He's got a good poker face. It's hard to say whether he's joking or not. Bleys shrugs, then reaches out and touches the symbols directly, each in the order suggested by Saffron.

As his hand touches the last symbol, the door disappears, letting violet light stream in to the small room. Light, and the smell of fresh air and trees.

"That's great," Skye says she cranes her neck to see the newly expanded view of the place. "But do you also know how to close it?"

Gideon takes a half step forward, hoping to be able to get a wiff of the shadows air. For some reason he imagines the place to smell of lilacs, though this is probably just because of the purple light.

"I... really didn't expect that to be quite so easy," Saffron observes, sounding surprised.

"Nor did I," Bleys shrugs. "But easy it proved to be."

He steps through the doorway, then looks back at the rest. "Well, the doorway's still here, so I'm thinking it's not a trap."

"Or it's a really sophisticated one." Gideon says, stepping all the way forward to join Bleys on the other side.

Skye gives Random a mildy stern look. "You will not be joining them, will you? Your Majesty...."

Saffron reluctantly says, "I probably shouldn't either. There's someone I should go see." She glances at Skye. "Besides, someone should stay so we can Trump you lot home if there *is* some sort of trap we're not seeing yet."

As Gideon steps inside, he does indeed smell the foliage. No violets, though. Just the clean scent of pine and the subtle fragrances of mountainous flowers.

Random chuckles. "No, Skye, I don't intend to leave here. I don't doubt I can return readily enough, but if it is a trap, that could be a faulty assumption. Before this thing closes, everyone make sure you have Trumps of me or Saffron, so we can pull you back if needed."

Satisfied Random wasn’t going traipsing off into the unknown on her watch, Skye relaxes and waits to decide what Bleys and Gideon are going to do.

Stepping back through the portal, Gideon looks slightly disappointed. "I'd love to check that place out, but it probably wouldn't be a good idea while I'm carrying this damn mystery sword around." He smiles at Skye, remembering how she got the drop on him in Arden. "Besides, Skye is much better at sneaking around than I."

"It may not require sneaking at all," Saffron points out. "It may be the place we think it might be, just with a suspiciously altered moon. If you want to go, I could try taking a look in the library for you to see if there's anything about that particular sword."

"True, but I didn't find this thing. Besides dragging this sword around, I don't want to go elbowing myself in on another persons gig. You two found it, I figure that gives you both first right at cracking it if you want." Gideon smiles. "That sounds reasonable, doesn't it?"

"Sadly, we have things to do that trump interesting place. Saffron’s mother is still recovering, and I have something that requires my attention first. But I would like to revisit this after we are done with what we have on our plate." Skye turns to Random. "If that meets your approval, of course."

Gideon nods. "Alright, then I suppose I can risk a little exploration." He steps back to where Bleys is on the other side of the portal. "I'll make sure you both get the full story, boring or not." Gideon says toward Saffron and Skye. "Random, If things go south expect an emergency call."

Random nods to both Gideon and Skye. "Sounds good. Now that I've seen what you've found, I think I should become available again. People don't like it when the king's hard to find."

"Saffron and I would like a moment more of your time once the doorway is closed." Skye eyes the doorway and then raises an eyebrow at Saffron.

"Can you close it?"

"I certainly hope so," Saffron answers. "Let me see..." She studies the doorway again.

Turning to Bleys, Gideon says with a smile, "I hope you're along decently with your sister right now. I think they are locking us in."

Bleys gives Gideon a shrug and a gamin grin. "I'm never entirely sure how well Fi and I get on until we meet again. But I don't think we're getting locked in just yet. I'm sure there's time to go back if you want."

As Saffron looks, she sees that - as the portal opened - the characters moved outwards. Most likely, the same sequence of touches that activated it will close it.

Gideon shakes his head. "No, I'm in not going to ditch on you Bleys. If we get into trouble, don't let me hold you back though."

Random nods to Saffron. "Well, it looks like everyone who's going to stay here is staying. Unless you want to go with them, Skye?"

The Ranger shakes her head. "No. I have things I need to do here, as I mentioned earlier. You boys have fun."

Random nods. "All right then. Go ahead and close it, then, if you can, Saffron."

It is, indeed, easy enough to close, and after a moment, the door closes on Gideon and Bleys.

"So, what was it that you needed to speak to me in private about?"

"I am only doing this because Deidre thought we should," Skye says after glancing at Saffron. "She thought we should tell you officially that Saffron and I are involved in a relationship. Before you decided you needed to marry off a niece for some thing or another. Not that I believe you would do that without talking to us first, but things do happen."

"Exactly," Saffron agrees. "Not that I don't think you already know. Everyone *else* seems to this week." She pauses. "Well, Julian and Gerard, anyway."

Random purses his lips and shakes his head. "Knew? No. I'd heard rumours, yes. Vialle was pretty certain about it, but that was all I had to go on. Neither Julian nor Gerard has said a word to me about it. Likely figure - as I do - that it's your business."

He shrugs. "I'm not Oberon. I don't consider politics so important that I'd sell any of my kin like baggage. I rather like living, after all."

"That doesn't say I won't rule political marriages out entirely," he lifts a hand in an open gesture, "but it wouldn't be without your consent. I mean, seriously. I send anyone of the Royal line into a marriage they don't want, and I'll have to take steps to protect their spouse. Too much effort, too little reward."

