"Breathe in like so." Reta instructed him, demonstrating first. "Liberate yourself, be calm in the mind."

  Felix licked his lips before slowly sucking in air, his eyes gazing into hers in search for approval. He sat upright, keeping as still as he could with the carriage rocking with movement, and kept his hands on his p. They repeated these breathing exercises for several minutes now, though to him time seemed to drag on. She leaned forward, noting the subtle look of reluctance in his face.

  Crossed, Reta snapped her fingers to grab his attention and shook her head. "Don't give me that look, baka. If you want my help, then we learn from the beginning."

  "I understand." He muttered in agreement, though his tone informed her that it was more said to fool himself. He sucked in his lips and gazed out the window until frustration set in. "Gah, can't we move past this part? I already know how to do this calming stuff."

  "Meditation," She corrected him, "And no, you do not. Too many thoughts cloud your mind and leaves you split. You may try to harness the essence around you still, but to force it will render you exhausted and possibly ill. What kind of brave warrior hero would you be then when you can't even stand?"

  Felix rolled his eyes, leaning with his elbow out the window. "Some hero I am. I'm no swordsman, no hunter, no fist fighter like you."

  Sensing his fading moral, Reta reached out and pnted a comforting hand on his knee. "You make for a good tracker with that nose of yours."

  "Thanks to her." He reminded her, peering outside in angst. "Gods, can't see a thing with this fog. Is the whole forest covered in this thing?"

  "Perhaps." His friend leaned back, keeping her hands on her p. Her worried gaze grabbed his attention, forcing him to break the awkward silence between them.

  "How do you do it?" He asked, stroking his hair back in defeat. "Try as I might, but I can't just snap my fingers and clear my head. How did this come for you? I would imagine it was effortless."

  "You would be mistaken." She corrected him, catching him by surprise. "You forget that I was not the brightest student. My father did not approve of my decision to become a soldier like my brother."

  Felix shifted in his seat as her words grabbed his interest. "I almost forgot, what were you before you went to train? I mean... what did you do?"

  Reta shrugged, forgiving him for the awkward question. "Sons were raised as future soldiers and the daughters were taught to be wives. Some would take charge of the harvest, growing crops to feed our people while the warriors would be sent to win our battles. I was to be wedded with a friend of the family had I not pursued training instead."

  "And they allowed you?"

  Reta took a deep breathe, her mind wandering back to her past life. "Before, our culture was strict. Rejecting my parents would be dishonoring the family name, that alone would be reason enough to disavow me. Honor is a crucial part of our livelihood, and being a housewife was itself an opportunity to make your family name proud. At that time, we were engaged in a long-sting war with another cn, and we had lost many good warriors. Exceptions would be made; women were allowed the opportunity to fight alongside men. It mattered more to die for the survival of our future kin then to enforce older teachings."

  Felix kept quiet as Reta approached to sit by his side rather than to face him. "I struggled to clear my mind as well. But I was determined to complete my training and make my family proud. I had a reason behind my battles, as do you. I am not being strict for the reason to undermine your progress or to stagnate."

  She reached out and cupped his hands gently. "Your body holds many scars, and your mind is wounded. You've a strong will, Felix-san. You may not see it in you, but we do."

  He replied with a subtle nod, his gaze fixated on their joined hands. "Whatever happened to that fort we passed, do you think the others are safe?"

  "What nerve, you're the one with their scent." She chastised, giving him a soft smack upside his head.

  "Easy," He flinched, ducking his head.

  "Focus your mind on them, don't fill yourself with doubt." She reached out, caressing the back of his head, her fingers combing through his brown hair. "No bump, see? I didn't even strike you with force."

  "It's not that, it's the action that bothers me." He expined, holding her hand in pce, his deep brown eyes gazing back into her blue eyes. His muscles softened up as his spirit was lifted by her expression, how her lighter complexion paired with the beautiful blue tone of her hair. "Do the people in your cn have colors like yours?"

  Taken aback, Reta took a moment to respond. "N-Nani?"

  "Your hair colors, I remember that woman you saved had a different bright color. Like a more pinkish tone."

  Reta seemed reluctant to respond, a look of stress spread across her face. "Ah, yes. I suppose so. Our cn was from a different world then yours."

  "Really?"

  "Not literally, baka. Gah." She muttered, annoyed at his sheepish apologetic grin. "Bakayaro, feeling better at my misery?"

  "Sorry, it's not like that." He held her hands, rubbing his thumb across her palm. "It's just, I don't think I ever told you how beautiful your hair is. It fits you perfectly."

