"We should--probably figure something out, I hate to interject sense into fun but I don't really want to vindicate Marille's worries..."

"What's she worried about?"

"That we'll escalate too far and someone will get hurt by accident."

"Doesn't seem super likely."

"True, but--there's only so much farther we can escalate."

"True."

"And I like you and I would kind of like to interact with you in a less--oppositional--manner than this."

"We can call it a draw."

"Okay. Now I just have to figure out what to do with the stuff I was going to ambush you with."

"And, like, what we're doing instead."

"Yeah. I know you spend a decent fraction of your time running around the countryside with your magic dog hunting things..."

"I do."

"Sounds fun, but maybe not something I want to make a default what with my twin attached to Tirion."

"We could kidnap her?"

"Tempting, but that might fall under 'actual harm'."

"Well, I'll see you when I'm in town, anyway. I do stop by sometimes."

"Yeah. And, you know, I can come along sometimes. Just not all the time."

"You'd want to?"

"I haven't tried it! If I hate it I can just, you know, not do it again, and I like you, and getting away from--well, almost everyone in Tirion who isn't related to one of us, it seems like sometimes--sounds nice."

"Definitely the best part."

"Most people in Tirion are pretty okay over, like, the short term, but. We live here! Because family."

"I don't know why my dad didn't pack up Years ago. Nelyo, maybe."

"Seems plausible. Also I think the linguistics guild might be hard to convince to move?"

"The people he likes would follow him."

"It could just be Maitimo. I don't really know your dad that well, mostly I have secondhand reports from Marille."