She'd been wary, when Christophe sent the news. Was it true? Could it be? She'd come to verify them herself, to assure the rest that Gustave wasn't blinded by the imitations of someone choosing to play on his heart. They had not parted easily with the Deck; it was possible that the Deck would choose to deceive them in this manner. And Christophe had not known Astraia well.

But no. It was the friend she'd long known, the one she'd mourned with everyone else. So Silke stayed in the Deck, stayed to help her friend work through her memories, stayed to forge strong links between the two lands.

She pauses when she realises that Astraia's stopped walking, takes her hand and leads her gently to a bench to sit down. She can wait. Astraia needs time, that's all.