is there room for one more son?

It was close to 1am when the King of Camelot knocked on the door of the Sato family's Foxwood cottage.

Bleary and fairly sure he was hallucinating from stress, Rhian staggered downstairs in his nightshirt and opened the door.

He was not hallucinating.

"...you came without guards?"

"Are Kei's family here? We need to speak in private." said Tedros, as if he hadn't heard the question. Rhian peered about, but sure enough, there was only one horse, cropping the grass next to Kei's mother's fig trees.

"They're visiting family in Ladelflop." he said warily, not opening the door fully. "What's so important?" He had had no contact with Tedros since the... events of six months ago, and had assumed it was going to remain that way. Apparently he'd been incorrect.

"Your brother's magic."

Rhian stiffened.

"...Ah." he said. Reluctantly, he opened the door. "You should probably come in."

"Coffee? Tea?"

"Tea, no sugar." said Tedros briskly, declining Rhian's invitation to sit down and standing stiffly in the middle of the kitchen. "Well? What do you know about it?"

Clearly, he wasn't much interested in pleasantries.

Rhian stared at him, setting the kettle on the stove.

"...is this to do with Agatha?"

Tedros's lips thinned, and Rhian wished he hadn't asked. Clearly, it was.

These last six months-- and the restoration of his throne-- had clearly been kind to Tedros. He looked stronger, less hollow and hunted, and though he seemed uncomfortable standing in the tiny kitchen, it wasn't the sort of uncomfortable that Rhian could prey on. One that was at his expense, not Tedros's own; it was Kei's family's tiny kitchen with a low ceiling and draughty windows, after all.

Kei's cat, Hana, jumped onto the table to examine the newcomer. Tedros politely let her sniff his hand, and once he was deemed acceptable, scratched her ears. Rhian, who had seen him fighting with Agatha's cat before, frowned. He was clearly a man reformed in more ways than just one.

As he rifled around for tea leaves, he found he was actively trying not to make eye contact with Tedros. Rhian remembered vividly the first time he'd met him; the derision that he'd swallowed while pledging himself to such a pathetic specimen of a man, stood in his overlarge black cloak, covered in blood and dirt. Barely a man, let alone King. Now... well. Even if he wanted to-- and he had wanted to-- he wouldn't be able to contest his claim.

In the reflection of the mirror next to the door, he could see the double scabbard on Tedros's belt, both Caliburn and the Akgul blade accounted for. Rhian could dismiss it as precautions for riding in the Woods alone... but he wasn't so naïve as that. Whatever Tedros wanted, he clearly wasn't leaving until he had it.

"Is she unwell?" asked Rhian, handing Tedros his tea. He knew it was a bad idea to ask, but he was intensely curious. Although the papers had an irritating, weepy fascination with Agatha-- the Maidenvale Mail especially loved to rehash the sob story-- he'd not seen any suggestion that she was ailing. She'd been seen in public as recently as a few days ago. "The papers--"

He was interrupted.

"Rhian, what's-- oh." Kei stopped in the doorway, face closing off in a second. "King Tedros."

"Apologies for the late hour," said Tedros, not sounding sorry at all, "But this is important."

Kei didn't question what this was, even though he clearly wanted to know. Born and bred guard. He didn't say anything, in fact; just came to stand stiffly next to Rhian, picking up the cat as he went.