Nisaki returned after a short time. He had put together seven people on the manifest for beds and meals. The cabins on the ship weren’t all that large, but he assured that one room would do. By the way he described it, what they got was pretty much a room with numerous mattresses side by side that they’d all end up sharing.

That was fine enough. Paranoid as Tya was, she was confident that no one would actively try to kill her in her sleep, though she couldn’t say the same for The Man. But by the description, she figured it’d be too cramped for an attempt anyway.

She hadn’t yet gotten to see the cabin, nor had she the privilege of actually getting aboard the ship, which was likely for the better. From afar, the water seemed far less daunting, but as she had followed the dock out and found herself hovering over the dark surface, she realized that that was not a sight she enjoyed. The small stream near her house that she often read by was pleasant, and even more so, in comparison. The gentle sound of trickling water was one that added to the tranquility of her forest. But the sea, while clear near the shore, disappeared into a silty darkness the farther in it went. At the distance she stood on the dock, she could see the wooden stilts that held her disappear into it.

Water alone was uncomfortable for the sole thought that it would kill her without mercy. But add onto that, the fact that she couldn’t even see what lurked in it?

Dizziness swam in her core, forcing her outward body to sway and tense. She had read about some of the creatures of the oceans, though to a lesser extent than what she may have liked. There were mentions here and there of tryants, especially in the frivolous texts she read that pertained to world wonders. The waters that bordered the southern coast of Evoles were claimed by such beasts, making it a dangerous trek. The crew they sailed with now may have been well-versed in traversing the coast, but the possibility of facing one of the notoriously dangerous sea elves did nothing to help her anxiety. Rarity or not.

Fortunately, as Lillia brought the idea up to Nisaki, he had agreed and elected to do a quick sweep right away since the ship they were currently on would proceed on with its scheduled voyage back to Chadae. As they were short ones; only a matter of a few hours, they had one ship to take from Cotéfaise to Chadae while the others went from Chadae to Cotéfaise, and, as Lillia said, they’d cycle through throughout the days.

Was that more a ferry than a ship, Tya wondered as she slid off her sweater, scarf, and new satchel to hand off to The Man, to be returned later. She didn’t know. Ferries were similar to that, yes? But did they not have more stops? She knew little of all this maritime nonsense…

Displeasure renewed by the sudden lightness of her clothing, she crossed her arms over her chest and huffed as she turned to look toward the end of the walk where the stairs would lead up and back into the town. For the time being, she set aside her water-based annoyance to focus on the land-based one. Or moreso, the air based one.

A cool wind blew off the sea, carrying with it the thick scent of fish and salt, which was lost on her and not minded by Nisaki. She could handle the sound well enough, but the breeze, not so much, especially now that it seeped its way beneath her thin black undershirt.

For as much as she tried to shield herself, the most she could do was guard her hands with the ends of the sleeves. It still had a low u-neck, and without her scarf, both her neck and her chest were allowed to be cooled by the caress of wind.

She hated it.

The caress could go fuck itself.

What use was this anyway?

Yes, it had been her idea, but whoever had come up with it was clearly an idiot.

Her hands dropped to smooth her skirts, the brown, wine, and black fabric of the mix sticking to one another. At least they proved a good shield from what was likely a pleasant feeling to normal people.

“Where are we to search first?” She asked, trying to set aside her bitterness for once. Of course to no avail as her tone still had that edge to it.

“I was going to try out the tavern. It's getting to be about that time of night, that it’ll be filling up, and rumors are always all over the place in them. Maybe we can see if anyone has seen either of them.”

“A gorgeous golden glowing Vous will certainly be the talk of a bunch of laborers, will he not?”

While her comment was meant to be sarcastic, and Nisaki did quirk a smile, he said “even the hardest, most crass working classes can appreciate some fine beauty, can’t they?”

Her head cocked to the side as if to say that that was a fair sentiment, and she said nothing more as he led her forward and toward the desired settlement.

As they neared the door, he reached back a hand, slipping it beneath hers. “Stay close to me,” he said. “Just in case anyone appreciates beauty too much.”

