Daine awoke suddenly in the middle of the night to the sound of crickets chirping and an unfamiliar feeling. She sat up and looked around, trying to remember where she was. She saw the mage Numair sleeping soundly about two yards from her. Fireflies blinked on and off in the clearing where they were, and an owl hooted nearby. A stream burbled nearby. Feeling thirsty, Daine got up and wandered over to the stream. She took a cupped handful of water and sipped, gasping at the coldness of it. She looked back to see if she had woken Numair, but he let out a small snore and she knew that she had not.

A fox kit wandered into the clearing and came up to her. He wanted to play, so Daine gathered up some pine needles and twitched them about on the grass. He pounced and tried to get the bundle. Daine giggled softly and twitched it faster. Daine stood and twirled the needles over head, making the kit jump to get them. She let them fly through her fingers, the kit chasing after each one. Daine started spinning slowly in one spot, moving her arms to the cadence that the crickets were putting out. Soon she was dancing around the clearing, paying no heed to what she looked like or what was watching her.

Her hair came loose from its braid as she swirled around, the trees swaying along with her. She danced for her ma, for the wolves, for her new friends Numair and Onua, and for the animals in the clearing that were jumping and dancing with her.

Tears streamed down her face as she realized that here with her new friends, she could be anyone. She could also change to make Flynn see a better person. Though it would be hard, she would do it. She would let no reminders of her past surface, keeping it locked away inside. She could do it. Her tears were tears of joy just knowing that life would be different. Whether it was the water in the stream or the dancing that made her think this didn't matter to her. She was happy for the first time in ages.

She kept dancing, this time to a slower but still quick pace. Fireflies flew around her, making it look like there was a light shining down on just her. She didn't notice Numair waking up and staring at her, entranced.

Numair was sleeping, dreaming of his warm rooms at the palace and all of his books he had been neglecting. In his dream, he wandered from his rooms to the ballroom, where he saw all of his friends dancing. There was Onua, swaying to the music in a corner; she was never fond of dancing. Next to her was another friend- Alanna the Lioness, King's Champion in Tortall. She was even more opposed to social events than Onua. Both were staring at the center of the room where someone was dancing solo.

He looked to where they were looking and gasped.

Numair woke up, trying to remember what he had seen. He became frustrated when he couldn't, so he opened his eyes for a clue to what it could have been.

He nearly gasped like in his dream when he saw what was in the clearing. There was Daine, dancing in the clearing oblivious to everything around her except for the music of the crickets. Her hair was unbound and the curls were swaying with her as she danced. Her periwinkle blue night clothes swirled around her, as did hundreds of fireflies, illuminating her face. He saw tears in her eyes, but a smile on her face.

Numair smiled slowly, sighing. She was happy. Some of the animals noticed him awake, and they crept off, but Daine still did not notice him.

He stood, and the rest of the animals with the exception of the fireflies and crickets scampered off. Daine continued dancing, eyes closed and lips smiling. Numair walked slowly over to her and when her arms rose above her head he grasped them and brought them down. Her eyes snapped open and she gasped and blushed.

"Numair, I-"

He shook his head, smiling. He adjusted their hands and started dancing, leading her in the steps. They danced like that for what seemed like forever, and when the fireflies had stopped swirling and started hovering and the crickets had slowed their chirping, he pulled her into a hug. She breathed in slowly and looked up at him, a light in her eyes.

She smiled at him, and his breathing slowed. She placed her head against his chest and eventually fell asleep, standing up against him. He picked her up in his arms and laid her down against a tree. He lay down next to her and pulled her against him. The last thing he saw before he fell back asleep was a fox kit curling up next to them.