"Where was the bust found? Was it here all along?"
"Yeah, it was built as part of their mausoleum. Not long before my own families one here was. We certainly put them in the shade."
Ana looks at each of the mausoleums, looking for the characteristics that cause the woman to say they were "put in the shade". What would it take for the sunset to shine on the bust?
"Why do the families have such mutual dislike?"
"Age old enmity. They are scum."
As she looks back and forth between the two mausoleums, Ana shakes her head. Such waste in pursuit of revenge for an act that neither side probably remembers.
The woman looks at Alivar, "Like I said, we could come to some agreement. What I want is within that tomb, yes."
Ana leaves the negotiation to those inclined to do so and walked back to the dead man, generally looking around the corpse, before she stops and looks at the ground by her feet.
She lacks confidence in her ability to solve problems in such smart company, so she is trying to be certain. New thoughts occur to her - can the bust be moved into the light? Or perhaps a mirror could be used to direct the failing daylight onto the bust or some part of the tomb?
Suddenly, she looks up and studies the tomb intently. If the tomb is so dangerous, how will they place the dead man's son within?
The bust cannot be moved (well, not easily).
Ana shrugs and walks back to the rest of the party to listen to the discussion. She asks, in general, "Do we know what she wants yet?"
Ana frowns, "Is she coming? I thought she would meet us later."
"I will come whenever you decide to enter. I want to see how you get in."She snears a little as she says this, despite herself.
Ana sighs, "Does anyone have a mirror, then? I think I know the path. And perhaps a way around it. I don't think she would approve of the correct answer."
"Correct answer?" Se looks suspiciously at Ana, "What do you mean?"
Doing her best to maintain a straight face, "And you would not approve, am I right?"
When the slight smile gives her away, she takes a deep breath and speaks more than her companions have heard thus far, "Think of who made the request. Would he want his kin or property destroyed? No. He wanted yours destroyed. His thanks would be in exchange for such an act. Your mausoleum shades his at sundown. I think he wanted your mausoleum to be removed and that's what the thanks would be for."
"If we can use a mirror to catch the setting sun and shine its rays on his mausoleum - specifically the bust, I think we might be able to meet the letter of the request without meeting the spirit. And you keep your family tomb intact."
"Last Sun, rather than Last Son. That does make some sense. We don't have long. I will go and get a mirror."
As the idea finally dawns on her, she becomes excited, and makes to rush off (on horse back).
Ana nods at Zasha's remark. "She cannot be left alone with anyone. If she tries anything, two noble houses will lose a scion tonight."
Time creeps forward, now at the slowest of paces.
It's easy enough to set up the mirror so that the light falls on the bust. Tracking it as the sun goes down isn't hard.
For a little while it looks like cloud cover may scupper your plan, but eventually even that moves on. As the disk of the sun begins to sink below the horizon, you hear horses hooves in the distance, and the Woman returns. She is very out of breath, and furious when she sees that her errand was unneeded.
As she begins to make a noise though, the last pink rays of the sun bounce off the mirror onto the bust, and there is an audible "click" from the door of the tomb.
“Oh well done Ana,” says Alivar, grinning. “Obvious interpretation when you think about it … but I can’t claim to have done so. Well!”
Once the noblewoman has left, Alivar adds more quietly, “A mirror then – you have one you say Zasha?”
Ana blushes at the praise and studies the ground for a moment while a hand drifts to rest on Leryn's head. Quietly, she says, "Thanks. I hope it works."
Before the woman returns, Ana takes up a position where she can watch over the rest of the party, thinking to keep an eye on their temporary patron so she can't pull something on one of them. She crouches down, murmuring to her canine companion as she scratches the back of his neck and they wait.
When the door clicks, she smiles with a bit of relief. When the woman begins to say something, Ana is thankful to be behind her because the huntress cannot hide her grin.
The mausoleum contains five sarcophagi bearing the names of the Tullivors interred within. Above Laban’s casket, a gleaming tapestry depicts the Tullivor crest and the family motto: “Never in Shadow.” The tapestry, woven with gold and silver thread.