Skye stifles the smirk; that was exactly what she had thought. "Still, now it is not hanging over our heads, the possibility." She reaches over and laces her fingers with Saffron’s. "We still do not plan on making it a big issue, or making out behind the fichus at Court. Goddess knows there are enough sewing circle rejects with their noses out of joint at the mere rumors."

"Besides, fichus makes me itch," Saffron says with a smile. She squeezes Skye's fingers gently.

Random chuckles. "Trust me, if there were any kind of royal command, it might well be 'make out in court'. Though, out of deference to Saffron, not behind the ficus. Some of those 'sewing circle rejects' need a good kick in the pants."

"Not," he smiles, "that I'm giving that command. I think I'll hold off until I need them incredibly disturbed."

Skye grins. "Just let us know when you'd like that to happen. We are yours to command."

Saffron laughs. "You are such a show-off," she says good-naturedly.

"The word you are looking for, my sweet, is exhibitionist," Skye lectures without a smidgen of shame.

Random chuckles. "I think I'm going to schedule the two of you for more courts. Sooner or later, we'll get that floor show, and I find I'm quite looking forward to it."

"I have come to learn since leaving Scythia, that such a show is high on the list for most heterosexual males," Skye says with a good natured shrug. "Just yesterday, Gideon suggested we sell tickets. I’m not sure I’m that generous." She smiles at Saffron then regards Random again.

"I cannot speak for Saffron, but I at least will be heading out in a bit to run an errand for Deirdre. She wishes her axe."

Saffron sighs. "You have no idea how long my list of things to do today is. Check on Mom, find her axe, call Aunt Fiona, investigate dark passages, investigate strange women in mirrors, try not to lose my temper when any of the above thwarts me..."

Skye just smiles. "Well, none of that is getting done while we stand in a dark passageway. I think we should get back among the rest of the world so no one thinks we have kidnapped Random for our own perverted games."

Random shakes his head, chuckling. "Well, I don't think you need to worry about that - anyone who saw us enter saw Gideon and Bleys as well. And I've not heard of any rumours about massive parties in the castle yet, so I think they'll assume something more innocent."

He turns to the ladder. "After you, ladies?"

"Yes, because Gideon and Bleys are certainly well known paragons of virtue," she snorts. Skye proceeds in order to assist Saffron when she climbs off the ladder.

It's a matter of moments for the three to exit the by now well-traveled hidden corridor. Random heads off almost immediately, and as he turns a corner, Skye and Saffron can hear someone accost him - by the voice, it sounds like Morgan. The words are soft, but Random's are easier, as he tells the speaker to tell him more in his office.

Skye wrinkles her nose in distaste and mutters about the bastard spawn before turning to Saffron. "What next? If you want to go have a word with your mother, I’ll go saddle the horses."

"And I should probably check in with Aunt Fiona again," Saffron answers. "You should decide where we're eating as we head out, too, since I can't think of the last meal we had."

That earns her a smirk from Skye. "I imagine you are talking about food. Alas. We can pick something up on the road if that suits. I believe I would sell a cousin for a pizza. It's been ages."

Saffron laughs. "I didn't think we were drastic enough to sell cousins yet. Yes, pizza sounds fine."

"There are some cousins I would sell for a Kleenex," Skye responds breezily as they head for Deirdre’s location.

There are, as before, guards at the door, but they let the two in without difficulty. Deirdre is sitting up, with a cup of something hot - at least, steam is coming from the cup. "Hello again."

She seems somewhat stronger, though there are still clear signs of injury, mostly in her too-careful movement. "As soon as I can move without too much pain, I'm going to a fast time shadow. So much easier to deal with my siblings when I'm not in pain."

Skye hangs back and steps to the side, allowing Saffron freedom to get to her mother. "Well, we are going axe hunting. If you get to feeling stronger while we'r gone, give one of us a call. We're going to Scythia afterwards to check on my Mother and time flow is faster there. Mother would be pleased to meet a fellow warrior woman who is the sister to her m -- to Eric."

Deirdre nods slightly. "All right. Say hello to your mother for me, will you? I don't think it's quite fast enough for my purposes, but once I'm back to approaching normal, I'll likely take you up on that offer."

Saffron settles on the arm of a chair after a moment of indecisive hovering. "I'm glad you're feeling better, Mom," she says. "We were considering stealing you - and the sofa, if you couldn't get up yet - off to somewhere fast ourselves. Or at least to somewhere with better medical advice than what amounted to 'she'll walk it off'." She huffs a little in irritation.

Deirdre gives her daughter a smile, laughing lightly. "Honey, for us, most of the time, that's really all it takes. If I'd been stabbed or cut, I'd generally only need bandages and bed rest. We don't even usually require splints. We use them where needed because it speeds things up, but even without them, one of our blood will heal limbs straight and clean. I've lost track of the number of times Gerard or Corwin or Eric broke their arms or legs doing something foolish. None were down more than a couple of weeks, at most."

She gestures briefly at her legs. "All my injuries are down to greenstick fractures by this point. I don't dare put too much weight on them - can't walk, lift anything heavy - but as you can see, I can move them more or less normally. In about a week, give or take, I'll be able to put some weight on them. Another week, and they'll be almost entirely healed."

"Corwin or Eric would achieve the second level in a few days, and both would be entirely healed within two weeks, unless there are other conditions slowing them down."

"Well," Skye muses. "After we get to Scythia, I can Trump back and carry you through another Trump with Saffron on the other end. We could go there first and then go get your axe."

Saffron sniffs. "They still could have tried being nice about it instead of staring at me like I'd lost my mind. I like that plan better than mine; the sofa is unwieldy and we'd have to figure out what to do with it afterwards."

