As the hours melted into days and then a week, the landscape around the line of riders changed. It began slowly, creeping in with a few sprigs of pine and a gash of silvered stone. Before long, though, Takio looked up - and found the gentle farmlands of Drenwell fading away behind him.

In their place, the mountains rose over the growing foothills. The villages dwindled, growing more and more uncommon, and finally, the last of the paving stones vanished from the road they followed.

Takio couldn’t quite bring himself to mind. He nudged his horse on, letting a long-held breath slide between his teeth. The others were relieved too, he knew, even if they were too focused on their duties to show it.

Drenwell was a decent place, he decided, glancing back over his shoulder. The air was warm, and having a gentle breeze was a welcome alternative to the mountain winds. But even if it was a pleasant land to pass through, it wasn’t theirs. It belonged to Rellan, and while the god of light had been a fine host, Takio didn’t entirely trust the discipline of his Order’s patrols.

It was easier to relax when they were on the very verge of their own lands, safe and secure in the knowledge that Shiina’s domain was but a stone’s throw away.

The fact that people weren’t staring at him constantly was just an added bonus. If one more villager had stopped in the middle of the road, gaping, he feared what he’d wind up doing to the poor soul.

“Takio.” The voice brought him out of his thoughts, glancing over.

Antiel stared back, riding a few feet to the side. The auburn-haired man smiled faintly. “Getting a bit late, isn’t it?”

“You’re scared of the dark?” Takio said, glancing back to the front. “You’ve been keeping secrets.”

“Riding ourselves ragged won’t get us home any faster.”

“We can keep going a while longer. I don’t want to be caught on our asses if they need us,” Takio said. An irritated note lingered on the very edge of his voice.

“If they need us, then they’ll need us fighting at our full strength,” Antiel said, just as lightly and casually as ever. “Not tripping over ourselves from lack of sleep or mana-burned from lighting the way. Unless you’d prefer to trip and fall off a cliff?”

“As if that’d happen,” Takio muttered. But then he glanced around.

The outriders were off on their rounds - he’d hardly seen Yorin or Reimm since they’d left Drenwell City, but even Elintel and Tikeya had vanished somewhere along the line. But Kassien was nodding along with Antiel’s words, however begrudgingly, and even Juro didn’t look like she was going to argue. He was outnumbered.

And if he was honest with himself, really honest, he could feel the start of the exhaustion creeping into his bones.

“Have you heard any more from the Flameweaver?” Antiel said, after a long pause. “Any more news, or a warning?”

Takio shifted uncomfortably, making a face. “Nothing new. But I’m sure she wouldn’t send us home unless it was urgent. She’ll want us to hurry.”

“Oh? Speaking for me now, are you?” her crystalline voice chimed in his ear. He sighed. Vain as a cat, that one. Calling on her authority was a risk, he’d known - but Antiel had already said her name. The damage was done.

I’m trying to get us home. There’s work that needs doing.

“Do not mistake my intentions, boy. I truly appreciate your devotion,” she said, leaning forward into him. The flaming waves of her hair draped down his shoulder. “But I do so prefer you un-gutted. My child’s advice is-”

Totally unnecessary.

Her hand smacked into the side of his head a heartbeat after he thought it. Takio winced. It is.

She didn’t say a word. But he heard the tiny, irritated noise she made - and when he glanced back, moving on instinct more than any conscious decision, he found her face inches from his own. The glare in her eyes was unmistakable - her red eyes. Her amusement was beginning to fade, he realized.

Takio forced himself to sit back in the saddle, filling his lungs with a deep, slow breath. And then he let it out.

Fine. I apologize, mistress. You’re right, of course.

Her lips curled up in a smile, her eyes flashing back to a merry gold fast enough he began to suspect the whole thing had been a show. “Well said.”

The urge to roll his eyes only grew. He turned away before she could say another word, glancing back to where Antiel waited. “I suppose it’s getting late, after all,” he said heavily.

