The sun was peaked, and it kept me warm enough that I didn't miss the fire. I continued to sit as still as I could. Fear or impatience, or probably both, made the wait long and unbearable. There I was, stuck in the mountains. Relying on a beast of the Wyldes to fend off a supposedly even worse creature.

Stupid. I had been stupid to try to make it across on my own, especially knowing the witches were gone. Once my foot cramped, I decided I was better off standing for the wait.

I lifted myself off the ground, avoiding breaking any twigs, but the crunch of leaves made me wince. I stayed in place, half crouched in the dirt. Nothing came, nothing moved. I let out a slow breath and finished standing.

Something felt off in the clearing. My skin prickled with it. I listened for anything I could hear from the north, when I realized I couldn't hear anything at all. No birds, no insects. Not even wind through the trees. The seal on my back burned like it would when Mila was doing powerful spells nearby.

I looked over my shoulder and shivered. A cold air, colder than a mountain winter, crept through me. The smell of a cave, wet minerals and stagnant grime, clung to the air and on my tongue. Every hair on my body stood up as I bent to pick up my axe. Turning my head all around me, I still heard nothing. Saw nothing. But I felt it, whatever it was.

"Deliciousss." A moist breath purred in my ear. I whipped my head around and still couldn't find it.

"Who's there?" I snarled, surprising myself. Maybe I was more like Thain than I had thought.

"It bites." The voice laughed, but it was not a happy sound. "But ssso do I."

I spun on my heels. There it was, a distance away in the trees. The air around it was dark and thick. A figure in a tattered robe with the hood drawn low. The skin was whiter than the fresh snows. Black veins could be seen lurking under the skin, even from where I stood. It had the body and voice of a woman, but the teeth between its red lips were narrow and sharp, like those of a fish.

"What do you want?" I gripped my axe. To my dismay, I couldn't keep the tremor from my voice.

"It hasss been a long time since I have tasted your kind." It whispered. "A long time indeed."I backed up in the direction Thain had run off, but I stayed in the clearing where I could move easily. The creature crept closer, it's cold presence pushing in on my breath, burning my lungs. That feeling of wrongness threatening to strangle me.

"No need to run, little one." It grinned, wider than a mouth should grin. My legs shook, and I wondered how quick a death this creature could provide. It glided toward me, but I held my ground. I would like to say it was bravery that kept me there, but I was more afraid to show it my back than to face it. Something told me it had more wicked faces than it was showing me right now, and I wasn't going to give it the pleasure of an unguarded meal.

"Don't be shy, stay there like a good girl. Yesss, that's it."I swallowed as the thing drew close. My nose filled with it's deep cave stench, stale and cold. Its bony hands reached towards me, skin stretched tight over tendons and sinew. I was so close to cowering away, when Thain screamed from behind me.

"RUN!" He roared, a rush of wind sweeping through the clearing around us.

I had the embers from the fire between me and the monster. I kicked hard, scattering burning chips of wood up the creature's body and to its face. The noise it made would haunt me for months, but the creature balked and it's pursuit halted.

I ran. Ran toward Thain, who ran around me with blood lust in his eyes. His fangs were bared. I could have sworn his fingers grew into claws, but I didn't look back to make sure.

"Keep going." He rumbled low in his throat, and I obeyed.I tore through the mountains as quickly as I could. If we had been any lower on the slope where the trees grew in thicker I never would have made it away. I ran through the scratching pines as they tore at my skin and cut my face. I yelped as a branch dug into my bruised arm. I ran as far as I dared before getting lost from Thain and my supplies. I nearly tripped over a large rock, and the moment it stopped me I heaved into a bush, shaking. Wiping my mouth, I put a steady hand against a tree.

I strained to hear what was happening. Any indication of the war between the two creatures of the Wyldes that happened only a small distance away. I heard the snarling and tearing of bodies in a fight. The snapping of something - bone? And when it stopped, so did my heart.

I had no idea who had won. If that thing had killed Thain... My throat was dry. Where would I go from here? I could continue east if I had to, but could I outrun that creature?

"Hello?" Thain called. I barely heard it, a soft echo through the rocky hillside, but it was him. Relief flooded me and I braced myself on a tree.

"I'm here!" I called. He came running for me, and burst into view. He was covered in foul smelling black blood, his hand indeed ended in razor sharp points, and he was breathing heavily.

"Are you hurt?" He asked, worry plain on his face.

"No, you?" The fae warrior, coated in blood of a terrible monster, was worried about me who had not even fought it.

"Thank the stars," he sighed and slumped against a tree. "I am fine."

"Is it, safe for me to retrieve my things?" I asked.

"I'd rather you not see the carnage," he said. "I'll retrieve it in a minute, but we need to move on."

"Move on where?" I asked.

He looked at me for a long time with no answer. Some internal struggle was plain on his face.