Skye flashes her a grin. "Bonfires are lovely things."

The dark-haired sorceress laughs. "And here I thought you were trying to encourage me to set less things on fire..."

"I just thought it best not to light the King on fire," Skye protests cheerfully. She turns to Deirdre. "I should take my leave and go prepare the horses. Just let Saffron know if you would like us to aide in your desperate flight from overbearing siblings."

Skye bends down to give Saffron a light kiss. "Don't blow anything up in my absence."

Saffron smiles at her. "I'll try. You know I can't promise..."

Deirdre looks thoughtfully at them then gives a slight shrug. "If I can, I'd like to ask you to get the axe first, even so. It has some minor enchantments on it. Nothing that works well here, but in Scythia, they'll help me heal that much faster."

"As you wish," Skye nods. She runs a hand down Saffron's hair, then takes her leave of the pair, heading for the stables.

Saffron turns a little to watch her leave, smiling.

Then she turns back to Deirdre. "I'm really glad you're not dead, Mom," she says simply. "And that you know about me and Skye. Even if someone that shouldn't have even known told you."

Deirdre gives Saffron a smile, combined with just a tiny chuckle. "Saff, remember this family's primary occupation is gossip. I don't think it's possible to keep a true secret around here. At best, you can keep the nature of the secret hidden - but that there's a secret? I doubt it. They noticed that you two spent all your time together and jumped to conclusions."

She grins. "That, this time, the conclusions were right, doesn't change the facts."

Saffron sniffs. "I still reserve the right to be slightly indignant about it," she says, with a bit of a smile. "We were doing our best to be discreet, but apparently everyone except our cousins decided to know about it this week.."

Deirdre smiles again. "Of course, dear. Maybe one day I'll tell you about my first boyfriend, and just how quickly our relationship became common knowledge."

Saffron smiles and nods. "That should be interesting. I'm sorry it took me so long to come and visit; we've been dealing with the strangest things today." She shakes her head. "If you should start feeling better enough to walk around, watch out for ghosts resembling family members, mysterious women in mirrors, and secret passages behind paintings."

Deirdre blinks a bit in surprise. "I'll keep that in mind. I don't recall ever meeting any ghosts, but I'll definitely keep my eyes open for them."

"We didn't so much meet them as see them, briefly, and then watch them vanish," Saffron admits. "One of them looked disconcertingly like Grandfather."

Deirdre stares for a moment. "Dad?" She shakes her head. "I heard he was dead, of course, but it's really hard to wrap my head around the idea. I mean, it's Dad."

Saffron smiles at her, her eyes suddenly bright with what might be tears. "I know. We've had a little more time to get used to it. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that you're not dead..."

Just then, there's a knock on the door, and Skye opens it, to the sound of one of the outside guard saying something.

Deirdre looks up at the door's opening. "That was quick, Skye."

"Well... things." Skye's brow is furrowed and she flops down in an empty chair. "Sweetheart... do you recall that amusing rumor about the violet moon that Bleys and Gideon scoffed at? Look out the window."

Saffron's expression goes straight through baffled and amused to exasperated. "Please don't tell me that," she says, rising to head for a window. "Today cannot possibly get any worse."

"Think again, dear," the Ranger grumbles. "Try Trumping someone."

Saffron heads out into the hallway to the nearest window. Skye and Deirdre - and the guards - can probably hear her muttering about rumors and people who ought to be around and aren't.

The window looks out fortuitously in the right direction, and Saffron can, indeed, see that the moon has risen full and purple - a beautiful shade of violet.

In the meantime, Skye looks to Deidre to explain. "Earlier today, Saff and I were privy to a host of outlandish sounding rumors. Among them was should the moon rise violet over Amber, Tir would become permanently visible. Well, now the moon's violet. I'm not sure what to make of this, frankly."

Deirdre lifts an eyebrow. "Interesting rumour. Can't say I ever heard that one. So, what next? Check out Tir?"

"I don't see why at this point. We won't know if it's staying until sunrise. Saffron might want to go have a closer look though." Skye cocks her head thoughtfully to one side. "It would probably be wise to have a guard on the stairs. But I'm sure Random already knows that."

Saffron comes back in, looking annoyed. "How many more of those rumors do you think are going to come true?" she asks conversationally. "I give it one more before I'm in way too far over my head, which probably means doom, since Dworkin and the Jewel are gone and at this point, it wouldn't surprise me if Aunt Fiona is too."

Skye shoots her a grin. "Well, we can try and catch Aunt Bleys in the bath, and I could always ask Julian if it's true he wrote the Beatles catalogue."

Deirdre grins. "Aunt Bleys? If that's one of your rumours, I can definitely scotch it. When we were younger, Corwin, Eric, Bleys, Fiona and I went swimming in one of Arden's ponds. There was skinny-dipping. Bleys is definitely a man."

"Aww, that was Saffron’s favorite one," Skye replies. "What was that one about singing in Corwin’s tomb?" she asks Saffron.

Saffron smiles slightly. "No, no, you're mixing two of them up. It was hiding in Corwin's tomb and singing the right songs in the right places."

"Right," Skye nods after a moment spent scowling thoughtfully. "Corwin's on the new moon, and the right places' to sing - although how do we find the right places, I ask you?"

She gives Deirdre a piercing look. "So. I don't suppose you know if Fiona and Llewella are lovers, do you?"

