Hello, darlings.

[The voice is soft, almost gentle. It's a woman's voice, one who sounds fairly young but still bears a weight and authority.]

I heard distressing reports that Mother was very ill, and it seems they were true. That's most concerning. To be quite honest, I half thought her immortal.

I suppose that mystery remains locked away. No matter.

[Then, she sighs and clears her throat.]

I apologise. I've forgotten my manners. Introductions, of course. My name is, quite honestly, irrelevant. The people who know me best here call me Cat, and I invite you to do the same.

I understand many of you have suffered a great deal. As it is, I'm attempting to arrange a little present for all of you Travelers, something to make your stay here a little easier.

It's no small task, and I don't want to name it for fear I won't be able to deliver, but I promise I will try.

In other matters, I suppose I owe it to Mother to warn you that I'm afraid you haven't heard the last of dear Hawtrey. I fear he's disturbing those best left to rest, but I can't be sure yet why. I intend to look into the matter more thoroughly, but I am almost certain no good can come of it.

[Another sigh and something that might be a chuckle but very soft. A tired sound, perhaps.]

That's quite enough about me, I think. What I'm interested in is all of you. You must have realised by now how much magic there is in this place. One can almost breathe it in, the air is so thick with it. Is that common, in the places all of you came from? Or is this quite foreign?

Other worlds do fascinate me so.