Fresh air blew through the carriage as we opened the windows wide. The rain had finally sputtered out and I stuck my head out to breath in the wet leaves and gentle scent of rain soaked earth.

The gates of Thanantholl didn't come into view until you were nearly on top of them, the giant trees and thick brush made sure of that. A small trickle of sprites, nymphs, high fae and other beings were coming into the city. Some were hunters with wild game and others were from the outlying dwellings that sometimes peeked through the trees as we rode down the main paths around Thanantholl. All of them flickered their eyes to the carriage. One large male with a fat rabbit over his shoulder lifted his head and smelled my scent on the wind as he watched our approach. I ducked back inside.

"We'll be through the gates soon. They will want to stop and check on us since we have a carriage, but it shouldn't take long," Schula said.

"You two alright in there?" Eberon asked as we slowed to a stop.

"We'll be fine," Schula answered. She stood and pulled our windows closed, shoeing Puko out. He knew his way home by now, or he could ride on top until we got there.

"I hope you are ready for that bath and a workout, because I was serious." Schula smiled as she sat back down.

"I'll be ready." I sat, anxious to get moving as I fidgeted in my seat. I was done being stuck in the little carriage and ready to get moving.

The guards at the gate peeked in the carriage. After not seeing anything suspicious they waved us through. Eberon steered Boxfield through the streets and I could tell from his constant grumbling that we were garnering a lot of attention. I was glad to be inside with the curtains drawn.

We rode to Schula's apartment in silence, ignoring the pressure of fae outside watching us. When the carriage pulled to a stop I barely had the door opened when it was pulled out of my hands and opened wide.

"Wren, you're still too thin! Come, Mama Flori has lunch upstairs. You come eat now." The wrinkled grey face of Mama Flori beamed up at me as I was half dragged out of the carriage and to the stairs that led to the apartment.

"Mama Flori," I protested. "I can walk on my own!"

But she didn't really listen, she just turned to a grinning Schula and a smirking Eberon and yelled at them. "You didn't feed her on your trip, did you? Boys! Boys, come get their things and bring them up now."

Her two sons, also wrinkled grey mole-like fae emerged from the shop covered in flour and grinning. "Yes, Mama."

"Mama Flori, we did feed her. It's barely been over a week, we can't fatten her up any faster than we already are," Schula was nearly in tears laughing after us as I was dragged up the stairs.

"You don't try hard enough," she insisted. "Wren, come."

Through the door I smelled her baking. Schula's table was piled high with breads, pies, tarts, and other baked dishes that were still covered and I couldn't see what they were yet.

"You eat, go ahead." Mama Flori sat me in a chair and began unwrapping food and placing it in front of me.

"How did you know we were here?" Schula asked, coming in after us.

"The bird came, and I knew. Come and sit down, Schula. You need to eat too," Mama Flori said.

I didn't complain as I was forcefully fed until I couldn't hardly move on my own. I glanced out the window at a smug looking Puko who had somehow gotten a bowl of bread crumbs and was gorging himself on them.

Schula didn't fare much better as Mama Flori bounced back and forth between us, making sure we tried a little of everything she had made.

After her sons carried up our luggage, they helped calm their mother down enough that we could convince her to wrap up the rest of the food for later.

Eberon barely took one step in the door with our last bag when Mama Flori sent him on his way with two pies of his own. It was a miracle he was able to get away at all, but he said a short goodbye and took Boxfield and the carriage home.

The boys finally dragged Mama Flori back down to the bakery and we were left in peace.

"You're going to have to roll me to the Winter lands," I groaned.

"Let your stomach settle in the bath," Schula said. "I'm still making you exorcise."

"You're trying to kill me," I moaned, standing and stretching.

"Quite the opposite, actually," she insisted. "And I'll remind you that you asked for this."

I sighed and let her push me toward the bathroom. She started the water running and popped out of the room. "You get in first, I'll be right back."

I didn't wait for the water to finish filling the tub before I dropped my clothes to the floor and climbed in. I was almost ready for a nap when Schula came back in with fresh towels, setting them on the shelf and stripping off her own travel things.

"I put a couple logs in the fire," Schula said.

I just nodded as she climbed in the water and turned it off.

She sank into the water with a sigh, quietly sloshing the sides of the tub as she sat. My eyes trailed down the scars on her back a moment before I took a bar of soap and lathered my skin. Someday I would be brave enough to ask what happened. Someday.

"How long do you think you need to soak before that exercise?" she asked, smirking.

"Just long enough to get clean, and maybe a few minutes to soak," I said. "I'm ready. We were cooped up in that carriage for days."

"I feel the same way." She stretched her arms out in front of her. "So you think you're ready to release that seal?"

"Maybe," I sighed. "I just want a little training so I don't, you know, catch on fire again."

Schula snorted. "If you do, I'll put you out."

"Good." I smiled. "I'm glad you'll be there."

"Me too," she said.

Clean, rested, and still very full of food, we reluctantly left the hot water.

We wrapped ourselves in towels and I put a pot of tea on the fire. Once my hair was free of tangles, I braided it out of my way and we drained our mugs.

