Morning light barely pierced the twilight veil, giving me ample time to sit alone and think. I could try to sleep, but the fact is that I just couldn’t. Luckily my sides weren’t blazing as they were yesterday, but still annoying enough to ruin my last couple of hours.

  I’ve really been building a team, haven’t I? What was it in me that dragged Kaleh from the wall, melted the cell door for Agnes, risked my life against wolves? Each moment looks isolated on the surface —maybe a bit desperate, a bit stupid and reckless — but it was all for someone else.

  A gentle breeze wove in between strands of my rose-gold hair, dissipating against the endless trees. Agnes lay asleep at a decrepit table, her head cradled on the medicine bag. Kaleh was in the corner, wrapped in a non-insignificant amount of tattered fabric. He was breathing shallow, but he was surviving. Marie seemed to be tossing and turning —an anomaly, as she usually doesn’t move at all.

  I brought them together, even if only for now, because I dared to act in their benefit. Words I had once echoed every day returned stronger than ever, riding in on the morning sun as its light cascaded through the broken top floor of the watchtower.

  “There is a difference between being a noble, and being a noble.”

  The words used to mean no more than whether they were italicized. I had an infinite sum of guesses back then on what a noble was. The strength to rule, the honor to stand for the family, or the heritage to command legendary magic.

  But look at them. They’d have nothing to do with each other had it not been for me, if I’d not acted to bring them together.

  Merric didn’t earn his title for any of those reasons. At the Siege of Arnier, Merric didn’t defeat the magistrate of Ervys alone. He gained his strength by rallying the kings guard, shoring up the defense, standing beside an army outnumbered by the dozen.

  Maybe his stories have imprinted on me more than I thought. Marie and Agnes both seem to trust me — to believe in what I say without hesitation. Kaleh... I’m not so sure of, but he’s only been with us for a couple of days at best. He might not trust me for a while, or ever. His choice, not mine.

  I heard the sound of gravel crunching, a very specific shifting of weight from one foot to another. Marie stopped at my side, grasping at her crooked neck and stretching it. Yawned, stretched, I’d seen it many times before.

  Another minute passed amidst the silence, before she finally asked “what are you thinking about?”

  Her voice hovered low, as to not disturb the peace. I stayed trained on the horizon.

  “A lot.”

  “Yeah.”

  Her cloak fluttered in the breeze, a second skin as long as we’d known each other. She eased down beside me, curling her knees into her chest, and pulling them tight with her arms. Side by side we watched as tomorrow crept over the edge of the world.

  A loud bang echoed from within the watchtower, followed by wood meeting wood. At first, I thought nothing of it. Then, the reality of our meeting Kaleh set in. I shot up, straight as an arrow as I flew inside. My eyes darted around the room in a frenzy. Kaleh was still in place, the ceiling looked perfectly fine...

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  Agnes lay on the floor in a haze, the chair she slept in laying not too far from the site. I extended a hand to her, and with it she hoisted herself from the ground.

  “I’m off to a great start...” she whispered.

  “Gods, I thought the building was set to collapse.”

  Agnes stretched her arms out, bending forward, backward, and to either side. “Feels like my back is all broken twigs. When do we get real beds?” As much as I wanted to reassure her, I couldn’t tell a lie.

  She took a look at my bare chest, no longer encased in reams of bandages. Her eyes snapped open on the spot. “Leonn, how are you... feeling?”

  I cocked my head to the left.

  “You’re saying that as if I should be feeling terrible. Should I be?”

  Her nod confused me even more.

  “Wounds that deep don’t heal so... cleanly.” Her eyes narrowed, as if looking inward for the answer.

  “I know you’re still a different case entirely, but its just not...”

  She grabbed me, just above my waist, before turning me around like mushrooms on a skewer. I felt as she poked and prodded where the weapon had entered.

  “The scar's fading way too fast. The muscle below it seems fine too...”

  Kaleh sat up, stirred awake by the commotion, and hair sticking up at odd angles. Despite how tired, how covered in the dream haze he looked, fear still sparked through.

  She returned to her bag in a haste, pulling out another vial of medicine.

  “No. No, you witch. I’ll not have another drop of that vile poison.”

  A grin only possible in a demon appeared on her face.

  “You’ll drink whatever I give you, Kaleh.” She responded.

  It was a heavy tone, spoken like war orders. I watched as the grim determination transmuted into something more agreeable.

  “Do you remember how bad it was hurting last night? You resisted yesterday, too.”

  She added, trying to reason with the cornered rat.

  “Then after the pain went away you thanked me and fell right asleep.”

  Kaleh’s gaze landed anywhere but on her as he slowly extended his hand.

  “I hate it here.”

  Marie snorted behind me, failing miserably to suppress her amusement. I controlled myself, though only barely. Perhaps I should have warned him never to challenge her.

  Over another carefully thrown-together soup of bird, mushrooms, and a couple of roots, we gathered to discuss our next move. Of course, Kaleh sat in his brooding corner, listening from afar.

  “We probably cant stay here for much longer. There isn’t much left to hunt, or pick off trees” Marie started.

  Agnes nodded, “I’m running low on some medical supplies. It’d be nice to have some more clean bandages.”

  I stirred my bowl in thought. “We’re closest to the capital city, right? If we head there we can get what we need. Like a shirt...”

  “A shirt?” Grinned Marie, it was a serious request.

  Agnes held her spoon up to her face for longer than she should’ve.

  I forced air in through my nose, their queue to let me finish.

  “Our problem is we don’t have a secure route. We could head straight there if we had camping supplies, but there’s nothing like that here.”

  Kaleh stood abruptly. His legs protested, but he pushed forward. On arrival, he collapsed into an empty chair beside us.

  “You lot need a route, huh? Let’s make a deal” he croaked in his low, serious tone.

  “There’s quite a few abandoned places around here, and I know every one.” He paused, pressing his hand against his ribs.

  “If you keep helping me, I’ll return the favor.”

  Marie raised an eyebrow at the disheveled soldier.

  “You were just complaining about my help earlier, why the change?” Agnes retorted.

  “You, lass, might have the most interest in one spot I’ve stayed. Shelves full of journals just like that one.”

  Her face went pale at the thought, which didn’t sit right with me. What was with that book?

  Leaves crunched under my boots, a sound I’d heard hundreds of times. What we marched toward was uncertain, but I knew Kaleh well enough to trust he’d keep his word.

  “Kaleh, holding up alright?” I asked, still convinced his legs might shatter if we push him.

  He responded with a silent nod. Agnes ended up foraging some medical herbs from the undergrowth, ensuring not to hold us up too long with her practiced precision.

  Marie looked different, almost softer in a sense. I caught her occasionally casting a sidelong look at Kaleh, but her guard was slightly lower for the first time in days. An old, abandoned house lay a couple dozen paces away, and I was glad our afternoon’s journey was over. My legs ached, and my chest felt tight with a scarce bit of pain, but we’d made it.

  (also, thank you for being here week after week! You're amazing.)