The restless teenagers were awake long before dawn. The hard ground, coupled with the morning dampness of dew, had not helped even the most exhausted fall asleep. Noises that they usually ignored now jerked them awake, and would not let anyone drift off completely. The first rays of the sun were received with a weary sort of relief.

However, the day was not to be a cheery one like the last couple of days. The sky was overcasted with gray stratus clouds. The water of the nearby river was dark and threatening as it rushed by eternally. Even the forest on their bank had lost its vibrant glow and now looked hunched and depressed. The most detrimental sight was the vast waste land on the other side of the river, from whence they had escaped. The ground was thick with ashes and fallen black remains of once great trees. Some trunks still stood, charred, branchless, and lifeless, like dead fingers jutting at the sky, frozen in postmortem.

No one spoke as they ate on a meager breakfast of nuts and berries they had gathered from the bushes. The eagle parents still remained hunched over their eggs and seemed at a loss as to what to do next. The only living creatures in this motley crew that still acted lively were the songbirds. Some of them foraged for food on the forest floor while others flitted through the branches, hunting and singing their morning notes.

"Animals are funny like that," Mason commented when M.K. had pointed out the birds' behaviors. "They have this ability to just keep doing their normal routine despite what happened the day before."

"We should try to copy them," M.K. muttered.

They finished their small breakfast quickly and Nod made sure he had their attention. "I still want to go look for Thryn. Who's with me?"

Jason raised his head. "I'm coming."

"I second that," Lex said just as quickly.

M.K. nodded. "Me too."

Ariel raised her hand. "I'd like to but we have a problem."

"What's that?" Nod asked.

"Where are we going to stay now? Our base is gone and these eagles don't seem to know what to do. I think we may have to build them a new nest."

"Why can't they build their own nest?" Ross jumped in, his mouth stilled stuff with the berry he had finished. "They've done it before and we don't have time to be playing house!"

Ariel's face flickered with uncertainty but her voice was surprisingly steady. "It would be pointless to let their eggs die from the cold or be eaten by predators after we rescued them from the fire. Besides, if the eggs do die, the parents will fly off and we won't have any big, scary birds guarding us anymore."

She paused. Her argument was sound, and no one objected immediately to it, so she continued. "I can stay behind and use my magic to help them build a new nest. It probably won't be as big as before but it can act as a temporary site while they construct a better one somewhere else. The sylphs can help too."

"An excellent idea, Ariel," Fara praised. "I'll help in any way I can." The young Queen beamed at her mother and their smiles were infectious to the rest of the group.

"I can stay behind to help protect you," Ross volunteered. "My arm is feeling a bit stiff anyway so I won't be much use on a bird."

"You mean less use than you already are on a bird," Mason quipped, receiving an elbow to his side. "I'll help too. Can't let the stiff one here take all the glory."

Nod and Lex whistled and Flitterbite and Airsnap dutifully answered their summons. Mason called his mockingbird and gave the reins to M.K.

"Are you sure you can ride him alone?" Nod couldn't help but ask and was not surprised when M.K. flashed him an exasperated glance.

"Of course I can! It can't be much harder than a hummingbird," she exclaimed. Nod refrained from saying that a mockingbird was much bigger and less placid than the highly trained mounts of Moonhaven. "Besides, with only four of us, we have to split up to cover more ground." Nod let the subject drop. There was actually someone else he should be more worried about...

Ross's sharp whistle summoned his robin, Skeeter, to his side and he handed the reins to Jason's waiting hands. "Robins are some of the easiest birds to ride so they're great for beginners," he said to the soccer player.

"Oh, is that why you picked him?" Mason queried innocently.

Jason turned away, not wanting to be a part of the thorny banter that was rapidly unfolding. He approached Nod, Skeeter following him without any trouble. "Don't suppose you can give me any tips?"

For ten minutes, Nod coached him in the basics, showing him how to get the bird flying and landing and using Flit as a demonstration. He explained how to make a proper turn and how to lead the bird to fly higher or lower.

"When you're going through the trees, let Skeeter do the work. Just keep yourself flat so you won't get knocked off, but don't press to hard or he'll think you want to fly lower. And don't forget what I said about keeping the reins loose or he might throw you."

