The mild night continued into a mild morning. There was fog in the air when they packed up their camp to get back on the road, which slowly dissipated as the sun rose. Instead of the muffled silence of the thick snow, the forest was noisy with drips of melting snow that almost sounded like rain, and heavier wet thuds when larger clumps fell.

Jale explained to them that this was common. The first snowfall sometimes hit heavily for days, but tended not to last. It was still autumn, she pointed out, and real winter wouldn't start for another few weeks. They had just experienced what she called 'Tier's Greeting', the winter goddess reminding her people that she was on the way.

The next few days were just as mild, and in the sun along the road it got so warm that they actually shed their thick winter jackets. Tanden took to wearing his nautical jacket again, while Jale wore a woolly shawl over her shoulders. One afternoon got so warm that Soren actually pushed up his sleeves, much to Tanden's delight and Jale's intrigue, which lead to a series of questions about his tattoos and their cultural significance. Jale was familiar with Morcean temporary tattoos, which were used for decoration in a similar way jewellery was used. She didn't understand the permanent black and blue swirls that covered Soren's arms.

"They started as a way to show our dedication to the ocean, and the Old God of the Sea," Soren explained. For once, he was sitting up front with Jale while Tanden lounged in the back. "That dedication is unwavering, so they're permanent. Then people started getting symbols to represent their ships, or their loved ones."

"Do you have that?" Jale asked. She wasn't really driving, letting the kyloe pick their own pace along the road. She was instead inspecting Soren's arm, which she had pulled over her lap so she could get a better look. With this question she turned his wrist, looking for something other than the swirling waves.

"No," Soren chuckled. The only other person who had been so fascinated by his tattoos was Tanden, but that was different. Jale's curiosity was more childlike. "Captain does."

She dropped Soren's arm to look over her shoulder. "You have one?"

Tanden really was lounging in the back. He had pulled out a crate to use as a footrest, and had bundled up his winter jacket under his head like a cushion. "Yes. You haven't noticed?"

"I don't watch you change," Jale pointed out dryly. "Remember, I don't care for that," she gestured at his whole body with a vague wave. "So where is it?"

"On my back."

"But you're not—" She paused, then remembered, "—Crelan."

"No," Tanden agreed. "It is a tad unusual, but not forbidden by any means. Maybe I'll show you next time we make camp," he added with a grin.

Jale rolled her eyes, and turned her attention back to Soren's arm. Soren leaned a little closer to her to whisper, "He's... very attracted to tattoos. Sometimes I think I could paint this design on a rock and he'd fall in love with it."

Jale laughed. Soren really enjoyed her laugh. She wasn't trying to be dainty or act shy, she laughed loudly, unembarrassed, and she did it more often as she got used to them. At this point, most of their secrets had been revealed, they were all pretty comfortable with each other. No topic of conversation was too far, no joking insult was taken seriously. When they were alone in the woods, Soren felt completely at ease. Jale's laugher was proof that she felt the same way.

"What did he tell you?" Tanden interrupted. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing, nothing," Jale replied. She nudged Soren's arm, indicating that he could move it again, and took up the reins. "We should stop soon."

Tanden moved, to lean forward between Jale and Soren. "What? You said we'd reach the city today."

"I said we might," Jale corrected. "The roads weren't great. Too snowy in some places for the wheels, too muddy in others for the runners. We've been moving slowly. We won't make it before nightfall, so it would be better to camp out for one last night. We'll definitely reach the city tomorrow."

"Definitely," Tanden repeated. "I'll hold you to that."

"Hold me against anything and I'll punch you in the face," Jale teased.

Tanden didn't miss a beat. "Most people quite enjoy it when I pin them against things. Just ask Soren."

"Sit down," Soren said.

Tanden chuckled but did as he was told.

Jale continued to ask Soren questions about his tattoos until she found a good place to steer the carriage off of the road. She left them to get started and wandered into the woods with her bow, only to return a few minutes later.

