"Here you go," Wanderer sighed regretfully. "Remember, we will have pumpkin pie next year, too."

"Get out of here, you thief. It's our turn." Breeze released the growling wolf he had by the scruff, and Wanderer bolted as it lunged. "Bye now."

Storm's eyes were wide. "Uh."

"It's fine," Cloud promised. "That wolf just likes to chase." The second leader had a small bag slung around his neck, out of which poked the spines of a hedgehog—still attached to their owner, of course. Storm was amazed the critter put up with that; the ones he and Sky had kept as pets were grumpy.

"Storm!" A she-elf who looked very much like Rain ran up to them. "We heard you might be coming. You're not thinking of...?"

"No, just visiting."

"Good." The she-elf—Catnip—smiled mysteriously. She was Rain's mother, one of the Penni healers, and apparently she'd been renamed after being stalked by a lynx as an elfling. No one Storm had asked remembered her real name.

Breeze looked sharply at her. "You know something I don't?"

Her attempt to raise her eyebrows innocently was disrupted when the other two healers barreled into them. "Stormy!" one of them cried. "Thought you'd never come!" He had shells and bits of bone and white rock sewn to the front of his shirt, which always looked uncomfortable to Storm.

"Starling," he returned.

"I'm here too," the other one reminded him, and he punched Storm in the arm—hard—to prove it. This one was called Clover, and his pale silver hair puffed up like the flowers of his namesake. Both of them had a reputation.

"I guess I can consider myself properly greeted."

. . . . . .

"Boat," said Cloud, pointing.

"You get in," added Breeze.

Storm looked at the boat, then at the handful of elves already out on the water (the two leaders were in a shared boat near the edge), shrugged, and hopped in. There were oars and a net.

"Catch fish," Breeze called over his shoulder as the brothers paddled off to deeper water. They were on one side of the huge inland sea, near where the all-tribe meetings happened, and in theory they were catching dinner.

Storm had a different idea. He deposited his cloak and boots in the boat—his other clothes were tight enough to stay—and slipped into the water. It was freezing and murky, but not as bad as the lake back home in winter, and he dove down and then swam back up right under Cloud and Breeze's boat.

SPLASH!

The leaders' angry yells got the attention of the other Penni, and they began to paddle over to investigate as Cloud and Breeze struggled back into their boat. Breeze aimed the end of his oar at Storm's head; Storm ducked back underwater, laughing.

There was an eye the size of his head staring at him from below.

Storm had maybe never screamed so loud, so it was a good thing the water was there to muffle his voice. He kicked upward and hauled himself into Breeze and Cloud's boat, ignoring their attempts to smack him back out. "THERE'S SOMETHING DOWN THERE!"

Everyone laughed at him, even Catnip. "It's probably just a big fish," snorted Starling. "The real monsters are farther out."

"Go back to your boat, Eldar," Breeze ordered, and he and his brother kicked at Storm.

Storm was not going back in the water, and he kicked back.

Splash.

Breeze made it to Storm's boat, spluttering or not, so Starling was probably right that it was just a big fish.

. . . . . .

"You don't move around much," Storm mused one night, a week or so after the fish incident.

"More than the Windan do," Breeze retorted, and Cloud glared at Storm. "Don't even go there."

The male healers were taking turns stealing Storm's crab legs. He pretended not to notice. (How had crabs even gotten to the Sea of Rhún?) "You stay mostly by the shoreline."

"That's just when you got here. We'll leave soon." Breeze looked at the others as if to say, This elf's an idiot, isn't he?

Storm didn't bother being offended; he was used to them by now. "I think I'll visit the Kinn-lai next."

"Good luck," said Breeze cheerfully.

Fair. There were the murder horses, after all.

Murder horses are always fun. I drew one recently, turned out pretty good (for someone who doesn't draw often). Sadly can't draw elves.