Hit a few snags when writing this one, but for the most part I almost couldn't stop writing.

Kyushen:

Heh, I know what you mean. When I'm reading an SI I'm always dying for the characters to find out that one of their friends is not like the others~ In the position of being the writer, I have to work hard to keep it from happening before I want it to. Can't have every fun detail come out at once.

Maybe, but it would depend on just what sort of confrontation you're imagining. Letha wouldn't do something that would blow his cover, but she probably wouldn't be adverse to using it to extort something small like free sweets out of him...

Angelic:

DESERT ARC IS OVER! Though they're technically not out of the desert yet, but that'll be fixed soon.

Good. That's one ship I don't need. And it's hard enough when Judith, in the middle of a scene, starts suggesting new impossible ships. (You'll see what I mean.)

Hrm, don't know much about military procedure or ranking...Colonel Letha Vitae of the Abductee Brigade! (I have no idea what I'm talking about!)

bright night:

Oh, I have plans for how that's all going to play out. I'm sure everyone's trying to guess whether I'll let her save Belius or not (and I feel like a terrible person if I think about that line too much), but I'm gonna keep my lips zipped til it's time to cross that bridge.

And you're one of the few people to admit feelings of hatred for Chase, even given it's not permanent and dependent on whether he can give a good explanation. Haha, how does that boy manage to stay so popular?

x x x

Chapter 49: The Nature of Secrets

x x x

Rita had given me a break from magic practice, though I was supposed to keep reviewing the formula for Wind Blade in my head so I wouldn't just forget it again. The others mostly avoided talking to me since they didn't want to have me pull a Jade act and start cutting them down verbally with sarcasm or wise ass remarks. I was torn between amusement (Jade persona) and remorse (me) over that. At least Repede didn't seem to mind walking with me. It wasn't like I could make smart remarks at a dog's barks.

It was probably for the best, since I didn't really feel like talking. The monotony of trudging through sand, with only the rare break to fight monsters, lulled my mind into a meditative state of thought.

I told them...I told Yuri and Raven... Was it the wrong choice? It hasn't really settled anything... I have some explaining to do, and they may still decide they want nothing to do with me afterwards. If nothing else upsets them, hearing I knew everything that was going on and said nothing would.

Outwardly my expression remained passive, cold even, befitting Jade the Necromancer of Tales of the Abyss. Inwardly I was banging my head on a wall. Gyaaah! But I can't go telling them about the video game! ...If I don't, then maybe they won't take my story as badly? Elbow braced in the palm of one hand, I rested my chin in my other hand while considering the possible outcomes.

That is the most troublesome issue. But if there's the chance that it could come to light later...no telling what else Chase might give away... And then it would be on my head for having left that out. So would it be better to say everything right from the start? But then it's pretty much guaranteed that Alexei would find out. I chewed on my lower lip while trying to weigh the likelihood that either Chase or Raven would say something.

Raven...it might seem harsh to say I believe he would, be he's currently the commandant's man. Until the others connect his duplicity and other identity as Schwann in what-ever-that-place-was-called...something with a "B"... Well, the final grain that tipped the scale of his loyalties doesn't come til then. I doubt I've done much to change that.

Chase... I could practically feel a dark cloud of gloom settling over me. He's become an unknown. He said nothing for so long, but last night he let slip such a key detail as Earth so easily. It might be better to work with the assumption that he won't keep any of it a secret anymore...

But before the whole "your world is my world's fictional entertainment" part comes up, Yuri's bound to ask about Alastor. I didn't really give any explanation about his involvement last night, and they were probably too overwhelmed hearing about Earth to realize it at the time, but I'll have to tell them something next time.

Should I just outright tell them about the fairies? No particular arguments why I shouldn't came to mind. And thinking back to figure out how Nevi might take to it, I remembered him once saying he didn't really care what I told them as long as it didn't get in the way of my search.

I wonder if...maybe I could have told them about the fairies from the start? Maybe I didn't have to be afraid to? Oh, but before that would have made my story about how I grew up with Ludwig and Sophia questionable. Why would fairies have singled out an unremarkable country bumpkin to travel the world for them when there are probably tons of better candidates?

My eyes narrowed as I repeated that last part to myself. Indeed...why me? Even on Earth, there were probably lots of other better choices than me. Nevi isn't telling me something...again.

"Good day!" Estelle called out.

I blinked, rousing myself from inside my head to pay attention to our surroundings again. Interestingly, I realized that walking had gotten easier without my realizing it. The terrain was no longer endless shifting sand and rolling dunes, but a more level plain of loose and gritty dirt. There was even more plant life around, though it was sparse and scraggly. Approaching us from not that far off was a lone traveler laden with heavy looking bags.

