Kaelyn blinked once. Then again.
Nope. Still there.
Corvin, the Raven, the infamous cursed elf, the subject of whispered fear and reluctant admiration was indeed sitting in her guestroom, lounging with all the casual entitlement of a man who had simply wandered in to borrow sugar.
Awkward silence hovered like a fog, thick and intrusive.
Kaelyn stood abruptly, nearly tripping over her own blanket, she kept her eyes locked on him as though blinking again might cause him to vanish and leave her holding the blame. Her body tensed with the sudden shift from half asleep to painfully half aware. She cleared her throat, tried to find a shred of composure, and summoned the most formal tone she could muster through the haze of shock:
"Mr. Corvin, Duchess Yvanna cordially invites you, very kindly I might add to discuss the recent developments and explore potential avenues of collaboration."
It sounded rehearsed. It was rehearsed. And the awkwardness in her voice wasn't helping.
