His gaze darts all around the room and he looks at Natsuko like he's sizing up whether she's in a good position to attack him rather than like he's keeping an eye on her expressions of emotion. "I have some completely unknown amount of time here before I have to urgently run off to talk to the Star-of-Stars about some changes to Sesat's internal organization and I want to spend that time working out the specifics of border control that will let Vanda Nossëo feel satisfied that your people will not walk into Sesat's territory and fall afoul of its justice system by accident. Are you interested in helping with that?"

"- of course, though I admit I'm not sure why you came to me specifically."

"Tarwë suggested that it would be necessary to place a biofilter around all of Sesat. I confess I see absolutely no appeal in the idea and I don't think any of us want that but he seemed certain that otherwise Vanda Nossëo would find it a violation of your obligations to your citizens to permit us our own justice system, and said you would know more about biofilters than he does."

"Oh, I do, they were invented in Cube by the Yeerks. Used to be they killed anything that wasn't whitelisted, they have a force field version now and that's the kind everyone uses... if you don't join we aren't going to try to control your justice system amongst yourselves? I mean, except by conspicuously disapproving?"

"I have been informed that this will last until some teenage boy with more bravado than sense comes in and starts seeing what he can get away with because nowhere in Vanda Nossëo has that behavior ever had any consequences." He anxiously checks his computer in the middle of saying this but apparently doesn't see anything he needs to engage with.

"Oh. Is that so different from you wanting to retrieve an escaped slave from Azan? Something you had strong opinions about wandered into a place where they treat such things differently, and you did not want that thing treated differently...?"

"Well, for one thing, you insult them suggesting they wandered innocently over the border rather than deliberately escaping with all Sesat's worst threats hanging over them should they fail, and for another, I've just realized it'll save half a minute if I go wait someplace my teleporter has actually seen before. Have a nice day."

"...have a nice day," she echoes, puzzled.

It doesn't make sense for her to be confused, or maybe it does, he doesn't know. He should follow up on it but he always ran that on genuine curiosity and he's now on edge waiting to go deliver an ultimatum, and it's too much like being up on the Irali border and needing his attention on the threat at hand, and he can't even contemplate being curious about anything. He stalks off to go wait near where Nelen teleported them to on the theory that that's where Valan will appear.

Tarwë is still there.

"She just wanted to talk about how Sesat is just as bad," he mumbles, "or something, I don't know. Thank you for at least not doing that."

"- I really wish we were better at communicating with you," ventures Tarwë tentatively. "I appreciate very much that you continue willing to try, though I can imagine it isn't very fun."

He sighs and smiles sadly. "Thank you. I also - "

Several people and a large quantity of luggage appear. Valan vanishes again immediately.

Tarwë doesn't particularly startle at this. He inclines his head politely to the several people.

Feris starts introducing them (by name, not relationship), but hasn't gotten past the first two when Valan reappears with one more grown man and two children.

"That's not all, right?" the man asks, looking at Feris's family.

"Sorry, she didn't want to come," Valan says, and then to Feris: "You ready?"

"Wait, but -" the man says at the same time as Feris nods sharply. Valan and Feris vanish. The man sighs. "I would at least like a better explanation for all this."

"I haven't been kept very thoroughly in the loop," says Tarwë. "I think there was some reason to be concerned for your safety."

He facepalms. The kids are starting to poke around at things and climb furniture.

"Feris is giving the Star-of-Stars an ultimatum," says the tiny woman that Feris managed to introduce as Mile. "And if it goes poorly, we'll just have to travel the stars and see the worlds."

"I did not sign up to betray my country!"

"I know. We all know. You aren't." She turns to Tarwë. "It's lovely to meet you."

"Likewise. My name is Tarwë." he says.

She introduces everyone else. "Is there anyone we could tap to help keep an eye on those two?" she asks, gesturing at the kids. She's completely capable of helping with that herself, and she doesn't actually know that Lonan is even overwhelmed at all, and the rest of her family could probably also help, but she has heard about the kinds of aliens that exist and wants to get them in a good mood.

Tarwë scans the room and spots someone with yellow hair and calls her over. She comes when called and then lights up when she discovers she has been solicited for her babysitting ability; she will sit on the floor with the kids and ask them what they've been pretending lately.

They have been pretending to be frost giants because frost giants are very cool. (They do not have a particularly accurate understanding of frost giants.)

Valan reappears, now with the former king of Sesat, whom he smugly introduces to Tarwë as Zaira of West Plain.

This is somewhat lost on Tarwë, who bows politely anyway.

"I haven't actually seen the estate, either I need a picture or someone else needs to take him."

Tarwë finds the real estate listing for the estate that Procurement picked out.

They vanish.

Shortly thereafter Valan reappears alone. "Sesat's Star-of-Stars, also known as Feris of Leopard Hill, wants you to know that he would like someone with a chiplock to email him about border control whenever is convenient for them, and that he looks forward to a future of peaceful relations between Sesat and Vanda Nossëo."