Okay, this is an extremely cheesy chapter, but bare with me. Please.
Saphira came back fairly soon, her stomach full, and they walked on. The sun was just beginning to go back down. Katrina decided now was as good a time as any to teach her dragon to speak.
Sun? she asked, just to see if she already knew that one. Saphira looked at her in confusion. "Guess not," Katrina said. Then she pointed at the great yellow disk in the sky. Sun, she said again.
Saphira looked at her. Sun, she answered. Katrina smiled.
The rest of the day was spent teaching Saphira how to communicate with her Rider. They spent several days just walking and talking after that first day. Katrina grew steadily hungrier, and she ate almost anything she could. When they came across a tree with a few nuts on it, she would climb to the highest branches in order to get to them. When they came upon any edible fruits, she filled her pack with them. Her hair became rough and dirty, for she no longer bothered to brush it, or pull out the small twigs that kept getting caught in it.
She stumbled on, finding comfort and relief in Saphira's unwavering presence. The little dragon knew exactly what Katrina needed. When she wanted to be left alone, Saphira gave her a little room. When she needed company, Saphira was right there. The little dragon was as high as her knee now, and still growing.
And so the days passed and the two of them walked onward, getting closer and closer to their goal. Saphira could now speak to Katrina in a recognizable language, so they whiled away the hours talking and searching for food.
The forest was now behind them, and they had entered a vast plain. There was nothing but sand and sparse grass as far as the eye could see. They kept following the river, though Katrina was growing weaker and weaker as they went on, for there were few plants around here, and none were edible. At this point, she began to eat sparingly what was in her pack.
Katrina checked the map. To her complete and utter joy, it looked like she was almost at the edge of the forest. To her complete and utter horror, she was out of food again. Now, she probably could have gone without food if she had been well fed up until that point, but she had eaten barely anything yesterday.
But she knew she had to walk on. Saphira was doing much better than she was. Because the dragon could hunt, she was still fairly full and able to go on farther.
They kept on walking. At the end of the day they had reached the forest and had been walking for an hour or so. Finally, Katrina could go no further. She collapsed on the ground, not even bothering to spread out her blanket, and fell asleep.
Overly dramatic, I know, but I want the elves to find her all unconscious and half-dead and she has t- wait. I can't just tell you what happens next!