Silene sat at the bar, penciling in her notebook, when she heard Turel let out a pained grunt. He was kneeling down and lifting a barrel. "I really need a vacation," he huffed.

She set her pencil down and jogged over to him to help him with some of the weight. Smiling, she said, "You're getting old. Lift with your knees, old man."

"The sad thing is," he chuckled, "I was lifting with my knees." He hobbled while carrying the barrel into the backroom with her. "I think I need a vacation."

She chuckled, helping him set it down, "Where would you go?"

With his hand on his back, Turel stood up and stretched, "Some place with water." He shrugged, "But it's not like I can go right now. I have to run this place."

It wasn't her place to suggest leaving it in her hands for a while. She worked for him and lived with him, but she was still only his tenant. "You should see Vinay del Zexay. You could go fishing there or even take out a boat and sail."

Turel grinned, "You'll have to write me a list of things to do and see if I ever do decide to go."

"I can do that. The countryside is beautiful, especially if you visit Iksay at sunset. I'd always thought if I could paint, it would be the perfect picture," she said, taking her seat back at the bar to continue writing.

"Sounds like you miss it."

"Sometimes. But Highland is just as beautiful in its own way. The grass is greener in spring, and the skies a deeper blue in winter. This is my home now."

He nodded, "Finally found a place to keep you, huh?"

"Settling in, I guess," she said without looking up and scribbled another note down.

"Whatcha writing?" Turel asked, sneaking up behind her.

She leaned across the counter, blocking his view with her arm. "I'm not done yet."

"A new song?"

"Well, that's what I was working on 'til you asked me to write you a list."

"Finish the song first," he grinned.

"No, you got me started, now I gotta finish it."

Turel went behind the bar to clean the rest of the dishes. He started thinking about leaving the city for a while, maybe a week. He could leave the pub in Silene's hands or just close it. He was sure he needn't worry about losing customers. Vinay del Zexay would be too far though. It would take him over a week just to arrive there, assuming he didn't have to walk there. He had enough money saved for a trip like that, but he wasn't sure he wanted to take it.

Silene slid her notebook across the counter to him. "That's what I have so far. I'm sure I'll come up with something more."

Turel scanned the list. "Why would I want to visit the native tribes of the grasslands? That sounds horrible."

"Well, if you like experiencing new things…"

"Silene, in case you haven't noticed, I'm a bit of a homebody."

She smirked, "It's a vacation. That's the point."

Turel sighed and read down the list, "The festival at Iksay does sound nice. Not sure it's worth travelling all the way out there for though…"

"See some sights along the way. You pass through a lot of towns on your way to Zexen."

He shook his head, "I'd be gone too long."

"Give it some thought," she said, tearing the page out of her notebook and handing it to him.

"Get back to work on that song," he winked.

"How's your back?"

"You'd think I was ninety. Still hurts. Maybe if I lie down and you walk on it..."

"You should go see Doctor Amos. I'm pretty sure if I walked on it, I'd have to go fetch him myself."

Turel sighed again, "Fine. Do me a favor?"

"If it doesn't involve walking on your back again."

"Tell Seed I wanna see him."

She paused, "Okay."

"What? Why the hesitation?"

"I didn't hesitate."

"You did. For about two seconds."

"You're timing my responses?"

"Oh, I'm just saying. It's a little unusual," he grinned. "Tell me, do you think he's cute?"

She felt her cheeks flush, "Why are you asking me this all of a sudden?"

"What? He's a handsome guy." As soon as they'd met and he offered her a place to stay, she set her boundaries with him, and he accepted them. She was grateful for that. And over the course of their blossoming friendship, he understood her guardedness. But he didn't think it would do her well to remain alone and unattached, especially if she was finally 'settling in.'

"I'm going to go tell him now, and you get those ideas out of your head," she said, walking off indignantly. "And go see Doctor Amos!"

Turel grinned. He could tell she was flustered and why. "Forgetting something?"

She quickly walked back and snatched her key from his hand as he held it up. "I'm not going 'til you go. Otherwise I'm going to hear you groaning about your back all night."

"Fine, fine," he got up, tucking the list into his pocket, and went for the door. He locked up behind them, and they parted ways.

Silene arrived at the Crescent Inn and was warmly greeted by Bonnie, "Oh, hello dear! What can I do for you?"

