Silence. Only rarely did the sound of rustling paper break the pleasant silence of the house. Even the gentle singing of birds outside the window added to the cosiness of the quiet day. Alhaitham sipped his coffee without taking his eyes off the pages of the folio. The ancient sciences of Sumeru, topics difficult for the common man to understand, something about the historical sequence of development. The Akademiya's scribe read with fascination, silently delving into the abstruse words. The tail behind his back rarely moved, quietly and elegantly, and his ear occasionally flicked, brushing away tickling strands of grey hair. It was unfortunate that he was enjoying the silence so little on this beautiful day, for Kaveh's footsteps were slowly but surely breaking it.