She was a female – Gregor registered her voice was a few pitches higher than that of a male rat. A little shorter than Ripred, and her fur... For a second he blinked, confused, thinking they had stumbled upon a second white rat somehow, but no. The shade was so light it looked white in the dim light, but when Gregor looked closer, he realized it was something like a pale, washed-out grey.
But none of that was her most remarkable feature. Gregor winced a little, even lowered his sword in shock, when she finally took a last step towards them, into the light, and he got his first proper look at her face.
The entire right half of her face was one huge scar. Where the eye had been, he saw nothing but an empty socket, and no fur had grown on the scarred flesh for, how Gregor presumed, years, if not decades. It was the most gruesome scar Gregor had ever seen, even in the Underland. He opened his mouth to speak, not even knowing what exactly to say, when he was interrupted by Howard – "FREEZE!"
Luxa and her cousin were staring at the rat with equally round eyes now, she had her sword lowered like Gregor, while Howard was still holding his raised, tip pointed at the rat.
A million questions reeled in Gregor's head – what was this rat doing here? Where even was here – were they at the crawler colony yet? And if so, what was a rat doing in a crawler colony? Was she a friendly one, like Ripred? She hadn't attacked yet, after all. Who even was she?
But before he could ask a single one, he saw movement from the corner of his eye and realized she had turned her head, like to address something behind her. "Ah, I was wondering if these guys were your friends. They have a similar smell, especially the girl. So what is the meaning of all this, and why have you not prepared them? I told you I'd be staying here."
Howard's and Luxa's gazes darted over to the space behind the rat, from where the shape of Henry now emerged. He had been carrying a bucket of water but froze mid-way through the door when faced with the scene.
"You... you KNOW this rat?" Howard's tone was as icy as Luxa's expression, and Gregor saw Henry's gaze darken. "And this is why I didn't prepare them", he mumbled quietly, presumably at the rat.
Gregor saw Howard had already opened his mouth to say something when she broke into almost hysteric-sounding laughter. "Oh... OH, don't tell me you were afraid of the obligatory rat-jokes, don't tell me it is THAT easy nowadays to crush your spirits!" She giggled for a solid minute while Henry just uncomfortably stood in the doorframe, avoiding all gazes.
"I can't believe I even worried about you, Kismet", he mumbled, "why would anyone worry about you? You'll outlive us all anyway – save Ripred, maybe. But he's something entirely else now, is he not?"
She laughed a little louder at his words, before abruptly stopping. "You worried for me? Really?" It sounded mocking but somehow Gregor had a feeling she was genuinely touched, from the way she seemed to be looking at Henry now. He just made a face in her direction and picked his bucket back up, only to carry it over to the torch.
"Hey!", Howard called now, looking back and forth between the rat and Henry. "Would anyone explain what is going on here at last?"
"You are not the brightest, are you?", she remarked in his direction, almost casually slouching down against the wall. Gregor heard Henry suppress a chuckle behind him and inevitably asked himself how well they knew each other. They seemed to be fairly close – how had he called her? Kismet? Gregor narrowed his eyes, the name had sounded familiar. Had Henry ever mentioned her before?
He looked back at her, already opening his mouth to ask his questions when she beat him to it. "So, they all know your little secret, am I right?", she asked in Henry's direction and he spun around to her. "Well, it would explain why they all seem so hostile with you – hence the assumption about the rat jokes", she answered his unspoken question, and Henry rolled his eye. "I... I don't want to talk about it." All she did was chuckle.
"So – who do we have here", she lifted herself off the wall now and casually walked past Howard, disregarding his raised blade. "You can put that toothpick down, you know? Had I wanted to harm you, I'd have crushed your skull between my jaws already. Or something along the lines. I'd have come up with something for sure", she remarked in his direction, and Howard was so baffled he actually lowered his sword.
"Ah, you mean no harm, am I right? I'm just a rat, and you have your friends to protect." She sniffed in his direction, "or family. My mistake." He opened his mouth to speak but she continued – "You're the responsible one, aren't you? Battle is not your forte, but you will not let harm befall your loved ones. Let me guess, he's the nitpicky mom-friend who always got you in trouble as a kid, am I right, Henry?"
Gregor's gaze darted over to him and Henry chuckled. "You got that one right. Also, I almost forgot you were so good at this, it's really creepy actually, you know?"
She returned his laugh and strolled past Howard until she stood before Luxa. Gregor thought she was narrowing her remaining eye, before retreating a little again. Was she short-sighted?
