Welcome to Gaia! ::

Life at the inn had always been bustling, but never had it been as busy as it was on this particular day. With close to forty people all running around, packing and making sure they would have everything they needed, and especially with Elnara fussing over absolutely everything, making sure that nothing would be left behind, the inn was, in a single word, chaotic.

She had already double-checked with Helen about the wedding clothes, and now she was running after her children, making sure they were all ready to go. On top of everything, there were pets that needed to be looked after before they left, and it seemed that every time Elnara thought that she was ready, something else came up.



"They'll be coming," Elnara replied shortly, signing with her fingers so that she wouldn't have to repeat herself.

And then there was Serenity.

"Mama, Jair's paint won't come off," she complained, holding Jair out to show her mother that the dragon on his stomach was stuck fast, even after rigorous scrubbing.

"Later, Serenity," Elnara replied, brushing past them towards her bedroom to grab something else she had forgotten.

And then as if to add to the chaos, from downstairs she could hear Celebor's deep voice adding to everyone else's.

Fortunately Lore had an easier time of it, as he, Tristan, Yuki (both in proper genders) and Rune made their way upstairs to where all the chaos was happening.

Lore blinked as he stared out at the sea of people.

"Oh dear...." he murmured.

They better go soon before the hallway exploded. Yuki chuckled looking out from behind Lore.

"Wow... talk about a mini army."

Elnara gave up on trying to form some sort of order out of all the chaos that was going on, and she turned around and grabbed Serenity's shoulder to get her attention once more.

"Start going through the portal," she instructed her. "You know your way through the labyrinth better than most people here, so just have everyone follow you. I'll be along shortly."

Serenity nodded and heaved her bag and Jair's over her shoulder, then waded through the sea of bodies calling out loudly, "Everyone, let's go! Follow me!" And she headed through the portal door, Jair still held tightly in her arms.

Skye, Storm, Starr and Silvrendir followed right away, followed by Shiro and Ura, but Kaito and Idhril followed a moment later. Kaito was carrying a chipped Second's vase for Idhril, one that she insisted she could go nowhere without.

Celebor hadn't come to the inn by himself: in addition to the bag that was over his shoulder, he was also carrying one of his daughters, who had golden hair, teal eyes, and clothes that looked like a mix between elvish and ninja.

"Lore!" he called out, spotting his soon-to-be-real father over everyone else's heads. He hoisted his daughter up onto his shoulder so that she would be safe from the chaos and headed over to greet Lore, his green eyes sparkling as he smiled broadly at him.

Lore turned and waved at Celebor, glad to know he wasn't the only one besides his assistants caught up in the crowd.

"Celebor! You made it just in time, I think everyone is ready to get a bit more room," he laughed, "And who is this?"

"Looks like someone related to you," Yuki chuckled earning himself a whack of Tristan.

"Be good and be on your best manners," she told him trying to adjust her dress.

Serenity made sure that her siblings stayed close as she led everyone through the the maze that was the underground of the palace. She knew this place like the back of her hand now, having spent quite some time here during her time in the Southland, and she felt no worries about being able to find her own way through here once again.

Celebor chuckled at Yuki and Tristan and gave them a thumbs up. "You're exactly right," he grinned. "This is my daughter, Aras." He grinned at the tiny girl sitting on his shoulder and poked her lightly in the stomach. "Aras, say hello. This is Yuki and Tristan, they work with your grandfather, and this is Lore, your grandfather."

Aras smiled widely at everyone, her teal eyes shining brightly. "Hello!" she said cheerfully, tapping her sandaled feet against Celebor's shoulder. "It's nice to meet you all!"

She looked up at Celebor and tugged on his ear. "Daddy, can I go see Granddaddy?" she asked him eagerly.

Celebor grinned. "Best ask him," he replied, looking over at Lore.

By this time, Elnara had made her way through the sea of bodies and reached the bottom of the stairs, and she smiled brightly, seeing her son and granddaughter with Lore.

"Of course," Lore smiled.

He was eager to hold another Surprise stage again, they grew up so quickly these days. It would be nice to be able to do that again.

"Though I think we should keep moving too, everyone is heading in," Lore added.

"Indeed," Rune murmured, "The air as certainly cleared up since we've arrived."

Aras giggled as Celebor held her out to Lore, her face bright with excitement.

"Maybe you can carry me to wherever we're going, Granddaddy," she said eagerly. "Daddy's been carrying me for an awful long while but I don't want to walk because there are so many people I might get stepped on!"

Celebor laughed. "Careful she doesn't tire you out," he grinned at Lore. "She's full of energy."

As Elnara came to join them, he moved to greet her and hugged her tightly. "Hi, Mom."

"Hello, Celebor," Elnara smiled warmly, hugging him tightly in return. Then she smiled up at Aras, who was sitting in Lore's arms. "Hello, Aras."

"Hello, Grandmama!" Aras said brightly. "We didn't see you for a while!"

Celebor grinned proudly, one arm still around Elnara's shoulders.

"Of course," he nodded, and he turned and headed towards the stairs, leading Elnara along with him.

Aras giggled and made herself comfortable between some of the wrinkles in Lore's robes.

"You're just as tall as Daddy is, Granddaddy!" she said excitedly, her teal eyes glowing brightly. "I can still see lots!"

And she looked around at everything curiously, then tapped Lore on the cheek to get his attention again. "Hey Granddaddy, I thought we were going to a big castle, why is Daddy going upstairs?"