At the princess' hail he waved to us. It didn't take much longer for us to meet halfway, and he took the chance to put down some of his baggage while talking with us. "Ah," he wiped a hand across his perspiring forehead, "are you going to the Weasand of Cados?"

Yuri propped a hand on his hip. "Yes, we are. Why do you ask?"

"The Imperial Knights have sealed off passage through the Cados," the traveler told us. "It's not just here-they've set up blockades at all of the routes through the mountains."

"It's true then," I murmured, trying to act as if I hadn't known indefinitely before then.

Rita muttered, "Why would they..."

The traveler looked at her and shrugged, "I don't know all the details, but I heard that it has something to do with some danger in Nordopolica."

"What should we do..." Estelle looked to the rest of us with concern in her eyes, "We need to get to Nordopolica before the new moon!"

"In that case it's simple," I said with confidence. They turned to me, waiting as I smirked and adjusted the perch of my Jade Curtiss glasses, "We just go right through. And don't take 'no' for an answer."

"I think you need to change outfits before it screws up your brain permanently," Rita shot.

"There's no way we could do something like that!" Karol rejected immediately.

"I dunno," Yuri disagreed with them. "That sounds about right to me. If all else fails that is." I smiled wickedly at him.

The traveler was shaking his head in disbelief as he listened in. "I wish I could help, but they wouldn't even let me through, and I have a travel permit."

Karol cocked his head in surprise, "Are you a member of the Fortune's Market?"

"Yes," the traveler, or traveling merchant, responded matter of factly.

"How'd you get your permit?" Yuri asked curiously.

It was Karol that answered, and the merchant fished out a canteen to drink from as we listened to the little guild boss. "The empire issues travel permits to Fortune's Market so that it's members can travel wherever they want...at least, that's how it's supposed to be..."

"Well then," I shifted my weight onto one foot while smirking at a sudden realization. "That means the knights are planning to finish with whatever they're doing in Nordopolica as soon as possible."

"What do you mean?" Estelle asked. The others looked baffled as well, definitely missing how I'd drawn that conclusion. Though Raven's brows came together as he scratched his chin. Perhaps he was following the same train of thought.

"Even in times of war, merchants are given more freedom than most others," I explained. "In fact, times of war are times of major profit if you have a good head on your shoulders. Being cut off from the market results in economical damages and shortages of essential goods, and many a battle can be decided by who has the better supplies." The merchant was nodding, and Raven's expression had cleared in a way that said he'd probably figured out what I meant.

Yuri frowned at the logic. "What makes you think they're gonna finish quickly instead of settling in for a long term siege?"

"Yes, that would be a reasonable interpretation," I acceded. "Raven?"

The archer shrugged and accepted the explanation I'd handed off to him. "The guilds wouldn't take too kindly ta having one of their major cities attacked by the Empire, 'specially not so soon after the treaty an' the mess with Heracles. If the Knights overstay their welcome here, you can bet the Union will have something to say about it."

"And I doubt they want to risk any retaliation when most of their knights are here, making barricades, instead of back home protecting their most noble selves," I finished smugly. It was a bit of strategy that wouldn't have occurred to me when it was all just a game. In games, the heroes and the antagonist sent obstacles always arrive no sooner or later than they're supposed to, and clear out the second the story doesn't need them there anymore.

This was interesting...

"So you think the Knights are preparing for an all or nothing strike?" Judith asked us.

I shook my head. "There isn't enough to gain from instigating full out war now. It would be foolishness."

"Well," Yuri quipped dryly, "I, for one, have seen little proof that the Knights don't regularly make fools of themselves." I had to incline my head and give him that one.

"I'm going back to Mantaic," the merchant announced a bit uneasily. "Since there's no way to get around them." We fell silent as he gathered his things up and left.

As we watched him pass by and gradually become smaller in the heat skewed distance, Estelle finally voiced the concern on a few of our minds. "Do you think Flynn ordered the blockades?"

"Hmmm, I couldn't say," Yuri said cautiously. "Either way, we can't afford to be stuck here for much longer."

"Yes, it'll be a lot of trouble if we miss the new moon," Judith glanced up to the sky, as if expecting the moon to have risen already to show us how thin a slice was left.

"And we want to get there before the knights finish whatever party they've been arranging," I added. "I have a feeling we won't like their choice of entertainments much." That earned a few grimaces.

"But I don't think they'd let us through, even if we asked nicely," Karol pointed out worriedly.

