?How long are you going to lay on the couch, pining away?? Ishmerai stood in the doorway of his bedroom, leaning on the doorframe, frowning at her.

Jewell, who had been staring at the ceiling, sighed and looked away from him. ?I?m not pining.?

He snorted, pushing off the doorframe and walking across the room to hover over her. ?You are. Ever since you saw Stephen again, you have been completely discontent and moody. You lay around all day long. You stopped eating again.? She glanced over at him quickly with a scowl. ?Yes, I noticed. Try harder next time.? She looked away again, prompting him to nudge her. ?Come on. Get up. We are going out.?

?Don?t want to. I have to duel tonight. I need to conserve my strength.?

Ishmerai rolled his eyes at the back of her head before nudging her a bit harder this time. ?Get up. I want to show you something.?

Turning her head, she eyed him suspiciously for a moment; he seemed so pleased about whatever secret he was sitting on. Groaning, she sat up slowly, ?Fine fine. Let?s go.?

He smiled as he helped pull her off the couch, and she could almost imagine there was a bounce to his step as he lead her out of the hotel and onto the streets of RhyDin. Jewell trailed a bit dolefully behind him as he lead her around; she refrained from complaining, whining, or asking where they were going. Instead, she marveled at how quickly Ishmerai had mastered the layout of the city. He was clearly trying to hide their destination because their path seemed very windy and loopy.

The only hint she received of their destination was when they ended up in the neighborhood they had found over a month ago on one of their runs. It followed the curve of the river in Old Market, and they could hear the calls from the docks, the majority of which lay across the river. The mixture of houses and business, the former once grand when they were built, were fairly run-down. Some were even abandoned. There were a few people out and about in the afternoon, but the normal hustle and bustle of most RhyDin neighborhoods was somewhat lacking here. Still, Jewell had fell in love with the old cobblestone streets, the family-owned businesses, and the few derelict mansions.

?Why are we back here? I mean, I know you wanted to try out that one restaurant, but you didn?t have to drag me out for that today.? She voiced her confusion.

?Because...? Ishmerai swung behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders to direct her down the street a bit more, stopping her in front of the house she had set her heart on.

The ?for sale? sign was gone, but that was not the only change that had been worked upon the place. The weeds that had overgrown the yard had been tamed, but the ivy was still allowed to climb free over the facade of the house and the outer wall. New windows shined and glimmered as the sun hit them, the roof was clearly mended, and any other visible structural problems had been redressed, including the wide front steps that were no longer chipped and crumbling. Jewell stared in disbelief and confusion, blinking as a set of keys were suddenly dangled in front of her face. She looked from the keys to Ishmerai?s grinning face. ?You did all this?? she asked in disbelief.

He feigned hurt, ?Of course. I am fully capable of accomplishing such tasks, and all without you noticing I might add.?

The keys clanked to the ground as Jewell threw her arms around her knight, hugging him tightly. ?Thank you thank you! It looks perfect!? With her arms still around him, she pulled back a little to look at him eagerly. ?Can we go inside now? What did you do to it already??

He disentangled himself from her with a laugh, reaching down to retrieve the keys and handing them off to her. ?Yes, we can go inside. And not much was done aside from making it structurally sound and safe. I thought you would want to make all the other decisions.? She practically ?squeed? in delight, grabbing the keys and fumbling with them a bit to unlock the gate and using her shoulder to push it open; it was still made of iron and she could feel the heat of it through her sleeve. ?We shall have to figure out another material to use for the gates of course,? Ishmerai explained as he trailed after her, careful not to touch the swinging gate himself, ?but I was not sure what you would want to go with.? He stopped talking then because she wasn?t listening. She was running from the path over to the weeded drive, back over to the front steps, and then off to the other side of the house to examine some wild flowers growing there.

Ishmerai finally had to coral her into the house, where a whole other stream of excited noises and exclamations were to be had. They spent the rest of the day going over every inch of the house, no nook or cranny overlooked. The depressed girl of that morning had transformed into her more normal, animated self. They played with their glamour, decorating rooms with colors and furniture, determining the use for each and compiling a to-do list. Despite the work Ishmerai had already ordered, there was a lot to be done. ?I really did not think we needed such a big house, but you seemed to want it so much,? he remarked to her at one point.

?Of course we do, Ishmerai! I have to live in style in RhyDin; it?s expected of me.? She played with the colors on the wall of the formal sitting room, changing it to a rusty orange. ?Besides,? she tried to add on casually, ?there?s room enough for the kids here.?

He stared at her, her back turned to him as she changed the color of the room once more to a sage green, and nodded. It was not a topic he would ever introduce between them, and now did not seem to be the time to pursue it. He stuck with the safer line of conversation: ?And parties too, I assume??

She laughed, turning to smile at him. ?Well of course. Every socialite knows how to throw a party. The large drawing room is perfect for dancing, too. And when we string lights across the patio, we can open the doors so it will be even better!? Grasping his arm, she dragged him into the drawing room to show him exactly what she meant, giving his arm a little squeeze at some point. The house was perfect. The perfect size and location, and the perfect distraction to keep her busy.