[b]Rurik![/b]

"Seli, was it? And Keli? Cousins to Princess Heron?" said Rurik, turning around with the unholy gleam of enthusiasm in his eyes.

"I don't think you're direct cousins - Princess Heron has three aunts, ATRAYVU and SALIS and ADOSH, of whom two have children, named KAIAS and DOLRIGE and MARCHIN and OLGAI. However OLGAI and MARCHIN have married JANES and WINDSTORM respectively - neither of whom are you. But JANES has the siblings JOLES and RECKONER, and WINDSTORM has the siblings BLADESTORM and DEATH OF SERENITY and TEN THOUSAND YEARS TO END A SPECIES and PERISHING UNTOWARD and they have the half siblings DRAGON PRINCESS and DRAGON PRINCESS II and DRAGON PRINCES who was originally DRAGON PRINCE but whose consciousness was cleft in twain by the MIRROR OF EZARAKUL."

"But perhaps you were referring to Princess Heron's previous incarnation, who had four aunts, OLVASTIC and MARRAKISH and DAYVOD and PUSH-TO-THINK, of whom all married and had children, MITTERAND and BAYALES and MARIAL and BATTLESECTOR and KILLVENGER and SAYWARD and LONGSHORE who transitioned into GLEESHORE who transitioned into DESERTRAT who transitioned into SUSAN and TRAPIS and KELI - so that accounts for one of you! And I must say, you are looking excellent for a seventy five year old! But Seli is a harder pick, I'm going to go through all of the grand-cousins before going back another Incarnation!

It was impossible to get a word in edgewise. This was a man who had spent years memorizing the entire extended genealogy of all the previous Princesses Heron so that he would be able to inform the Princess when she was meeting someone with whom she had a familial connection. A seneschal's duty was to do no less! Wasn't this exciting!?