After lunch was finished, the three went their separate ways. Callum went to hunt down the various Elven ambassadors to say, very diplomatically, that they should go home until the brothers had at least some idea of what Callum needed to accomplish for them to take him seriously as a mage. Ezran had messages to send via Crow Lord, saying pretty much the same thing to the other human leaders, though his read more along the lines of "We're trying to solve the problem of elf stubbornness, please be patient with us and don't declare war because they're being cryptic." They promised to meet up for dinner once their various messages had been delivered.

Rayla also had someone to see and a message to pass on.

With a heavy heart, she walked to a small room that was really more of an antechamber to the throne room. Here, Ezran kept the coins that held the Moonshadow elves Viren had imprisoned. It had been a bittersweet day when Rayla saw the results of what had befallen her parents, especially since the spell had no known reversal and the traitor wasn't exactly around for their resident mage to interrogate. Still, they could react to outside stimuli, so Callum had slowly been teaching them sign language with Gren's help since he was busy more often than not. Rayla had learned as well, and made sure to visit them every time she was in the castle. At least the coin magic seemed to interfere with the ghosting spell, so she could actually see them.

"Hi Mom, Dad," she greeted the two elves displayed right next to each other.

The couple waved from their coins, smiles on their faces. Back already? Dad signed. Did they remove the spell?

"Yep!" she chirped happily as she sat in the chair provided, in case of extended conversation with the trapped elves or a lesson. The small tables displaying the coins were at eye level once you sat and the stands could be moved up and down. "Ethari managed to convince everyone, along with a message from the Dragon Queen. I'm not a ghost anymore." They both smiled and signed how happy they were. "Of course, I'll work on getting you un-ghosted too once you're out of those coins," she promised.

Her mother shook her head. Concentrate on your own life, she chastised. Don't worry about us. Rayla huffed. They said something to that end every time she spoke with them. We've accepted this, we'll be fine, we're just glad to see you…it was all they ever said. They deserved so much better than this. You should go talk to Runaan, her father signed. He's been worried.

The elf nodded and turned the chair. Runaan at least was determined to get out of his imprisonment. "Hey Runaan," she started to get his attention.

Then his hands started flying. Rayla! Were you unghosted? How is Ethari? Is the baby alright? How much time until the birth? Did you give him my message?

Rayla held up her hands. "Slow down, I can hardly understand. Yes, I was unghosted. Ethari and the babies are both fine. They have a-"

But rapid hand movements cut her off. Babies?! Then the trained assassin devolved into flailing and clutching his horns, staring at her with wide eyes.

"Oh yeah, they found out he's having twins. He seemed really surprised when the healer told him." It was quite funny, actually. He'd immediately started panicking and trying to get back to his workshop, babbling about needing another crib. "Can I continue?" she asked with a raised brow.

Behind her back, her father signed, Now that's some attitude I'm glad we missed, to his wife. She threw her head back and laughed obviously enough for him to see and join in.

After Runaan sheepishly motioned for Rayla to go on, she said, "There's five months until the births, and yes, I gave him your message." She reached out and touched the coin. "He said to tell you to pick two boy names and two girl names, that his love is still with you, and that he really misses you. Actually," she thought out loud, sitting up straighter, "he might be coming here soon. Callum needs some help with magic and stuff, so we're leaving for the Silver Grove tomorrow to talk to him and to try and get him to come back with us."

Watching her dignified assassination leader do the equivalent of a happy dance in his coin made Rayla's heart swell. Once Runaan finished celebrating, he started signing again. Will he be alright to make the journey?

She scoffed. "Ethari still forges swords regularly. He'll be fine."

He's doing WHAT? He shouldn't even be near the forge, what if he inhales too much smoke or burns himself? And Runaan was back to gripping his horns.

But Rayla just rolled her eyes. "Ethari's not some apprentice smith, he's not going to hurt himself. And he's being super careful." Runaan was completely still, listening avidly, so she continued. "He doesn't go on any hunts or journeys by himself, he's very careful with what he eats, and he hasn't touched anything stronger than Moonberry juice in months. He'll be fine." Then under her breath, she muttered, "Callum could learn a thing or two from him."

Apparently, she hadn't been as quiet as she thought. What's wrong with Callum, Runaan signed. Rayla was tempted to roll her eyes and not answer, but her guardian did look worried.

"He's just not taking very good care of himself lately. He could be in a delicate state, and he's not taking the proper precautions."

The elf started to sign again, but halted and pointed behind her. She turned in her chair and saw her mother waving to catch her attention. Is he sick? The woman asked with her fingers.

The girl tucked her braid back behind her ear. "We don't know. Something's going on, and I think I know what it is, but we have to go see Ethari for sure. That's all I can say about it." She wasn't about to out her friend for something that might turn out to be incorrect.

Her parents looked at each other, back at her, and signed when are you leaving?

"Tomorrow."

For the record, I did not give Ethari twins on a whim. I have two reasons, one of which will be explained later. The second was the timing. The first time the crew met Ethari, he was only two months along which, if he only has one baby, wouldn't show. BUT, if he has twins, there's already a small bump by that time, enough for Callum to get curious about.

On another note, I think getting trapped in a coin negates ghosting. In the series, Runaan obviously knows what's in the coin when Viren shows them to him as a threat. Once he gets trapped in the coin, Runaan was still able to move. That's where the idea for sign language conversations with those trapped came from.