"The picture in my book is a decade old, but by the crown you wear, I am standing before princess – or queen – Luxa herself, am I not?" Luxa was standing, frozen still, the knuckles on the hand, she was holding the now lowered sword with, shone white. "Yes, yes... you even smell like him, you know?" Her gaze darted over to Henry while Luxa visibly tensed up more.
The rat narrowed her eye. "You... you are a free spirit with much to live for, but you have lost so much you can barely bring yourself to believe in a bright future anymore." Gregor saw Luxa retreat a little, "Do not fret, pup, you are surrounded with people who would lay down their lives for you in a second – be grateful for what you still have instead of lingering on the past, it is gone, it can't harm you anymore – the present can."
The sword slipped from her grip and hit the floor with a loud clanking sound, Gregor's thoughts were reeling – she had never met any of them before, except Henry, had she? How was she doing this?
Only when he heard silent footsteps approach, he realized she was now standing before him. Now, with how close she was, Gregor saw the scar on her face was by far not the only one she had. Her entire body was covered with them, and she looked like she had not had a proper meal in ages. Her thin fur barely concealed how emaciated and bony she was.
"You –", she suddenly drew closer, sniffing him and narrowing her eye. Only now Gregor saw it seemed misted, she must really not see well, he thought. "An Overlander – I have not seen one of you in ages. Especially of your young age. What brings you to the Underland, pup?"
Gregor blinked a couple times, staring at her, like they all did now. He tried to think of a good answer, but there was not really any. "I... that's none of your concern!"
Her eye widened, like she hadn't expected this answer, and in truth, Gregor hadn't expected it himself. But who was he even, after everything he and his friends had experienced at the hands of the rats, to willingly give any sort of answer to one – no matter how nice she seemed. Twirltongue had seemed nice too, and she had wanted to kill him. What if this one... Kismet, or whoever she was, was like that too?
"So you are the one with the most amount of sense left here", she chuckled, "interesting, and somewhat unexpected – nothing personal." Before Gregor could say something, she already continued – "Right, why should you tell me anything, I'm a rat, and you have probably not experienced anything good by the hands of those so far, if my species has not fundamentally changed, over the last decade. It was maybe even the first thing you learned about the Underland – do not trust the rats. Was that what they immediately hammered into your head?"
Gregor didn't know why, but as cautious as he remained, mainly to avoid another episode like the one with Twirltongue, this rat didn't give off that sort of... feeling. Maybe it was just how she still reminded him so much of Ripred, maybe it was her connection to Henry.
She followed the gaze he threw at him and glanced around the room, at Luxa and Howard, before she gave something like a smile – if rats could even smile.
"How about this – will it elevate your opinion of me if I –", but before she could finish her sentence, she was interrupted by a different voice now sounding from the direction of the door – "Nothing will elevate their opinion of rats, not even your charms. After all, I've been trying for two years now, and they still have not learned a single thing."
She instantly spun around and Gregor thought her posture looked almost defensive. He could see the tense muscles underneath her thin fur.
"Do you know this rat, Ripred?", Howard suddenly asked, pointing at her with his sword. Ripred now emerged from the doorway and Gregor thought he looked as tense as the female rat. "Know?", he carefully drew closer, keeping his eyes on her at all times. "Used to know describes it better, I think."
Gregor furrowed his brows, he thought Ripred's voice sounded almost bitter, like he had never heard before. Gregor inevitably wondered what the deal was with the two rats. Did they have some sort of history?
"But in regards as to whether you can trust her...", he picked up again, "trust her like you trust me. Ask the lad over there, if that doesn't convince you. From what I've heard he owes her his life and more", he snarled, before he seemed to remember something – "Oh, wait, that's not going to help because you don't trust him either anymore. Oh well, figure it out yourselves, then." With that, he turned back and strolled out of the room, leaving the four kids alone with... Kismet?
"What do you mean – we can TRUST her?" All gazes were still on Henry as Howard spoke. Gregor visibly saw him clench his jaw. "I mean it as I said it."
She – the rat – had left the room soon after Ripred, without saying much, and ever since then, all attention was on Henry. "She... who is she even?", Luxa's cousin eyed him with narrowed eyes and Gregor turned his head to look at him too now – he was as interested in that as the others.
Only Luxa had remained in the background, and Gregor found himself torn between listening to Henry and wanting to check on her.
