They’re not tormented or anguished for long on the borders of an old world she used to cherish, used to protect, for no sooner had she bid welcome and salutations did one arrive in the form of a familiar, beloved friend. How oddly time had shorn and frayed the edges of assaults and defeats, carried and caressed, finessed and cradled the promises of renewal and resurgences. Not many seasons ago she wouldn’t have been permitted to wander into these scenic halls and indulge in the sea air she’d once loved so much, and now, she was received with amiability and beneficence. Had they all grown so much? The outcry was a wondrous beam of hope, the fluttering of wings, quite grown since she’d seen them last, and the inky, ivory splashed plumes a way to nurture enlightened smiles and unearthly grins. While Hemlock hooted and trumpeted, played with Imogen who chittered, chattered and batted at him in return, Lena’s heart opened to the delight of Alysanne’s arrival, thrusting away the poltergeists and lingering damnations. Welcomed, despite everything that had occurred there (wars, battles, sieges, lives lost, children stolen, bleating for their mothers), received and greeted by its nurturing arms. Her voice bordered on the serene, on the majestic, on the tranquil, for all the niceties expressed through the Pegasus’ warmth and deliverance, because she was just as thrilled, just as ebullient, to see the pair. “Alysanne! I’m so happy to see you! Have you and Hemlock been well?” Her companion’s keen observations landed upon the carefully kept herbs in Imogen’s maw, and the Time Mender grinned all the more for the astute perusal (noted the ruminations of a garden, for it sounded absolutely divine and heavenly). “We brought some herbs from the Basin. I’m sure some look familiar to you?” Before she could gesture towards the specific plants locked in the vixen’s jaws, another settled before them, companion and equine, and it took her a few moments to rekindle the recognition – the femme with a dragon, not altogether poised, careening through the sky when they’d wandered from the hilltops of ice and snow, trying to connect, trying to establish, a peaceful interlude. All beneficence and nightingale song, the nymph delighted in the draconic figure, now much more composed, much more capable, and the dove settling in whimsical coos. If Resplendence felt any terror or apprehension from her appearance, the sylph tried her best to assuage the sentiments – regal, composed, elegant and refined, bubbling, blossoming ebullience. “Oh! I remember you – from when we offered a truce between the Edge and the Basin. But, I’ll reintroduce myself! Lena, Time Mender of the Basin, and my companion, Imogen.” She paused, glancing skyward to the agile lizard, brandishing a tiny grin. “I’m glad to see your bonded has grown.” Then she winked, as if sharing in a delightful joke (or perhaps pretending the dragon hadn’t tried to scorch Roland once upon a time), continuing the conversation, delving into curiosity and exploits. “I suppose these plants will be for your garden. What a remarkable thing to have in your herd! Was it your idea?”