[ and that's exactly the point - istredd has always known who yennefer was, one of the few who had a view into the before and the after (at least, until that blasted first horizon trip). and somewhere wrapped in that is yennefer's comfort in knowing it. in knowing that istredd does know all of those pieces of her, someone who yennefer really doesn't so much as bother to pretend to be anything other than the sharp wit, the edged words, the anger and the desperation and the hunger that she has always had.

( somehow, he is still here. )

yennefer snorts, briefly, at his comment. at the i'll remember that, if only because the image in her mind of the two of them meeting is as awkward and confusing as ever. ]

He's a hard man to miss. [ both in size and reputation, but yennefer doesn't bother adding any additional insight to that. instead, she lets the words hang, her mind shifting entirely to geralt, to the fact istredd knows him, to whatever godsforsaken reason they would have to cross paths. despite her best efforts, some part of yennefer feels wronged, and annoyed - what right did the two of them have to cross paths? what were they doing? she's glad that they've made it into the relative safety of this room, now, because there is no longer a need to keep up that lady yennefer, all pretenses and lies falling to the wayside. ]

Triss sent him to you? [ that anger almost immediately dissipates, as it usually does where it concerns triss. she'd known of triss and geralt's previous interactions, had warned triss away from continued contact with him for...well. a variety of reasons. but knowing that triss sent geralt to him makes her think-

no. there's no real purpose to go down that road. it won't change where things stand. and then istredd keeps talking, says i was in cintra and yennefer's chest does tighten at the thought. that he was waiting for her, hoping she'd made it across the continent to the city. but the monolith, the shattered stone... yennefer frowns, trying to and thinking she may be making the connection, but still somehow confused as to why. why would geralt care about monoliths? from what she has heard, his entire focus during this time, while he was home, it was ciri. keeping her safe, keeping her protected, keeping her-

yennefer pauses for a moment, realizing. oh. oh.

but she doesn't say this aloud, because there's no reason for istredd to know, is there? and this- this opens doors. explains more than anything yennefer had even considered. she tucks it away for now, blinking once to bring herself back to istredd's words. ]

It follows a lot of what we do know about the Singularity here, yes. Though the chaos that it collects exceeds anything the monoliths back in our sphere could ever be. While it acts as a portal to bring us here, it also keeps its connection to us, too. Its magic has influence over us, over all the chaos across the continent. [ but she supposes he'll figure that all out on his own. she shakes her head, turning to walk over to the table in the center of the room, reaching for the pitcher of wine that kylo keeps stocked and pouring herself a glass - because she needs one, if they're going to have this conversation. ]

There are just about fifty of us Summoned here, spread out across the Continent. The three main kingdoms - Thorne being one - all have their different reasons for Summoning, but the cycle is fairly consistent. You're part of the new group that has just come through.

[ might as well get this all out of the way. ]