"Okay, Nod, I think he gets it," M.K. said, smiling encouragingly. "You'll be fine Jason, just keep yourself relaxed. Most likely, you'll do better than I did."

Nod cracked a canary-eating grin. "You mean when you were screaming and holding on to me for dear life?"

"I recall someone being an idiot and showing off," she retorted easily. Both were too busy laughing at the memory to notice Jason sliding away from them awkwardly.

Lex joined them after checking over her swallow's bridle. "How about I'll search to the north and Nod, you can look south."

"Sounds good. M.K., will you take west and Jason will take east?"

They agreed to meet back at the riverbank before nightfall; with the sun behind the clouds, they couldn't think of a way to tell the time of day. Nod and Lex left first, taking off in their assigned directions with ease. M.K. hung back a little and Jason had to wave her off.

"Don't worry about me, I can handle myself," he growled as he settled onto the robin's back. Thankfully, the bird remained still.

The redhead raised a brow at his tone. Jason was optimistic by nature so the bad temper and scowl on his face looked very out of place on him. "Are you sure you're okay?"

He did not answer but flicked the reins the way Nod showed him. Skeeter spread his wings and took to the the air, the blonde wobbling a little before righting himself. M.K. watched as he disappeared into the distance, flying over the river and the burnt wasteland. She sighed and tried to ignore what just happened. They all had a bad night so she shouldn't hold it against if his mood was sour. Flicking her own reins, she and Catcall flew off to look for Thryn.


They had given him the region that was the easiest to search, the surest area that wouldn't get him lost and wandering. The easiest bird to fly. The least likely place he would find Thyrn. Why would she come back to the place that scared her most? he thought bitterly.

Jason woke up after a crappy night and who was to blame him if he wasn't feeling his usual chipper self? He still extended his help to search for their lost teammate, he really couldn't stand sitting on his butt at camp and doing nothing. Despite not knowing her for long, he felt he had a connection with Thryn...or maybe he just owed her for all the fighting lessons, maybe it was all in his head. Jason wanted to be the one to find her.

Yet Nod and M.K. ordered him to look for her where the fire had burned the forest to ashes, like they didn't trust him not to get lost. As he flew on the robin, half of his mind on the gray landscape beneath him, Jason contemplated his place in the group and why he was exactly there in the first place.

It was all an accident of course, he didn't doubt that. He followed M.K. into the woods when he should have been playing midfield in the biggest match of the season. He was just collateral and he didn't blame M.K. for the magic that shrunk and sucked him into a world of tiny men riding hummingbirds, fighting a secret war for the sake of nature. When Jason learned more about the politics, he recognized that the only way he could go home was to find the missing Queen. Only she could turn him back.

The Boggans cocked that plan up pretty thoroughly. He got dragged into a problem that had absolutely nothing to do with him, but he did not once complain about it. Where would that have gotten him? After all the near death adventures and fleeing for their lives, they actually found the Queen rather quickly.

So why hadn't he asked her immediately to use her magic to return him to his original size? Jason didn't want to be rude upon first meeting her since he didn't know her personality. That wouldn't actually be a problem since she was the sweetest queen he's ever met (the only other queen he knew was Miss Oak Valley, and she had a personality that was nastier than a Tasmanian devil's).

What really made him hesitate was the look on the forest dwellers' faces when they learned that their home had been taken from them. How scared they looked as they were pursued by hunters. How horrified and angry they were when they were told how their people were being treated. How could he just abandon them when they were so short on man power? Earlier in the week, before the wildfire happened, M.K. had told him after dinner how she became so involved in the Jinns' world. It was an amazing story and only made Jason admire her bravery and conviction all the more. It was not unlike his present situation. If M.K. could make it through that, then so could he. Jason was raised to never turn away from a call for help, and these teens were his friends now too. He owed it to M.K. and the rest of them.

