Right before sunrise, the moment where the sky was tinted orange but no one could see the sun yet, Shuu walked towards the group. Shindou, Kirino and their juniors had already finished their breakfast and were preparing to leave, though they waited for the shadow because he had asked them to. Smiling kindly, Shuu handed Shindou a leather casing that was tightly closed with a red cord.

"What's that?" Shindou asked curiously as he took the object from Shuu's hand.

"A letter," the shadow replied. "I thought it might help confirm your story. The casing will protect it from heavy rainfall, and even if you accidentally drop it in the river, the letter will stay dry for a few minutes."

"Don't worry," Kirino smiled. "If it really falls in the river, I'll get it out as quickly as I can."

"Ah yes, by the way, Kirino-san..."

"Yes?"

"Your gills... they haven't silted yet, have they?"

"Eh, no they haven't. Why?"

"That is one of the further stages of double-quick evolution, and it's almost impossible to invert."

"Yes, I know," Kirino said, briefly unable to meet anyone's gaze. "Double-quick evolution is an irreversible process."

Shuu eyed the pink-haired boy for a few seconds, and if Kirino had looked up, he would have seen a mix of expressions that were reflected in the tanned boy's eyes. Surprise, then doubt, followed by determination. "Yes, that's true, it's irreversible," was Shuu's slow reply. "Anyway, if you follow this river upstream, you'll reach the base of Mount Tenshi*. It's one of the homes of the angels, since it's so hight that the mountain tip is only visible on clear days."

"I take it that they live at the highest places?" Shindou asked as his heart sank a little. He had never climbed real mountains before.

Shuu nodded. "The angels descend from the part of the primordial dragon that lived to soar through the sky. They feel chained when they are on the ground for too long and but they need to rest there. That is why they chose the mountains as their homes: they are close to the skies they love so much and they can rest at the same time."

Shindou nodded and when his worries were once again confirmed - he had asked this before - he reached for the backpack at his back, feeling if he hadn't forgotten their climbing equipment. Shuu supressed a small smile as he saw this small motion again - this, too, had Shindou done a few times already - and instead whispered a few words of encouragement.

"I wish you all the best of luck. May your feet be fast and strong," he said, ending his goodbye with a common expression among shadows. Neither shadows nor fire nymphs used horses or wagons when they traveled; they only took as much as they could carry and then ran to their destination. They had built up their endurance and their speed since they were children and an adult could run all day long, if needed. However, they often took a break every two hours if that was an option. Our protagonists didn't have such stamina or speed, which is why this trip would take them at least four days. If someone from the village would have done it, it would have taken three days at the most, but Shuu and Taiyou didn't want to take that risk.

"Please be careful," Shindou warned in turn.

"We will," Shuu ensured them. "We are safe as long as that man doesn't realize that, despite our differences, shadows and fire nymphs live together."

After those words, the group finally left and Shuu stood there until they got out of his sight. He sighed softly before he turned and made his way back to the village. Humans were the weakest descendants of the primordial dragon and he knew that there were so many things that could stop or delay them. There were so many things that could go wrong...

They could get hurt while they climbed the mountain. Also, Tenma had been injured not long ago and even though he didn't show it, the boy still needed his rest. If he pushed himself too far, he might end up delaying the whole group. Another thing that could go wrong was that they encountered an aggressive boar or buck that attacked them, or maybe the Leader would find them. And what if the angels didn't want to lend their strength?

Shuu sighed again, stronger this time. He could only hope that everything went according to plan, although he knew from experience that it rarely happened like that.

"May your feet be fast and strong, eh?" Kirino mused to himself and then he let out a merry laugh. He was walking next to Shindou at the front of the group. Kariya and Hikaru walked behind them and Shinsuke and Tenma were the rear guards.

"What's so funny about it?" Shindou asked in return, stealing a glance of the pink-haired boy beside him before he focused on the path again. He didn't know why he acted as nervously as he did, but he couldn't really help himself. Something about Kirino made Shindou just feel a little out of character.

"Nothing, it's just funny," Kirino shrugged. "Have you ever used those words for a goodbye?"