"Here." Schula handed me a cloak. "Pull it over your face a little. I hung it over the stove so it should smell more like smoke than like you. It might help stop prying eyes until we get out of the city."

"We're leaving Thanantholl? We just got here." I frowned, pulling the cloak around my shoulders.

"We're going to run some of the dirt paths outside the gates," she said. "No one is going to bother us there, and if you have any mishaps with your fire you will be far away from hurting anyone."

"Oh." I pulled the hood up and took off my smoky quartz. It was probably safer here and I'd hate to lose it in the woods.

After that, Schula dragged me outside. A light breeze rustled the trees overhead, shaking fat leaves over us. She was right about the cloak, it helped and we were able to avoid much attention as we slipped through back paths and lesser used roads until we reached the front gates.

The guards nodded us out, and Schula started us down a subtle dirt path through the trees.

Admittedly, I was nervous to do anything with my magic, but I was frustrated and ready to do something about it. Part of that must have shown on my face, because Schula was relentless in our workout. She had me run with her through narrow paths that encircled the city. Walking paths, likely used by the patrols to reach their posts. We didn't run into anyone else though, which I was thankful for.

I was panting and sweaty when the sun told me it was late afternoon. Schula handed me a water bottle and stretched me out, moving my arms and legs into new and different poses. She had brought us to a clearing outside of Thanantholl, not too far off the road. At least the walk back wouldn't be as long. She then proceeded to contort my body and hers into some impressive shapes, while describing how to control my magic.My body was every bit as sore as the first day she had me stretch, muscles I didn't know I had screamed at me to stop, but Schula didn't let me.

"I can't stay standing like this much longer." I was trying very hard not to whine, but I don't think it was working.

"Hold it for just a little more," she said, pressing her knee into my back. "You're going to know this stance in your sleep or die trying."

"Great," I grunted. Puko sat overhead watching us with casual raven amusement.

"Alright, relax." No more did the words leave her lips than I fell to the ground. "You wanted this."

"I know," I moaned. "I'm ready, just tell me what's next."

"Well, I don't know much about human bodies," Schula admitted. "Maybe you do need a break. Next we can meditate."

"We can what?" I didn't bother moving.

"We're going to work on your calm and concentration. If you don't have control of your mind, you won't have control of your magic."

"That makes sense. My magic is tied to strong emotion, right?" I asked.

"Yes, it is." Schula pulled me into a sitting position and sat down beside me. "If you can keep your calm, you can control magical outbursts. We start with this, and then when you're ready, you can handle whatever releases with your seal."

"Hopefully," I mumbled.

"You can," she insisted. "And you will. Now, close your eyes and get comfortable. Clear your mind, I want you to picture your inner sanctum. This is where you need your mind to rest, the center of it all, the house for your magic. Make a calm place with no noise. Be at peace, we're going to breathe."

And breathe we did. She counted to three slowly, and we inhaled. Three again and we held our breath for the count. Three one more time and we released the air. Then we repeated the process again, and again, and again.

I tried to picture my serene place. At first I thought it would be a forest, where I loved to roam. But a forest is anything but quiet. You can't walk without breaking sticks, there are birds, and squirrels, and wind and leaves. I let the forest go and moved on to something else.

"You're doing good, keep making that place in your mind," Schula purred.

The quietest place I've ever been. I nearly shouted when my mind fell into a frozen lake. The lake Thain had pulled me from. I winced out loud, but kept my eyes shut. Quiet, but not peaceful. I moved on again.

"Keep trying," Schula said.

Now I made the place I wanted. A little log cabin in an open field. Just big enough for me. I built it like Bryn would have built one, I pictured every cut log, every stone in the floor. I gave it a hearth, and I kept building. A loft, just a little one, with a warm bed near the chimney for heat. Below I had only the bare minimum of possessions. A wooden table, a chair, a shelf, and a cook pot. An axe sat by the door, and a cloak hung above it. There, my little cabin. My home, my serenity.

"There, right there," Schula said, pleased. "Whatever you've found hold onto it. That is your magic's home. You are making it a place to live, a place for you to be with it."

I sat in my 'cabin' just as I sat in the forest outside Thanantholl. On the floor, legs crossed, eyes closed, breathing. My leg would cramp, and I would go to move but Schula smacked me without dropping the count. If I opened my eyes I'd get smacked again. My back strained, and I was ready to scream, but I sat there breathing like she told me to.

"Alright, that's enough for today." Schula stopped us and I fell onto my back. It had felt like days that we had sat there, sitting in our quiet places and breathing. When I opened my eyes the sun had hardly moved.

"You did well, I can tell you made a good place to keep your mind." Schula stretched. "Hold onto it, because you're going to do this again before bed. And in the morning. And after lunch."

"That often?" I rolled onto my stomach, laying my face in the cool grass.

"Yes, that often," she said. "As often as you can. Do it in the bath, before sleep, when you wake up. Do it whenever you have a spare moment."

"You told me to practice my combat poses whenever I had a spare moment," I said.

"Do both. I do. The more you do it, the better you'll be." She stood. "Now, get up. You've had a rest, let me show you how to hold your hands for a punch."

"Great," I moaned.

"Caw."

And we did the entire thing again.