"That's why I said, 'don't take no for an answer'."

"Well, to be honest, we can go take a look and think about how to get in..." Raven suggested before Rita or Karol could get angry or panicky at me again. "The hard part will only come once we've gotten inside."

Karol nervously shifted his bag on his shoulder, "What do you mean, 'once we've gotten inside'?"

"They've set up blockades to make it hard to get outta the mountains...gettin' inside shouldn't be nearly as tough," the old man reasoned. "I think that much is safe to assume."

"Yes," I agreed, though I looked tellingly in the direction of the receding back of the merchant. "Assuming as well that the ones trying to get in have the nerve to get one up on the knights." Glancing sidelong at Yuri, I wasn't surprised at the grin he wasn't trying too hard to hide.

"Well then, shall we?" I gave a slight bow and deferential 'after you' motion of my arms to the others.

"There's a look of mayhem in yer eyes, I hope ya know," Raven commented.

"Really? I wasn't aware."

x x x

Appropriate Attire

Rita: So hot...I can't wait to leave this desert behind for good!

Estelle: Just a little longer, we've almost reached the Weasand of Cados.

Karol: I just hope we don't get turned back by the Knights. I wouldn't have the energy to make it back to Mantaic.

Letha: Those who have enough energy to complain aren't nearly as tired out as they claim to be.

Yuri: You were one of the ones complaining only a few days ago.

Judith: I guess that means the costume really does keep her cooler.

Letha: Nonsense. It's a matter of psychology. The heat can only get to you if you let it.

Rita: That costume also makes her more annoying.

x x x

Knowing it would have been downright stupid to just waltz right into the cave opening, the rest of us stayed back out of the line of sight of anyone just inside while Yuri and Repede went ahead to check it out. As expected, they came back with a report of knights from Flynn's brigade standing guard. What was unexpected (to everyone besides me) was that they had brought monsters with them. (...Rhybgaro? I don't think I ever saw it when were in Nor Harbor, but I think it looked like that from what I remember of the game...)

"P'raps they've been tamed by the knights?" Raven whispered, as we all cautiously looked around the edge into the shadows. Yuri had said it was safe to get that close, but we were still pushing it...

The swordsman was scowling at the mixed human and monster sentries blocking our way. "This brigade is reminding me of Flynn less and less...What the hell is Flynn doing with his knights, anyway..."

We all drew back a bit to talk it over.

"With hardcore tactics like this," Raven said seriously, "there ain't any doubt in my mind this has something to do with the talk of Belius engineering the Great War."

"I'm inclined to think so as well," I agreed, feeling too Jade-like to keep quiet about military maneuvers. "Targeting Nordopolica as a whole would be asking for another war, but if their only goal was the Duce? Claim it was to fulfill justice for war crimes, and the knights become the righteous ones in this drama." Yuri's scowl deepened.

"So how do we get past this checkpoint..." Karol wondered. He looked a bit queazy, perhaps because he had an inkling that whatever we'd do would get us on the knights bad side. More so, I should say.

"How about this?" Quick as a wink, Raven stepped to the mouth of the cave and fired off a shot inside. It proved to be one of his exploding arrows (I think he uses aer to do that...not sure...) as hardly a second later there was a blast, followed by the whinnying scream of a monster and shouts from the knights trying to keep it from running amok.

"Let's go now!" Judith hissed, and we surged forward all at once together.

"Hey hey, don't leave this old man behind!" Well, almost all together.

Our mad dash did not go unnoticed, Sodia's voice shouting Yuri's name shrill and clear over the pandemonium of frightened knights and monsters. We didn't even bother to look back at her, though Raven's voice rose in a singsong, "See ya! Have fuuun!"

Even once we reached the relative safety of the tunnels we didn't stop running, though we did have to slow a bit so no one had to be scraped off the walls. Yuri laughed aloud, and I could hear the thrill in his voice, "That was pretty slick, old man!"

"I thought I'd liven things up a bit!" the archer crowed.

"What'd I say?" I smirked, "A chance to get one up on the knights!"

"Geez..." Rita sulked, between gasping for breath. "When will all of you grow up..."

x x x

Closing Everything Off

Karol: Only the empire has enough power to cut off all the ways in and out of a whole town.

Raven: Well, the guilds' power is totally different. The Union would never try something like this.

Yuri: It's the empire's style. Crush problems with everything they've got. What are they after? Who do they think they are, sealing off all the roads like this?

