"Yes, but not so much that she'd want to put you in a situation where you'd be uncomfortable. You'll notice I didn't offer to introduce you to my father, who is currently hiding in his office until the weird feeling things settle down."

He laughs. "Sure, I'll meet your mother."

"All right." She leans up and pecks him on the cheek, then leads him to a pleasant sitting room.

Where a red haired woman, presumably Rivethira's mother, is waiting. She stands when her daughter enters with Serik.

"Thank you for taking the time to meet me. I'm Lady Nisari Lentirai, it's a pleasure to meet you." She does not say any of this with a trace of irony.

Interesting.

"Pleased to meet you too, Lady Nisari."

Smile. "Would you like a cup of tea?"

"That sounds lovely."

(Rivethira is smiling faintly.)

There is a teapot that magically keeps its contents warm. It's a little thing, but it's convenient. Fetching tea is just a matter of setting out the tea set.

"Do you prefer me to call you by the title of 'Lord' or - not?" she wonders as she pours into three pretty teacups, a trace of wry.

"I'd rather you didn't."

She nods understanding.

Tea!

Lady Nisari sips her own cup of tea, then says, "Thank you, for your treatment of my daughter."

"You're welcome, I suppose."

Tea sip.

She looks thoughtfully at Serik, trying to figure him out.

He sips his tea and looks back at her, raising his eyebrows.

"Rivethira tells me that you're clearing out the old capital?" she says, when he does not offer his own conversation starter.

"Yeah."

"I hope the work isn't too troublesome?"

He laughs. "I've only caught fire twice so far!"

... Rivethira looks at him and raises her eyebrows. He's caught on fire twice??

"Oh? What from?"

"Tangled-up old magic that went wild thousands of years ago and generally wasn't meant to do anything particularly nice even back when it worked right. And the occasional nasty magical trap still active from my father's side of the war."

"Ah. Does it vary in the flavor of unpleasantness, or is it typically drawn to setting you on fire?"

"Fire's common, but there's lots of other fun stuff too," he laughs.

"Sounds - exciting. I hope the traps and tangled magic do not overstay their welcome." Tea sip. "Thank you for clearing it out, anyway."

He shrugs. "It's not that hard. I've been thinking of trying to copy the fountains - now there's a tough project."