Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Cinder's POV:

Awkward

I shift my weight uncomfortably as I look between Kai and Scarlet. He looks as awkward as I feel, resolutely looking anywhere but at her. Not that she'll notice, with her own gaze fixed on the village we just left. I exchange a glance with Iko, but she just shrugs. Apparently, she's as clueless as I am. Since when is Iko clueless about awkward situations? She's practically the Commonwealth's self-appointed drama-expert!

"They got him?" Maha asks sharply, "What do you mean, "They got him"?"

"My, um, friend must have gotten captured by the soldiers in the village." Kai explains.

Maha huffs and starts walking back towards the ramshackle collection of houses.

"Where are you going?" I call after her.

"To save him." She answers simply.

"What, all by yourself?" Iko asks.

"If I have to."

I jog over to her so I'm walking beside her. "Maha, just think about this for a moment. The soldiers in there are highly trained an outnumber us ten to one. There's no way we can win this fight."

"Especially if my friend couldn't." Kai says, "I've seen him in action, and it takes a lot to bring him down."

"Good, I'd be disappointed otherwise." Maha replies calmly, not once faltering as she makes her way to the village.

I groan. "Maha, please, I need you to think about what you're doing right now."

"I have thought about it, and the conclusion is, I've already lost my son once, I won't lose him again." She says firmly.

"How could you possibly know he's your son?" Kai asks.

"I saw him when you and he were picking up rations. He's grown a lot since I last saw him, but I know it was him."

"Wait a sec, are you talking about the son that died?" Iko asks incredulously.

"The very same."

I sigh. "Maha, there's no way that could have been your son then."

She shoots me a glare. "I think I'd recognise my own child, Vampire, and it was him."

"She's not going senile guys." Scarlet calls over to us, and I jump slightly. She doesn't take her eyes off the village as she continues, "She's talking about Wolf."

Iko blinks at her. "Wolf? But he's not-"

"Your son's name is Ze'ev Kesley, right?" Scarlet asks Maha, who nods. "There you go. That's Wolf's real name."

"But how would he even be here?" I say incredulously, "He's, you know, where we're from. I seriously doubt he actually has the means to get here."

Scarlet nods towards Kai. "He was brought here along with Kai, right Kai?"

Kai keeps his gaze fixed on the ground, but nods, and Scarlet turns and raises her eyebrows at me as if to say "See? There you go!"

I pinch the bridge of my nose and sigh wearily. "Great. So now we've got someone else to rescue. Someone who, according to Kai, is very hard to bring down which means the Queen is either going to kill him immediately, or," I hurriedly add as Maha turns pale, "keep him under a very heavy guard and have a public execution."

"Let's hope it's option 2." Scarlet remarks.

"The Queen did send out an order for both mine and Wolf's capture." Kai says, "After putting that out, she's kinda obligated to hold a public execution."

Maha heaves a sigh of relief. "Good, that gives us time. I didn't find out my son is alive just to begin mourning for him again."

"We can't guarantee that we can rescue him though." I remind her, "A rescue operation is easier said than done."

"But we already have people on the inside." Iko says chirpily, "We just have to get word to them that they should start looking for Wolf."

"Also easier said than done Iko. None of them have their phones with them, and I don't think this place does letters."

Maha shoots me a confused look. "Letters?"

I gesture to her. "Case in point."

"Isn't there any way at all for the soldiers to communicate with the outside world?" Scarlet asks Maha.

She shakes her head. "I'm sorry, I wish there were, but The Queen tries to keep her soldiers as separate from the world around them as possible. No contact with their families, no going out for celebrations with loved ones, nothing. It's how she trains them to attack their fellow werewolves without batting an eye. It they had any sense of community, they wouldn't do their job as well."

"Unfortunately." Scarlet mutters.

"Maybe if we snuck in and pretended to be servants, we could get a message in that way." Iko suggests, "Sneak it into their food or something."

I frown. "That could work… but it'd be better if it was just you. Kai's basically a wanted criminal, and Scarlet's scent will give her away. I could mask it using vampire glamour, but if we get separated, I won't be able to keep the illusion up. You, on the other hand, wouldn't need any illusions. Everyone will just see a fairy in a servant's uniform."

"You might want to reel in your personality though." Maha says, "It's a bit of a dead give-away."

Iko shoots her an offended glare. "I'll have you know that I am an excellent actress. I can easily slip into the part of a meek and timid servant."

"For your sake, I sincerely hope so." Scarlet says.

"What about the rest of us? What should we do while Iko's in the palace?" Kai asks.

"We're going recruiting." I reply, "A revolution with ten people, eleven if you count Wolf, isn't going anywhere. But there are several hundred werewolves here, and the overwhelming majority of them live in pretty horrible conditions thanks to vampire rule. We convince them to take our side, and then we've got a revolution."

A/N: Please review!