It was shortly after the sun's orb started its afternoon descent that the couple arrived at their destination. River slowed and let go of Five's waist as they approached a small village, a compound smaller in size than Flowing Water had been, but surrounded by a taller and sturdier stockade. River's hand brushed against Five's as she stepped forward, leading him to the compound's entrance.

"Now remember, in public you can only call me Five," she reminded him, turning her head to give him a look.

Blood River's head nodded in silent acknowledgment, and she returned her attention forward, waving to the sentries at the gate.

"Young miss, it's been a while," one of the guards, a middle-aged man, greeted her. "And this is--?"

Five made a grandiloquent bow and gesture in River's direction. "May I introduce the Devil of Flowing Water himself, come to join the fight?" Five gave the man a winsome smile as she made the introduction.

Both of the guards stepped back. River apparently already had a reputation here, a testament to the speed of their information network. He tried his best to do nothing to dispel that image; he wasn't here to make friends, just some useful allies.

"As always, miss Five, your ability to acquire talent remains unmatched," the middle-aged man replied once he regained his composure. "You may enter." The gate opened, and the pair made their way inside the compound.

The quality of construction inside the village was of a class on par if not superior to that River observed in Aureate Hill, a definite couple steps up from the ramshackle construction of much of Flowing Water. The road was paved with cobblestones, a strange and new sensation underneath his feet.

"So," River bent and whispered in Five's ear, "should I be worried about your 'acquisition of talent'? I'd hate to have to deal with competition."

It was Five's turn to flush, though only a little, as she let out a nervous giggle. "Don't worry; it's not like that. Our personal arrangement is a special and unique one, to say the least."

"Mmhmm," River could only murmur an assent. Even the possibility of jealousy was a new experience for him, a man who had little for others to covet.

They approached a small cabin and Five knocked on the door, a distinctive pattern to the tapping. After a moment, the door swung open to reveal a short but robust man of advanced age. His white hair was trimmed neatly, and his beard was only a dusting of gray along his jaw and chin.

"Grandpa!" Five embraced the man tightly while River stood to the side.

"Five, my child, please!" the man protested, "My back isn't what it used to be, you know."

Five laughed and let the man go. "Oh, grandpa," she shook her head a trifle dramatically. "And here I brought you a present, just like I said I would," she reported, waving in River's general direction.

The old man turned to regard his new guest with a sharp-eyed gaze. River could feel the essence in the area writhe and faintly whirl around him, but he made no move to resist it. He had already been warned.

"Hmm..." the old man vocalized his contemplation.

"Grandpa, this is River," Five filled the silence with an introduction, "and River, this is my Grandpa, One."

River nodded curtly in acknowledgment but did nothing to interrupt the man's train of thought.

"You know, you're a strange one," One finally spoke. "Your Meridian Circulation is decent among warriors and excellent for your age, and yet I feel that's not where your actual strength is. So you specialize in Physique Tempering then, is it?"

River nodded. "Yes, sir. I've continued my advancement into the Earth Realm as a result of a unique circumstance with my constitution." River was strong enough not to need to accord strangers undue respect, but One was Five's only family in this world, even if it was through adoption. He figured it was a good strategy to not alienate the old man off the bat with an arrogant attitude.

"Interesting. Interesting..." the old man's hand stroked his stubbled chin as he mused out loud. "So that's how you're both here now instead of around sunset, then."

"Correct." River agreed. "As you are aware, advancement into the Earth Realm of Physique Tempering loosens the earthly shackles. It's not the full free flight of the Heaven Realm, which is still quite a ways away for me, but I can travel quickly and am strong enough to also bring along someone else with me with a minimal decrease to my speed."

One leaned against the doorframe. "That's a good thing to know because it solves a problem I was mulling over before you arrived," he informed them. "Things are coming to a head, and our greatest advantage is in information gathering and distribution, but there are gaps, particularly out in the wilderness. You two," he gestured to Five and River, "can fill those gaps together with her abilities in reconnaissance and your ability to provide speed and protection."

"So we'll be scouting the outposts then, grandpa?" Five asked.

One nodded. "There's some of that. We also need to keep tabs on the statuses of the clan villages; one of our informants just passed word that the Den intends to put pressure on them, primarily to try and flush out our friend here."

River frowned. "What would make them think that would work?"