The sentiment to that, she understood easily, but rather than focus on the task at hand, she found herself amused by the fact that Nisaki had thought her pretty. But beyond that, found herself absolutely enthused by the feeling of his hand in hers. This gesture was far from one like what he did with Lillia, and she knew that. She hadn’t wanted it to be. Much like the moment she had held onto Veselin while they were in the castle, it was just nice to touch someone else. And even nicer with the fact that there was no overwhelming sense of an impending doom pressing down on her core.

She enjoyed it from him, but even despite the cold currently plaguing her skin, she found herself thinking of The Man.

When she returned to him, she wanted to sit with him. She enjoyed sitting with him.

Nisaki guided her into the establishment by hand, ears perked and twitching in distinct surveillance. It was probably not a good idea to openly say he was listening to everything, Tya thought at first, but it then occurred to her, that that was actually just normal cat behavior. She’d seen cats before. They were always listening for prey, their little satellite ears working overtime to better place it, much like Melody’s.

That was adorable.

She wondered if they enjoyed being petted.

Certainly not the time to test the theory.

Yellow light bathed the interior of the tavern, tinting its gray walls with the hint of color as well as illuminating the various big-catch trophies high along the walls. Plaques rest beneath most to name the people who’d wrested them from the sea. Said gray wood was difficult to see with just how covered the tavern seemed to be. Paintings here and there, some of Cotéfaise itself, and some of farther places. Some of families, some of boats, and some of the supposedly gorgeous underwater sea creatures, tryants.

She’d read mixed things about their appearances. Some said they were terrifying, same said they were beautiful, and according to this tavern, they were much more inclined to believe the latter.

The colors along the paintings may have been odd and mixed in her eyes, but that wasn’t stopping her from admiring the dried strokes, the care, and the breathtaking underwater scenery with its fish and bright corals.

The floors were scratched, the wood in some places worn with traffic that crossed it, and it was packed tight with sturdy wood tables and chairs. Though much of it appeared old, it was still clean, especially for where and what it was.

Those thick, bowing tables were fortunately only half filled with workers that had left their jobs for the day, enjoying mugs of cool, frothy drink while they awaited their friends. She had expected it to be louder, as did Nisaki, she judged by the way he escorted her inside by the hand. Perhaps it wasn’t only because not all the thick muscled laborers had arrived yet. Voices and waves could still be heard flowing in from the open windows that faced the docks.

Nisaki led to a table off the center floor near a man that seemed to be shuffling cards in wait for players. He raised the deck with their presence, a crooked toothed yet polite grin backing his offer for a game which Nisaki considered for a moment. Rather than accepting or denying, he turned to pull a chair out for Tya, tilting it so it sat between the two tables. When he released her, he accepted the invitation he had been given.

The soft-edged old cards were dealt in a game that both parties seemed to know the rules of, but Tya very much did not. Some lay face up, same face down, some in hand, and she didn’t know what any of this meant, so she paid mind more to the conversation even despite watching the movements made.

“New faces ‘round here?” The dealer questioned, a slightly lazy-eyed glance flickering in Tya’s direction before he faced Nisaki again. “Usually your kinds leave early right after the ships come in.”

“We’re boarding, actually,” Nisaki replied as his lips puckered thoughtfully toward the cards laid about the table. “But we had a little time before we’re due to leave, and were hoping to see some of our friends before we go.”

Another sideways glance was cast toward Tya, and this time, she felt the need to look away. There was little suspicion to be seen on the stranger’s sun-touched, wrinkled features, but whatever the cause of his attention, she didn’t want it to dawn on him that she was a familiar face for all the wrong reasons.

Thanks to Nisaki’s inherent friendliness, the casual conversation that ensued was able to keep his eyes off her for the remainder of their game, though it garnered little results. As he hinted to the friends he wished to see, the dealer exhibited little in the expressions of familiarity. He was thanked for the game as another group approached with a desire to play, and Nisaki left the seat across from him to instead sit next to Tya as she pulled up to the table again.

“Have you heard anything of use elsewhere?” She questioned as she stretched both arms across the wood, examining the foreign thinness of them without the layers of clothing. She was chubby, yes, and while her wrists and hands were thin regardless of her stature, it was more a matter of her own body being hidden away most of the time. She always knew it was there, but there were occasions when she’d pull back and really know it was there.