"There's a creek nearby, I'm going to try fishing," she explained, returning her bow to the carriage and pulling out a fishing rod Soren had never seen. When she returned again, it was with three thin silver fish. They roasted the fish on long sticks, along with potatoes and a type of bread that Jale showed them how to wrap around sticks to cook. They fell into easy conversation while they ate and drank their tea.

When Jale was done eating, she started drawing on a rock with the charred end of her roasting stick. "Yes, I know people in the capital, so we shouldn't have trouble finding someplace to stay. But it is going to be strange when we get there. None of your people have ever travelled this far into the empire, and very few of the people here will have travelled to Till. They've never seen people like you. You're going to draw a lot of attention."

Tanden shrugged, as he tore a bit of bread off of his stick. "I'm fairly used to drawing a lot of attention."

"Just remember that you're—"

"A Teltish lord in a country that doesn't care," Tanden recited, flashing her a grin. "I remember. But that's not what I mean. I get a lot of attention in every country we visit. I get a lot of attention on the Wanderlust."

"He isn't shy," Soren agreed.

"It isn't only him," Jale said. "You'll draw attention, too."

"Oh. Right."

Tanden didn't like the look that flashed across Soren's face. Protecting Soren from negative attention and scrutiny was something Tanden constantly strived to do, even when he was being a little more playful and riskier in public. Protecting Soren was always hovering at the back of his mind. "But it won't be bad attention, will it? Are people going to hate us?"

"Oh, no, the opposite," Jale said. "People are going to be fascinated by you. They might try to touch you. Honestly," she shrugged. "I don't know exactly what to expect. But your Tallenese is already fairly good so that might help. And don't be afraid to be affectionate with each other. Also, Captain Tanden of the West Draulin Navy Wanderlust, I found you a new eeto."

She held up the rock she had been drawing on. It was covered in black lines of soot that roughly looked like Soren's tattoo. Tanden glanced between the rock, Jale's grin, Soren's smirk, and figured out what had happened.

"What did you tell her?"

Soren shrugged. "Oh, nothing. Just how much you love tattoos."

"Look, isn't he beautiful?" Jale plopped the rock down in front of Tanden.

The only appropriate way to respond to the teasing was to twist it in his favour, so Tanden picked up the rock and balanced it on his knee. "He certainly seems to have a better personality than Soren. Soren's all brawn, but other than that..." he tutted and patted the top of the rock. "You and I will go far, rock, mate."

"Tryin' to impress a rock with Crelan words?" Soren asked.

Tanden smiled to himself. Soren had slipped up, slightly, in the way he said 'trying', his accent acting as a tell. "I don't do that just for you, Soren."

"Aye, you do," Soren corrected. "Me'n the Crelan lads on the Wanderlust. But mostly me."

"But mostly you," Tanden repeated, but his tone meant he agreed. "Still, rock's got some lovely Crelan waves."

Soren shook his head. "Look what you did, Jale."

Jale scoffed. "Me? You're supposed to be controlling him, not me. Now, boys—" she stood up as she spoke. "Since it's warmer tonight, and dry, I'm going to roll out my bed by the fire. But before you get any ideas—"

Tanden noticed that she was looking straight at him.

"—can you hear me talking through my scarf?"

It wasn't the direction Tanden expected her to go, but he nodded. "Well, yes. Of course we can."

"Imagine the canvas over the carriage is like my scarf," Jale said. "I'll hear you. And I will not be pleased if you keep me awake."

Tanden's gaze darted to the Wayfarer. "Oh. I hadn't thought of it like that."

"Now, let's clean up so you can tuck your new rock eeto into bed," Jale said. She tossed her food encrusted stick into the fire, and collected the mugs.

Soren followed her example and stuck his stick into the fire. "Captain, if that rock comes to bed, I'm sleeping out here with Jale."

"I must say, I like this possessive side of you. I guess I'm not in the market for a new eeto, after all." Tanden replaced the rock around the edge of the firepit. "Now the next people who use this campsite can be confused by some unusual symbols."

