Welcome to Gaia! ::

As she led them all up the stairs, the girl looked over her shoulder at them.

"I thought you were supposed to be bringing a kirin along with you," she commented, for the first time sounding slightly puzzled. "My brother said you had promised."

She paused, the moonlight streaming in from a window well above their heads and outlining her thin frame within her nightclothes.

Donovan rolled his eyes, go figure something like that would happen, but the time that would make it difficult to go and get her.

"I think she was suppose to be going with Elnara when she visited...."

The girl was clearly surprised, her astonishment etched into her young features. "My aunt is coming to visit?" she asked curiously. The corners of her mouth turned up in a smile. "I would like to meet her! Ada doesn't talk about her, but Nana speaks highly of her."

She put one finger to her lips. "Ah," she remembered. "But first ... sleep. Come." And she beckoned with one slim hand and turned and headed up the stairs once again.

When they reached the fourth floor, the girl left the tower and headed down the hall. She stopped them at an oaken door and without waiting for Sir Leith to catch up, she knocked, then opened the door and headed right on in.

The guard was aghast at the girl's actions, and before any of the three visitors could enter, he dashed forward and pulled the door closed. He was scowling slightly, but not at the guests. He was scowling at the girl, at her inappropriateness, her recklessness.

Donovan felt sorry for the guard... well only a little bit. At least the kid kept the guy on his toes, and at least they wouldn't be facing anyone's angry husband. Not that he knew how the king would react, but seriously... he didn't want to see something he shouldn't.

"Kid," he told the girl, "Knock and wait."

The girl folded her arms and sighed loudly, then said something to the guard quietly in elvish.

After a moment, the door opened. It was the queen herself who answered the door. She was also dressed in her nightdress, but she had taken the time to pull a thin white shawl on over her shoulders. Physically, she appeared completely unchanged from the last time - or the first time, for that matter - that they had had visitors from Gaia.

At the sight of Donovan, Triton and Yue, her brown eyes grew wide and she clutched her shawl a bit more tightly.

"Quar ed ha- Donovan!" she exclaimed, surprised. "What ... why? I ... it's a bit late ..."

Woken from her sleep as she had been, she was rather disoriented. "I'm sorry," she apologized, flushing. "I'm afraid you caught me rather unprepared. I ..."

She really had no idea what to do.

The little girl spoke up. "Shall I prepare a room for them, Ninako?" she asked in an eager tone. "A room for each of them? In the guest wing?"

"No, of course you can stay," the queen assured him quickly. "I ... yes, Tinuviel, please do have rooms prepared for them."

She passed her hand over her eyes, still somewhat disoriented. "Forgive me," she murmured. "I ... have to get back to bed ..."

The girl smiled broadly and hugged her great-grandmother around the waist, then turned and spoke to Sir Leith. The guard bowed deeply, then turned and headed down the hall in the same direction from which they had come.

The queen nodded and disappeared back into her bedroom, closing the door tightly behind her.

Tinuviel beckoned for the visitors to follow her, then started skipping down the hall, her long hair rippling out behind her.