“No,” Nisaki answered through a huff. “And it's starting to get kind of crowded. There’s a better chance of hearing more the more it fills up, but there’s also a better chance of getting noticed…”

“Not to mention I assume the majority of these people are from the docks themselves. Perhaps we’d be better off listening about in the town rather than here. If they hadn’t come to the docks, then perhaps that.”

“Well,” he leaned forward, elbows on the table. “They could walk out, they could take horses out, or they could take a ship,” he said.

“Or they could be arrested or killed.”

“...Yes, those too.”

“We cannot check the jails though. So then our next best bet should be the stables again? Perhaps we can get back our mounts and board them as well as ask if they’ve been by.”

Nisaki waved a finger at her with the implication that that wasn’t a bad thought. “I think Sarobie would have been too smart to put their names on the manifest too, so they would have used a fake.”

“But should they be boarded, I would think someone in our group would have come to say something rather than letting us foolishly waste time out here.”

“Fair,” he said absently.

“And had they walked, there would have been the chance to run into them on the main road.”

“Unless they also didn’t take the main road.”

She quieted at that, lips pursing in thought. Perhaps Melody would have been more fitting for this task given that she was a hunter. Had she any expertise in hunting people? Likely not, but it was probably more than Tya had, that was for sure.

Nisaki groaned, his hands falling into both hands. “We’ve got to find them. Both for the sake of the country, and because they don’t deserve to die…”

“Then let us get up rather than sitting about and hoping for the best.”

He wasn’t entirely sure what they’d do moving about, but he would admit that the hit or miss idea of sitting there for gossip was making him antsy. He got to his feet, pushing his chair in and extending a hand out to Tya. She didn’t need it, but she did accept it regardless, and as she smoothed her skirts, he shifted to set her grasp at the bend of his elbow.

Venat now hued the sky with faint pastel pinks and purples, her body out of view with the cliffside looming over Cotéfaise’s western edge. Her already fleeting warmth was giving way to the calm breeze of night, lit by the full view of Imyun and a wide yet not whole view of Thera.

As they stepped out on the walk, Nisaki started up the stairs. Tya kept her head down, watching her own steps as they ascended, but as they reached the top, that feeling washed over her again. The tightening static sensation of eyes on her…

Her grip tightened on Nisaki’s arms as one of his ears tilted back the way they’d come. His grey eyes; reflective, she now noticed, kept forward, but it seemed that he had felt as well, that someone had noticed them.

“Don’t turn,” he told her just above a whisper, continuing their walk forward. “Just keep moving.”

She did as directed, a finger tapping anxiously against his arm. They followed the path as if they were supposed to be there, Nisaki hoping that confidence could further play into what was already a poor disguise, and Tya just plain not caring. She didn’t want to be caught, but she was far too impatient and ignorant to pretend otherwise, and was no doubt going to get fed up with any act had she tried.

The main road was clearing now. The vendors in the circle-center of town were trying to sell off just a little more of their wares to the stragglers that remained before they packed up for the night. A young woman had eagerly leaned across her kiosk’s counter with a chain outstretched to show Nisaki as she hurriedly tried to pitch something about it, but he kindly said no thank you as he kept Tya moving down the path. His ears had already done most of the calculating, but he and Tya both were able to more precisely tell how far behind their pursuer was by the way the woman had tried to sell her jewelry to them too.

“The group of them split,” he said down to her, then sucked in one side of his cheek while he considered the situation. To do anything in the middle of town would clearly call attention to them, and they couldn’t try that, even if it would have been in self defense. With Tya’s face on that board they were just brushing past, that would be too risky. “It sounds like it’s only one.”

“Any idea which one? Or who, for that matter?”

Nisaki responded first by shaking his head. “But it isn’t either of the ones we’re looking for.”

“Let us get to the stables… You can speak to the stablemaster while I tend to our new friend. I so dislike this attention.”

He briefly rested his free hand over the one linked to him as an idle method of reassurance toward her statement, but he said nothing more and only continued to lead.

The road was a direct shot to the slope that acted as Cotéfaise’s main entrance through the cliffs, and the stables, placed right next to said slope, to the side of the foot. While guards did walk it, Nisaki kept his head tilted in Tya’s direction, and she kept hers faced down.

