After purchasing a map, the two headed out on foot. Progress would be much slower without Holger, but it turned out they were closer to the border than they thought. And Jyri recovered from the heart arrow's effects sooner than expected. By the time they left the city, he was beaming.
"A few more days," he said, hitching up his pack. "Just a few more days."
"And how exactly are we going to get past the border?" Faye asked, trailing behind.
Jyri stopped in his tracks, frowning down at the dirt. "I haven't thought of that." He glanced at Faye, and continued walking. "Hopefully we won't have too much trouble. Coming back in would be a bigger problem."
"There's no one on Dorendi's side to stop us?" Faye asked, striding to keep up him.
Jyri shook his head. "They're lax on this sort of thing. Especially with refugees from Vustaria. They'll want to see I.D. though."
"I don't have an I.D."
"I'm sure they can work with you," Jyri said. "I haven't heard of anyone having difficulty getting through, aside from heaps of paperwork."
Faye scrunched her nose. "I'd rather stay here then."
Jyri chuckled. "We might not even have to cross the border, to find the portal." He looked to Faye. "I won't, anyway."
Leaving the country was one thing, but leaving the universe terrified her. And yet it sounded exciting. But who knew what other universes were like. What if they ended up somewhere worse? At least Vustaria was tolerable, as long as she kept her identity hidden. "I don't know what I want to do."
"You've still got time to decide." Jyri stopped to pull their new map out of his bag. "I need to make sure we're heading the right way," he explained, burying his nose into it. He glanced up every few steps to make sure he wouldn't bump into any trees. And then, he stopped completely, swearing under his breath. "I forgot..."
Faye stopped to look at him, and he looked as though a horrifying realization struck him. She peeked over his arm at the map. "What?"
"We're... we're around here," Jyri pointed his shaking finger to one spot on the map," and..." his voice trailed off as he dragged his finger towards the left, in the area they were headed. It landed on an image of a crudely-drawn building, with the words "Milthum" scribbled above it.
Goosebumps ran throughout Faye's body, and her eyes met Jyri's. She shrugged, and forced her face to relax. "We'll just have to walk around that area then."
"You'll have to be extra careful around here," Jyri said. "If anyone even suspects..."
"Good thing I wasted money on a ridiculous purchase," Faye said, acutely aware of her flattened wings pressed against her stomach. "Nobody will suspect a thing."
"I hope you're right," Jyri muttered.
As the day wore on, Faye found herself longing to free her aching wings. And breathing became more and more difficult. She didn't dare voice her complaints to Jyri, though she wished he'd put some of that poultice on them. No way could she risk having her wings out, even in secluded woods. When night hit, they found a spot under some trees to sit, and huddled against each other for warmth, wishing for their blankets. Jyri didn't want to risk making a fire. So dinner was, once again, bread. Though Faye successfully threw her knife at a pheasant. After stripping the feathers, she conjured a flame to cook it with. Jyri refused to take any.
"So all you're eating is bread?"
Jyri reached over to his pack, and pulled out a pear. He crunched into it. "Happy?"
"What's your problem?"
"I don't like poultry." He took another bite of the pear.
"So you're just gonna starve?"
He nodded.
Faye gaped at him. "Are you aware-"
"Yes, I'm aware that there are starving children everywhere. No need to remind me."
Frowning at him, Faye took a bite of the poultry. Truth be told, it was a little dry. But it was something different. She swallowed. "It's good. You should try some."
Jyri looked at her bird for a moment. It was too dark to see his expression, but Faye had a feeling it wasn't an enthusiastic one.
"More for me," Faye muttered, shoving the rest in her mouth. Or, of what could be eaten. The bones she tossed aside. She wiped her dirty fingers on her pants, her stomach still rumbling.
Jyri pressed his shoulder against hers. "I don't know how we're going to sleep in this chill."
"If you suggest we get undressed for body heat, I'm turning myself into Milthum," Faye said. "Huddling is bad enough."
Jyri scrunched his nose. "I'd rather get hypothermia."
"Should we just forget sleep, and keep going?" Faye asked. "Walking is warmer."
"We'll be walking a long time," Jyri said. "And we're more likely to be found during the day, so we should get our sleep now."
Faye shook her head. "I won't be able to sleep."
"Good." Jyri curled up in a fetal position on the ground, wrapping his cloak around him. He rested his head on his knapsack. "You can take first watch."
About a half hour passed. Faye hugged her knees to her chest, face buried in them. It did little to keep out the biting cold. She glanced over at Jyri, who, judging by his violent shivering, hadn't fallen asleep. "You awake?"
Jyri grunted.
"We should've bought blankets," Faye said.
Jyri jerked his head up. "We have no room for blankets."
Faye shivered and buried her face back into her knees.
Jyri sat up, and wrapped his arm around Faye. "I'm sorry."
Normally Faye would shove him away. But it was warm, so she scooted in closer. Something wet landed on her head, and again on her leg. "Oh no..."
Jyri swore as rain poured down on them, the tree branches doing little to keep it off them.
"What was that you were saying about hypothermia earlier?" Faye asked.
Jyri scowled at her, and pulled his arm away. "What were you saying about turning yourself into Milthum?"
"Milthum sounds warmer."
"We need to get out of here." Jyri stood up, slinging his pack over his shoulder.
"It'll be wetter out there," Faye shouted over the pounding of the rain. "At least we have branches above us."
"We're getting wet regardless." Jyri looked at her. "Put your pack on."
Frowning, Faye complied. Before she could speak, Jyri scooped her up in his arms, cradling her close.
"What are you-"
Head down and over Faye, Jyri left the comfort of their tree, and ran, stumbling, out into the rain.
Faye wanted to protest, but she felt warmer than she had all night. "You're insane."
"We need to get out."
"You said it would take days."
Jyri stumbled again, and squeezed her tighter. "We need shelter."
"We had shelter."
"Better shelter."
"It's too dark to find anything." Faye buried her head against his chest, listening to the slow beat of his heart.
Jyri stopped, gasping. There was a squelch as his knees hit the muddy ground. "I can't." His voice cracked.
"There's a tree right there," Faye said, nodding towards a tree several feet in front of them.
Jyri collapsed on top of her, pinning her into the mud. As if being wet wasn't bad enough. It was warmer under him though, so Faye didn't struggle.
Jyri mumbled something she couldn't understand. Ran? Zoo? Ran zoo? Her brain couldn't process it. He shifted, and Faye rolled out from under him, gasping for breath. Something purred above her head, and she looked up to see two glowing eyes. She squinted. In the moonlight, it looked like some sort of cat-like animal. Before she could comment, the animal laid down, with its body draped over the two like a blanket. Instead of panicking, Faye relaxed her muscles.
"Don't sleep," Jyri mumbled to her. "Don't..."
Faye closed her eyes, and fell asleep.
ns 15.158.61.8da2