Deirdre shakes her head, smiling. "Not specifically, no. But I can say that it's not impossible. Fi's always been rather omni-sexual. When she was a lot younger, she went through several of the guards in the castle, so Dad brought in some female guards from another Shadow. She went through them, too." She shrugs. "As for Llewella, I've always gotten the impression that she turns that way, but I've never seen any evidence."

"We should go," Skye says, standing. "Especially since Trumps don’t seem to want to work. Saffron should call Fiona about this, and we need to leave to do it. Plus, I am now very certain you will need your axe. "

"Wait, wait. The Trumps aren't working?" Saffron demands. "When did that happen?

Skye puts a hand under her elbow and gently directs her to her feet. "I assume when the moon come up. I tried to Trump you from the courtyard, and nothing."

Saffron is wearing that bullheaded, 'I've had enough' expression she gets sometimes - usually when the pressure has built up enough that she's about to indulge in at the very least some shouting. "So let me get this right. Dworkin has been kidnapped," she starts ticking points off on her fingers, "Random has lost the Jewel, Fiona may or may not be missing but we can't tell yet, we just let Bleys wander off to explore Fiona's pet Shadow because *it* had turned purple, Gideon has a sword that can cut holes in reality, we have ghosts that may or may not be relatives wandering the castle, there are secret passages that used to be locked, there's a not-quite-our-Pattern in one of the secret passages, and oh yes, we have a guy from Chaos coming to report to Random that was on fire with a Power that isn't ours either and that Fiona went off to investigate."

Skye gives Deirdre a look of long suffering amusement when Saffron starts up. When the sorceress finishes, the Ranger very calmly wraps her fingers in a handful of Saffron’s long hair and kisses her soundly. Deirdre may as well not be there.

Deirdre watches, grinning. When they're done, she looks to Skye. "Seems to work. Better than grounding her, anyway."

"Well, I have to take into account that she can set me on fire," Skye chuckles. She smoothes Saffron's hair back. "In more ways then one."

Saffron, who sounds much calmer now, remarks, "Grounding just let me stew in my own juices. There's nothing like having an incredibly sexy woman," she wraps one arm around Skye's waist, "kiss you to just really derail a bad mood. And I wouldn't set you on fire. Your stuff, maybe." She grins cheekily at the ranger. "But not you."

Skye scoffs. "Think of all the t-shirts you would lose if you brunt my stuff." She smiles as she turns back to Deirdre.

"You will be alright? Would you like us to send someone to sit with you, or just to be nearby should you need anything?"

Deirdre shakes her head. "I'm okay. The guards check on me occasionally. They're nice boys. And the talkative one has a nice ass." She says the last bit with an impish grin.

Skye laughs. "I really am glad you are back, Aunt Deirdre."

She gives Saffron a squeeze. "I'll wait out in the hall while you say your goodbyes." After kissing Saff on the temple, she leaves the two alone and goes to wait out in the hall and have a quick word with the guards.

Deirdre smiles as Skye steps out.

Saffron smiles at her mother. "I'm glad you're back too, Mom, and that you approve of my girlfriend." She moves towards the couch, but stops a few steps away. "I guess I should save the hug for when you're feeling better?"

Deirdre holds out her arms. "I think I can manage a hug, Saff. Just no bear hugs, please."

With a smile, Saffron hugs her - somewhat gingerly. "We'll be in touch. Hopefully soon..."

Deirdre smiles back. "Hopefully. I'll try to trump you occasionally, just to see how things are going."

"We'll try and call back in, too," Saffron answers. "With luck, that will work... See you later, Mom." And she heads out the door to catch up with Skye.

Skye is out in the hall, apparently involved in a conversation with the chatty guard. Saffron knows her well enough to recognize that she is resisting the urge to deliver a well deserved (in Skye's opinion) tongue lashing.

Deirdre gives Saffron a final wave, as she heads out. The guard seems completely unaware that he's in any danger, though despite his chatty nature, he does seem to be showing respect.

Saffron smiles to herself and says innocently, "Skye? Are we ready to go?"

"Yes," Skye replies abruptly. She gives the guard and sharp nod and then steps over to Saffron. "The horses should be ready by now."

The guard nods respectfully to the two women as they leave. The stable is still in something of a disarray, but the horses are indeed saddled and ready for them.

After eyeing the disarray of the stable for a moment, Saffron greets her horse with a scratch on the neck and smiles at her girlfriend. "So what did he do, anyway? The guard that you were about to yell at."

"I wasn’t going to yell," she sniffs as she offers her horse a peppermint. "I was just going to have some sharp words with him over his inability to recall just why I would remember Patternfall."

Skye swings up in the saddle and flips some stray portion’s of Equinox’s mane in place. "Should we take a look at Tir, or just ride straight out?"

Saffron mounts up and pats Sage before nudging him into motion. "Might as well," she answers with a sigh. "At the rate things are going today, we may not be able to come back into Amber after we leave."

Skye just scowls at that and turns Equinox towards the gates. "Well. That would be a handy excuse for a vacation," she declared after a moment. "And if the Trumps are being weird, they can’t even call us."

"Except for the part where it's entirely likely I'm the only available mage if this is as bad as I think it might be," Saffron answers, "that sounds like a grand idea. I guess it depends on how responsible we want to be..."

"Oh, you just had to use that word!" Skye wails. Then she is once again all her usual self as they make for the road.

"Well, we will go check around Tir. Then if any more of those rumors we’ve voiced comes to pass, I will demand a raise because there’s some of them we probably shouldn’t say out loud and they should pay to keep us quiet.."