"I wanted the choice to be yours, but I fear for your life in these mountains. Young fae are precious." He ran his bloody fingers through his hair. "This isn't the place for this damned conversation," he growled.

"Wren," I murmured.

He looked up at me sharply, listening.

"My name, it's Wren," I said a little louder.

"Wren," His eyes brightened as he tasted the word, rolled it around his mouth. "Wren. Thank you."

"What was that creature?" I asked.

"A sort of wraith, I suppose. Its name has been long forgotten, even by our kind." He sighed.I flinched. Our kind. I hadn't missed my inclusion in that.

He wiped some of the blood off of his hands in the dry grass. "These lands are falling. Soon, more like the wraith, and worse, will claim these mountains as their own. It is very much unsafe, especially for someone traveling alone."

I shuddered. The tree behind me was solid and I braced my back on it, sliding down the rough trunk. I sat and stared into the empty space between us. That hideous mouth of teeth still smiling at me as I remembered the wraith.

"The Wyldes aren't all like that, you know. Those things can't be found in our cities. If you don't go into the deep woods, you'll probably never see their like again." Thain watched me. "My offer stands; I could take you to the Wyldes, to the courts. You would be safe, and welcomed."

That word again. Welcomed. Had he sensed its effect on me and used it again on purpose? Regardless, if it were true, could I afford to pass up the chance?

"I don't know you. I don't know anything about you, and less about your kind. If some part of me is indeed...fae... it isn't a large part." I swallowed. "I can run a little faster, hear a little better than a human. For the most part I even look human. I have been raised my whole life as one. And what you're asking of me is to leave behind everything I know to walk into an unknown place I have been taught to fear."

The sting in his eyes sent a pang through my heart. He had saved the village, and me. Even if this wasn't some trick on his part though, to go to the fae terrified me.

"I know it seems like a lot," he started. "But I've seen the world you would leave behind, and it is cold. The world of men is not forgiving. A darkness is coming, and I won't abandon one of us to see it alone."

He has saved your life twice now, some treacherous part of my heart prodded. The fae may scare you, but so do the humans.

What would I be leaving behind? Bryn was gone. If Mila was right about the Mother's plans, I would see her again somehow, regardless of where I went. And she did tell me not to disregard the fae.

"Alright," I said softly. Living with my human half has been difficult. Maybe the Fae had more to offer, even if I was about to throw up from fear.

"Was that a yes?" His head perked, staring at me with those animal silver eyes.

"I said I'd go," I repeated a little louder, my voice cracking. "I'll come with you. If you can assure me that the second I want to leave, I will be able to. I won't be a prisoner."

"You are free to do as you wish. I swear it. Thank you for trusting me, Wren." He grinned, his fangs shining like daggers. "I promise to show you a world you couldn't have dreamed of. Lands so beautiful you'll never think of the mountains again."

I doubted that very much.

"Should I retrieve my things now? You said we need to move from here." I looked behind him towards the campsite.

"Right, yes. The stench of it will draw more. I'll get your things, wait here." In an instant he was gone.

It gave me a moment to slow my heart. I had to change my whole frame of mind if I was going to dive into my fae half. The ugly hated thing that I am is what kept the people of the mountains from approaching me. Finally, someone other than Bryn or Mila was willing to see me for what I am. See what I am, and still give me a new chance at survival. I touched a part of my back, the green tunic concealing my seal, my secret.

I heard the leaves underfoot and snapped my head up. Thain approached with my things, slowing to offer me a hand up.

"Where do we go now?" I asked. I took his hand to be polite, but didn't put any weight behind it as I stood for myself. His skin was just like it looked, a velvet touch, but calloused on his palms.

"North and west from this place is an outpost. I am with a rotation of guards that watch the borders of the Wyldes. It will be a good place to rest and answer questions." His gruff exterior seemed to be alert to the forest around us as we walked, but his soothing words were warm and inviting. "Soon we will go back to Thanantholl, the capitol, my home. Then I can show you the true beauty of the Wyldes."

His words didn't calm me as well as he probably wanted them to. So far I had seen two things from the Wyldes. Both were beautiful, but both were frightening as well. And a capitol city... I didn't do well in the populated human cities, how would I react in this Thanantholl?

"If I ever want to leave the Wyldes, will I need help getting out? Will I need permission or something?" I wiped my palms on my breeches, they were damp with sweat and nerves.

"The lands are governed by the four kings, but there are few rules to live by. Leaving will never be a problem, at least not in Thanantholl." His eyes met mine for a moment as he studied my face. "You aren't anyone's captive, I promise. There is no gate, no password to leave the Wyldes."

I left it at that. Thain gave me a curious look but let me have my silence. The wind rustled the leaves and pine needles sprinkled the ground. I took in the last smells of fall as we traveled. My legs cried with every step of incline, but I would keep up with Thain or die before I showed him any weakness. I may be homeless, but I was not here to be coddled.

