meet her, not yet in sight but he's in Mindspeech range. :Belrun!: 

And she's through the gate and it still hurts and that's very unfair that it would keep hurting even another second but she does not want to cry - :I'm here:

He reaches her at a run. He's very small and looks very different and his head only comes up to her mid-chest. 

Oh no.

She hugs him anyway.

He hugs her tightly. :I missed you so much - I am so sorry...: 

Pause. 

:...I do not think I feel anything lifebond-related yet? I am not sure if I remember fully what it was like, but...: 

:Nothing on this end either. As far as the lifebond's concerned you're still dead:

:Oh no: 

He doesn't know what else to say so he just hugs her more. 

She fails not to cry. Rubbing her sleeve over her eyes would require unhugging so his hair will get a little wet.

"We should go sit down or something." Leareth sighs a little. It's very Leareth-like and also seems incredibly weird when he's a tiny preteen. 

"Yeah, that's a good idea." She remembers her way around. They can go sit.

Leareth sits and leans on her. His weight is so much less than before. 

"This seems very unfair that it is not working." 

Nod nod.

"You're so small," she murmurs.