Saffron snorts. "I don't think saying them out loud will make them come true, or that it has. Although I suppose at least one of them would make life for the Rangers as a whole more difficult, wouldn't it?"

Skye sniffs. "How long has that rumor been around? The one about the moon? All those years, and nothing! But within the hour of us talking about it with other people, Bah! Violet moon. Bleys better be careful out there, lest he come back in a dress."

"Or we have to question whether he fathered some of his brothers and sisters?" Saffron replies with a laugh. "Not, apparently, that that would be a first in this family."

"It’s quite a soup, isn’t it?" Skye snorts in amusement. "Now, when my father turns up, remind me to grill him on some of these other ones." She looks over at Saffron. "I’ll honestly be surprised if he doesn’t," she explains lowly. "Perhaps that’s wishful thinking on my part. But your mother’s back, the moon is violet, and who knows what else is going to happen? "

"I'd say stew instead of soup," Saffron observes. "Soups tend to go down smoothly." She smiles quietly at the other woman. "I am not hoping for anyone else to come back at this point, but if someone does, I do hope for Eric. I know you miss him, and it hardly seems fair that I've got my dead parent back and you don't."

Their conversation keeps their attention as they ride out of the castle and start up the mountain itself, towards Corwin's cenotaph and the base of the Stairs.

As they head up the pass, the two see two very odd things. First, as they come up to Corwin's cenotaph, they see a bouquet of silver roses laid against it. Just behind it, though, and looking not entirely substantial, but still clear enough to see, is another cenotaph - one that has not been there before. The arms inscribed on it are Eric's.

Equinox skids to a stop when Skye jerks on the reins. The Ranger stares then turns to Saffron and asks hesitantly; "You see that too, right?"

Saffron nods as she tugs Sage to a halt. "Yes, I see it. What is going on around here?!"

"I don't know," Skye says slowly. She hesitates a moment before dismounting and taking a few steps towards the structures. She completely blows off Corwin's and the roses as she continues to move a few steps closer to Eric's ghostly tomb.

Saffron dismounts and follows quickly, issuing a stern, "Stay put," to the horses.

"Sweetheart? We should probably be careful."

Skye stops and turns to look at Saffron. "I know." She turns back to face the image and squats down, resting her elbows on her knees.

"What do you think it means?" she asks quietly.

Saffron stops beside her, dropping one hand to rest on her girlfriend's shoulder. "Future vision, the walls between Amber and Shadow breaking down, or someone screwing with our heads seem likely," she answers, looking down at her. "But I don't know for sure."

She looks over her shoulder back to Corwin's tomb. "Are those flowers real? Or another vision that's part of this one?"

"I... don't know," the sorceress admits. "Let's see."

She moves over to the roses and tries to pick them up.

The roses - the bouquet consists of seven separate stems - are entirely real to the touch and slightly cool, just as if they were freshly cut in the cool of the morning. The stems are held by a black and silver ring, set with a large red carnelian.

As Saffron picks up the roses, the newer tomb shimmers, then takes full form, a near twin of Corwin's. There are two differences, though.

First, the new tomb holds, high upon its frame, a ruby stone held within a setting that evokes lightning and stormclouds.

Second, there are some words written along the sides of the tomb's entrance.

Ivory blade grants surcease from grim shade,
Each soul held within the lines of fire.
The fire's center must be allayed,
Where soul rejoins body in a trek most dire.

Skye stumbles as she rises swiftly to her feet; a clear indicator that this has unnerved her severely. She moves closer to read the inscription, then looks up at the red stone, her eyes narrowing.

"Is that.... is that what it looks like? Surely not."

Saffron, still holding the roses, moves to her side. "I hope not," she says. "Because if it is, protecting Amber just got a lot more complicated. Look at this - there's a ring on these roses." She shows it to the other woman. "Same colors, isn't it?"

"Yes, but not the same stone, I don't think," the Ranger says after a moment's study. Carnelian's a generally more brown then a ruby stone. She turns back to the inscription and frowns.

"So. The fire's center must be allayed, and the lines of fire bring to mind the Pattern. I don't understand the ivory blade reference though. But this sounds like a way to bring someone back from the dead. Doesn't it?"

"It does," Saffron agrees. "It almost sounds like a way to bring back more than one, in fact. Like someone has captured a bunch of souls..." She trails off, then, "I really wish I hadn't thought of that. I really need to call and see if Aunt Fiona is okay..."

“You can try her Trump,” Skye says, still looking up at the red ruby. “You may have better luck then I did. It’s like you were there, but I just couldn’t push through to connect.”

Saffron hands her the roses with a wry smile. "I'll try. Please don't keep staring at that ruby while I do, though. We don't know what it does - if it does anything."

Eyeing at the roses with obvious distaste, Skye takes them anyway then looks back at Saffron. “I want to go in,” she says bluntly. “Perhaps this ivory blade is inside. I will wait for you to try Fiona though.”

"Thank you." Saffron glances around, and then leans up for a quick kiss on Skye's cheek. "And I know you don't care for the roses - but Corwin's not here to object if you steal the ring off them, now is he? Since it's not even technically in his colors and all." She winks. "I won't be long, I don't think. Either it's going to work or it isn't."

She doesn't move away; instead, she pulls out Fiona's Trump and tries it.

Skye snorts, but she looks curiously at the ring anyway. Why would someone leave a ring? It made no sense to her. Sounds like something one of his daft kids would do.

Skye's brief look at the ring shows nothing immediately odd. A second look shows her what seems to be an imperfection in the stone itself.