One laughed. "The Den isn't all that sophisticated in handling such manners. You did something, and they razed your clan's village. They now assume you'll head to one of the other clans to plan out your revenge. Their viewpoint on the village clans isn't necessarily wrong -- the bastards tend to be stubborn and territorial and only stop from coming to blows in the face of a larger threat -- but their intelligence on you, in particular, is vanishingly small."

"So they're going to put their boots on the necks of the village clans thinking I'm hiding in one of them," River replied, still somewhat lost as to the coherency of the reasoning.

One shrugged. "Brave Dragon is a despot, not a strategist. His preferred methods are to attack and, failing that, to attack again. Brute force is his first and last resort."

"So then when you say he's moving to suppress the clans, you're saying he's going to level them one by one, grandpa?" Five interjected.

"The word is that he's insisted on a limited campaign this time to obtain information." One replied.

River frowned. "Then wouldn't it be counterproductive for me to go on diplomatic missions? They can't be forced to provide information they don't have, but if they link me with you..."

One slapped his forehead with a palm. "My apologies," he said, "I must be getting senile here. You're right, of course. Is there nothing--?"

Five shook her head. "While it would be nice if someone got a haircut," she pointedly spoke in River's direction before turning back to One, "there's not anything we can do about his eyes long-term that wouldn't in itself be suspicious." Five shrugged. "We can keep an eye on the clans, but somebody else will have to handle the duties of an emissary, I'm afraid."

One sighed. "It can't be helped, then." One nodded to himself, against rearranging the plans in his head.

"Is my place still unoccupied, grandpa?" Five cut into his musings.

"Oh, yes, of course. Will we need to make an accommodation for River here too or--?"

"No." Both Five and River answered simultaneously.

"Ah, to be young again!" One chuckled and winked at them. "Well, okay then, go get yourselves settled, and we can get into the details later this evening, then."

"As you say, grandpa," Five agreed, while River nodded.

"Wonderful! I'll be seeing you, then." The old man clapped his hands and retreated back inside the cabin.

Five led River off to another corner of the compound where a similar cabin stood. Fumbling with the lock, she opened the door and led him inside.

"Welcome home," she announced, smiling. "Such as it is, at least."

The interior was far more spacious than what River was accustomed to, and so he found little to quibble with besides the bed being rather narrow for two people. Five hooked a fingertip under the waistline of his breeches and led him to it, nonetheless, giving him a shove onto the mattress before getting down to business. River quickly acquired another criticism of the bed: it was too squeaky.

Some time later River lay naked on his stomach, watching while Five was at her wardrobe picking out a new outfit. She hummed as she slipped into an ensemble much like what she had been wearing before their incident by the pond, including that wrap-around top garment that managed to straddle the gap between utilitarian and titillating.

"Come on, lazybutt, you need to get dressed again too," Five chided him. "As much enjoyment as I get from the view, I don't think you want to meet the others like that."

River grumbled as he stood up and got back into what he was wearing before. At least this time Five didn't destroy any of the clothing. He felt was growing accustomed to the casual harassment Five gave him, as well.

River and Five left her cabin shortly before sunset and made their way to the central lodge of the compound. This lodge's interior resembled the interior of the tavern in Aureate Hill more than it did the elder's lodge of Flowing Water, something River found himself strangely grateful for.

The first meeting of River with the present leaders of the Dragonslayers went rather well, with Five's narration of their journey together cementing at least some respect for his capabilities. They dined as they conversed, discussing the latest news throughout the region and plans for the immediate future.

Afterward, the couple returned to Five's cabin and resumed their activities before falling asleep in a huddle on the narrow mattress. The next morning marked the beginning of their new cooperative mission out in the grasslands.

For several weeks, the pair of them spent their days journeying around the grasslands, monitoring outposts of the Dragon's Den and the clan villages. Over that time they witnessed firsthand the results of the Den's new campaign on the clans, with villagers left ruined for life in the wake of the bandits, but the pair could do nothing for it. They could not even allow themselves to be seen observing it, lest they provide a point of attention for the Den.

Amid such tragedy, River and Five found solace in each other's company. The bond between the pair grew as their shared experience drew them together further.

Finally, almost a full month later, the word came down from One: under the intense pressure, the clans had decided to get off the fence and mobilize as one against the Dragon's Den. In less than a week, they would be moving to strike at the neck of the dragon itself, at the bandit headquarters in the north.

The halcyon days were at their end. A legendary bloodbath was about to begin.