Calia did not follow Ahnasha's movements as she sat down, but the sound of Ahnasha's voice made her squeeze one arm of her chair for a moment. By the time Ahnasha mentioned that Fendros' absence was not entirely his choice, she gave a small nod. "I wish I knew what you meant by that, Ahnasha." Calia brought her hands together on her lap, though her milky eyes continued to disregard everything around her. Strangely enough, her voice correlated with her appearance to seem more middle-aged than an old woman. Sewing a quilt gave the impression of a doddering elder, but her presence had changed something more elegant and regal without any of them noticing. "You are a Khajiit, aren't you?"

"Mother, I should probably get to the point." Fendros sped up his words all of a sudden. "The reason...the main reason that I disappeared was that..." He sighed. His mouth was moving faster than his mind. "Have you heard of lycans before? Werewolves?"

There was a look of surprise from Calia. "I was young when it happened, but I was alive when Solstheim was subject to the wrath of Hircine. That cursed prophecy. The last I heard of any werewolves was some rumours of attacks to the north of the Imperial City." She tilted her head. "What of them, Fendros?"

Fendros opened and closed his mouth. He leaned forward and looked at the floor to try and find a way to put it. "I have a...disease, you could call it. I contracted it in the forest. Ahnasha said it wasn't my fault because I was attacked without provocation by the beast that gave it to me." Fendros looked up, even though Calia took no notice. "That disease is called lycanthropy. It infects your mind with a sort of spirit. The spirit is no more than a beast, but it can take over your mind temporarily. When that happens..." Fendros raised his palms to gesture to himself. "I...transform. Physically and mentally. I become a beast that needs to hunt."

Llarasa returned with a tray holding a teapot and cups. She placed the tray on a low table before them all and leaned down to pour cups for everyone. Calia was frowning at Fendros, too busy listening to mind the tea.

"When you are first infected, the spirit is strong and you do not know how to control it. It's dangerous-"

A door shut somewhere else in the house and both Fendros and Llarasa stopped to look at the doorway. There were at least two sets of boots coming down the hall. They had no time to do anything before someone uncanny walked by and stopped at the doorway. Dressed in a dark smock and trousers secured by a belt was a short-haired Dunmer man that looked the spitting image of Fendros, albeit with crow's feet around the eyes, a rougher face, a less muscular build, and a very clenched jaw. Following behind was Monderyn in similar garb.

Monderyn was merely wide-eyed and stunned to see who was in the sitting room. The Dunmer man narrowed his eyes and scowled. "Calia," he muttered. "Who are these strangers?" His glower found Ahnasha. "And why are they in our house?"

"Do you no longer recognise your own son, Rossarm?" Calia's tone seemed sharp, scornful even. She did not so much as turn her head to the Dunmer man.

At that, Rossarm, evidently Fendros' father, turned his eyes to him. Fendros' beard disguised him for the first look, but Rossarm's severe eyes seemed to intensify as he realised the situation. The very grinding of his teeth could be heard in the resulting silence.

[hr]
The soft singing continued for another two minutes. Janius stared up at the ceiling where the sound was originating. He wanted to comment on the situation, but it was too tense. They would just have to hear it from Harriet's own mouth.

When the singing stopped, there was a moment of quiet, a door latch shutting, and the sound of furtive footsteps on the stairs. Harriet paced down into the view of the pack in her house. She did not look at any of them with her despondent face until she reached the base of the stairs. She turned and gave each of them a look. Janius, Meesei, and Lorag.

Looking down again, she crossed her arms and leaned her side against the banister beside her. One last sigh and her expression changed to a new defiance. The Harriet they all knew reappeared in an instant.

"Well...you found me," she said with shrug. Her next breath was shaky. "What's going to happen?"