The pause was noted, considered, weighed, met with approval, and stored away into Hild's mind for later remembrance. Still she called Northumbria home, but that did not stop her from calling Darrow home as well. One she had been born to; the other, she had grown in. As a young woman who had spent nearly all of her life moving from place to place, stronghold to stronghold, following the seasons, home was a shifting concept, as intangible as the wind. She knew her place, the places she filled, and that was all that mattered.

Hild's eyes widened as she listened to Effy's tale of an island, seemingly commanded by the same magic that ruled their lives here. The inexplicable appearances and disappearances. The magical provisions (for there certainly wasn't enough farmland within the confines of Darrow to feed the entire city with what made up their daily meals). The way Effy's memories came and went. She wondered at it, wondered how the knot of connection was made, but, as with so much in Darrow, there was no readily available answer. All she could do was soak up the information that Effy gave her and try to fit it into place later. If she wanted to. She wished for understanding even as she did not wish to return home, but she knew others did. Others wanted simply the option.

"Is it better though?" Hild asked. She knew that she should tread carefully, not lead them astray into dark thoughts, but Effy had been open so far and Hild wondered. "Do those memories help you now or do they only hurt?"