Barbara opened the door slowly and stepped in, shutting it quietly behind her. "I hope you're hungry, because I brought you some rolls and cheese." She started. "Or did you get breakfast already?"

Maitiu looked up with interest. "I pecked about a bit," he said, rising, "but I can always eat again."

She handed over the bag containing the food, leaning down to kiss his cheek. "They may be a bit cold. What did you do this morning?" She asked, in a tone that suggested that she was only looking for a way to talk about her own.

He looked a little amused by the bag of goodies. "What, have we been reduced to stealing food off a window ledge?" He peeked inside, then looked up at her. "Absolutely jackshit, but I bet you're going to tell me what you've been up to."

"No, silly, I don't like to have my hands full of rolls." She gave his hip an affectionate squeeze. "Unless they're yours, and you've barely got any." She perched herself on the bed. "I spoke to Neely, and Moira, and then I just ran into the new Earl of Cnoch na Niall." She rolled her eyes. "Neely was worried about us."

"Neely?" he said flatly. "Neely O'Niall? The one with two facial expressions? What was he worried about, are they going to start taxing blow-jobs?"

She burst out laughing and shook her head. "No, worried about us. He didn't know where we went. Worried in a, where did my expensive jewelry go way." She explained, and began to carefully take her shoes off. "Not actually worried. He said all sorts of things about what he wants us to go look at on the Mainland. It's more than just the machine. People are looking into old burrows. Barrows. You know."

Maitiu's face went tight, as if he'd been punched in the stomach. "Bunch of old dead chieftainesses and reindeer bones and tin jewelery. They're not going to find much. Did he say why? And how the hell does he know about it?"

"Circles. They're trying to find circles." She said, watching his face with concern. "He said the Emperor the one giving all the money, but Neely did something to discredit the person leading it. He wants us to go there and figure out what they know, I guess." She shrugged. "You look angry." She said, careful to keep her tone calm.

"You'd be angry too if someone was diggin' up your people's graves," he said, scowling. "So they're goin' through the old barrows on the mainland to try to figger out how they're connected to the circles? I could tell them that." He lifted an eyebrow. "I won't. But I could."