After the teen thieves disappeared back down the road toward the city, I looked over at Raven. He grinned at me, wide and unguarded. The little guy knows exactly how to go straight through my heart.
“Why don’t we rest for a while,” I suggested.
Even Edie didn’t protest. I did notice her scanning each of us, eyes sharp, checking for injuries. I think she was almost disappointed that none of us needed patching up.
Raven pulled out his whetstone and began sharpening his daggers with slow, practiced movements. I was glad he hadn’t needed them much so far, but it still didn’t ease my mind. His disappearing act in battle never did.
Alfie slid his lute from his back and began tuning it. Soon a gentle melody drifted through the air, soft and steady, giving us something to settle into.
Lea had already returned to studying the map to the Silver Tower, carefully smoothing the edges she had singed earlier with errant magic.
“As best I can tell,” she said, “we should be moving from Elmere into Leafmere soon. But who really knows. This map was drafted upside down, and east and west seem to have meant nothing to the cartographers. If there’s a border between the provinces, I suppose we’ll feel it when we cross it. There’s a jumble of paths ahead.”
“Then let’s get moving,” Edie said, impatience sharp in her voice.
That didn’t surprise me. Edie never held anything back.
We stood together. Raven sheathed his daggers. Alfie slung the lute over his shoulder. Lea rolled the map and tucked it into her pack.
The brush thickened as we walked. Before long, the sound of moving water reached us.
“Uh,” Raven said from ahead, exasperated. “Little problem. Big river. No bridge.”
“There has to be somewhere to cross,” Edie said, already annoyed.
“We could walk along the bank,” Alfie suggested. “See if there’s a ford or a place shallow enough to cross.”
“That’s your plan?” Edie shot back.
When Alfie offers a reasonable idea, Edie has a habit of cutting it down first. I love her. Alfie does too. She just makes it difficult sometimes.
“I think it might work,” Raven said.
I smiled to myself. Raven didn’t really evaluate plans. He fixed on the goal and aimed for it. Cross the river. Details tended to follow later, if at all.
Lea finally nodded. “The river’s flowing south. Best chance is north.”
“Fine,” Edie said curtly. “Let’s go.”
Lea was right. The current slowed as we followed the bank, until we found a natural obstruction where debris had formed a crude dam.
“We can cross here,” Lea said. “It’ll be muddy.”
We moved carefully, shoes and boots slipping, until we stepped onto the opposite bank.
Immediately, I felt it.
The trees were greener. The air cooler, cleaner. A faint path stretched ahead, old and barely used, as though it hadn’t known travelers in years. The forest felt welcoming, but not forgiving. Like it was watching us closely, weighing us.
As we moved deeper, I felt a smile tug at my face. A glen opened ahead, sunlight filtering softly through the canopy.
“Wait,” I said gently.
Not danger. Just… a sense. Like the world had shifted its footing.
Alfie stood beside me, smiling too, breathing deeply. The air here wasn’t heavy like Stonebridge Ward back in Caerhold. Raven scanned the trees, alert but relaxed. Edie had already squared her shoulders, eyes sharp, daring something to try us.
Lea was the first to notice movement.
“Look,” she said softly. “Over there.”
Five deer grazed in the low grass. Two young bucks and three does. As we approached slowly, all but one bolted into the trees.
One doe remained.
We moved closer. She didn’t flee.
“This is… odd,” Lea murmured.
“Shh…Let’s see how close we can get,” I whispered.
Edie warned, “Be careful.”
Raven chuckled. “How dangerous can a deer be?”
“Can’t be worse than young bandits,” Alfie added lightly.
“Shh,” I said again.
The doe blinked slowly, calmly. As if waiting.
Then everything changed.
She leapt straight up, and in midair her form reshaped itself. Where the deer landed stood a young girl clothed entirely in green: a skirt with petal-like hems, soft shoes, a silken blouse. Her eyes were deep green, almond-shaped and unblinking.
I think we all inhaled at once.
“Hello,” I said keeping my voice low. I did not want to frighten her.
She said nothing.
“Can you speak?” Edie asked, her voice careful in a way that never lasted long.
“Be kind, Edie,” Alfie said quietly.
“Can you two ever stop arguing?” Raven muttered.
“Please,” I said, raising a hand without looking back. “Be quiet.”
I turned my attention to the girl. “Can you speak?”
“Yes,” she said. “I can speak human.” Her voice rose and fell like song.
“Mesmerizing,” Lea whispered.
“How did you change from a deer into a human?” I asked.
She shrugged. “We elves shape-shift with the forest animals. It’s useful. And fun.” She studied us. “Do you intend to pass through Sylvara?”
“Leafmere.” Edie said flatly.
The girl smiled. “So humans call it.” Her expression sobered. “You are not welcome here. But I can help.”
“How?” I asked.
“We must go to the forest city,” she said. “I need to speak with the Speaker.”
“The Speaker?” I echoed.
“The ruler of the forest,” she explained. “Otherwise, you’ll be stopped many times. This is the easiest way.”
I smiled and introduced us all. Then I asked, “What is your name?”
“Hana,” she said gently.
I offered my hand out of habit. She studied it, head tilted, curious. Then she placed her smaller hand into my palm.
“Pleased to meet you, Hana,” I said.
“Pleased to meet you, Ox,” she replied quietly.
And in that moment, I already knew I wanted her to walk with us east.