Saffron does, indeed, feel a - pressure, almost - bearing against the Trump call, and knows that her own strength is not enough to reach Fiona, though she can almost feel the elder.

Fortunately, Fiona herself looks around, then opens her mind, and the connection completes, though not without some effort on Fiona's part as well, visible to Saffron.

~Saffron. A little later than I expected, but nothing to worry much about. How's Amber?~

~Purple,~ Saffron answers flatly. ~And difficult to Trump out of. Also, Mom is alive and Eric mysteriously has a tomb right by Corwin's now. Oh, and Bleys and Gideon may or may not be in one of your pet Shadows... which has also turned purple. There are now open secret passages that Benedict thought were closed up by Grandfather, one of which has a Pattern drawn on the wall near Bleys's favorite sitting room - and one has a doorway to that Shadow I just mentioned. Oh, and Gideon has a sword that can tear holes in reality.~ She takes a deep breath. ~Other than that? Fine. How are you?~

Fiona's mental voice is somewhat bemused. ~Purple? Do you mean that everything's gone purple, or are you talking about the moon? Where I am it turned violet, but I didn't expect the same elsewhere. Let's deal with the rest now. What do you mean about Bleys and Gideon?~

~Well, the moon itself is purple, yes,~ Saffron agrees, with a hint of a wry smile. ~As the light from it is making everything else purple, I figured 'purple' was accurate enough. As for Bleys and Gideon...~ She considers for a moment. ~Well, let me give you the short version. Skye and I found secret passages; in one of those was a magically sealed doorway with a peep-hole showing the destination, which was a place with enormous trees and treehouses. We showed it to Random, with Bleys and Gideon tagging along, and Bleys identified it as one of the Shadows you frequent... except its moon was purple instead of what he expected it to be. He and I figured out how to open the door and did so; then he and Gideon went through in order to see if it was where he thought it was or someplace different. At least I think that's what they intended to do... Other than 'we'll call if we need an emergency exit,' plans were kind of vague.~

~Yes, that does sound like one of mine. I found a reference to it in a diary I once found, and took it over. I don't know what a purple moon could mean, either there or in Amber. Has anyone talked to Random about it yet? He should know how it happened, even if he doesn't have the jewel anymore.~

~Neither of us have spoken to Random since we noticed the purpleness,~ Saffron answers. ~We were actually just leaving Amber; Mom asked us to go find her axe, among other errands that need attending to. And it appears we need a particular ivory blade, as well, since Eric's monument here has an inscription that sounds like a recipe for resurrection that Skye's quite interested in.~

There's a palpable sense of shock across the mental barrier. ~Your mother is alive?! When did this happen?~

~I did mention that,~ Saffron answers primly. ~A day or so ago. I kept receiving odd calls, including one where a woman was asking if I was Corwin. On a hunch, Skye and I tried calling Mom... and the call went through.~

There's a sense of blinking. ~Sorry, dear, if I don't recall. I've been a bit busy of late. How is she, then? Clearly doing fairly well if she's asking for things.~

~Better than I expected,~ Saffron replies, ~despite the uselessness of your brothers. Every bone in her body was broken. I believe she's planning to go out into Shadow in a few days to finish healing up.~

~Depending on the brother, you know I tend to agree with you - but I doubt any of them would willfully try to hurt her. Still, it sounds like she's healing nicely. Are you noticing the strain involved in keeping this contact open, dear? It's not difficult, but it's more than it should be. Related to the difficulty in making contact, do you think?~

Once Fiona mentions it, Saffron becomes aware of the slight strain, though, as Fiona herself said, it's not tiring, just noticeable - so far.

Saffron frowns slightly. ~Probably,~ she agrees. ~I really don't like this, Auntie. Whatever's going on, I'm fairly sure it's more than I'd be able to handle on my own. At this point, I'm not entirely sure we're going to have an easy time getting out of Amber, and I'm not convinced we're going to be able to get back - if the Trumps are misbehaving, why not Shadowshifting too?~

Fiona shakes her head. ~I have no idea. I haven't had any trouble with Shadow-walking, but I have to admit I'd likely be the last to notice, other than Dworkin.~

She frowns at something. ~Since you don't have Trump skills, I think your best bet will be to get your mother's axe. If you have trouble getting back, call me. We've already seen that the two of us can break through whatever's happening, so I should be able to bring you through to where I am, anyway.~

Saffron nods. ~We should be able to tell shortly whether this is localized to Amber, as well,~ she adds. ~Since we're leaving it - maybe there's a line past which the Trumps are normal.~ She hesitates, then continues, ~I should probably go so that Skye can investigate this monument to Eric that appeared as we rode up, but... will Mom's axe help with this, do you think?"

Fiona shakes her head. ~No, I don't know. I doubt it. Your mother's axe has some beneficial attributes, but nothing of power in it.~

Saffron sighs. ~Ah well. I'm glad to see you're doing well, Aunt. It's been one of those days where I wasn't sure you'd be able to answer.~ She smiles wryly. ~Should I keep calling you every day?~

~Yes, I think so. I've run into some odd things here. Nothing I couldn't handle, but stronger than they should be. It seems that someone's enhancing the Fount dramatically. I don't think they'll ever make it to 'Power' level, but if they can make it into a storage point for magic or whatever energy they're channeling, they'll be impressive.~

~Oh, that's just grand,~ Saffron replies tiredly. ~Well... Be careful, please?~

Fiona nods. ~Definitely. I like to think I stopped underestimating people when Random became king. A paradigm shift that extreme must have some effect, after all.~

~I should think so,~ Saffron agrees. ~I'll talk to you soon, Aunt.~

Fiona gives Saffron a nod and lets the connection end. With neither of them spending anymore energy, it's almost like a fire that gets smothered.

