Kell thought so, but his satisfaction lasts only seconds when he remembers that Sirius' brother is removed from him by the same distance between his own world and Darrow. And it grows worse - Sirius' brothers are both dead.

"I'm sorry," he says quietly, wishing for a moment that he had Rhy's gift for words. He doesn't have to imagine the pain of losing two brothers - he can simply magnify his grief for Rhy by two - what Kell can't imagine is how Sirius is still able to smile under the weight of that. Disease could claim so many at once, or an accident. But it's to a third possibility that Kell's mind immediately goes, spurred on, perhaps, by the King's constant worry.

"War?"