Judith: I think the answer to that lies in Nordopolica. We should hurry, before we're caught.

x x x

Once we got some distance between us and Sodia's group of knights, we slowed down to a reasonable pace. Our footsteps echoed loudly down the tunnels when we ran pell mell like that, but moving more slowly and quietly we could trust in the complexity of the turns and branch offs to help hide us. Though they would catch up eventually.

With that pleasant thought in mind we didn't pause for a break until we absolutely needed to and felt reasonably sure we'd lost our pursuers for the time being. I didn't pay attention to the ensuing conversation, it was mostly rehashing the same concern about the barricade and Flynn's role in it. In my opinion, the only new item was Raven's input. "Sometimes orders comin' down from the top don't make sense. The meaning can get lost going down the chain of command. When a brigade gets big and famous enough, things can start to get outta hand."

Across the small room, Yuri tilted his head in interest. "You certainly know a lot about these things. Makes sense for someone in Altosk."

Raven shrugged it off, "Things can end up like that no matter what the organization."

Honestly, and it was me that got found out first?

Knowing our time was limited, we moved on so that Rita could have at least a short time to look over the aer krene. Though she'd have to be quick about it. We walked in silence until we reached the spot where the low stone pathway was partly submerged in aer saturated water.* I stayed back away from it as the others watched Rita go to work studying it.

It was more involved than in the game when she just stood and stared at it. The genius immediately whipped out a small notebook and pen, furiously jotting down notes as she dropped to her knees and peered out over the edge. She leaned over so far at one point that Estelle grabbed her by the back of her shirt out of fear that the girl would topple over. Rita didn't even seem to notice as she was busily scratching up a small sample of sediment from the rocks, looking at it more closely under a lens. All the while she mumbled to herself, occasionally we could catch some of it, "...completely inactive now...how could a monster...perhaps something else interfered...but what...only a formula or a blastia..."

The others asked questions curiously, which she answered with only about half of her attention on us. (Yes, it was safe and not about to overflow again. No, it wasn't a natural phenomenon, or else it would be regular and have caused abnormal plant growth). I didn't participate even for form's sake, since I was keeping myself apart from them to avoid the aer krene.

I closed my eyes, listening to the sound of water dripping.

Drip-ip-ip-ip...

Drip-ip-ip...

Dri-drip-ip-ip-ip...

Drip-ip-ip...

Dri-drip...

What a soothing sound...I wonder, if I listened long enough, would I be able to find a song in it?

Dri-dr-drip-ip-ip...

Drip-ip-ip...

"Letha."

I started a bit, and realized Estelle was standing directly in front of me. "We're leaving now, before the knights can catch up with us again." I blinked, trying to bring my thoughts back on track again. The princess took hold of one of my hands and led me forward, me following without a thought until-

Painandtightnessinmychestcan'tbreath

I gasped as I jerked my hand out of Estelle's and stumbled backwards. I'd stepped into the aer krene without noticing in time, and I had to hunch over while gasping to find my breath again.

"What's wrong?" she cried in surprise, grabbing both of my shoulders and trying to help me back up.

"N-nothing!" I forced out.

"I almost forgot!" Karol's voice echoed from the other side of the aer krene. "When we came through here before, Letha got aer sickness again when she tried to cross through the aer krene!"

A meaty smack and pained 'Ow!' from the boy, and then Rita snapped, "Tell us that sooner! How'd she get through last time?"

"Duke helped us!"

"Really?" Yuri sounded surprised. I'd gotten my breathing back under control and was trying to stand up slowly without getting a dizzy spell and falling over. "Didn't strike me as the helpful type." Now I could see that other than Estelle and I, everyone else had already crossed to the other side of the natural bridge and the aer krene's area of influence.

"He looked very put out about the whole thing," I wheezed, sure I could stand on my own power again. "I'd say it was pretty funny, actually, if I didn't hate these damned things so much..." Tough to say, but I don't think I was handling the aer as well as I did the last time...

"Looks like one of us will have to help her this time," Judith calmly pointed out.

As could probably be predicted, Raven swiftly volunteered. "Of course, I shall do the gentlemanly thing an' sweep the fair maiden off her feet!"

"You do and I'll kick you in the head. Repeatedly," I promised him before he could take one step across the aer krene.

"Well, that leaves our other strong gentleman, doesn't it?" Judith said innocently. But I saw that devious grin on her face! The others all looked at Yuri when they realized who she meant.

"Uhh, I don't think I want Yuri to help either..."

"What, is Duke better than me or something?"

Oh God, why am I in this situation now? I flushed slightly, and that made me all the more embarrassed. "He didn't exactly give me a warning or a choice!"

"Oh, a man who knows how to take charge... No wonder no one else will do," Judith teased.