"Kismet", he heard Henry sigh now, "She's a hermit outcast who formerly lived in the Firelands... until she had to evacuate here when her home was destroyed by a volcanic eruption. Ripred sent me to her, almost one and a half years ago to... to learn how to deal with my missing eye." Gregor, who had just eyed Luxa again, jerked around in his direction. That's where he had heard the name before!
I did search out Kismet – check. I studied under her, for almost seven months even – check. I learned to, what you referred to as, "fight like no human has ever fought before" – Henry's speech before he had challenged Ripred to the duel came to his mind and Gregor's eyes widened. "You... she was the one who taught you echolocation!"
All heads turned to him now and Henry nodded. "She taught me most things I know about echolocation... and fighting, for that manner. I lived with her for nearly seven months, and I...", his gaze darted over to Howard, "I owe her my life. Hate her for that, if you like, I don't care."
Howard only stared at him, most likely not having expected that answer. "I... I will not allow any of you to badmouth her or box her in with the other rats!", Henry suddenly called and raised his hand to point at Howard, "That would be as ridiculous as doing that to Ripred. She does not live with them, nor does she sympathize much with them, so I won't have any stupid prejudice thrown at her, I won't allow it!"
"Like you don't live with the humans anymore, you mean?", Howard had apparently forgotten he had been forced to call a truce with Henry. "I – I'd prefer her company over yours any day!", Henry fired back, angrily pointing at Howard before turning around and storming out of the room, presumably to look for Kismet or Ripred.
An awkward silence followed his leaving and Gregor swore if the tension would get any higher he'd see physical electric discharge. "Rats... and more rats, aren't they who we are fighting in this war?", Howard mumbled before sitting down against the wall.
"I... I'll go check on the bats, maybe." Gregor couldn't stay here, not with how loaded the atmosphere was. He suddenly felt it was hard to breathe, he needed to get out of here before he would suffocate. Throwing a last glance at Luxa who was staring at the floor now, he hurried out of the room.
The tunnel was narrow and the ceiling lowered and lowered until Gregor had to bow down in order to not hit his head. For the first time, he realized he had no idea where he was even going – or where he was, for that matter. He was alone, in this dark, narrow tunnel, with no light and no means to orientate himself.
Panic started clogging his throat as he quickened his pace, the tunnel had to lead somewhere, after all. He was so occupied suppressing the upcoming panic attack he only heard the voices when he had almost reached the end of the tunnel.
"... stay there for a few days. The colony was deserted, after all." Gregor froze in his tracks. That voice... it belonged to the rat, the female one... Kismet. It was so loud it sounded like it came from the adjacent cave, and she was clearly talking to someone. Gregor had no light though, so no means to find out who it was.
"A couple days later I started making my way back", she soon continued, "but then I realized it was so close... so... almost in reach. I had to... to go and see." – "The Garden?" Gregor almost winced when he heard Ripred's voice. It was quiet, almost bitter, like he had never heard before. His question was followed by silence.
"They were not there. I knew they wouldn't be, I did not honestly believe... but I had to see for myself." Gregor furrowed his brows, what was she talking about?
"And what did you find instead?", Ripred asked, the bitterness in his voice was even more apparent now. "Ha", she snorted, "A cave system filled with water, is what I found. The water level has sunken a couple feet, naturally, probably absorbed by the surrounding earth. It is all gone. No trace of the battle, of the bloodshed, the atrocities, remains, all has been claimed by nature. Then again, it has been, what, twelve years?"
That was when Gregor finally stepped out of the tunnel. He had just remembered how listening in on conversations had ended for him last time, and had decided he was through with that. "I – eh..."
Both rats spun around to him instantly, in the dim light seeping in from somewhere Gregor barely saw their silhouettes. "Oh, look who is here. You done with your friends in there?" Ripred sounded normal again, but Gregor could have sworn he still heard suppressed bitterness in his voice.
He nodded. "I...", his gaze fell on Kismet, "you..." Suddenly he realized in how awkward of a position he was. He had left his friends because he hadn't been able to stand the hostile atmosphere but did he really disagree with them when they didn't trust her... Kismet?
"Don't be too hard on yourself for this, Overland-pup." Gregor's head jolted around as he heard her voice. "You don't have to trust me to have a reason to get away from what I assume was a heated fight, from how Henry looked when he passed through here. Said he wanted to look for the fliers. Is that your excuse too?"