The slighted smile flickered at the edge of Soren's mouth. "That will be confusing," he agreed, as he got to his feet. He offered Tanden his hand, which Tanden was more than happy to grasp. His mind was already churning with ideas for some quiet entertainment in the carriage. Very quiet entertainment.

The next morning was bright and warm. They ate a quick breakfast of oats soaked in boiled water, and went on their way. Like the day before, it was slow going. The roads had dried out a little, but the patches of dirt were hard on the runners. Only a few hours into their day, Jale decided to take off the runners, and hope that any snow they came across wouldn't be too deep for the wheels.

The process was the same. Jale undid the bolts that held the runners in place, then Soren and Tanden lifted the carriage enough for her to slide it out of the way. Once each runner was reattached to the sides of the carriage, they continued heading down the road.

It was pretty clear they were getting closer to a city when the road widened, and they saw a group of caravans coming from ahead of them, accompanied by some men riding short shaggy horses. Jale talked to the drivers as they passed, and Tanden tried to follow her conversations without chiming in. She gave the other drivers information about the quality of the road, and they gave her news from the city. Some of the passengers asked questions about Tanden and Soren, where they had come from and what they wanted. It was hard not to interrupt that time.

About an hour after meeting the caravan of carriages, they crested a hill and the city appeared in front of them. Tanden had expected the city to be in a valley, but he was wrong. The valley in front of them was cleared of trees and surrounded by tall mountains. A huge river snaked lazily through the valley, and was bordered on either side by well tended crop fields. On the far side of the valley, the capital city climbed up the side of an enormous mountain. The next mountain to the right looked odd, like huge chunks of it had been carved away. Tanden realized after a moment that he was looking at a quarry, or a mine. Possibly both. The mountain to the left of the city looked odd as well, and it took Tanden some time to realize that it was because instead of a lush tall forest, the trees looked small.

As they descended their hill into the valley, Tanden pointed at the hill of small trees. "What happened there?"

"I told you Tigo provides lumber to the rest of the empire?" Jale clarified. "Well, the people of Tigo believe that the trees are a gift, and when they are cut down, new trees must be planted to replace them. The same if there is a fire, or trees are damaged in other ways. About five years ago, a lightning strike caused a huge fire on that mountain. Luckily, the river stopped the fire from destroying the farms, and Tigo brought rain, but most of the trees in the forest were destroyed. The Emperor himself travelled to Tigo, out of season, in order to help. Lumberjacks from across Tigo came to chop the burned remains into smaller pieces, and the citizens planted thousands of new trees. Esler Tigo has been blessed by Tigo since that ceremony."

"It wasn't blessed before?"

"It's always been blessed," Jale clarified, "but the ceremony renewed Tigo's favour."

"Ah, all right."

They kept talking as they made their way down into the valley. As Jale had warned them, already they were attracting quite a bit of attention from people working the fields and riding or driving along the road. Tanden listed to Jale explain where they were from so many times he could have easily recited her whole speech himself, despite not knowing quite a few of the words.

They drove by crops Tanden recognized, and others he didn't. They passed by fields of kyloe, short shaggy horses and hardy little sheep. It was very similar to the farmlands on New Teltar, but subtly different in other ways, like the style of the wooden fences, and the way the farmhouses were built with what looked like whole logs or unshaped boulders of rock instead of carved stone and planks of wood.

Esler Tigo didn't have a wall. The city was protected naturally by a sheer cliff four or five stories tall. The main road they were driving on became an enormous ramp, which only went about halfway up before meeting the cliff. From there the road was carved out of the cliff itself. Driving up the road felt a little bit like being in a canyon, and Tanden could see how it would be easy to defend this entrance against enemies.

The buildings in the city were similar to the farmhouses. Most of them were one storey with naturally shaped rocks mortared together to make the walls, and wooden roofs. If there were additional floors, they were almost always made with logs still covered in bark. The road they were on continued straight forward, up the side of the mountain. At the very top sat the largest building in the city.

