Katherine swallowed, still half-shocked to see Lysander, and not his brother, standing mere footsteps away from her. It hit her then that she was not supposed to know he was alive, that Lysander did not know about what had gone on between herself and Eward and that she therefore should not have been told of his survival. Taking a deep, albeit shaky breath, Katherine quickly figured how to go about this. She stayed rooted to the spot on the last step, "It is me, Lysander, I...thank you, but I..."
She hoped that her attempt at surprise seemed genuine; she could be a good actress when she tried. "You're alive," Katherine murmured, almost breathlessly. "Oh God, Lysander, you're alive!" she continued in exclamation, practically stumbling off of the steps and throwing her arms around him, hugging him fiercely. Regardless of what Eward had said, Lysander had indeed been dear to her in her youth, and it seemed that nothing had changed with him but years.