Gregor stared at her face and made out a contented, almost relaxed, expression. And suddenly he desperately wanted her to be a good guy. He couldn't explain why, but the urge to drop all hostility was enormous. Then again, there was also the part in his brain that remembered Twirltongue.
"You appear in his life at a bad time", Ripred sounded suddenly. "He has just gone through a rather embarrassing, if I may say so, episode with our good friend Tonguetwist's daughter, Twirltongue, ever since then I can imagine trusting rats has become far harder for our dear boy."
Gregor clenched his jaw and threw Ripred a death glare – did he have to declare that story publicly now?
"Tonguetwist had a daughter? Oh, I can see how that would be a problem", Kismet spoke again now, Gregor thought he saw something like a knowing gleam in her gaze.
"She is all her mother, too. She had the boy here wrapped around the tip of her tail in only minutes", Ripred chuckled, and Gregor felt his cheeks burning of shame. "Oh, stop shaming him, Ripred, I am fairly certain he has learned his lesson. And, as I already mentioned to Henry, barely anyone resists the lures of Tonguetwist – or her daughter, apparently." She gave a dry chuckle, "Because I do seem to remember a time when you weren't opposed to everything Tonguetwist said either."
Gregor jolted around to Ripred and saw the rat bare his teeth. "THAT... that was a long time ago." Gregor blinked a few times – was Ripred... embarrassed? "I was... young. I lacked experience and wisdom, and..." – "... and she was oh so... convincing." Kismet's voice was a mix of sarcasm and, to Gregor's surprise, a little bit of bitterness. Ripred audibly inhaled. "You – YOU... that is NOT THE POINT NOW." Gregor had to suppress a chuckle and threw Kismet a thankful glance. Maybe she really was nice.
But Ripred had already recovered and apparently, prepared a counterstrike. "Then again – if we ARE currently listing fatal past mistakes that would be best to remain forgotten – why don't we talk about how your oh-so-close and trusting alliance with that bastard Gorger started?"
Gregor stared at Kismet now and saw her wince back. "You –", she was at a loss of words. Gregor's gaze darted between the two, now cowering on opposite sides of the small cave, throwing each other death glares.
Was he not destined for a peaceful, drama-free day today or what was going on? Gregor sighed and bit his lip – what did Ripred mean when he said "alliance with Gorger"? A fresh wave of worry engulfed him now as he eyed Kismet, suspiciously again.
"W... what do you mean by –", but before he could ask, someone interrupted him – "You two really sound like the bickering old-couple stereotype, you know? Who'd have thought." Gregor's gaze met the silhouette of Henry standing in the opposite doorway, arms crossed.
Both Ripred and Kismet hissed at him angrily, but he just laughed. "I think you should maybe leave them to themselves, Gregor. Come, the fliers will want to see you. More than these two, for sure."
Gregor threw a couple glances back as he followed Henry through a small tunnel that led upward until he pushed aside a big rock and the two finally emerged outside.
"Welcome to the citadel", Henry exclaimed and pointed his freshly lit torch at the looming structure that now rose behind them. Gregor's jaw dropped, he inspected the fortress-like construction and had trouble believing the cockroaches had built it all on their own, then again, he could totally see them as skilled craftsmen.
When he glanced around more, he saw they were standing in a huge cave with three exit tunnels, in front of one he saw the remains of a huge boulder. It must have crashed down from the ceiling at some point, he thought.
"The fliers are staying in a nearby cave, they can't fit through the entrance", Henry explained as he led the way down the right path. Gregor was silently following, contemplating how to ask what was on his mind. "Hey, Henry –?" He stopped and turned around, "Yeah?" For the first time, Gregor noticed how tired he looked. The huge purple circle around his eye was back, and his hair was disheveled, only loosely tied.
"I...", Gregor hesitated. From how Henry looked, he could perfectly live without any additional problems, but he sighed and interrupted him – "You want to know why I trust her... despite the fact that she used to be an ally of Gorgers, as you now learned."
Gregor averted his eyes. "I... I mean, I know you were –", but Henry didn't let him finish. "No. That has nothing to do with me or what I did. I...", he sighed again, "It's a long story, and one I'm not supposed to talk about, but if you promise you won't tell on me, I can tell you the basics. Just so that you understand my trust in her has nothing to do with... with...", he bit his lip and Gregor nodded. "I promise."
Gregor was chewing on his fish almost listlessly. It was plentiful, the cockroaches were great hosts, and grilled, they had the fuel after all, but he had eaten so much fish, these last couple weeks, that it had lost its appeal.