"Hi Bonnie," Silene returned her smile, "I'm looking for someone. Seed. I was told he's staying here. Red hair…" she started describing him but Bonnie interrupted.

"You mean that good looking young man?"

"Do you know where I can find him?"

"He's right upstairs, dear. Second door on the right."

"Thanks," she said and walked up the narrow staircase, suddenly feeling very nervous about seeing him again. She knocked on his door before she could think twice about it.

Seed heard the knock and adjusted his tunic, inwardly cursing the itchy linen scraping against his neck. He needed more than four changes of clothes. He hated doing laundry so often, and the tunics he had weren't comfortable. It had been nearly three weeks since he arrived in L'Renouille with Christina, and they were still staying at the Crescent Inn, paying a discounted rate for their extended stay. He answered the door, expecting Christina or Bonnie. "Silene," he greeted her, surprised.

"Hi," she said. "Uh, sorry to bother you."

"Not at all. Wanna come in?"

"Oh, no, I just came to tell you that Turel wants to talk to you."

"Right now?"

"Whenever you're not busy."

"Well, I'm not really busy now," he said. He was only going to buy a new wardrobe. But that could wait until Christina was around to tag along. She'd gone looking for work and was probably sidetracked sightseeing.

"Oh. Turel might not be back for a little while. He's seeing Amos."

"Is he okay?" Seed asked, an edge of concern in his voice.

"He's fine. He hurts his back every other day. The doctor will give him some balm or tea or something and he'll be fine."

"You sure you don't want to come in?" Seed raised his eyebrows. They were after all just standing in the doorway talking.

She hesitated and smiled, "Well, I guess I'm not really busy either." She walked inside and took a seat at the table. Seed moved his jacket from the chair across the room and carried it over to sit with her. She saw his red striped jacket as he tossed it bundled up on the bed. "I remember you."

He raised his eyebrows, "You do? We've met?" He was sure he'd remember her if he had.

"No," she found her gaze wandering from his. She couldn't hold it because it was overpowering, even as disarming as he was. "I was at Greenhill when Highland's forces took it over."

He remembered the moment he and Culgan betrayed Luca Blight and supported Jowy. And he remembered the method of getting the townspeople to turn on one another. "That must have been an ordeal."

"It wasn't the best time for travelling."

"Were you there to study?"

"No, I was just passing through. I did manage to find a job though when I couldn't leave. Finding food was not as easy."

"I'm sorry," he said. It was a good strategy for taking Greenhill but at the cost of innocent lives, even if they didn't take their lives themselves. He knew when they surrounded the city what would happen. "I'm glad you made it out alive."

"Me too. Others were not so lucky," she said. "It seemed calmer when Highland took over, but there was still a lot of unease. I worked at the inn behind the counter and in the kitchen. Whenever a Highland soldier came in, even if just to use the bathroom, everyone was on edge, like a vicious dog was passing by that might snap and bite them."

"They didn't cause any problems, did they?"

"More often than not, it was the townspeople that would nearly instigate a fight. Muttering an insult under their breath as a soldier passed by. Most of the time, the soldiers ignored them like they didn't even exist. But sometimes they would get annoyed. The townspeople weren't armed though, so all it really took was a look and maybe putting their hand on their sword."

"Good." Seed was glad there hadn't been any murders there, at least before the riots began during Teresa Wisemail's escape. There was a body count after the chaos was quelled then.

"You came into the inn about a week after Highland occupied Greenhill and trade re-opened."

"I remember." He still didn't clearly remember her being there, but he did remember she was the only one serving them. Nobody else wanted to. "One of my men made a pass at you, didn't he?"

"And you smacked him upside the back of his head," she chuckled.

He vaguely recalled that too. "And somebody asked you if you thought we were demons."

"And I said you were just men," she said.

"Did you really feel that way?"

"Well, I was thinking along the lines of 'Men bleed. Men are fallible. Men can be killed.' But I understand the man was asking if I thought you all evil. I didn't."

"And what about Luca Blight, the Mad Prince?"

"Well, he was mad," she said. "What he did at Muse was atrocious. But he's dead now, isn't he?"

Seed paused at that, remembering that he himself should be dead. And if he was alive, who else rose from the dead? Oh, shit. Not Luca Blight... Runes, not the Mad Prince.

"Seed?" Silene could see the change in his expression and wondered if he remembered something terrible.

He changed the subject, his heart beating a little faster now. "So, where are you from originally?"

