At the beginning of Spring, 1228, Viola despairs of the singer obtained for her by Bogdan and Godzimir over the winter, and as soon as the ice along the northern coast has thawed, she sets out for Chersonesus, with Theodoric (valued for his local knowledge), Bogdan, Godzimir, and the disappointing singer, Antonio, in tow. One thing leads to another, and they find an entrance to a faerie regio in the middle of town. Inside the regio, they find a suitable singer who knows both Kipchak and Greek--she's entered the regio by faking her own death (the regio key involves a funeral procession), bringing her brother (a musician) and a trio of friends with her.
Getting Ipek and her companions back out proves tricky: the regio in question is devoted to reenacting an ancient event in which foreigners who betrayed the city (one of them had married a local noble) are burned out of their house and slain. Viola uses magic to bring this event to a suitably violent resolution, only to discover that exiting the regio will require the citizens of "Chersonesus" to break their oath to bury Gykia within the city walls, rather that some distance away, in the necropolis, as is the city's custom.
Realizing that allowing these events to play out will take some time (longer in the the accelerated time of the regio than outside it, admittedly), Viola decides she needs to check on the covenant. She leaves her familiar, Constantine, behind--he can communicate mentally with her at any distance (though she can't do the same in return), and so he can warn her if the denouement of Gykia's saga is approaching.
Creating a temporary charm to return to her lab is trivial: the ease factor is 6, and her Craft (Illumination) roll is 2 + 0 Dex + 1 for an enchantment on her quill talisman = 3 + simple die--and there's no reason she can't try it again if the first attempt doesn't work. The target for travel to her lab is 3 x aura 5 = 15, less 6 for an arcane connection, for a 9. The rolls is Craft 2 +2 Per +1 for the quill + the aura (probably 6ish) + a stress die, so she can do this easily if she doesn't botch (which she doesn't). She can make the return trip about as easily, provided she carries an AC with her back to the covenant.
Satisfied that everything is in order at the covenant, Viola considers returning to the regio (she really should be there with Constantine and the grogs, but the whole thing is dreadfully boring, especially given the accelerated time), but--shortly after the arrival of a new visiting magus, Stephen--she and Gregorius realize that Tasia has been absent for far too long. After investigating notes in her lab and querying the local wise-woman, Gregorius concludes that Tasia has gone east and south along the rim of the Sea of Azov, searching for information on the attackers who destroyed the previous covenant. Worried about her fate, he decides to set off in pursuit. However, Viola and Gregorius agree that the search party will need Theodoric's local knowledge, and so Viola returns briefly to the regio to retrieve him. [Gregorius does not take Bogdan and Godzimir with him--they remain stuck in the regio, and so, despite mentions of them in the "Tasia Is Missing" story, it was another pair of grogs that accompanied Gregorius.]
Viola remains at the covenant until the return of Gregorius, Frey, and Stephen, and for a time after that, in order to cast the Aegis at the summer solstice (the beginning of Summer). She then returns to the regio, and observes the end of Gykia's story before escaping with her companions.
[One more minor retcon--early in the "In Search of a Second Singer Story", there's a reference to Viola's bringing along the cats, but I don't think they ever showed up in play, and so let's forget about them.]