Ri has turned the paper over in his hands a million times within the last hour. It's what he's been waiting for, what he's been looking for since the moment he was capable of thinking cognizant thoughts. His mother returned from her trip, all smiles and cheers, and simply handed him the small piece of parchment and told him that his father would meet him there.

Just like that. That's all she bothered to say. Just "your father will meet you there". She merely pulled Estara away with her after that, not bothering to even explain to Ri how she had come across his father in the first place. Or... Or...

Ri doesn't know what to think. He barely knows how to react. Whenever he has thought about finding his father in the past, it seemed like something looming in the distance, a goal he wasn't going to achieve any time soon.

And then his mother returns home and just casually hands him coordinates that will lead him to his father.

A thousand thoughts race through Ri's head. What if he's disappointed? What if Den De'narian doesn't live up to the person he's become in his head, the person his mother's stories painted him to be? Or worse... what if Den is disappointed in him. What if Ri turns out to be the last thing Den expected -- or wanted -- as a child. What if he decides he wants nothing to do with Ri...? What if these coordinates aren't even correct and he's not even there when Ri shows up?

Ri curses himself mentally, kicking the nearest flower bush, crushing the small flowers therein, as he paces through the gardens. Just yesterday he was teasing Estara about taking her frustrations out on the floral population. Now he's doing the exact same thing.

It must run in the family.

Ri stops at one of the pillars and sags against it, banging his head against the marble slab. He's being ridiculous. Very much so. He's wanted this for thousands of years. Stars, it's all he's ever wanted. But now... he can't move.

He can't help but feel like he's wasting time, that Den is already waiting at those coordinates and Ri is just not showing up. His mother didn't think this through. Would it have hurt her to discuss a meeting time with Den? Sometimes he wonders how she even remembers to find her own room.

Ri supposes he could just go to the coordinates and wait there until his father shows up -- if he's going to show up. But that feels desperate. Is he desperate? Yes, very much so.

Time. He's wasting a lot of it. It's not even like he's doing anything productive with it! He's just sitting here in the garden now, feeling sorry for himself. Brilliant. This is absolutely brilliant.

He drags a hand through his pale blond hair. It has grown a bit longer than he normally keeps it, falling to the middle of his back instead of to his shoulders. And why he's thinking of his hair right now, is beyond him. Stars. He really is looking for any excuse now, isn't he?

Should he get a haircut before leaving?

No. Stop it Ri. Just go. He frowns at his own scolding.

It's easy. All he has to do is open a portal to that location, walk through it, and he'll be there. There's nothing to it. Practically as easy as breathing.

He remains sitting against the pillar. Why did he ever for one minute think that finding his father was going to be easy? He was an idiot, that's what it is.

An idiot that is still wasting time that he could have been spending meeting his father.

Stars. His father. Having a father at all is a concept that's new and foreign to Ri. He's grown up his whole life without one, he's so used to only having his mother and Estara... how is he supposed to deal with having a father?

What does one even say to their father? Especially one they have never met. "Uhm, hi? I'm your son you never met... and like... hi..."

Ri curses himself again. He is really going to have to come up with something better than that.

He needs to go. Stars. He's never going to know if he doesn't go. And there's a very likely chance that Den is just as nervous to meet him as he is to meet Den. The thought helps comfort him a little, but not much. Not much at all. But if he's not the only one feeling awkward, at least he doesn't have to feel like an idiot alone.

With a deep breath, Ri rises to his feet. He needs to go. It's now or never. If he sits back down now, he's never getting back up.

And then he's never meeting his father.

Oh stars, what if this is a mistake?

He slaps himself. Get yourself together, Ri. You're better than this.

Coordinates. Portal. Step through. Easy.

Breathe. He can't forget the breathing thing.

Summoning his strength and courage -- two things he really doesn't possess in this moment -- he opens a violet-amber portal. It forms right in front of him, and for a moment Ri only looks at it. This is his last chance.

His last chance to get cold feet.

He's not getting cold feet.

He squashes down his remaining doubts and pinches his eyes closed before taking one step forward and falling through the portal.

His portal deposits him in a city, one that upon quick assessment looks very nice -- almost homey. It's not as extravagant and gaudy as the Lescaean streets that he's used to. The thought is strangely comforting. His violet-amber eyes scan the area, taking in the sights. It's very clean, free of trash and debris. The buildings are made of brick, stone and wood, and in the distance he spots a white marble castle rising above everything, reaching for the brilliant blue sky. It's early afternoon here, despite it being evening in Kracia when he left.

To his left there is a two story structure with a neat sign declaring it as an inn, while on his right there is a larger stone building that appears to be a shop of some sort. A wooden bridge connects the two buildings on the second stories. More directly in front of him, on a set of wide stone steps leading down the slope into the city, sits a man. Ri's eyes land on him and decide to stay there.

Ri doesn't think he can breathe.

What is breathing?

He's heard his mother's descriptions enough times to know exactly who the man on the steps is. He sits very still and has his hands clasped between his knees. His silver hair is tied back in a long ponytail, with a smaller braid hanging in front of his right ear, and a pair of silver ear guards cover his long elfin ears. He's wearing a white shirt, black pants, and black boots. He appears to have been sitting there for a while.

Ri was right about wasting time.

The man -- Den -- is staring at Ri with an expression... that he can't read.

Is that disapproval? Shock? Does he not want to say something?

Stars. He's made a mistake in coming, hasn't he?