Antiel was good - better at controlling his reactions than Takio himself. He saw only a flicker of a smile cross his advisor’s face before the shaman inclined his head. “I’m glad you agree, Charred.”

If I’m the damned Charred, you’d think he wouldn’t fight me on everything.

Shiina’s chuckle rippled behind him, even as her form dispersed into smoke to drift on the breeze. “Someone to challenge you is healthy, I believe. Prepare yourself properly, Takio.”

He was hardly listening, already swinging his leg over the horse and clear. A grunt slipped between his lips as he hit the ground - but he heard the sigh of relief from Juro and Kassien. His scowl grew. If they’d been tired, then they should have said something. They’d been waiting for Antiel to argue, hadn’t they?

So be it. He reached for the pack tied behind his saddle, listening to the chaos build through their clearing all the while.

The tent stood in front of him, small and worn but sturdy. Takio gave it a cursory glance, taking in the ties and stakes and the condition of the fabric. The crimson of the weave was painted here and again, marking him as being from Hearthfire’s ranks. It was old, but still perfectly serviceable.

The camp was already nearing completion, despite the fact that only a few minutes had passed since they called a stop. They’d been through this routine so many times that it was second nature to each of them. Kassien and Antiel were hard at work nearby, pulling out the foodstores they carried. Despite himself, Takio smiled. It’d be good to eat something besides smoked fish and dried meat.

He straightened, staring skywards. The mana welled up inside him, simmering just under his skin. Grabbing hold, he lifted a hand, throwing it up to point at the darkened clouds.

It was all so easy. Pulling out the strands of his magic was no more challenging than breathing was - and moments later, he watched with a smile on his face as a ball of fire shot up into the dusk.

It exploded as it cleared the treeline, sending sparks and embers floating on the wind to color the branches. He reached down, grabbing a hatchet from alongside him as they faded to dark.

“Was that really necessary?” Takio heard Antiel say from behind as he turned towards the woods.

He smiled. “The others will want to know where we are.”

“Then they can track us, just like anyone else.”

“This will make it faster.”

“It’ll be faster for anyone looking to attack some travelers, too,” Kassien muttered, surprising Antiel and Takio both.

Takio collected himself a heartbeat later, seeing Antiel’s eyes light up. “Only an idiot would attack us, Kass. Don’t be stupid. I’m going to go get wood for the fire.”

“You’re Shiina’s Ascended,” Antiel protested, straightening. “Must you really wander off and-”

“Fire needs fuel. I’ll be back.” He started walking, drowning out Antiel’s continued protests under the sound of his feet against the leaves.

His advisor sighed, but stopped arguing.

With every step he took, Takio felt himself begin to relax. It was easier, out in the forest with only the birds to scream at him. He could actually think. He knew Antiel was right, though, and it wouldn’t do to get separated. So when he saw the downed tree, far enough from camp to be out of sight but not so far he couldn’t find his way back, he stooped low, starting to snap the branches into something more manageable.

The act of cutting at the wood, chopping and slicing twigs away to leave smooth chunks behind, focused his mind even further. He smiled - and then he straightened, grimacing and stretching his arms out.

“Careful where you’re waving that thing, hmm?”

He glanced over - and offered the approaching woman a small, reserved nod. Only the slightest hint of surprise showed in his expression. “Juro. Antiel let you go?”

She smirked, raising one hand, and let the waterskins dangling from a cord rattle together. “Set me to finding a river. There’s one not so far. That way.” She twisted to point back over her shoulder. Her eyes never left his.

He nodded slowly. “Right.”

Juro rolled her eyes. “Cinder and coal, Takio. Do you think so little of me?” She plunged one hand into the mess of skins - and pulled one free, holding it towards him. His rune was painted across the surface.

“Been digging in my bags, have you?” Takio said dryly.