Homes thinned near the entrance, the path continuing on and up to Evoles’ plains, but they branched to a slimmer one paved to the stable-house’s entrance. At this time, it likely would be closed, but Nisaki was going to risk annoying the horsemaster in hopes of getting back their beasts. He parted from her grasp where the path forked, making a motion back to her to wait a moment while he continued. In response, she gestured toward the building’s emptier side where only bales of hay lay stacked on a pasture the horses grazed during the day. It was gated, but she didn’t really care to go in, only get away from the main road and lure her company away from it as well.

Approaching the fence, she drew in a steady breath to allow her fire to bolster in preparation as she crossed her arms. Propped back against it, she finally peered back to the unhooded figure that followed. A well built man with blonde hair parted and slicked to the side, dusting his forehead with a finely sculpted ‘c’ shaped curl. He had an asymmetric cloak pinned at one shoulder and pale orange eyes that pierced the growing darkness. He held the familiarity of passing- the knowledge only that she had been in his presence once before, and she knew it had to have been the night prior.

He started toward her. His shoulders were tense, body language defensive rather than hostile, and he held both hands up in an implication of surrender which she did not trust. Her paranoia slipped through in the form of her fingers tapping now against her own upper arm. There was no move to attack from either party, but she had not let out a breath to calm the fire, and he had dared to take his eyes off her.

“Miss Maraise,” he said as he slowed feet in front of her.

For a moment her mind tried to find some sort of witty title to give in response, but she lost her chance as he continued.

“I was sent to see if it was you, of course” he said, chin tilting down as he the briefest ashamed glance in the direction of the sea. “But I know that alone, there’s no chance that I can take you.”

“Good,” she replied with a steady, blunt sincerity which he did not disregard, but didn’t speak further on.

“I… Admit that I’m surprised that you haven’t killed me either.”

“As am I,” why hadn’t she? Curiosity, probably. It was what always drove her, after all.

Alarming as that statement was, he didn’t seem surprised by it. Instead, he looked her over and slipped both hands into his pockets. “I’m grateful for the chance,” he said gently. “And I wanted to ask you how and why you have Altaí.”

Tya arched a brow, her anxious thrumming halting as she looked at him. “Who?”

“Altaí,” he reiterated only to realize a moment later that that clearly didn’t help her. With hesitance, he said “the undead. The cryomancer.”

Slowly, she rose to stand off the fence and let her arms drop to her sides. “I had not known that was his name,” she said with a touch of absence as she too let her gaze wander back toward the sea. The ship looked small at this distance, but still ever so threatening. Even if it hadn’t been before, the simple notion that he had lied to her in something so menial made it all the more so.

She wouldn’t show such weakness in front of an enemy, though.

She turned back to him. “What concern is it, to you?”

The stranger hesitated a moment on his answer, forming his words carefully. “It just seems odd that you wouldn’t kill him.”

At first her assumption was that she meant because of the danger he could be toward her should he truly mean to betray her, but she stifled the response to that for two reasons. One, she doubted her trust which had been gained all too easily to begin with, and two, they had no reason to know of the danger. Ice and fire were undeniably opposites, but to the rest, she was nothing more than a mage. And while the two magics had their differences, ice was no more a danger to them than anything else.

“None, I guess,” he replied. “I know that it is a lot of concern to Kaori, though.”

Another name she did not know. It furrowed her brow, but she kept her mouth shut. To what extent would her ignorance be used against her, she wondered? She did not want to find out, so further questions, she bit back.

He waved that off and clasped his hands at his front instead. “It doesn’t matter,” he said. “I was only curious about that. But I… do have a more important thing to ask of you,” once more, he thought his words over carefully, and as he did, Tya was left scowling at him. She couldn’t help but feel he wasn’t exactly in any place to make any requests.

