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[ She is silent until they reach the top of the steps, stopping long enough to say, ]

I miss the sound of the ocean. The waves crashing against the cliffside of the Rock. I thought I would get to hear it here but... I can't hear anything. At least nothing I want to hear.

May the nights be kind to you all the same.

[This might as well be a goodbye. Frank stays where he is. There is a party still going. And it won't be the last engagement if she and her kin stay in Dorne. A few days will pass until he requests a private audience with her.]

[ After that meeting, Karen had been more than content to stay in her room for the days after. Declining any other social gatherings and taking her meals in their quarters and citing how she was not feeling well if pushed.

When the request came to her from a messenger, she was honestly baffled. She wants to decline but her parents insist. He is a well-known figure in Dorne and has done quite well for himself. They are in no position to turn people away.

So she sits in the common room, waiting for him to be shown in, knees still sore when she walks but otherwise healing. ]

[Is she really going to stay locked away like that? Some sort of mythical princess in a tower. Dorne has had enough tragic ladies and the rumor mill was running with nothing to grease the wheels. Surely she's shamed. Surely she's in exile because she's with child and her family shared the burden. Perhaps her family is in danger and wish to be safe.

Frank didn't take stock in anything. Birds sing any song that is catchy.

He looks a little less fearsome then their first meeting, his beard more groomed and his robes a little more in Dornish fashion. There is a small air of surprise that she agreed to see him. And he gives her a cordial smile.]

Good day to you, my lady. I hope that the weather has been agreeable with your health.

[ That was her intention. Though it's best she remains ignorant of the rumors, however.

She gives him a glance when he walks in but then looks away, the anger she felt back when they were discussing his heritage flaring up again. ]

I wouldn't know. I've stayed inside.

[Frank's head bobs. The same as she was. Good. Maybe. He lightly clears his throat.]

I'd spoken to your father, there's been a cook in my employment and I care not for their technique. I come to find out they were trained in the kitchens of your Westerlands. He is at your disposal now.

[A small trifle, really. He tilts his head, studying her face even though her blue, blue eyes won't meet his.]

It's been as beautiful as it has been hot. Have you been trying to preserve your fair skin?

[ Her eyes snap back over to him, ]

Is that the only reason you're here? To give us a cook?

No. I came to have your company again.

[For whatever it is to her. It's a relief to have her eyes on him, though the disdain is scalding.]

My "company"?

[ Her tone is dripping with skepticism and she looks away again. ]

I'm sure there are plenty of other women here that would appreciate your "company" more.

Yes. Because we're talking.

[Frank tilts his head to one side.]

And many ladies aren't interested in conversation. And many are not so willing to argue with me. It's refreshing.

[ She sighs, shaking her head. ]

You come here because you like that I argue with you?

I confess that it would be more pleasant if there weren't so much arguing.

[Though there is something else there. Something in his smile.]

Wine?

[Since it is available.]

[ She shakes her head to the wine, still eyeing him with suspicion. ]

Why do you really want my company? Surely you know my feelings towards you and your heritage.

[The glass clinks and the wine pours beautifully into the goblet. He has a steady hand and fills it just so. It's not until he's finished that he turns back to her.]

I do.

[A careful sip before coming to a seat.]

My heritage is not well liked. I understand that. I'm not so sure why it is extended to me. If...that is the same issue.

It is when you've ridden with them. Lived with them and engaged in their "culture".

[ There's a bitterness to that last word and she doesn't refrain from letting it coat her tongue. ]

I don't like when men treat women like animals. I don't like it when Westerosi do it and I certainly don't like hearing about how it's done frequently across the Narrow Sea.

No Khalasar dares to follow the old ways as we had before the reign of our queen, my lady. And my father's was no exemption.

[He takes another drink and only allows his hand to curl into a fist.]

I am no khal. I came of age and chose to return to my mother and her land. That was a conscious decision.

[Frank shifts in his seat and leans forward.]

Are we the crimes of our blood? Are we the choices of our kin?

Only if you have committed those crimes.

[ She pushes defiantly, feeling this is a point that must be made clear if they are to ever move beyond this. She is not the other Lannisters and that's why she maintains such a stance. She will not turn and look the other way when such things are brought up. ]

I did not enslave a man, woman or child. And I did not take a woman for myself in anyway at all.

[Her stern sense of what is just is refreshing, direct. Usually women of the northern kigndoms choose to hide behind diplomacy or care. Lady Karen may not have a reason to fear for her life here there is no threat to her safety, not from Frank of all people.]

[ She watches him silently for a long moment, judging if he is telling the truth or not. Something tells her he is and she slowly gives a nod. ]

Good.

[ She looks away again, ]

What made you decide to come back?

[Stern silences were a staple of his youth. There is a little comfort in that. Frank takes another drink.]

My mother stayed in Dorne and I hadn't seen her since I was a child. My father died in the saddle the way all Dothraki wish to. It reminded me that life is short, that I had neglected another way of life.

[ A part of her feels bad about the things she had said, hating the very idea of losing either of her parents. But there wasn't any way for her to apologize for it now and sound sincere.

So, she went in a different direction. ]

She must've been happy to have you back after such a long time.

[Perhaps there will be a time for apologies. Perhaps not. He holds the goblet thoughtfully between his hands.]

Yes, very much so. She had thought me dead. My father was not one to write.

[A sniff is there in place of a laugh.]

[ She's silent for another long moment, looking at her hands in her lap. It's not really any of her business and yet... She's always been a curious girl. ]

What was she like? Your mother?

Very willful.

[And while it would usually be a negative or a complaint, he smiles wide. His eyes grow distant.]

She was always on the brink of being disowned. It never happened. She was too dear to my grandfather. Her journey to Essos tried his patience to the brink.

[As she can tell. Perhaps.]

[ She looks over in time to see the smile and it is both unexpected but welcoming. It makes his whole face seem... brighter. Warmer.

She feels a laugh bubble up at that, not able to really stop it so she turns her head away again, ]

I can only imagine. Coming back with a gift from the Gods.

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