“Kanir, are you sure you won’t come to Gwint’s party?”

“I’m sure. Mother’s dropping by any moment.”

But he was gone, having probably not even heard much of her response. Of her current partners, he was the husband that she liked least of all. What the others saw in him, she couldn’t say.

Kanir floated into her bedchamber, her gown swirling about her. “Image,” she said. A three dimensional life-sized image of herself appeared. She regarded it from several angles for a few moments. As much as she liked the blue/green/silver aquatic palette of her current appearance, she had worn it for too long already. With a few words, she changed her eye, hair and skin colors, and changed her dress for one reminiscent of a gentle snow fall. Pleased with the effect, she went out to the gardens and quickly restyled the landscaping to complement her own appearance.

As she finished the landstyling, she spied a flying chariot drawn by winged horses in the distance.

Not a moment too soon, she thought. Mother’s here.