"Gyah!" I uttered in horror, realizing how they were probably picturing it now. My blush deepened. "N-no! That's not what it was like! He only held me up, he didn't actually carry me! Hardly touched me at all!" Karol and Estelle were both looking at me in confusion, too young or sheltered to get any of the implications being thrown around.

Rita just plain didn't care, and was getting impatient. "Will you knock it off and grow up already? Somebody get her over here!" Though she seemed to have taken advantage of the delay to start jotting down more notes and frowned at the water pooling around her feet.

"I'll do it myself!" I gritted through my teeth, willing the heat to leave my face. Stubbornly I stepped forward and tried to walk out across the stone bridge on my own. If I knew it was coming and braced myself, I could handle it! Right?

No, I couldn't, I discovered as I crumpled up again, head bowed low over my knees. Can't breath! Too much aer...not enough air! My thoughts were confused, barely registering when both my arms were taken hold of firmly yet gently, and I felt them settle over broad shoulders. I blinked to clear my watering vision as I was lifted back to my feet and saw Yuri and Raven on either side of me.

"Thanks," I said softly. Then, hesitating for a moment, I whispered as quietly as possible (my trouble breathing made that very quiet indeed), "There are no aer krenes on Earth." We kept moving forward, but I felt both their arms supporting me tense at that admission. I closed my eyes again, trusting myself to them. "Well, we don't really have the time to talk more about that, but I'm sure you can guess some of what that means."

"You sure are talkative about that now..." Yuri grumbled.

I smiled. "Remind me to tell you the story about the man who cut the king's hair."

"Sounds fascinatin'," Raven drawled.

Repede began growling. I felt Yuri twist to look over his other shoulder. "Damn, that would be our fan club. Seems like these knights are just as dedicated as the Captain himself. Rita, let's go." He snatched her arm with the hand not occupied in keeping me up, and dragged her the last few feet along with us.

She shook him off, "All right, all right!"

I recovered my strength not long after Yuri and Raven got me clear of the aer krene, and then we all hurried off again.

x x x

"Take cover," Judith warned. We pressed up against the tunnel wall, the ones in front (Judith, Yuri, and Raven) looking around the bend. It only hid us from those ahead, since behind us was a yawning drop off that left us in clear view of the trail we'd just come from.

"Huh," the archer grunted, "Guess it's only natural they're guarding this end, too."

Karol was trying to stand on his toes and crane his head to look around them safely. "Raven, can you do something like you did before?"

"Best not ta press your luck when the Knights're takin' their work so seriously."

Rita placed a hand on his back and pushed down to raise herself up (forcing him to bend over in the process) to look over his head. "They don't look that serious from here."

The echoes suggested the knights were talking, but I couldn't tell what they were saying (there was no room for me to force my way through for a peek) until one particularly loud one scolded, "Enough complaining! If you don't like it, we'd better produce some results!"

I'd had a hand cupped around my ear, but at that distinctive voice I lowered it. "Wasn't that Leblanc's voice?" Right, I remember the Schwann Brigade was here too...

"There they are!" a voice rang out behind us. "Capture them!"

Karol moaned, "They found us..." We could see a large number of knights hot on our trail, monsters in their train. In comparison, going forward looked the easier option.

We all ran around the bend, confronting the trio from Raven's knight brigade who'd been alerted by the yelling and shouted commands of their fellow knights.

"Ah, if it isn't Mr. Yuri Lowell!" Leblanc declared, pleased by the turn of events.

"Hey, Leblanc," the swordsman returned companionably. "It's been a while."

Leblanc did a double take when he looked over the rest of us. "A-and Your Highness!" He shook his head and raised sword and shield. Adecor and Boccos followed his lead, all determined to do whatever it took to get their hands on Yuri. Pfft! I swear! What is it about these guys that always reminds me of that particular meaning for Yuri's name?

"Wh-what're we gonna do?" Karol wailed.

Raven glanced at me sharply, then sighed, "Oh, well. Here goes nothing!" He darted out from where he'd kept to the back of the group, hiding from his own men behind the rest of us.

Yuri tried to stop him, "Wait!" but was ignored as the archer took a stance in front of us.

All at once Raven's usual air of languid carelessness fell away as he struck a stiff, straightbacked pose. "A-ten-SHUN!" he barked, his arm cutting through the air giving his command further sharpness.

"Y-yes, sir!" Leblanc sputtered, snapping to military attention and saluting sharply with remarkable efficiency, Adecor and Boccos responding just as fast.

Raven blew past them, the rest of us close on his heels while Yuri muttered about not being sure what had just happened.

