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Earendil nodded. "Well, no harm in checking, at least not for you," he murmured with a faint smile. "Shall we go then? Before Celeb wakes up?"

He had been half tempted to lock the door behind him when he'd left the room, but for two problems: first of all, the door had no lock, and second, if he did, Celeb would probably throw a fit when he found out.

Earendil nodded and followed after Lin, still stroking Senka as he carried her in his arms.

When they arrived at the door of Haldia's quarters, Earendil nodded at Lin. "Go ahead and knock," he murmured.

For a moment, all was silent (other than Senka's purring), but then a soft voice came through the door: "Come in ..."

Earendil smiled and nodded at Lin, indicating for her to open the door for them.

Haldia was lying in her bed, looking quite comfortable with her blanket up to her stomach. She was still wearing her sleeping clothes, but she didn't look as if she were in any hurry to get up or get dressed.

She smiled at Lin. "I'm good. I slept well, which is always nice. And how are you doing?"

Earendil slipped in the door behind Lin and closed the door behind himself, and Haldia blinked and then smiled at him as well. "Oh, Earendil, I didn't realize you were with her. Good morning to you too."

Earendil chuckled softly. "Good morning, Haldia. Good to see you smiling again."

Haldia smiled at Lin, then sat up and pushed her blanket aside. The night dress she was wearing was long, and most of her was still covered, but after a moment, she tucked her black feet under the blanket again to keep them warm.

"Go ahead and sit down," she invited them, gesturing towards the chairs that were pushed in at the table. "What brings you here so early?"

She looked up at the two of them, her golden eyes bright with curiosity.

"Actually," Earendil murmured, setting Senka on the table and pulling the wrapped package from his pocket, "I wanted to give you this first."

He held it out to her, nodding for her to take it. She blinked and took it from him. She brushed her hair behind her ears and turned it over in her hands. "What is it?"

Earendil chuckled. "It's wrapped. Open it."

He reached forward and tugged on one corner of the wrapping, tearing it slightly. Haldia stared at it, then carefully began to tear it a bit further. It took a few minutes, but eventually she had it open. Inside was a small leather pouch, long and thin, with the lip on the long side. She opened it up and tilted it towards her hand. A silver chain spilled into her palm, and she held it up to look at it more closely.

The pendant on the chain was a silver roc, wings spread wide in flight. It shone slightly in the sunlight that streamed in through the porthole, and Haldia was clearly transfixed by it.

Earendil smiled and stepped closer, both hands out, palms up. "May I?"

Haldia blinked at him, her expression confused. Earendil simply smiled and took the necklace from her hands, then opened the clasp and reached behind her head, reclasping it and letting it hang on her neck.

Haldia looked down, trying to see it, but she couldn't see it anymore, and she ran her fingers over it lightly.

Haldia still didn't understand. "But ... why?" she asked. "I mean, it's beautiful, and I'm grateful, but ... why are you giving it to me?"

Earendil smiled. "Just because. Do you like it?"

A smile crept over Haldia's face, and she lowered her chin slightly as if she were blushing, though her skin of course didn't show it. "I do."

Earendil's smile widened. "Would you like to see where it came from?" he asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.

And it seemed that Haldia also caught on to Earendil's little trick, and she eyed him warily. "You want me to go back to the island."

Earendil reached out and took her hand. "Not to the castle," he assured her. "Only to the city. It's like a big village, nothing more. You'll see, it's quite a wonderful place."