Kire glanced up suddenly when Ysaryn cackled, followed by Ruli’s voice. She looked at the elf, and the look on her face made her wide-eyed again. [i]She knows.[/i] “I…” The cousins were looking at her now, wondering at her flustered expression. She looked at him this time and cleared her throat. “I—I just said you helped me with the gate, and you were really good with your magic,” she said, trying to read his face. He had been about to sneak out earlier. And he was withdrawn as they ate. [i]Did I ruin it?[/i] she wondered. [i]Did he not like it?[/i] The thought was like a splash of cold water on her. [i]He didn’t enjoy it.[/i]
“Kire, dear,” Elva said gently, “are you sure you’re alright? Oh,” she clicked her tongue, “I should’ve looked you over before you went to bed last night.” 
“No! No. I’m fine. I’m great, actually,” Kire stressed, putting on a a smile to reassure her. Jan narrowed her eyes, while Ed looked from his cousin to Ruli to Ysaryn, who clearly had a very good time watching them. [i]Curious.[/i] Kire picked at her food then. “I probably should bring these two back to theirs. Have to make sure Zeke and Narda are alright, too,” she said. “So if you’re giving her a proper look at Amria, Ed, you’ll probably have to save that another time.”
“I’ll count on that,” Ed said, glancing at the elf beside him. “We’ve only just begun the tour.” 
“Right. So. After we eat, we can go back,” Kire said, sighing. The other Wyverns looked at each other. Something was definitely up with Kire. Ed had a suspicion, given Ysaryn and Ruli’s behavior, though the other two women hadn’t known Ruli long enough to know whether his attitude was normal or not. They all seemed to be in a good mood last night, as far as Ed had seen, so whatever this was had transpired in the night. 
Jan looked at Kire, then a memory made her behavior click. When Kire looked at her, Jan’s lips were parted, as if raring to say something. “[i]Not now,[/i]” Kire said, a look of panic in her eyes. “[i]Later. I promise. Later,[/i]” she stressed, looking at both Elva and Ed. Kire shoveled her breakfast down as fast as she could now, washing it down with some hot chocolate. Any other day, she would have enjoyed the breakfast. [i]If it wasn’t so gods-be-damned awkward, we would both be enjoying breakfast.[/i] 

“Alright, breakfast over,” she finally declared, standing up from her seat. She bent to kiss Jan on the cheek, and Elva too, who pulled her into a hug. Ed stood up, and Kire gave him a hug, too. “Welcome home,” she said, patting his back. 
Ed grinned. “It’s good to be home,” he said. “Now don’t be too long away.” He turned to Ysaryn and grinned at her, bowing his head politely. “That goes for you too.” His gaze went to Ruli. “You take care now,” he said. “And give my regards to Envy.” 

They stepped back to the Great Hall so Kire could give them all a few moments for breakfast to settle. “I’ll take us back to the Lithilote borders,” she said, taking Ysaryn’s hand. She took Ruli’s and almost expected him to pull away. The touch of his hand made her remember where his fingers had been last night, and she blushed all over again. “Deep breath. This’ll be faster than the gate, at least.” 

As she had said, they stepped out into the edge of the Raielwen territory. Perhaps because of the residual gate energy, it was a lot more instantaneous than her previous portals. Thankful that she didn’t feel nauseous after that one, Kire looked to the other two to see if they managed just as well, then realized she was still holding onto Ruli’s hand.