So why the hell did he feel so damn useless?! What did he have to contribute to this cause, what could he possibly do for the Leafmen and Jinn? Jason had waited patiently for a job, a purpose. He eased himself into this little pack of rebels, not wanting to butt in like an unwanted tag along and he made clear that he was there to lend a hand. Nothing happened though. No one seem to need him for anything. Nod called the shots and tried to unlock the mystery behind the rose with Wanikiy, Ross was in charge of the plan, Lex and Thryn oversaw training and weapons, and Mason was sometimes holed up in his room where, more often than not, explosions would sound and smoke would leak from the door cracks. Even M.K. had more of a position than him, even though she was also receiving combat training.

Jason realized that he had flown very far from where he had started and the robin had done most of the flying and steering. At least the bird had enough sense to not crash into a burnt tree trunk. Angrily, he jerked the reins to turn Skeeter around and head back to the river. It was pointless searching this place any further. The robin heeded his command without protest, but Skeeter did turn an eye back to gaze at him. Jason could have sworn the bird looked reproachful. Now what reason did you have for doing that? he seemed to ask.

"Sorry," he replied automatically, not caring if he was talking to a bird. "I'm just frustrated."

The robin turned away, dipping his head like he understood. Or at least, that's what it looked like.

As the river came closer, Jason's internal clock told him that it was probably only barely pass noon. It was way too early to return to base camp; what would it look like if he came back so soon after leaving? He figured he could look somewhere for Thryn somewhere else while he still had daylight.

Jason banked Skeeter to follow the river downstream. He figured that if he was deathly afraid of fire, he would want to be somewhere surrounded by water. How ironic it would be if he found her so close to base camp when they were looking for her far and wide.

For a while, the river twisted and turned with quick rapids and calm depths. On one side was lush spring forest and the other was ashy debris. After a mile, the river split into two. Jason decided to continue following the original path; now both banks were covered by trees. If he was in Thryn's position, she wouldn't want to have an sight, scent, or sound of fire or smoke.

"Thryn!" he called out cautiously. Would she hear him over the sound of the water? Would she even answer back? "Thryn, where are you? It's time to come back!"

Skeeter flew as low as possible, the burbling of the water increasing as he got closer. Jason tried not to think about losing his grip on the robin and falling into the river. In his current size, he would surely drown. He called out for her for nearly twenty minutes, searching the trees and foliage in vain for a flicker of her brown hair.

Jason was about to give up but as he scanned a copse of willow trees, he caught a flash of bright red. At first, he thought he imagined it, but the flash came again and a bird burst out of the flowing curtains of a willow. It was a male cardinal, chirping at him like they were old friends, and Jason knew it was Thryn's even before he saw the bridle in the bird's mouth.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Where's Thryn? Can you show me?"

The cardinal banked and flew back into the willow, Skeeter dutifully following him. The strands parted like water and he found himself in a green-cloaked, secluded world. Dark brown twisted branches held the willow's strands, hiding any who wished not to be found. A gentle breeze passed through the strands with mere whispers and even the eternal noise of the river was muted.

Jason followed the dashing red cardinal up into the higher reaches of the tree, just barely keeping the crimson tail feathers in sight. Willow trees didn't grow too tall though, and soon they were brushing the top. The cardinal perched on wide branch that forked over the river. On the end of the branch where it became dangerously thin and swayed with the wind sat a brown-haired girl, her back to them and a defeated slouch in her shoulders that Jason had never seen before.

Thryn must have heard them land for she glanced back briefly, and Jason was too far away to make out her expression. However, the breeze carried her voice to his ears and he heard her say, "Fall, you traitor, you led him right to me. No good sneaky snitch."

Fall must have heard her too. He hopped to her, barely disturbing the branch and nudged her shoulder with his fat beak, insisting on her attention. Thryn ignored him like she was trying to ignore Jason, who was standing next to Skeeter not knowing what to do or say. All the openings he was going to use to get her to come back with him flew from his head.

Skeeter chirped quietly, catching Jason's attention. The robin looked between him and the girl as if to say, "Well, go on and talk to her. She won't bite." Jason rolled his eyes but began walking to her nevertheless.

It was a little difficult since the branch narrowed and swayed with his every step. How embarrassing it would be if he lost his balance and fell when he was mere steps away from Thryn. She didn't seem to care of his struggle. When he was within reach of her, he carefully sat down, his legs dangling in the air. Fall flitted away like he wanted to give them privacy.