We left them behind fast, and the confused brigade even served as an obstacle in the way of the other knights pursuing us. Karol kept looking back over his shoulder in amazement, almost tripping in the process. "Raven, what did you do...?"

"Ahh, it's nothing." He brushed it off, though shot me another glance. I pressed my lips together tightly, a wordless message that I wouldn't give it away.

The others were willing to leave it at that, since we had to get out of the Weasand before we could say we were home free.

x x x

There was still a crevice opened in the floor of the tunnel near the other entrance of the Weasand. When we'd gone past it I'd looked down at it, then at Rita with a sour expression. "That wasn't fun, you know," I told her, remembering how her Ground Dasher had opened the stone up under my feet.

"I said I was sorry already!"

"Not to me, you didn't."

Arms flung up in the air, "Well I've said it now! What more do you want?"

Honestly it wasn't Rita that I was upset about. It had been an honest accident. But the memory of what came after I fell...

Don't remember it. Don't you ever dare to forget what you've done, but don't drag it up to dwell on it now.

Again, I was lost inside my own thoughts as we trekked across the plain fields. And again, my brooding was masked by the cold persona of the Necromancer. Pretending to be somebody else probably wasn't the healthiest coping method, but if it kept me going so I could reach Belius by the new moon then that was fine with me.

By the same token I was harsher than ever when fighting any monsters that crossed our path.

I would have been happier to have gone straight to bed and pretended to fall right asleep when we set up camp for the night, but decided I should linger by the fire and try to repair any damage done to my happy go lucky image during my stint as Colonel Curtiss. In my usual clothes, of course.

When Karol asked me to tell more stories about the Serenity, I had to take a moment while I remembered what happened in the next Firefly episode. Let me think...I think the crew was playing a game...looked like a weird version of basketball...alarms...Wash goes to see what it's about and sees there's an abandoned ship just ahead and-oh. No, let's not tell them about the ship that was attacked by Reavers.

The Reavers were like the series' version of zombies, but not undead. Just psychopathically homicidal, in a way that made Zagi look considerate. There's never a close encounter with them in the series itself, because that would end in everyone dying. The movie, on the other hand, centered around them for the second half...

Right, skipping ahead to the next episode! And I animatedly began describing the adventure where Mal crashed a fancy ball for business, and in the process got himself into a duel with Inara's snobbish date with near disastrous results. An adventure that started with a game of pool, "As with other situations the key seems to be: giving Jayne a heavy stick and standing back," and a bar fight when Mal stole a slaver's wallet. The latter duel at the ball, however, pulled Mal out of his element as it was a traditional match to the death with swords. And unfortunately for him, his opponent was highly skilled and took great pride in having killed ten men in such fights.

My high school actually had a fledgling fencing club, so for the duel scene I grabbed a slightly charred stick from the fire and demonstrated the en guard stance. Then improvised the actual fight, throwing in flourishes that I wouldn't have bothered with in an actual bout.

"-he stepped on Mal's sword, snapping off the blade, and pointed his own at the captain's throat." Estelle's hands were covering her mouth and Karol leaned forward excitedly. I wasn't sure either of them were remembering to breathe... "But before he could actually kill him, Inara begged Atherton to spare Mal, and said she'd stay on as his personal companion if he showed mercy.

"The aristocratic snob was distracted, thinking he'd won on both accounts, but Mal leaped back up and punched him in the face again. With the element of surprise, Mal knocked down the snob and stole his sword, reversing the roles entirely. The observers urged him to finish Atherton off, but Mal said, 'It would be humiliating, having to lie there while the better man refuses to spill your blood. But mercy is the mark of a Great Man.' Aaand Mal jabbed him sharply in the stomach with the sword." Yuri snorted as I poked my stick into an imaginary opponent on the ground. "'Guess I'm just a good man,' Mal reflected. Then he jabbed him with the sword again," I pantomimed the motion again, "'Well I'm alright,' and tossed the sword away."

I settled myself back down on my seat, using my "sword" to rearrange the logs in the fire a bit. "Well, Mal's demonstration of character impressed the client he'd been sounding out, and he got the smuggling job with no problem after that." Grinned impishly as I tossed the stick on top of the fire, "Turns out the goods was a herd of livestock. Loads of fun ferrying them off planet without having a stampede in the ship's hold."

My story told, I settled back into myself for the rest of the night. The others chatted a while longer about trivial things. Or important things. Could've been either. My attention was captured and held by the thin sliver of moon. I peaceably murmured goodnights when the others turned in, but at no point felt the need to go to sleep myself.

