Katrianna stepped out of the car and hoisted her bag over her shoulder. The car attracted quite a few curious stares - they were not precisely rare in Shayara, but were certainly uncommon, what with the streets being narrow and cobblestoned. A pedestrian city. Quaint. Said pedestrians knew enough not to gawk for long, though; the building she was entering was the Council's primary compound in Shayara, and the entrance was flanked by Hounds, eyes empty and posture menacing. Her mind flicked out to examine theirs - professional curiosity. She traced the burned-out circuits and nodded to herself. It was good work.

They held the door open for her, and she walked in briskly, removing the scarf from her head as she did so. Bad enough that she had to be here at all, but she had to disguise herself, or at least her hair and height. Seeing a Tamrani woman would spark too much curiousity. She squelched a little flare of anger at Alanna and her cronies for killing off the rest of their House. She had been in med school at the time, and so had not been consulted. She would have counseled her sister differently. Take down Jessa, certainly. But the rest was overkill.

She paused before entering the meeting room, thinking of her audience. Father. Jeramie. Olivia.

Janos.

She steeled herself and entered.

They were all already here, those four and more. She met Janos's eyes across the table; he greeted her with a tilt of his head and a small smile. She nodded at him, keeping her face blank. She sat across from him, beside her father, and pulled a notebook out of her bag. It was Janos who spoke first, as usual. "Katrianna. A pleasure to see you."

"Likewise," she said evenly.

"Have you progress to report?"

"I do." She took a deep breath. "I am very close."

Jeramie snorted. "You've been saying that for years."

"I've been getting closer and closer for years. I believe that I am now only a step or two away from unlocking our gifts and our immortality."

"And what would that step entail?"

She looked directly at Janos. "I need a... volunteer. A Keleyn or a Tallart, perhaps. Someone whose gift in its fullness would not endanger me."

Janos nodded slowly. "One will be provided for you. More than one. Would three do?"

"Very nicely. Thank you, Janos."

"My pleasure."

The rest of the meeting passed in a bit of a blur. She was all too aware of Janos's unwavering attention. His pleasure, indeed.

When the meeting ended, her father turned to speak with her. "What are your plans now, Katrianna? Will you be going straight home?"

"Actually, I might stay a few days."

"The Council would be honored to host you, here or at House Bartomn," Janos offered. "Although we do ask that you keep a low profile. Considering."

"Of course. Actually, if a Hound could show me to a room now? I'd like to freshen up."

"Certainly." Janos summoned a Hound; Katrianna hugged her father and was off, off to an anonymous room on the third floor, bed and desk and not much else. She sat on the bed and gathered her thoughts. She hadn't been planning on staying - why had she said that? She never felt comfortable in Shayara. It was her sister's city. Katrianna had not been able to visit it much when she was younger, not until she could shield well enough to seem average. To mask the fact that she was very probably the strongest Dasaroi in existence. To keep from revealing accidentally that Alanna could not possibly be the Lishaya.