Skye is in the doorway of the new Tomb, looking at something. Her horse is on guard.

"Skye?" Saffron says. "I'm done with the call..."

Skye visibly starts at suddenly hearing another voice besides her own. She gestures Saffron to join her, but doesn't look away from what has her attention.

She sounds distracted when she says: "This place is riddled with creepy. The ring, the ruby, this sarcophagus. The plaque that says Eric's been missing since the war with Genesh."

"What?" Saffron asks as she moves to join her. "Okay... did we wander into an alternate Amber?"

“No…,” Skye trails off and takes another step inside, peering intently. “But I think this came from one. Look.” She points towards the inside of the now lidless sarcophagus. “Do you see a … a path?”

Saffron squints at the spot, frowning. "It's... something," she says tentatively after a moment.

Skye straightens and glares at it. "All right, look; the stupid ring is enchanted somehow, and the ruby above the door is too. I had to yank myself out of whatever it was they were trying to do because I knew if I went off on some sort of adventure without you, you'd burn my favorite boots. Now this. What do you want to do? We can walk away and go find the axe. We can call Random or Julian or somebody to look into this, or we can play Eenie-Meanie-Miney-Mo and let Fate pick a course for us.

"If we call Random, he's just going to tell us to look into it," Saffron answers testily. "Are we curious, or have we had enough of this crap?"

Skye looks conflicted before she offers: "Both?"

Saffron blinks at her, and then reluctantly laughs. "Okay, I asked for that. What I meant was, I think our choices are poke it some more, or run away screaming. I... kind of want to know what it is, but it's been a long day."

"What do we poke at first?" Skye asks, still eyeing the energies before them. She cocks her head. "I wonder if we can take the horses?"

"I say we try. If we leave them here, we're going to scare the relatives." Saffron smirks. "Not that I don't think they deserve it sometimes, but I also would rather not have to walk if we end up somewhere else."

Skye ponders a moment more before turning to face Saffron. "And your mother's axe?"

"I'd like to get it for Mom," Saffron admits. "But according to Aunt Fiona, it's not going to help with all this." She waves in the direction of the moon. "And unless something is thoroughly screwed up, if this goes somewhere, it should just be into Shadow... which is where we were headed anyway."

Skye looks pointedly at the plaque over the sarcophagus. The one noting that Eric was last seen in the battles against the Moon Riders, but has not been seen for nearly 500 years, and is presumed to be dead, his heroism all the legacy he left.

Saffron blinks at her, then at the plaque. And then she reads it, frowning. "Could still just be an alternate Amber," she points out, "which would just be a Shadow of Amber. Although I don't have any clever theories for why it's here..."

Skye chews her lip uncertainly. "What if it's not a Shadow?"

"Then you're going to have to do some uncomfortable explaining about why you're not much older than you are," Saffron deadpans. There's a moment of silence. And then she bursts out with, "I don't KNOW! Either it's a Shadow or it's not! Either we're going to be stuck or we're not! It's not... it doesn't make sense that it's here or that it would go to Shadow or that it wouldn't go to Shadow!" She waves her hands, a bit helplessly, and looks exasperated. "Almost everything today hasn't made sense!"

Skye just watches and waits until she's done. Then she reaches up and strokes Saffron's cheek with the back of her hand. "It's all right." She smiles then returns Heartbreak to her back. "Well, maybe not entirely. But it will be. If we are going, I think we should go now. But if the horses are coming with us, we can only go one at a time."

Saffron sighs, and then smiles a little. "Okay, okay, I'll stop freaking out. Even if the world is out to drive me insane today. Single file, you first, then Equinox, then me holding on to her tail or something, and then Sage? I don't want to get separated, and you and a horse then me and a horse just seems like it's asking for trouble..."

The sarcophagus looks like it might be just about wide enough for the horses, assuming the two women can convince them to enter. It's certainly long enough. The energy seems to be peaking, and Saffron can definitely sense a relationship to Trump energy - though not likely a close one.

"Well," Saffron says after a moment, "it looks like it might fit them. And it's vaguely Trump-like - which is both reassuring and not at all reassuring. Let me get Sage..."

She retreats from the tomb for a moment and returns with her horse. She stops when Sage and Equinox are side-by-side and looks at Skye again. "I guess we'd better make this a good explanation, huh?"

Skye shrugs and stands in front of her horse. "Don't look at me like that. Now, this will be easy; just follow me into that..." she points at the open sarcophagus. "It's an odd walk, but unless you want to be left behind, you have to follow. While Saffron holds your tail and leads Sage."

It doesn't take a genius to see how dubious Equinox is of this plan. Skye just looks at her mare. "Make sure Sage understands, please. We don't have a lot of time."

Even the help of Equinox is only barely sufficient to get Sage into the tomb and into the sarcophagus. Still, they manage, and pass through, the portal closing behind them.

They emerge in mountainous terrain, climbing out of another empty tomb. The air is cold and clear, and the mountains surrounding them give a feeling of immense age, but the world itself seems alive enough.

Skye shivers at the cold. What a time to not have worn her uniform. Dropping Equinox's reigns, she turns to examine the tomb they stepped out of to see if it is identical to the one they left.

Saffron moves to the side with Sage, rubbing the horse's forehead soothingly (and apologising under her breath) as she looks at the landscape around them.

