Kiara wasn't sure this whole having friends thing was worth it. When did having a friend mean that you had to help with stuff like "house hunting," and "packing," and worst of all, "MOVING!!!" She was almost certain that there hadn't been anything in the rules about that last part...

Being friends with Niami never involved anything more than cooking and eating and running around making mischief... FUN things. This new fluttery friend was proving to be... complicated.

"I've simply GOT to get a new house!" Dyvora floated before Kiara, fluttering her wings here and there. "My inn room is too small, and I've got so many trophies I want to display."

Kiara nodded and smiled. Perhaps this would be easier than she'd thought... "Well, you can move into a house like mine. It has lots of space, I haven't been able to fill it up yet."

"Oh no... I couldn't possibly settle on the first house that I see!" Dyvora's laugh tinkled like bells. The dark elf wondered how exactly the arasai ended up still being so... CUTE. Their fae cousins were cute, but they were meant to be. Arasai were meant to be... evil. Scary. Instead, her little arasai friend sort of made Kiara want to dress her up like a doll. She was fairly certain that evil beings shouldn't tinkle when they laughed, let alone sparkle when they flexed their wings.

"We'll need to visit all the housing available in Norrath," Dyvora decided firmly. "I've got to see which one fits."

Kiara blinked. She thought the little fairy had said ALL the housing... "Umm... Did you say...?"

"Yup!" A brilliant smile accompanied this announcement. "All of it. Let's start in Qeynos!"

"We have to sneak into Qeynos. The last time I was there, the guards were... Rude. And their horses have sharp hooves." Kiara rubbed at a fading bruise and made a face. That hadn't been the best trip she'd ever been on.

"It'll be fun! Qeynosians are nice and welcoming."

Kiara sighed heavily and trudged reluctantly behind her little friend. ALL the houses... Starting in Qeynos. She was fairly certain she'd need a vacation to recover from this little outing.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dyvora landed beside Kiara with an inelegant thump. She got to her feet rubbing at her rump.

"Well, THAT was rude!! I am NOT buying a house there. Hmph."

The dark elf rolled her eyes and kept her mouth shut. "I told you so" wouldn't really make any difference at this point. "So, Freeport then?"

"I was actually thinking about Gorowyn! There's a pretty ocean right there and there's all that room to fly around!"

Kiara whimpered. "But they also have lifts that you have to use to get around... And SOME of us can't fly."

The arasai pouted.

"Oh, all right. Let's go."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Well, that wasn't so bad. They've done some remodeling that makes it easier to get around in there. So let's get you moved in."

"It was okay..."

"..."

"Whaaaaat?"

"It was... Okay?!?" Clearly the announcement that they were going to see every housing option in Norrath wasn't a joke.

"The houses are nice, and all that room to fly from ledge to ledge is really neat. But now my wings are tired from all that exercise."

Kiara closed her eyes and counted to ten. Then counted again as she headed for the griffon tower that would take them to Freeport.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

They wandered through Freeport checking out the various housing options. Kiara was ready to be done shopping and was giving glowing reviews of every house they visited. Unfortunately, the unnaturally cheerful arasai was not cooperating.

"Well, it's spacious and all, but it's smaller than I was hoping..."

And...

"Oh my, well that's just entirely too big for just me and my things!"

And...

"It's the right size, but it's all stone. I might get cold!"

Kiara was thinking longingly of Niami's comfy little house, fireplace, and a large plate of fayberry muffins.

"Let's try Kelethin! Maybe they have something that I'll like!"

"But Dyvora, dear, Kelethin is allied with Qeynos. Remember? Rude, sharp hooves, bruises?"

"But it's so PRETTY there!"

"Yes. Very pretty."

They snuck through Kelethin carefully avoiding the guards while Dyvora examined the acorn houses. She exclaimed over the windows and the view they offered, cheered over how cozy they were, and jumped with delight that they were made from giant acorns.

"It's PERFECT!!!" The little arasai's eyes sparkled with happiness. "I want to move in immediately!"

"There's just one little problem, dear..."

"Oh I know. I have to become a citizen. It can't possibly be that hard. Besides, you'll help!"

"..."

Kiara was very seriously reconsidering this whole having friends thing.

Norrathian housing has undergone a good deal of rennovation lately. Gnomish construction teams have worked overtime to expand the sizes of most homes.
One, two, and three room houses in all the cities have been expanded. They are now quite spacious and have had their item limits raised.
Five room houses in Qeynos, Freeport, and Maj'Dul have also been expanded to make them more in line with the housing in later cities.
In addition to the other changes, some houses, in Kelethin and Maj'Dul, have had windows or other features added, making them ideal for nature lovers (or not-evil arasai) who want a little extra outside with their insides.
Gorowyn has undergone some really awesome changes. Not only have the smaller houses been given an additional room to decorate, travel throughout the city has been simplified.
For those of you who always wanted to live in Gorowyn but couldn't get the hang of the lifts, the ramps now connect all the way through! It's terrifically convenient to navigate the city!