They sat in silence for a long moment. Jason struggled to start a conversation and Thryn made no sign that she was going to turn around to face him. The blonde knew that she would make them sit there until the moon turned into Swiss cheese.

"This isn't a bad hiding place," he said at last. Inwardly, he cringed; Jason honestly thought he was good at comforting people but everything coming out of his mouth now sounded stupid to his ears. "It's got a good view, a cool nature soundtrack, a nice breeze going in and out..."

Jason trailed off, hoping that Thryn might respond. He should have known better since it was the silent treatment. It filled the gap between them and felt like a suffocating force on Jason's throat. Why had he been hoping that he would be the one to find her again?

Better just rip off the band-aid quickly. "Hey, as great as this place is, I think it's best if we head back to the others now. Nod, M.K., Ariel, and everybody else will be happy to see you're alright. They're actually trying to build the eagles a new nest for their eggs."

More silence, but Jason sensed that he got her attention. He spotted a slight stiffening in her shoulders. "So they all made it out okay?" she asked softly.

"Yeah, everyone's fine. All the eggs, all the birds, the spirits...though I doubt anything can hurt them," he chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. "Ross got burned pretty badly by one of those fire freaks but Nod did this weird healing trick with the rose and all that's left now is some scar tissue."

Jason got to his feet and offered a hand to her, even though her back was still facing him. "So how about we go? We can have lunch and help out with the nest. Then we'll plan our next move-"

Unexpectedly, she twisted around with astonishing speed and slapped his hand away like it was offending trash. Jason nearly lost his balance from the force of it.

"Is that all you can say?!" she shouted at him, getting to her feet. The blonde finally had a good look at her face. Eyes were red, cheeks flushed, and her expression was furious but her gray eyes were swimming with unshed tears.

"What?..." but she didn't give him a chance to continue.

"'Just come back now Thryn,'" she mocked, her voice raising. "Everything's fine and dandy, nothing's changed! You're still our trusted comrade and friend! Is this a sick joke?!"

"No!" Jason shouted back; he couldn't hold back the surge of frustration and anger. He was trying to help her! "I'm not playing with your emotions! What kind of guy do you think I am?!"

"A clueless one apparently!" she shot back. "You don't get it! I broke a huge part of the Leafmen code of honor! I deserted my comrades without a direct order from a commanding officer and that alone is enough to get me kicked out! What's even worse is that none of them will trust me now when all they'll expect me to do is bolt at the sight of a flame!" Quite suddenly in mid-shouting, her voice broke and tears spilled unbidden down her cheeks. Jason's anger instantly vanished.

"I...I couldn't...help it," she sobbed, collapsing back down. "The fire...the smoke...the salamanders made it worse. When it came over the edge, alive and hungry...I couldn't handle it!"

Then she said no more since her throat closed up in shame and tears. Jason didn't know what to say. This wasn't like giving Angela a small hug when she had her annual semester breakdowns because she worked so hard on her grades. It wasn't like letting Cori crash at his place when he got pissed off at his parents. Thryn was absolutely devastated, not just because of her fear of fire but because she abandoned her friends when they needed her. And in a time like this, everyone needed each others back.

He sat down next to her, close to her side. She didn't move away. He turned his gaze away from her, knowing it wasn't right to gawk at Thryn in the weakest state he's ever seen her.

Jason had no way of knowing how to start or how long they sat there. He just waited for her crying to subside. When it did, she brought her knees to her chest and curled into herself, refusing to look up.

"You didn't break the Leafmen code of honor."

Her eyes shot up to his. The words were out of his mouth before he knew it, and they kept on rushing out. "I hate to remind you of this, especially now, but there is no more code of honor cause the entity known as 'the Leafmen' no longer exists. Not while the Boggans hold Moonhaven and your people captive. So what you think you broke is still whole because it no longer applies to you."

She stared at him, eyes wide and mouth gaping. He hoped he didn't sound too harsh but he pressed on.