"No. I mostly say 'have a safe trip', or something like that."

"At home, we always say 'may the currents be with you'," Kirino smiled. "It's both literally and figuratively, because if a current comes from behind you, you can reach your destination much faster."

Shindou wanted to ask Kirino more about his home at the bottom of the sea, but he decided against it when he saw the distant look in his friend's eyes. Kirino stared longingly in the distance, probably thinking about his former life as a merman. Shindou's gaze shifted from Kirino's face to his new legs, and he recalled that Kirino didn't even have them for a long time. It had only been about a week since his tail split, and Shindou remembered what Kirino told them that morning. Double-quick evolution was irreversible. That must be why he looks so sad right now, he thought as his eyes shifted back to Kirino's face. There is no way for him to go back to his home.

All six of them marched the whole morning in silence. They followed a strict regime in which they ran for thirty minutes, followed by twenty minutes of walking at a slower pace to allow their bodies to regain energy. It might be slower than shadows or fire nymphs or vampires could travel, but all in all did they travel a considerable distance. When the evening fell, they had traveled a distance that a full fledged army would have reached in two days at least.

They placed their bags on the ground and Kirino was the first one to drop down next to them, panting heavily. The others seemed tired too, but they weren't as exhausted as the merman. "It's not dark yet," Shindou said while looking at the sky, "so I think we can afford a small fire to cook on. We need to extinguish it before the real night arrives, though, because the glow will be visible for anyone nearby."

The chores were quickly divided: Kariya and Hikaru would build the fire and warm some food for dinner, Tenma would repair his trousers - he ripped them this afternoon when he walked through the thorn bushes - and Shindou and Shinsuke would look around for edible plants. They had food, of course, but it would be nice to enhance their boring meals with a little fruit or something. Kirino wanted to get up too, but Shindou motioned him to stay on the ground. "You should stay here," the brunette smiled gently. "You aren't used to marching like this, unlike us, and you need to rest a little. Besides, Shinsuke and I can cover it just fine, can't we, Shinsuke?"

"Yes, Captain!" the short boy exclaimed enthusiastically. Kirino briefly wondered where the boy found the energy to be this eager after a march like today's, but then he just shrugged it off and smiled at Shindou to show his gratitude.

The two boys quickly disappeared into the mass of trees that surrounded their resting place. Tenma sat cross-legged on the ground in his spare trousers, frowning in concentration as he pierced a needle and thread through the fabric of the other trousers. Kariya and Hikaru made a small circle of small boulders that they had gathered from the river bank. Kirino couldn't see the river from here, but he knew that they were close to it because he could still hear it.

"Hey."

It wasn't until Kariya's voice pulled him back to the land of the living, that Kirino realized that he had been staring off in the distance. He sat more upright as the teal-haired boy sat down next to him. The fire was already burning and Hikaru went on with preparing the meal. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing really," Kariya said as he casually stretched his arms and legs. "Say, why haven't you followed my advices yet?"

"Well, ehm..." Kirino looked at his feet, uncertainty present on his face. "What if Shindou doesn't think about it like that? I mean, shouldn't he do such things as well?"

"Captain is just being considerate," Kariya huffed and he sounded very convinced. "Maybe he figured you didn't know about these customs and refrained from doing them because he didn't want to be pushy."

"Then, won't it be strange if I suddenly act like that?"

"Probably not," Kariya assured. "And if he does think it's strange, you can always apologize, right? He won't think that much of it, really." He paused for a moment and watched how the merman was still consumed by his dilemma. It was kind of hard to suppress his mischievous smirk, but he knew that what would follow after this would be worth it. But it all depended on whether he could convince Kirino now or not. "I'm pretty sure that Captain sees you as a close friend, Kirino-san."

"What makes you say that?"

"For example, he didn't give you any chores right now."

"Wasn't he just being considerate, seeing as I just recently got my legs?"

"Nah, he is a strict captain, you know? Discipline is quite important when you're in his group, so it is obvious that he cares for you after he gives you the night off just like that."

"Really? I wouldn't have thought," Kirino mused to himself.