When Yuri sat down next to me, I was mildly surprised. "Thought you'd gone to sleep already."

"Wondering why you haven't."

I looked away from the moon and around the campsite. "Raven's not gonna come join, is he?"

"Nah, he's already snoring away." He stretched out one leg, the other pulled in close with his arms folded across the knee.

We sat in the quiet night, with only the snapping of the fire and soft breathing from the tents. I stirred first. "You know, you and Captain Mal are a lot alike."

"What, because I tend to disagree with people telling me what to do?"

"Well, there's that." I twisted my braid around my fingers. "Mal is a good man, who tried to fight for what he thought was right, but became disillusioned by the harder truths of life. Life and people." My fingers seperated an unbound lock of hair from the rest and started smoothing it. "So he struck out on his own path, a path which he followed to find freedom. Like you did."

Yuri dropped one hand from his knee and turned towards me a bit. "And what makes you think you know me that well?"

I shrugged, dividing the lock of hair into sections and weaving them together. "You were once a knight. Now you're not, and you don't like some of the things that Flynn is doing for the knights. But..." I undid a few twists of my hair and rewove them, "You can't stop being a good person, and caring for people who need help." I dropped the braid once I reached the end of my hair. It would come undone soon, I had nothing to tie it with. "You're gonna get hurt that way."

"You're just full of cheery things to say now, aren't you." He shook his head, "The old man's right, it sounds too dark for you."

I linked my fingers together and stretched them out before me. "Sorry, normally I find other ways to deal with it. Usually writing or music. Telling stories is fun, but I haven't had the heart to make up any of my own lately," I made a face, "Had my fill with that for now."

"Guess that leaves you with singing. I heard from Raven you did quite a bit of that last night." My face flamed hot again.

"Don't tell me everyone knows about it..."

"It kind of got around," he chuckled. In retaliation I gave his shoulder a shove, though refused to look at him directly. "Didn't you say you had a story to tell me earlier? Something about cutting hair?"

"Ah yes, I did say something like that..." The fire had died down to glowing embers and a few small flames by this point. The stick I'd used to act out Firefly was still in it, only half its original length. Yuri grabbed it by the uncharred end and began turning over the coals and smoldering logs, building up a shelter around the remaining dregs of heat.

Something about the task felt...comforting? Maybe another nearly forgotten memory. I let my eyes drift partway closed as I began to recite. "There was a kingdom where it was a dangerous thing to be a barber. Many were summoned to the castle by the king, and none were ever seen or heard from again. One day, a young barber was summoned, and of course he couldn't refused even though he was afraid.

"He was brought to the king, and told that he must keep secret what he was about to see. The king removed his crown...and shockingly, hidden underneath was a pair of ram's horns."

"'Ram's horns'?"

"Animal on Earth. Has distinctive horns shaped like this," I demonstrated the spiral of the horns with a loop of my finger next to my head. "The young barber was shocked, to say the least, but kept his tongue and cut the king's hair as ordered without saying a word about the horns.

"The king was impressed by the young barber's restraint, and so allowed him to leave with his freedom instead of locking him in the dungeon like all his predecessors. On the condition that the young barber tell absolutely no one the king's secret."

"What, that he had horns? That's weird, but doesn't seem like that big a deal." Yuri tossed the stick back into the fire pit, a few sparks flying away to wink out in the darkness.

"It's beyond weird on Earth. Depictions of humans with horns are commonly symbolic of evil. Not very good public relations to show off that your ruler has horns."

"Ah."

"In any case, the young barber kept his word. He didn't tell anyone, not even his closest friends and family about what he'd seen. But keeping the secret to himself was straining, his belly swelled up until he became fat from the effort of not speaking."

"What? How does that even work?"

"Plot device."

"Oh yeah, not allowed to question those."

I giggled a bit. "Really, it's probably fine not to take that part literally if it bothers you. There are times when holding in a secret makes you feel like you're gonna burst. And that's how the young barber felt. When he could bear it no longer he went down to the river. There he scooped out a small hole into the ground, and whispered into it, 'The king has horns!' Replacing the dirt, he felt relief to have finally spoken his secret, and hadn't broken his word in doing so.

"But...

"From that spot in the ground, a reed grew. And a young musician came along and cut the reed, turning it into a pipe to play. When he blew into it, the pipe sang out, 'The king has horns!' In short order, the whole village knew.

"Furious to find his secret spreading, the king had the young barber brought before him again and ordered that he be executed."

"Why does that keep happening in your stories?" Yuri observed ironically.

"Less traumatizing to tell the little children than stories about concentration camps or legal procedures."