She wasn't sure what had crossed his mind, but she didn't ask. "Zexen. Vinay del Zexay. Another nice big city. Not as big as this, but it's on the coast."

"Well, we may not have the ocean, but we have a nice pond in our backyard."

She chuckled, "As long as it doesn't smell like bird droppings. Doesn't really compare to the salty sea breeze."

He grinned, "No, it wouldn't. I couldn't tell by your accent that you weren't from around here."

"I guess I adapted."

"Why'd you leave?" She hesitated and he knew he'd asked one too personal. He was becoming Christina. "You don't have to answer that."

"You could say I ran away," she said, surprised at her own forthcoming response. She wouldn't elaborate, but that was more than she divulged to even Turel in the first month of knowing him. "Don't ask what from," she clarified with a smile.

"I won't. I already feel like I'm interrogating you. I'm trying to think of how to start a discussion without asking a question."

"I think it's my turn. How did you and Turel meet?"

He grinned ruefully, "That would be when I moved here around the age of thirteen. I remember one night his old man told us to help clean up the bar after all the customers left, and there were tons of mugs that were still half full. His old man went to bed and left us to it, so we drank all the leftovers, which, I know, is really gross. But we got drunk. He came downstairs wondering why we were laughing so loud and cleaning so slow. Sent me home and didn't let me or Turel 'help' after hours for a few months after that."

Silene smiled, "A couple of boys up to no good. This doesn't surprise me. You didn't catch anything from one of those filthy mugs, did you?"

"Thankfully no. Turel also joined the Unicorn Brigade with me. But as his dad was growing ill, he decided to move back home after graduating from the brigade. I moved onto the military. Rarely saw him since then."

"The Unicorn Brigade… what was that like?" Silene asked.

"Oh, sometimes it was fun, sometimes it was boring. It was harder for other kids than it was for me. I loved it, but they all got a little homesick."

"You didn't feel homesick?"

"Nah. I thought about my mom sometimes, but I was charging full speed ahead. Didn't really look back."

"Have you seen the memorial for the Unicorn Brigade in Kyaro?" she asked.

"No," he furrowed his brow. "I was just there a few days ago. I didn't think to look."

She would have told him she wrote the song engraved on the plaque for the memorial, but she couldn't bring herself to say it now that he hadn't already seen it. Mostly because she didn't want him to ask to hear it. She was far too bashful to sing with a steady voice for him. "Turel might be on his way back now. Walk with me?"

Seed stood up and smiled, "Sure."

Silene turned the handle to the Hungry Wolf. It was unlocked. Turel was back. She pushed the door open and walked inside with Seed behind her. Turel was seated at a table with his back to them, leaning into a chair with his legs outstretched and back arched. Silene asked, "Did Amos give you something for your back?"

Turel didn't turn his head and answered, "Mmhm. Gave me some root to chew on to dull the pain and some herb to boil for tea later to help me sleep. And he gave me a backrub with his magic touch. That man is a godsend."

"Maybe you should stop being so cheap and hire a hand that can do some heavy lifting for you," Seed grinned.

"Silene is plenty strong!" Turel laughed.

"Not that strong!" Silene crossed her arms, "I don't want to end up a cripple like you doing it all myself."

Seed laughed and sat at the table with Turel. "Seriously, it couldn't hurt to have someone take the burden off your back."

Silene walked toward the door and said, "I'll give you guys some privacy."

Seed flashed her a smile as he waved, and Turel turned his head to catch the smile Silene returned as she left. Turel gave Seed a wolfish grin.

"What?" Seed knew that look.

Turel grinned and turned his head, fluttering his eyelashes in the best mock-a-flirting-girl way he could, "Oh, nothing."

"You exaggerate."

Turel leaned his head back again. "Trust me, with Silene a subtle smile like that is about the equivalent of what I just did."

"She's shy, isn't she?"

"Yeah, just your type," Turel said, moving his eyebrows up and down suggestively, and chuckled.

"I don't have a 'type'," Seed grinned, in denial. "What did Doc give you? You're high, aren't you?" Turel laughed, and Seed scoffed, "All right, so why aren't you with her, again? You do still find women attractive, right?"

"Of course. But we have an agreement. She's more like a little sister to me now."

"What agreement?"

"I offered her the spare room, and she was happy to take it, but she wanted to make sure I wasn't going to come on to her. If I did, she'd leave."

"That must have been hard for you," Seed chuckled.