"The Emperor's palace?" Tanden guessed.

Jale nodded, without having to follow his gaze. "The temple is there, too. I'll take you tonight." She tugged on the reins gently to turn the kyloe onto a side street of hard packed dirt and stone. They weren't far from the main road when she stopped the kyloe and handed Tanden the reins. "Hold them here, I'll be right back." She hopped off of the carriage and disappeared into the closest building.

Soren leaned onto the driver's seat. "Is this where we're staying?"

Tanden shrugged. "I don't know. Isn't the city amazing? Jale said she'll take us to the temple later, it's up near the palace. And this whole place, slanted on the mountain like this. It's incredibly well protected, isn't it?"

Soren chuckled. "Aye. Reckon it would easy enough to roll boulders or logs down that ramp."

That exact method hadn't occurred to Tanden, but it sounded perfect. "I bet you're right. Not that they would have many attacks out here. They're in the middle of the country. It isn't as if a Morcean army is going to make it here."

"No, but before they were combined, they might have needed to protect themselves from the other provinces."

"Oh, you're right. Or maybe bandits, or—" Tanden stopped as Jale stepped back outside. "Is this where we're staying?"

"Yes. The upper floor is vacant, so we can rent it."

"You said you know the owners?" Soren asked.

"I do. I helped one of their sons travel to Till a few years back. They aren't sure what to make of you two, though. Well... it should be fine. Come on. Let's move a few things in, and then I'll find a place for the kyloe and the Wayfarer."

Tanden grinned. "The name is catching on."

They moved a few crates of clothing upstairs. The entire floor was one room, with a bed and couches near the window. The only door led to the tiny privy. Soren and Tanden stacked their crates in the corner, while Jale disappeared to deal with the carriage and kyloe.

As soon as they had put everything down, Tanden shrugged off his jacket and threw open the wooden shutters. He had been hoping for a view of the valley, but the window faced a street and another building. Still, the room was nice enough. If not very private. He left the window open to let in fresh air, and went to flop onto the bed beside Soren.

"It'll be nice to have a proper bed again," Tanden commented. He took Soren's hand and pulled, so that Soren would lie down beside him. "What do you think Ivern and the lads are up to?"

It took Soren a moment to reply. He lay down and laced his fingers together under his head. "If they decided to go to West Draulin, they'll probably be nearing Deorun by now. Do you miss them? Or the Wanderlust?"

"Yes," Tanden admitted. The ceiling was interesting, and he let his eyes trail along the crisscrossing beams. "I do miss it a little bit. It was nice to be able to explore but still have my own place to go back to every night, a familiar place with familiar people. Jale and the Wayfarer are providing that, sort of, but it isn't the same."

"Aye," Soren agreed. "Jale speaking Teltish helps, too. I was ready to spend this whole trip talking to nobody but you. And you're exhausting."

"I'm exhausting?" Tanden rolled over, throwing a leg over Soren to end up straddling him. "I think you mean exhilarating."

Soren still had his hands behind his head comfortably, and he looked up at Tanden with one eyebrow raised and the slightest smile on his lips. "Reckon you can be both. Usually at the same time."

"I feel like you insult me more than you compliment me," Tanden said.

Soren shrugged. "Your ego needs a hit every once in awhile. No one else is going to do it." He finally moved his arms, to hook his fingers into the collar of Tanden's tunic and give it a tug. "Come here, Captain."

Tanden obliged, leaning down for a kiss. Then another one. He was just getting comfortable with their position when the door opened and Jale's voice cut into his thoughts.

"Really?" she asked dryly, as Tanden sat up straight, still straddling Soren. "I leave for ten minutes and you're already at it? Are all Teltans like you?"

Tanden laughed, but Soren answered her question. "There are no other Teltans like him."

"Great," Jale said. "Get your jacket back on. We need to go buy some food for dinner, and then I'll take you to the temple."

That got Tanden's attention.