She grinned, her eyes flashing mischievously. “It’s my duty, Charred. I serve the Flameweaver in all ways. Even when it means a bit of theft.”

He reached for it. She hesitated, drawing back ever so slightly. He stopped. “Are you going to give it to me or not?”

“You should relax, Takio,” Juro said, ignoring his question. Her eyes were fixed on his, red-brown and dark. “We’re home. You can breathe, now.”

Takio stopped. “I know that.”

A smirk tugged at her lips. “Do you?”

He groaned, grabbing at the flask. “Yes. Now give it here.”

His hand latched around it. He grinned, enjoying the thrill of satisfaction that ran down his spine. But when he pulled, trying to tug it out of her hand, she held fast. Her fingers were against his, the faintest touch at his fingertips.

He scowled. “Juro, would you-”

“I just wanted to be sure you knew,” she said, straight-backed and looking up at him. “You’re not alone in this. We’re here beside you. All of us.”

Again, Takio found himself brought to a screeching halt, left staring down at her. There was something hidden just under her words, something impossible to ignore. An emotion, wrapped around the look in her eyes and tied off with the fact she’d hunted him down out here. Alone.

He wasn’t an idiot. The people chosen to ride alongside him were carefully selected. The clans of the Narai didn’t have a government, as such, but there was a definite pecking order. Having the youngest, brightest members of their family riding alongside the Charred would be an honor for the clan to claim for years to come.

Some families, of course, hoped for more. Tikeya and Juro were both immensely capable - their clans would hardly send someone incompetent to represent them. But Takio wasn’t naive enough to think that they’d been picked on their skill alone.

The thought didn’t entirely sit well with him. These families were trying to weasel their way into his life - and that of their daughters?

Then again, Juro was still smiling up at him, confidence written into every fiber of her being. She didn’t look bothered at the notion..

Who was he to argue?

He opened his mouth to reply, beginning to reach for her elbow with his other hand - and froze.

The cry of a hawk echoed from above, shrieking across the rapidly-darkening clearing and cutting him off before he could make another move. His head snapped up, as did Juro’s. She whistled, the sound loud enough to make him wince.

The bird spiraled down, wings spread wide to show its white undersider. Juro lifted her arm, straightening and returning to businesslike in the span of a single heartbeat. It sailed down, grabbing hold of her thick, leathered glove with enough force to drive its talons through the material.

She didn’t seem to notice, or mind. Before the bird had so much as closed its wings she was working at the tube tied to its leg, undoing the clasp. A tiny, satisfied noise slipped between her lips as she pulled a roll of paper from within.

Any satisfaction that found its way onto her expression vanished, hidden behind a stony wall as she read the note.

Takio shifted, trying to contain his impatience. Her eyes swept back and forth over the message, reading and rereading. Finally, when he was about ready to order her to give the damn thing over, she lifted her head.

And then she thrust it towards him.

Her eyes were serious, but not worried. He eyed her for a moment longer, reading the rapidly-changing mood, and took the slip of paper from her.

He read. His mind raced, taking in what it said there. The reports. The updates. The situation, as it stood.

When he finished, he read it again.

And then again.

When he looked up, still rolling the contents of the message around and around in his head, Juro was looking back at him.

He forced a smile, even as he reached out towards Shiina. She wasn’t there. He could feel her, in the deep recesses of his mind. She’d always be there, somewhere - but she was distracted, distant. He should have noticed, before now. He’d expected she’d tell him, if something was wrong.

But he should have noticed.

“Time to call it a night, I think,” he said, keeping his tone light. “We’ll need to be off bright and early. And I’ll need to let Antiel know all of this.”

Juro nodded, shifting a little, and turned back towards camp. He saw her hand slip into a pouch at her belt, pulling something out and letting the bird have a nibble. She didn’t say another word. Neither did he. Both of them understood.

A hard ride awaited them the next day.

Following on her heels, Takio offered a silent prayer that a day wouldn’t be too long.