"What?"

"Never mind." I started pulling up the grass under my hand by the roots, not really thinking about it. "The barber wasn't really executed anyway. The piper was brought in and made to play his pipe, which declared the king had horns like it had every time before. In a fit of rage, the king threw off his own crown, and exposed his secret for all to see. After that, he couldn't very well execute the barber who had stayed true to his word in not telling anyone. So his life was spared, and a lesson in honesty was learned by all."

"Except by you, apparently," Yuri couldn't help but point out. "Unless you're trying to say you've straightened out and plan to be honest from now on?"

"More like, I'm trying to say... Keeping a secret from everyone is hard. Eventually you can't do it anymore. Once it's out, it wants to be repeated as many times as it can, like when it played every time the pipe was blown." I tossed the handful of grass on the coals. They blackened and curled up on themselves. "And now my own secret's out."

"And you're afraid of who'll hear about it." He watched the way I jerked reflexively at his conjecture. "Looks like I guessed right."

"Think I was making it too easy for you there," I mumbled, starting to hunch over and hide behind my hair again.

Yuri grabbed me by the shoulder and turned me to face him directly. "Who cares who else hears about it?" he demanded. "You're one of Brave Vesperia's, and we're not about to let someone take you away from us."

"I'm one of..." I whispered, and then smiled. "Like I said, you're just like Mal."

"Huh?"

I laughed a bit at his surprise at my abrupt return to the earlier subject. "He'd have definitely said that Serenity takes care of its own." You take care of your friends, the way Mal does his crew. "Guess I really can't win against people like you." I stood up, leaving the fire pit for the tent Judith and I had for ourselves. "Give me one day. I'll talk after we meet with Belius."

And then I was closing up the tent flap, and Yuri couldn't follow or force the issue further without waking everyone up.

x x x

Geeeh! Why did I go and promise that?

I know why, because when I actually promised I would I won't be able to back out of it, and then I'll stop agonizing over it.

Now I'm just gonna drive myself crazy thinking how I must be a bloody idiot until I finally get it over with!

We'd gotten up and moved out early, eating our breakfast on the go. The plan was to get to Nordopolica as fast as possible. Getting there early wouldn't hurt, and would give us some leeway in case something happened to delay us (which always has a tendency to happen, no matter what world you're in).

Actually, we made pretty good progress. Even a little bit faster than when we came out this way, since then we were trying not to lose Regaey/Yeager's scent trail.

Still, I was impressed when we reached the main entry a few good hours before sunset. We were all pretty beat, to be sure, but we'd have plenty of time to rest before going to meet with Belius that night.

Raven surveyed the other people hanging around, mostly other travelers and some merchants. "Hmm, not as many knights as I'd have guessed..."

Rita turned a slow circle, taking it all in in one sweep. "Yeah, security looks normal even with all the commotion after the tournament."

Something crinkled under my boot. Looking down, I found I'd stepped on a paper that had been blown around by the sea breeze. While the others decided the lack of knightly presence was pretty suspicious considering all the trouble being put into the barricades, I knelt to pick it up. It was creased and torn in several places, and my own muddy heel print was not the first.

Hey, I think this is a wanted poster... A very poorly drawn one, much like the one of Yuri. Looked like a picture of a spiky brown hedgehog on a blob of red. By habit more than anything else, I read through the written description under the picture.

Swordsman of unknown origin. Brown hair, red jacket with white streamers, suspenders,

Waaait...

and ambidextrous, fighting with two blades simultaneously. Wanted by the empire for crimes against the nobility of a violent nature.

Oh you have got to be kidding me...

"-it looks like we can stay in town, as long as we don't stand out," I became aware of Karol saying.

"Yeah, like that guy does." I looked up from the poster to see Rita pointing. Following the direction of her finger with an odd sense of the inevitable, I could swear my heart stopped for a few seconds when I saw the young man she had singled out. He definitely stood out in the crowd with his poppy red jacket sporting two white ribbons from the back of the collar and black suspenders I'd never seen someone under the age of fifty wearing.

WHY IS LLOYD IRVING ON TERCA LUMIREIS?

x x x

And there ya go, Access~

I said it, didn't I? Her prize request would be obvious when it came.

*I know I described it before as aer in a gaseous form that looked like water, but I had one or two people tell me that it was in fact water, and the aer krene was at the bottom of the pool with aer rising upwards. Something about the way Rita was describing the aer density gave me the impression that it was entirely aer... Haa, well, that's a small inconsistency in the story, but shouldn't make a difference either way. Forgot to mention it in author's notes for the following chapters, so I left it until now.