He should probably go. But Ri finds that he can't move and that he's now staring at Den in much the same manner.

A moment passes before Den stands and clears his throat, obviously more in control of himself than Ri is. Ri can't move. "Good afternoon," he says, bowing from the waist. His voice is deep, and very pleasant, with a rough quality to it. Ri also notices the accent, but it's something he expected since his father's natural tongue isn't Lescaean. It's a lot richer and more pleasant to listen to than the Lescaean men, however, but Ri figures he's just biased.

"Uhm," Ri begins, unable to remember how to speak. "Hi."

Brilliant. It's going worse than he envisioned it in his head.

Den takes a step forward and holds out his hand, clearing his throat again. "Yes. Hello. I'm Den. You probably already know that." He sighs.

Ri nods slowly. "I would hope so, otherwise I'm in the wrong place..."

He realizes after a minute passes that he still hasn't taken Den's hand, and then only because Den drops his hand. He mentally curses himself and awkwardly extends and retracts his hands. "Right..."

Den arches a brow. "I don't think shaking is going to work for us," he says.

"I guess not," Ri says, using his hand to scratch his head. "I'm Ri... but my mother probably already told you that... uhm... so..."

Den nods once. "Yes. She did," he says, and then his voice drops so low that if Ri was anyone else, he wouldn't be able to hear it. "And that's all she told me, the deranged pixie woman." He sighs again.

Ri bites back a laugh. "Yes, my mother is known for her wonderful explanation skills. She simply handed me your note and told me to go meet you."

Den barks a laugh and looks at Ri curiously. "And you came," he says like he's surprised.

"You didn't think I would?"

Ri doesn't mention the fact that he wasn't expecting Den to be here either.

Den scratches his neck. "Ten thousand years is a long time," he says softly.

Ri nods slowly, and then forgets to stop the action. "It is," he agrees, when he finally remembers.

Den clears his throat again, then pinches the bridge of his nose. "If you need a drink as much as I do, we should go inside. Because I bloody well need a drink."

Ri nods again, unsure of what else to do or say, but opts to just gesture at Den to lead the way.

Den nods as well and leads Ri into the inn. Ri's eyes skitter briefly over his new surroundings, but he doesn't really focus on distinct details. He can't focus. Focusing is not something he does. Was it ever? He can't remember.

What he is able to gather, however, is that the room is cozy, with a lot of chairs around tables, with lanterns on the ceiling, a big fireplace at one end, and a long bar at the other. There is one man working, and another sitting on one of the stools, eyeing the two of them with intense amusement.

Den strides toward the bar. "Give me something strong," he says to the bartender.

"And by that he means coffee," the other man says, interjecting, as Ri walks up beside his father.

He's going to have to get used to calling him that.

"By that I mean you should keep your stars blasted nose out of it, Eilon," Den snaps, and Eilon -- Eilon... that Eilon? -- merely tsks at him.

"You swore off drinking. I'm just helping you out."

"I'm un-swearing," Den growls.

"Doesn't work like that. Besides, I'm just looking out for you." He grins widely and looks back at the bartender. "Just coffee. He has a drinking problem."

"Why did I ask you to come? Go home. Go away. Go somewhere else!" He waves him off and manifests a bottle of vodka, and is about to take a drink when Eilon snatches it from him.

"We talked about this, love," he says, and takes a drink from the bottle instead.

Den grabs the bottle back and kicks Eilon across the room before taking a seat on Eilon's stool, drinking from the bottle as if nothing happened.

Ri watches both of them, his gaze darting between them, unsure of what he is supposed to do or say.

He's not normally this awkward or unsure of himself.

And he's also now wondering about Eilon, and if that's the Eilon he thinks it is... his uncle Eilon...

Den manifests another bottle and holds it out to Ri. "Ignore the idiot currently groaning on the floor," he says.

Ri steps closer and takes the seat beside Den, accepting the bottle, albeit warily. "Okay..."

Eilon disappears a second later, only to reappear on Ri's other side after a moment. "Do excuse Den's manners. It's not every day he's this flustered."

"I swear, Pasquale, you're a dead man," Den growls.

Eilon ignores him, gesturing. "You see my point? I really hope you didn't inherit that temper of his... it would be unfortunate."

Ri blinks at him.

He extends a hand. "I'm Cal, or Eilon... or, you can pretty much call me whatever you want since everyone else seems to."

"Idiot is an excellent term. As is punching bag... and floormat," Den adds.

Eilon ignores him. "I'm Yveira's baby brother. So I guess that makes me your uncle. Nice to meet you."

Ri forgets that he's supposed to take his hand too, but Eilon doesn't drop his hand like Den did. Instead, he reaches for Ri's hand and puts it in his own to shake. "There, a shake. See? Easy."

Den is suddenly very quiet, and Eilon's eyes flicker over to him.

"Den, you are brooding. It's unbecoming," he says, sighing deeply.

"Apparently I'm a grumpy old drunk, so no, it's not," he snaps.

Ri really doesn't know what he's supposed to do or say.

"You aren't helping yourself at all by continuing to act like one," Eilon says, tsking. He reaches over Ri to grab Den's hand, and puts it into Ri's. "Now you shake," he says as if speaking to a toddler.

Den very slowly lifts his eyes from his bottle to Eilon, and Eilon slowly moves away, lifting his hands in surrender.

"Okay, okay. Bring him by the cabin when you're done here. Kat's making pancakes for dinner," he says with a bright smile before he just disappears.