The tomb they step out of seems crude - almost more a man-made cave than a proper tomb, but there are definite signs that it's intended as a tomb. It's also empty of any body, and apparently by design.

The landscape around them is mountainous, with peaks soaring above them. They seem to be at the apex of a valley between two ridges, with the tomb being set directly at the apex itself, clearly intended to be the focus of the valley. There is a clear, though faded and unused, trail leading from the tomb down into the valley.

“This is weird,” Skye observes with a frown. “You want us to do aerial reconnaissance before we rise on?”

"We should check the basics first. Pattern, then sorcery." Saffron adds, a bit sheepishly, "If sorcery doesn't work, I'm not sure I want you haring off somewhere without me..."

“I do not go haring off,” Skye replies indignantly while feeding Equinox a peppermint. “I could have let myself be whisked away at least three times while you were chatting with Fiona, but I waited for you.” She sniffs and busies herself checking over her mare’s tack.

Saffron laughs after a moment. "Okay, fine. Maybe that was overstating the case. Do you have anything you don't mind if I set on fire? I think I'll start with sorcery..."

“Hang on,” she says, pulling a sword from her back scabbard. Skye goes to the nearest downed limb and, hacks it in half and brings the pieces back to Saffron.

“Have a day.”

"Perfect." And Saffron tries to use plain old sorcery to light the branch on fire.

The power rushes to Saffron's command, in amounts greater than almost any she's used before. Despite the rush of power, her control never falters, and the branch lights exactly as she desires.

Oddly, even Skye feels the power build, and notices the power around them.

Skye looks suspiciously around. "I felt that." Straightening, she nods to Saffron. "Right. Try the Pattern now."

"Did you? Hmm." Saffron frowns. "That was way more power than I was expecting, but I didn't lose control of it. So do we want to try and Walk a little, or just get lucky and find something we didn't bring?"

"We could use a couple of cloaks," Skye mused while keeping an eye on their surroundings. "Or we could try for the axe."

"Mundane first," Saffron answers. "Let's see if there might be some cloaks stashed away for safe-keeping under those rocks over there." She leads her horse in that direction, pushing at the stuff of Shadow to make it so.

Within moments of opening her will to make the changes, Saffron is certain that they are not working. There is a feel about the place that reminds her strongly of Amber. As if it's Real, not merely Shadow.

Saffron comes to an abrupt halt, with a sigh. She looks back over her shoulder at Skye then. "Well, this isn't entirely unexpected; our luck couldn't possibly hold. No cloaks, no shifting. We're too close to something Real."

Skye couldn’t possibly look any less surprised. “I had my suspicions. The surprise is how easily your spell worked and that I could feel it building. Let me try something now.”

With that she stepped away from the horses and concentrated on her alternate form.

The familiar feeling of change comes over Skye, and her form shifts quickly - almost as soon as she begins to concentrate.

The hawk that is Skye ruffles her feathers and shakes out her wings before giving a triumphant cry and launching herself into the air. Climbing high, she circles the valley while sharp eyes look to get an idea of the terrain around them.

Saffron turns and watches the hawk rise into the air, smiling a little at Skye's enthusiasm. Then she leads Sage back to where Equinox is standing and settles down on a rock, shielding her eyes as she watches her girlfriend's flight.

The valley is long and relatively narrow, surrounded by peaks of varying sizes. Other valleys lay around the area, but none in the immediate area seem inhabited - though, to a hawk's eyes, human habitation isn't generally the most important feature of the landscape.

A hawk’s joyful cry pierces the valley’s quiet as Skye dives towards Saffron’s position. She pulls up in time to be able to land gently on the woman’s shoulder. Where she proceeds to preen Saffron’s hair.

Saffron laughs. "That tickles, you know," she says, trying to sound stern and failing. "Anything useful up there?"

Skye makes a noise that sounds negative. Then she hops off Saffron and down to the ground. The bird’s eyes close as Skye focuses on resuming her natural form.

The shift back to human form is just as quick and easy as the shift away was. As Skye's human eyes open, she sees - briefly - an afterimage. Lines in the sky and ground, lines of power, that seem to disappear in an eye-tearing twist. Once the shift is entirely complete, the image goes away.

She blinks, looking rather dumbfounded and she immediately sits before she falls. “Huh. That is new.”

"What's that?" Saffron asks, reaching out to steady her.

“Lines of power,” she replied with an all encompassing gesture of her hand. “Everywhere. I didn’t see them until I shifted.”

"Really." Saffron reaches for mage sight, looking around again.

Skye opens her eyes carefully, one at a time, before finally looking up at the sky with both eyes open. It is so good to fly again. Maybe if she practices while they’re here, it will be easier in Amber. For a moment she forgets the weirdness that led them here and just revels.

The sky looks normal again to Skye - to Saffron, it's another matter. Twisting her perceptions to be able to 'see' magic isn't all that difficult for her - especially here - so it's less than a moment before she sees what Skye likely saw. Lines of power, force, criss-crossing the sky. The oddest part about them is how they appear and disappear, as if twisting out of the world itself.

"That," Saffron says, sounding a bit awed, "is weird. I see them. They're here, but there are parts that aren't really here." She frowns.

Skye looks over from contemplating things and asks: "Where are they?"

"Not here?" the sorceress answers. "They twist out of this world somewhere. I'd have to study it, and without doing that, I don't even know if I can tell, much less where they're headed. It's kind of like... oh, no." She sighed. "Remember that Pattern we found? It's kind of like that."