Furthermore, he couldn't stop thinking about the story Henry had revealed earlier. Kismet – or Whitespur, as Henry had said was her real name – a former general of Gorgers, betrayed and left for the humans after leading the defense on the Garden of the Hesperides. No wonder she seemed to hate her own species as much as Ripred did.
Gregor searched the cave where the bats usually slept, and where they were having dinner now, with his eyes. Kismet wasn't here, but his eyes caught Ripred, slouched in a corner, a little away from everyone, seeming deep in thought, and for the first time he thought about whether he maybe had a similar backstory. Mrs. Cormaci's words came to mind – The rat, what's he got? No real home, no family, he has to fight all the time. You know, everybody needs a little joy in their life. And for the first time, he thought he actually understood them.
"So when are we leaving?", Luxa's voice sounded now, she had stood up, already having finished her dinner, and was throwing an almost challenging glance at Ripred.
"Nike and Hera need a few day's rest", Thanatos answered instead, from where he sat, next to Henry, against the opposite wall. "Nike can not fly, and Hera can not strain herself too much yet. We will have to stay here at least a day more."
Luxa frowned, angrily tossing the remains of her fish into a corner, before storming off. Gregor just about saw her disappear into the entrance to the citadel. For the hundredth time, he wondered if he should follow her, to ask what was going on, when a voice behind him suddenly spoke – "Gregor, you must help her."
He twirled around only to blink a couple times as he stared into the visibly worried face of... "Aurora?" Luxa's bond barely talked to anyone but her, and yet here she was, staring at Gregor from her huge, pale blue eyes.
She averted her gaze, as if the situation was as uncomfortable for her as it was for Gregor, but finally spoke – "I do not know who else to turn to. Luxa, she... she cares deeply for you, so I think she would want me to ask you to help, was she...", the golden bat hesitated, "in the mind to do so."
Gregor's head was spinning. "I... I want to help, but... but what can I do?" Aurora sighed. "Ever since she discovered he was...", her gaze darted over to Henry, who had just stood up to pack away the cooking utensils, "she..." Aurora was visibly struggling for words and Gregor felt a wave of compassion for her. She had trouble with words in general, and here she was, having to explain this presumably complicated problem to someone she had barely ever exchanged a couple words with.
"I do not... I can not feel any hostility towards him myself, not anymore." Her gaze was still on Henry, "I can not forgive the pain he has caused Luxa, but I understand it lies in the past."
Gregor swallowed and nodded, gratefully. The other bats must have talked to her, Thanatos or Ares, maybe. "What about Nike?", he asked suddenly, "Does she know?" Aurora nodded. "Nike feels the same way. It is easier for her to forgive, as she has not witnessed what he had done."
Gregor nodded and bit his lip, glancing back at the entrance where Luxa had disappeared to. "But Luxa...", the golden bat sighed. "She is... confused. I believe she does not fully understand what has happened, and how she is to feel or act. I have never seen her like this before." Gregor eyed her now, more worried than ever. Aurora had surely known Luxa for longer than anyone here, and if even she was saying... "I do not know how to help her", she continued, "and I do not know who else to turn to."
He threw her a glance and nodded instantly. If Aurora was here, talking to him, willingly, it must be more than serious. Gregor felt like his worst fears, concerning Luxa, had just been confirmed. Something was definitely wrong, and he couldn't help but feel responsible.
I kept his secret from her, he thought, had I only told her – "I'll do my best. I'll talk to her. I promise." And even if she was mad at him, if she would send him away, Gregor thought, it wouldn't matter. He had to try.
"Hey... can... can I sit with you for a while?" Gregor's gaze darted from Luxa before him over to Henry in one, Howard in the other corner. They were slightly illuminated by a torch burning, only a couple feet away from him, and both firmly sleeping.
They didn't really need to keep watch here, but Luxa hadn't even lied down. Gregor had found her in this exact position, when he had returned to their camp inside the citadel, after dinner. She had not moved an inch.
Luxa didn't react, she just blankly stared at the opposite wall. Gregor swallowed, everything in him screamed to retreat, but his promise to Aurora burned in his mind, and he hesitantly sat down next to her, following her gaze almost automatically.
"You... are you still mad at me?" It wasn't the best way to start a conversation, but he didn't really know where else to start. She didn't immediately move, and after a couple seconds of silence, Gregor was about to repeat his question, when she finally turned his way. "I...", she stared at him, but Gregor thought she wasn't looking at him at all. Her gaze was blank, like he was translucent and she was staring at the wall behind him. "I was... mad at you... was I not?"
