The meeting broke up without ceremony. Valttair kept his place at the head of the table while the rest of the family rose, chairs dragging over the stone as the servants pulled the doors wide again, and quiet conversations started up between the branches.
Trafalgar was among the first out. He had no cause to linger; Valttair had given him everything he needed in private, and standing at the patriarch's shoulder now would undo the whole impression the seating had just built.
The distance between their chairs had done its work. Maeron had marked it, Seraphine had marked it as well, and both of them had looked from him to his father when they came through the doors, trying to guess what had passed between them.
Trafalgar was content to leave them guessing.