"It wasn't, then it was, and now it's not. I wouldn't try to set you up with her if I wanted her for myself."

"I'm not rushing to find a girlfriend, Turel. That's sort of the last thing on my mind right now."

"You say that now, but you haven't heard her sing," Turel grinned.

Seed sat back in his seat, intrigued. "Oh, yeah?"

"And play instruments, but I haven't heard her play. I guess she sold her violin back in Greenhill a few years ago. I thought about buying her a new one, but they're expensive, and I don't know if there's a reason she hasn't bought a new one herself. You know, maybe that's something she doesn't want to go back to." Seed thought about their talk about Greenhill and wondered if she'd had to trade it for food. Turel sat up and added, "You know, she wrote the song on the memorial for the Unicorn Brigade."

"Really? She asked me if I saw it, but she didn't tell me that much."

"You should ask her to sing it for you," Turel winked.

Seed chuckled, "Maybe that's why she didn't tell me about it. You didn't really bring me here to talk about Silene, did you?"

Turel laughed, "No, no. After my back went out today, Silene suggested I go on a vacation."

"You should."

"Well, I jokingly brought it up, but she pushed it, and now I'm seriously considering it. I have the money to go, I just don't have the time since I gotta keep this place running."

"And this is where I come in," Seed gave him a look.

Turel looked at the table and nodded with a smile, "I was wondering, since you're back, if you wouldn't mind looking after the pub and Silene for me while I'm gone."

"I don't think Silene really needs looking after," Seed said. Turel might see her as a little sister that needs protecting, but she travelled all the way from Zexen to Highland by herself during the war. Not to mention she fed a bunch of hungry enemy soldiers back in Greenhill.

"Just the same."

"All right." Even if she didn't need looking after, it didn't mean he wasn't going to do it. "How long are you goin' away for?"

"I'm not sure. I thought of just visiting a town on the coast for a few days, but Silene made me a list of places to see and things to do… I could be gone a little over a month," he said. "I don't want to inconvenience you, but if you're going to be around here for a while…" He cracked an inquisitive smile, "What do you think?"

"Of course I'll do it," Seed said in a tone that suggested he didn't have to ask. "I'll come by for the night crowd. Where are you goin'?"

He pulled the list from his pocket and set it on the table, pushing it toward Seed. "My destination is Vinay del Zexay, but Silene made me a list of things to see and do along the way."

"Oh, wow," Seed looked it over. She has nice handwriting, he thought idly. "Rockaxe and into the Grasslands to… a Karayan village. I wonder if they resent us or not. Can't be worse than what they think about the people of Jowston."

"I'm sure I'll be fine. I don't think they'd kill a defenseless old man," he chuckled. "I'm gonna enjoy every second of this vacation."

"You aren't even graying yet."

"Young on the outside, old and wise on the inside," he nodded sagely.

"Well, if you meet Lucia, tell her I say hi," Seed said, still looking over the list.

"Really? Just hi?"

Seed looked up. "You're right, that's lame." He looked thoughtful for a moment and said, "Tell her I regret that we lost the war, but the people of Highland will always remember their sacrifice and respect their people. Something like that."

"Shit, that's good. Write it down."

Seed chuckled, "Really?"

"Yeah, I won't remember that!"

"Well, I don't remember it now either," he laughed and started writing it out at the bottom of the list. 'And it was an honor to fight beside you.' All right, now maybe they'll think twice about shooting him in the ass with an arrow if they don't like him. Funny, Culgan was always the one who had a way with words. I guess I'm not so bad after all. Except for the part where I'm having my friend deliver the message on his vacation. Details, pfft.

Turel said, "I think I should leave at the end of the week, so I make it back before winter comes. Don't really wanna be stuck out on the road when the first snow falls. Silene can show you the ropes."

Seed cocked an eyebrow. "Have things changed since you took over? Because I haven't forgotten how to serve drinks." He grinned, "Oh, that's right. You became a restaurant!"

Turel sneered, "We don't serve food. And there's more to it than serving drinks."

"Let Silene handle the paperwork. I'll do the heavy lifting."

"I feel better knowing you'll be here to take care of anyone that might get out of hand. I was afraid of leaving her alone if a fight broke out or a patron got a little too friendly. It hasn't really been an issue, but I'm not taking any chances."

"I can handle it."

"I know. Thanks, Seed. I owe you a big one."