“...Our Queen is…” Another start that he abandoned, only to stubbornly straighten toward his own incompetence. “Our Queen is taking a course of action that’s extreme. And we all know it. But we are subjects just as much as you and everyone with you. Even if we could disobey, the fact is that many are tired of this fight, and they support her…”

As he swept a hand through his hair, Tya once again crossed her arms. There was the urge to hurry him to the point, but much like her questions, she bit that back. “The point I am trying to make,” he looked back up to her, his previously wary expression turning more sincere and pleading. “Is that we have friends and families- lives that we want to go back to, and people that we want to take care of.” Two pairs of footsteps sounded from the porch. He looked in that direction only a moment before back at her to finish his sentiment. “We can’t do that if she starts a war, so please get the Vous as far away from here as soon as possible.”

She opened her mouth as if intending to respond, but she was silenced by the sight of thick black mist beginning to encircle him. It covered him, disappearing only after being shoved away by the wings of a smaller, snake-like creature in his place. Its rounded black eyes lingered a moment longer before another push of its leathery gray-brown wings boosted it up further, giving it room to flutter off.

Nisaki paused at the end of the porch stairs, his own eyes narrowed as he watched the creature meld away into the night sky. The tip of his tail gave an annoyed flick, but he put on a smile and allowed himself to be escorted so he may gather the horses.

The three beasts had been well cared for through the day it seemed, and with their chance to rest they were much happier even if they were still a little slowed from the unusual burden they’d had to carry.

They’d have to pay a little more to board them as well, but they’d have to ask that of Melody when they returned. For the time being, he focused on her. He didn’t seem to know what exactly he wanted to ask for a moment or two, or at least how exactly he wanted to ask it, and in that time, they decided to stay clear of the main road again in case their horses were as familiar as their faces. Now that night had officially fallen, street lanterns were lit along the roads and it would be a little less safe to travel through the town anyway. So instead, they guided the horses along the very outskirts once again with the sea as their compass.

With a little distance between them and the stables, Nisaki finally decided the best way to phrase what he wanted was just blunt and all encompassing. “So what happened?”

She’d had the thought to answer that question before he even asked it, but had instead gotten herself lost in the wonder of whether or not she should be wary of The Man.

“I was asked to refrain from starting a war.”

While it was an answer that he seemed to only vaguely grasp, it was all she gave, too lost in her own thoughts.

She stood at the end of the dock when they arrived, just before the gangplank. She had tried to coerce herself into walking across it.

Just as it was, her body swam uncomfortably with the worst possible sensation when she’d so much as glance down at the water beneath her feet. But now there was an added concern. At least stranding herself in the middle of something so dangerous before could have been eased by knowing she would have someone there to try and keep her safe at least, but now it just felt as if she’d be standing on a dangerous platform waiting to be shoved into the dangerous pit below.

Nisaki had taken the horses aboard some time ago, happy to aid in getting them ready for the short voyage. He’d tried to coax her on as well, but she assured him that she’d follow soon enough, and just needed a moment. She still couldn’t tell if that had blatantly been a lie, or that, the longer she was standing there, the more she was realizing she couldn’t do it.

Maybe this was an overreaction. It seemed like one, but at the same time, it didn’t. On one hand, it was something simple. He could have very well have had any reason not to tell her his name. And yet on the other, it was something simple. He could have just said it. It was literally just a name. Everyone had one. What reason did he have to lie about that, and if he would go as far as to do it about something small, what else would he be lying about?

Was that paranoia or was that warranted?

Was she overreacting or did this make sense outside of her own mind?

This was fucking stupid.

Frustrating.

She wanted to go home.

Her hand raised to find nothing in the place her scarf should have been. It sunk to sit against her bare flesh, and a twinge of basic pain sickened her core. It was something akin to homesickness. Actually, perhaps it just was homesickness prompted by the distress. The vacancy of Nisaki’s touch and The Man’s friendship, the loss of her home, and somewhere deep in there, the failure to find Skye and Sarobie. What she desired wasn’t her cave, though.

In the absence of her scarf, she desired the second best thing. Rather, the first that had been forced to second after decades of not having it.

She wanted her father…

Her hand closed tight and soon the other clasped over it, the distressed burst of her core making her wish even harder for the simplest things. A hug, or even just the sound of his voice. To hear him call her Felielé…

But he was too far.