"However, since we're still here, we'll carry on like Leafmen. Like soldiers. We'll have our own code of honor, starting now. And the first rule is that we're always there for each other, even when one of us has screwed up. I may not be from your world but I'm definitely a part of it now, and I don't want to leave it like it is."

Silence stretched between them as Thryn gazed as if seeing him in a new light. Jason cracked a small smile. "In other words," he concluded. "I forgive you, and I'm sure the others will too."

He did not know what she would do next. Break into tears again? Reject his forgiveness? Yet of all things, he did not expect her to throw her arms around his neck and bury her face in his shoulder. Jason was frozen in shock at the contact. Even though he hadn't known her long, he could always tell that she didn't like unnecessary touch. Cautiously, he brought his arms around and returned the hug.

Not long after, she broke away, blushing and not meeting his eyes. "Thanks..." she whispered. "I never realized that...and I feel selfish now but...no one's asked you how you feel about all this, Jason."

That certainly surprised him. He chuckled unconvincingly to deflect the subject. "Hey, it's no big deal. I mean, I just said that I don't want to leave you guys hanging while everything in your world is so messed up."

Thryn shook her head stubbornly. "But it was still wrong of us to assume that you would stay. You're only a part of this by accident, in fact it's kind of our fault you're involved at all. And yet you're still here, even though Queen Ariel can easily turn you back to your normal size. Why don't you go home?"

"Honestly, at first, that's all I could think about," the blonde admitted. "When I got over my shock of walking through the forest two inches tall, I was told that the Queen could turn me back and that's what I wanted. I really thought she might get me back to normal before half time ended so coach wouldn't kill me. Of course, you saw how that ended. Bad timing I guess."

"But she's with us now, so what's holding you back?"

"You," he blurted out without thinking. The blood rushed to his cheeks as he went on quickly. "And M.K., and Nod, and Ariel, and...well everyone. You guys are my friends now and it wouldn't feel right to walk away when the stakes are this high."

She studied him with her gray eyes that seem so calm now, the tears already drying on her skin. Her lips curled up in a sad smile. "We could use more men like you in the ranks. You're a good person."

Now he couldn't hide his blush but she did not notice as she continued, her voice stern now. "I can't stop you from helping but this is still a Leafmen problem that is our responsibility to fix. You need to make it home alive, okay? You're under strict orders not to die."

She stared hard at him and he couldn't help but smile and salute. "Aye sir!" he replied in a mirthful voice.

"It's with your right hand, dummy," but her reprimand was ruined by her laughter. It sounded light, like a load had been lifted off her chest. Her eyes twinkled in gratitude. "Really, thank you. You reminded me of how important it is to talk to your friends when you need to. I've got this bad habit of holding it all in."

"Well, we're all imperfect in some way. Speaking of which, we don't need to do this now, but there's clearly more to your story than I know. So if you ever want to talk about it, I'll be all ears and no mouth."

Thryn considered his words, staring at her hands. "I'll tell you," she promised. "Just not now."

"No pressure. Take as long as you like."

The girl then got to her feet and brushed down her pants. "I think it's time to go now. I have to face the music at some point. Best to get it over with."

"They won't hate you for it," Jason assured.

"Nod, M.K., and Lex won't," she replied, wiping the remaining moisture off her face and smoothing down her hair. "Neither will Ariel, Fara, Wanikiy, or the sylphs. But Ross and Mason may not be so forgiving..."

"They'll come around. If we just explain to them-"

"I'm not going to share my wounded past with everyone," she interrupted sharply. He raised his hands in a surrendering gesture. "Sorry, that was uncalled for," she apologized. "Thank you again for listening, but I just can't share it willingly. I wouldn't even know how to start."

"It's your call. Ross and Mason will have to live with it."

Thryn smiled despite the nervousness growing on her face. She was a little scared of going back and he understood how that felt. Even so, she whistled for Fall and the bird heeded her call, Skeeter following behind him. "Let's go home," she said to both her companions.

Home. Not everything that was broken remained broken. Thryn still considered her friends' company as home.


Ick. Sappy ending i'll admit but I couldn't help it ;P

if any of you spotted the Fullmetal Alchemist and Fairy Tail references in this chapter, you are infinitely awesome and i'll give you internet cookies. :)