"Yes, really. Captain can be really strict if he wants to, right Hikaru?"

"Uhhuh," the boy nodded, focused on the small wicker basket that was filled with water and rice. It hung from a small scaffold so that the bottom of the basket was just a few inches above the flames. As long as there was enough water in it, the provisional cauldron wouldn't burn, although the bottom did turn black from all the soot. The purple-haired boy was bent over it and stared intensely at the white food inside. His back was turned towards Kirino, preventing the latter from seeing the broad smile that Hikaru was unable to suppress. He had followed Kirino's and Kariya's conversation and he looked forward to the scene that would probably follow.

Shindou and Shinsuke walked back to the clearing. They had only found a few chestnuts, but those weren't ripe yet, so they had decided to leave the things be. As they neared the clearing, the soft chatters of their companions reached their ears. Shindou contentedly ascertained that the glow of the fire was only visible from close range. The sun hadn't fully set yet, but if they kept the fire like this, the chances of them being discovered by enemies were small.

He sat down between Tenma and Kirino and he noticed that the merman didn't look as exhausted anymore. Good, he thought. When Hikaru announced that dinner was ready, he reached for his backpack and rummaged through it to find is wooden plate, but... How can this be? he thought as he looked more carefully. He was sure he had put his plate and his chopsticks in his bag this morning, but now he couldn't find either of them.

"Something wrong, Captain?" Kariya asked as Hikaru put some of the rice and the cooked vegetables on his plate.

"Strange, I can't find my tableware," Shindou mused, checking the bag for a third time, but with the same result.

"That's weird," Tenma said as he placed his full plate next to him.

"You can eat from my plate, if you want?" Kirino smiled kindly and Shindou returned that smile after he gave up on the search for his missing eating utensils.

"Don't bother, I'll eat when one of you is finished."

Kirino's confidence seemed to waver a bit and he glanced at Kariya, who gave him an encouraging nod. Then the pink-haired boy looked back at his captain. "It's nothing, come on."

"But-" Shindou got interrupted from his own growling stomach and he blushed slightly as the others laughed merrily. Feeling like he had no other choice, he scooted closer to Kirino. His heart beat faster for some reason, and why did he suddenly get sweaty palms? As he wiped them with minimal frustration about his body's behaviour, he didn't notice Kirino's actions until he looked up again. Then he found a bitesize amount of rice, held by two chopsticks, about an inch away from his mouth.

Shindou shot a quick glance around, but all the others were solely focussing on their meal. He actually wanted to tell Kirino off, but he knew he couldn't do so without dragging the attention of his juniors. And that was the last thing he wanted, especially when he took all the teasing from the past few days in consideration. So he decided to ignore it for now and hurriedly took the food in his mouth, glancing around again after he did so. Luckily, none of them had seen it. Or so he hoped.

Kirino smiled broader after Shindou took a bite, and the meal proceeded like this. Shindou's cheeks darkened every time Kirino fed him a bit of rice, but no one seemed to notice it. He made a mental note to himself that he should tell Kirino the meaning behind his actions. Maybe it was different for merfolk, but among humans, feeding each other like this was something that was mostly done by lovers. This realisation didn't really help and his blush intensified again.

But still... It was quite a nice experience actually. Maybe I should tell him in a few days, he mused mentally as he opened his mouth for yet another bite.

Mount Tenshi: I made this up. '天使' (tenshi) means 'angel' in Japanese (according to google translate :P)

Me: This chapter was kind of slow and you have no idea how much it took to write this. I think I'm experiencing what people like to call a "writer's block" /.\ Gomenasai! *bows* I'll try to upload my stories before I'm off to Italy on the fifth of July. Until my writer's block disappears, I hope you can bear with me.

Shindou: We know this isn't the best chapter, but a review might help Att-chan greatly.

Kirino: *pats my back* See you next time!

Me: By the way, what is wrong with this story, don't you think? I mean, Shindou just LOST his WIFE a few days ago and he's already hitting it off with Kirino!

Shindou and Kirino: *sweatdrop* Geez, thanks for pointing that out -.-"