"Empress, it is time to go," Devrim called gently. Aurora opened her eyes and saw Devrim smiling softly above her face. "The men asked me to wake you, seeing as how we are, you know, supposed to be married."

Aurora sat up and began to brush the hay from her clothes. "Of course," she said, a little embarrassed that he had seen her sleeping. The pair had discussed before they left whether they should reveal the truth to their escorts before leaving and decided only to tell them if it became necessary. It would be unfair of them to ask the soldiers to keep their pretend-marriage a secret when they returned home, so they opted to carry on as usual. Many political marriages were devoid of love and affection, being purely for business. Everyone in the palace knew the Emperor Consort and Empress had separate quarters and never visited each other in them (for of course no one knew about their secret passage). As there were already two royal heirs, Devrim's duty was complete. So the soldiers thought nothing of it when he slept as far from the Empress as he could.

"How did you sleep?" Devrim asked tenderly. He pulled a stray piece of hay from the girl's hair.

"Thank you," Aurora said, not noticing the loving look that accompanied his intimate action. "I slept better than expected. I suppose it is easy to sleep when you are utterly exhausted. How about you?"

"I had the first watch, so I was fortunate to have an uninterrupted night," Devrim said.

"What? Why didn't I get a watch?!" Aurora was indignant. "Am I not an equal member of this team?" The two other men, who were saddling horses, glanced curiously over at the pair as Devrim scratched the back of his neck nervously. He knew this conversation would come. The grey-eyed man chose his words carefully and braced for the fallout.

"You are not an equal member, Your Majesty." He emphasized the last two words. "You are far more important than any of us, and we are sworn to protect you with our lives. I am only leading the expedition right now because you let me. At any point, you can take back control and force us to let you have an equal watch in the night if you want, but I beg that you would not. If anything happens to you, our lives are also forfeit." Devrim closed his eyes and waited for her retort. He was pleasantly surprised when she simply sighed.

Aurora could see the sense in what her friend said. She had wanted so badly to be 'one of the group' that she had not thought about the strain that might cause. In the future, she would find ways to contribute that would actually be helpful. "As you say, I will not take a watch, but I do intend to learn to cook and start a fire. Maybe I can even pick up some tracking skills. There is so much I want to know!"

Devrim relaxed and gave a quiet chuckle. "One step at a time, I think." He offered his hand to help the Empress stand. Gladly, she took it.

"Thank you for always helping me, Devrim. I am sorry I cause you so much trouble." Aurora leaned over and gave the man a quick kiss on the cheek before turning to get her own horse ready.

'You cause me more trouble than you realize,' Devrim thought as he rubbed the cheek where her kiss had been planted. He smiled longingly after her, a look that was noticed by the soldiers.

They smirked at him as he neared. "What?" He asked innocently.

Nurlan did not want to get involved, "Nothing, Sire."

Junayd was more playful, "We are just glad to see there is a little fire still in that oven."

Devrim blanched, "Knock it off! Our marriage is purely business…"

"If you say so, Emperor Consort," Junayd teased. "But it does not have to be." Junayd was very fond of Devrim. The soldier was around thirty years old and had helped the Emperor consort train on many occasions. Devrim was humble and eager to learn, and he never acted like he was better than his teachers. Devrim had always seemed young for his supposed age, and just now he seemed particularly juvenile in his interaction with Aurora. 'Amazing since they have two kids!' he mused. But Junayd had theories on that too, although he kept them mostly to himself. Whatever the case, he intended to help Devrim win the Empress's heart. 'He deserves some happiness.'

They were packed and on their way well before sunrise. The ground was muddy, and soon the legs of the horses and riders were covered with brown and grey. Around mid-morning, they joined a larger road heading north. There were more travelers here as much larger towns were situated along the route. They passed by groups of merchants and exchanged pleasantries. Because Aurora was still in Devrim's borrowed shirt and trousers from the night before as well as the Guardian's cloak with the hood pulled tight, she looked like a boy riding along with his older brothers. Aurora greeted yet another group with her most manly voice.

Devrim sidled up alongside her. "Please stop. It's embarrassing." The grey-eyed man was annoyed enough to be blunt.

"What?" Aurora whispered in her normal voice. "I thought it was pretty good!"

"If by good you mean sounding like a constipated dog…" Devrim responded mercilessly.

Aurora gasped. "I never knew you could be so unkind!"

"Well, I never knew you could insult all men just by trying to talk like one, but here we are." Devrim set his jaw. Then he sighed. Aurora was right; he was taking his frustration out on her. "I'm sorry. You know I don't love crowds. There are far too many people on this road for my taste. It sets me on edge."

As if on cue, a pedestrian ran straight into Aurora's leg as well as the flank of her horse, Berry. "Excuse me, Miss!" The man said bowing his head and moving out of the way.

"HMPH!" was all she said in response.

"Looks like he did not buy your manly act either," Devrim said more congenially.

It was Aurora's turn to be sour, "You say one more word, and I will divorce you right here and now."

Devrim flashed a toothy grin before pretending to lock his mouth and throw away the key. He saluted his Empress and returned to his spot in the rear of the group. Aurora was still pouting an hour later when they stopped for a noonday rest. Berry seemed particularly grateful for the stop and immediately found a luscious patch of grass to munch on.

Nurlan sensed the Empress's mood and offered a peace offering. "Your Majesty, would you like to help me prepare some food?" The bulky man had spoken the magic words and Aurora eagerly agreed.

"Yes, please!" Her face lit up like the sun.

"Can you teach me that trick?" Devrim whispered jokingly to Nurlan.

"I believe that may only work once," Nurlan responded quietly.

The group ate in companionable silence. When they were done, an idea struck Junayd. "I am going to relieve myself. Come with me, Nurlan."

"What are we? Women? I don't join anyone to use the privvy."

Junayd thwacked his comrade upside the head. "I want to talk to you. Thanks for making it awkward." Nurlan grumbled, but the two men marched off together in search of a good tree. Junayd winked at Devrim as they exited.

"I guess we are alone," Aurora said casually.

Devrim began to sweat. "So we are." He scratched his head.

"You, Good Sir, are nervous," Aurora teased. "When you scratch like that, I know you are uncomfortable. Are you afraid to be alone with me now?" She batted her eyes at Devrim, and he gulped.

"Why would I be nervous to be alone with you?" Devrim tried to deflect. "Should I be nervous? Are you still mad at me?"

Aurora became serious. "Of course I am not mad at you. If anything I was mad at myself. I just feel so inadequate for the task before me."

Devrim placed his hand on hers and looked deep into her eyes. "You are not inadequate! You are magnificent. I know this, Aurora, because I lo…"

A large thud interrupted his speech. Aurora looked and cried out, "Berry!"

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At the palace, Cafer entered his chamber and noticed a faint light emanating from beside his bed. He picked up an ornate silver mirror and looked into it curiously. Gandr appeared in the glass, clad in traveler's clothing. "It is done," Gandr said, "The Empress should be dead within the hour." Cafer lay down the mirror and the glow faded. A wicked smile came on his face.