At some point Thain decided it would be easier to carry the sled and sack over his broad back rather than deal with it on the ground. I took the hammer and second axe that didn't fit in the sack. It was subtle, but I thought I saw him give a slight nod of approval. I was unsure what to make of that, so I let it go.

The walk stayed quiet for at least an hour. Occasionally Thain would steal glances of me whenever he thought I wasn't watching. To be fair, I did the same to him. I wasn't sure how often he saw humans, and I sure as hell never saw fae before, but it would seem we were both novelties to each other. It was well after the dinner hour when we finally slowed.

"We will need to camp tonight before we reach the outpost." His deep voice broke the quiet of the evening.

"Is it... safe here?" I looked around, remembering the monster.

"Safer than we were back there." He said. "Do you see the brook that split and flows down either side of us now?"

"Yes." It wasn't big, but it was definitely there. The right arm of it was much larger than the left.

"Dark things from the Wyldes do not like to cross running water. If something happens tonight, remember that." He gathered branches for another fire. "Some also don't like flame, though it would attract others to you. We're close enough to a patrol route here that I doubt we will run into so much as a wisp. My senses will alert me to anything approaching well before it comes near us."

I shuddered but pulled my blanket from the sack. He had already gotten a spark to catch on his pile of wood and was working on lighting the thickest branches. Finding a good medium between the fire's heat and the evening's chill, I lay out my blanket.

"Wren," He began. "I don't mean to pry, but if you're willing to talk about it I will listen."

"Talk about what?" I tossed a stick from under my blanket onto the fire.

"About everything. I'm sorry, about the first time we met. About moving your hair-"

"Don't." I started. "Don't worry about it."

"If you're not ready to talk I understand." He laid a pile of branches nearby to feed the flames that already licked high into the air. "If it would help, we can talk about whatever you want."

I let the fire crackle between us for a while as I thought of questions. When I finally settled on one I looked up.

"How old are you?" I watched him closely.

"You aren't starting with anything easy are you?" He gave a savage half-smile, his eyes gleaming in the low light. "I suppose you want to know if we're really immortal."I nodded, he laughed. It stood the hairs on the back of my neck straight up. He tossed another branch on the fire. I pulled out two of my salted fish and handed him one.

"We are and we aren't." He took a bite. "We can be killed, yes. But unless death is brought to us, we will live a very long time. How long that is even I don't know."

"That doesn't answer my question." I retorted.

"If I answer your question will you answer one of mine?" He asked. "Nothing too personal, I promise."

"I suppose that's fair." I said cautiously.

"I have lived for almost three thousand years. I'm about five years from that, actually." He smirked as my eyes widened. "My turn, how old are you?"

"Nineteen." I murmured. He chuckled, I blushed.

"So young." He said. "Nothing to be ashamed of, I don't mean to laugh. I was once your age, and I can tell you right now I wouldn't have kicked embers into a wraith's face. Your turn for a question."

I studied him as he sat across the little fire from me. He had been wearing gloves when we first met, but now I could see his hands and I studied them. Large hands with calluses and scars. They were familiar with work. The glint of an onyx band around his thumb caught my eye. I had never seen someone wear a ring on their thumb before, but I also didn't want to waste my question on something so small. I tried to think of something else I was more worried about...

"How many other fae are at the outpost? What are they like?" My fish was almost gone. I debated on eating another but I didn't want to run out of food before I could gather more.

"There are only two others. You'll find three to be a popular number in the Wyldes. There is strength in threes, most magic runs in threes. As for what they are like...I think I'll leave that as a surprise. You'll meet them tomorrow." He finished his fish and stretched out his long legs, crunching the bones in his fierce jaws.

"Again, that doesn't answer my question." I said.

"Well, you did ask two instead of one." He prodded the fire. "I'll let it slide this time. What did you do in the mountains every day? That was no farmer's cabin."

"I helped cut and dry wood." I watched the dance of the fire, thinking back on my quiet days in the woods. "Lumber, firewood. Helped with simple building sometimes. Fences, I guess. Bridges. I've helped clear fields for homes to be built. It's peaceful work. Just you and the axe."

"An honest day's work." He mused.

"As opposed to what? Do you imagine I grew up thieving?" I said coolly. Then I yawned.

"No, not at all. I meant it earnestly. Good work, hard work." He glanced at the rising moon. "You should probably get some sleep. I've kept you up too long."

He walked silently to the edge of our little campsite, taking up the watch. I let him. I had enough to think about, but my questions could wait until morning. The few insects that had survived the first frost buzzed around us. A bird cawed in the distance, it reminded me of Mila and my heart tightened anew at my loss. But even with my tangle of grim thoughts I fell asleep quickly, my warm blanket comforting me into the night.