Even if he wasn’t, her mother did not wish to see her, that she knew. She’d always strained her with her presence; a constant reminder that she was not what she should be. And Tya was nowhere near as strong and able as her mother, nor as malleable as Tiana may have liked. Maybe now, with a better body, she would feel different, but there was always a constant, lingering reminder of it. Tya had never been a child, and that fact left Tiana bitter. She wanted to belong with her human husband in her human community with a human family…

Tya turned away from the gangplank, hands dropping from her chest to wring in her skirts as she began down the dock, toward land again. At first, it was an act of impulse rather than thought, but as her mind connected with the movements, she didn’t slow. Every step away left her to ache with loss between her scarf and him, but the fire of her core was pushing away from the water, seething, driving her, and skewing her thoughts.

She needed to leave.

She wanted to go home, but she couldn’t.

Where could she go?

The Sekan would be distracted for a time, yes, thinking she was with them, but the moment they realized, would they leave her be, or would they be ordered again to kill her? With how actively they’d ambushed her thus far she couldn’t imagine all of their opinions matched that of the man she spoke to earlier.

Her home was likely out of the question. She couldn’t go back there, she couldn’t go back to her parents, and she didn’t know anywhere else. She couldn’t go back to The Man, and he had been her only friend.

She never should have left the safety of her home to begin with. This was a mistake- she was a mistake.

She could just… Go north, perhaps… They were unmapped- perhaps she could hide there in peace.

Her steps slowed.

Or perhaps she should just take to the ocean and let the water seep to drench her core.

The kingdom would no longer be her problem if she was put out.

She hadn’t noticed just how far she had made it, so drawn inward by her panic. She should have been pleased to realize she was nearing the town exit, but it was a little less exciting with what had pulled her from her thoughts initially; the sound of armored footsteps behind her.

Fortunately, she held no sense of morality that said she couldn’t set guards doing their job aflame. Mostly. It seemed wrong, likely because it was, and she shouldn’t do it, but if they wouldn’t leave her alone, then wouldn’t they deserve it?

No. They wouldn’t, and it would only dig her grave a few feet deeper if she did it. Regardless, one of her palms sparked, flames igniting to curl between her fingers as she turned back.

She’d definitely been seen.

Had they nothing better to do than follow her?

...No, probably not, she was wanted for high treason and the bounty on her head was probably a good one.

One hand hiked up the end of her skirts with the intention of moving them so she could run, and the other held out, flame aloft, ready to pour out and bar them from gaining any more ground while she fled.

The group that had caught on to her pursued with wariness, still clearly trying to decipher whether or not she was who they thought she was. Their question had been answered by the fire, but their pace didn’t quicken, likely due to the knowledge they’d be engulfed in that magic should they try. Slow and wary still, they approached, two with weapons drawn while two others only set their hands over the hilts of their own.

One held both up to her as a means of showing he was unarmed and therefore, no danger, but that didn’t mean the flame in her hands died. Still it licked between her fingers, twisting upward to taper into the night now that her palms were faced upward.

He opened his mouth as if intent on speaking to her, but the clink of glass along the pathway quieted them all. A vial rolled across, stopped as it struck a rock. The pressure of its contents against its thin glass used the smallest ounce of force to snap free of its container. The moment the liquid hit the air, it burst into a thick mist that coated the guards it was nearer to.

Confusion extinguished Tya’s flame, and she arched a brow toward the coughing guardsmen, barely more than silhouettes against the greenish black coating the air. She intended to step forward, but before that effort could connect with the ground, her upper arm was seized and she was drug back. A hand cupped over her mouth as the other released her arm and instead pressed around her waist to hoist her up and better carry her off.

Fear sparked her fire once more, but a voice softened her attempt as its familiarity seeped in: “Don’t light it.”

Though she hadn’t been completely swayed by it, the sight of someone’s back as she was pulled back, further cemented that she didn’t completely need to fear, at least not yet.

A lightly armored frame leaned past the corner, short chestnut hair swaying as Sarobie peered out to be sure that no one had seen their hasty kidnapping. On her signal, Skye released the hand at Tya’s mouth, using the one at her waist to lift her and set her on her feet in a direction that faced away from the crew. Though his grasp lightened, his hand remained on her back to urge her to follow, and before she could make a decision, Sarobie’s hand clasped hers to drag her, consent or not.