Gregor blinked a couple times, confused. "You... did you forget?" She blinked back before her gaze, once more, darted over to... Only now Gregor realized all this time she had been staring at Henry.
"I remember I was mad at you. I... I had a reason...", she mumbled, almost like in a trance. Gregor's own worry rose. "You... hey, if you don't remember anymore, we can –", but she interrupted him, "You kept a secret from me. Something important. I remember now..."
Gregor sighed. For a second he had hoped she had forgotten, as weird as her state was, he didn't want her to be mad at him. "Gregor..." She turned back to him, her gaze still empty, but this time, she was properly looking at him. "Gregor... do I... know him?" Her eyes darted back over to Henry.
He furrowed his brows. What was she...? But before he could answer, she continued – "I feel like I know his face. Like I know him. Not as the Death Rider, Gregor, I know him... as someone else. I... I think I do. But every time I try to remember, every time I try to force myself to remember, there is this mist... this cloud in my head. Gregor, it's always there, I can not remember. It tries to keep it a secret, it tries to keep me from seeing the truth. Why is it doing that, Gregor? Why is it –", she broke off mid-sentence, exhaling audibly.
Gregor's head was spinning. What... why would she not remember? Did she suffer some sort of memory loss? But how was that possible?
"Gregor...", she whispered and he automatically inched closer to her, "Where... Gregor, where am I? What am I... doing here? What... what happened, Gregor?" He felt a huge lump in his throat, his heart was pounding out of his chest now. "Luxa, are you alright?" He knew the question was silly, she was not alright. "You... you're not, are you? I... we need to get you home." Goodness, what had he done.
"No!", she called, and Gregor saw Henry twitch in his sleep, but luckily, he didn't wake up. "I... I am here, here, because we have war. We have war, have we not?" Gregor could do nothing but nod. "I am here because I have a mission, I can not... can not fail. I can not fail."
Gregor saw a tear glisten in her eye and instantly wrapped an arm around her shoulder – screw all the stupid customs regarding dating queens and him being an Overlander. She was crying – he couldn't just sit by and watch.
She now clung to his arm like a lifeline. "Luxa, you... you know who he is!", Gregor called, pointing at Henry, "you found out yourself!" She only stared at him, blankly, again, "Luxa, he is Henry! Henry, your cousin, he is here – he's always been here!"
She blinked slowly, like trying to grasp what he had just said, before abruptly letting go of his arm. "Gregor... you... stop joking, this is not funny." Her face was dead serious. "Henry is... dead. He died... died... two years ago. You were there, Gregor. How can you say it is him...?"
Gregor stared at her – "What – but I thought you... you got his message, you...", but before he could finish, she interrupted him, sitting up straight now, her voice cold as ice. "Henry is dead. He can not be here. It is impossible. Or do you believe in ghosts, Gregor?"
He didn't even know where he had found the strength to stand up or move his legs, all Gregor knew was, he had to get away. He didn't look back as he ran out of the cave, he just couldn't... look at her anymore. His head was spinning, he felt like he was on the verge of passing out.
Luxa... something was wrong with her. She was... sick, or something. He only saw her blank stare and he knew she had to be. The way she had spoken, the way she –
"What happened?" Gregor almost ran into a wall as he heard the snarling voice to his left. He barely registered it was... "You smell of fear, Overland-pup. What has you so scared?"... Kismet.
Gregor looked up at her in the dim light seeping in from somewhere and realized they were in the same cave where Ripred and her had talked earlier. He looked at her, saw the wise but concerned expression in her eye, and suddenly he realized he didn't care anymore. All that had happened poured from his mouth like a flood, the Prophecy of Time, the war, his role as warrior, the drama around Henry's identity, the state Luxa was in, and how he feared to drown in problems that weren't even directly his in a lot of cases.
Kismet listened without interrupting once. When he finally fell silent, she pondered for a moment. "You will kill yourself prematurely if you keep worrying for everyone like you do now." She gave him a crooked smile, "Ripred mentioned you were Sandwich's warrior, but... you have a big heart, pup, and maturity far beyond your age. But you can not worry for everyone all the time. Henry is not your problem – he can take care of himself, we both know that."
He blinked at her a couple times, realizing she was right. "When it comes to your child-queen though", Kismet suddenly sighed, "I believe the problem won't be solved that easily."