  She recoiled with a blush, pulling her hands away. "You're only saying that because I am the one who remains."

  "Don't say that it's not true. I had feelings for you both before all of this began." He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her in with a side hug. "As soon as this is over, your curse is my next priority."

  "Of course." She groaned, looking away to hide her gaze. Actually, something about his arm holding her like this sent tingles down her spine and a feeling of warmth under her skin. She pressed her thighs together, feeling her body recall the special night they shared the day before. The strength in his arms as he carried her weight, the joining of their bodies that left her full and sated, the words they exchanged.

  Gods, pull yourself together! She thought to herself, her eye twitching as her body hungered for more.

  The carriage slowed down, catching their attention before coming to a complete stop.

  Felix let go as he stuck his head out the window. "What news?"

  "Me arse hurts! I needs a break and dis pompous brat's chompers chattering hard enough 'er teeth 'er about t'shatter!"

  "Th-That's not true!" Janette cried out, unable to disguise the quiver in her voice.

  Felix nodded. "We'll rest here then till we get our strength back."

  "Aye!" Nyitzcha agreed, climbing down the front bench and leaving Janette trembling with her several yers of bnkets wrapped around her like a cocoon. The dwarf herself only needed a thick cloak draped around her shoulders to remain poised through the cold, though Janette wondered if the alcohol kept her friend buzzed enough to not even feel the cold.

  Janette snuck back inside for warmth, leaving the others to set up a campsite with two tents and some gathered wood. Reta tried rubbing some sticks together to light a spark, but to no avail. The dwarf chuckled and wagged her finger, rolling her sleeve up and wiping her hands over her cloak before snapping her fingers.

  "Ignis!" She cried out, harnessing the faintest bit of control she had over magic to muster a trail of sparks. They traveled from her hand toward the logs, setting up a tiny fme.

  "Eh? Eh?" Nyitzcha beamed, her arms spread wide expecting a cheer from her group. Felix shook his head and smiled, giving her due praise with a brief appuse.

  Reta was not amused. "You've barely any magic in you, why bother making the effort?"

  She scoffed, flicking her fiery orange hair behind her. "Ya sure, ain't you the ss who makes bubbles? Das yer thing, ay? Yer people can do water stuff but ye got da short end?"

  Reta tightened the grip on her pants, her eyes enfmed. "Choose your words carefully, dwarf."

  "Rex, hun. I ain't got no death wish." Nyitzcha leaned forward with a knowing smirk across her freckled face. "I got eyes, I know better den to take you on a fight. Just sayin', s'not the magic that holds you back, ss."

  Standing upright, she pointed both fingers into each temple of her head. "Is all in here! Ye think just cuz me magic ain't so fshy dat means it's weak? Nah, creativity and ingenuity. Think outside, work yer spells in ways others don't think of."

  Reta paused in thought, actually caught off-guard by the turn. "Bah, don't be absurd. What good can making bubbles serve in a battle? If the enemy is armed with crossbows and gives, what then?"

  "Well, all I got is a spark." She pointed out, peeling her cloak back to reveal the dish-like chest pte armor with a faint sigil embedded in the front. She turned to the side, sticking her little hip in a way that brought attention to her little plump butt. Around her waist was a belt carrying numerous pouches with little slit openings at the top, custom made as no adult hands could fit through. But her smaller hands had no issue, slipping her fingers in and holding up a small bck bead.

  "See dis?" She raised it between her digits as Felix and Reta squinted at the little bck marble. "Dis ain't no fancy rock, is a small clump of powder. Good stuff fer an alchemist like me-self. Got it sealed like dis to avoid a spill of dust and stains on me breeches. One small spark is all dis needs for a boom, and I'm loaded with them."

  "All your pockets carry that stuff?" Felix asked, crooking his neck to gnce around her waist.

  "Some do." She expined, patting her pouch with pride. "Das how ye get around dis, Nori."

  "Nori?" Reta made a face, hearing Felix cough to disguise the chuckle that nickname gave him. She snapped her head to him just in time for him to compose himself, putting on a stony expression to refrain from her wrath.

  Nyitzcha nodded back, stuffing the bead back into pce. "It's not about who can cast the rgest fireball, it's about using yer head. You see limitations, I see opportunities. No such thing as limits when you work around it. Das what yer fancy meditations and crap is about, aye? So do that, take yer own advice if not mine. Work with what ye got, use all you have and hold nuthin' back. Back in Mellow Peaks, I mention a war from there aye? I wasn't de only dwarf enlisted to fight, an' I be shittin' gold t'say I was de only one with magic. Plenty of em had tricks, some of dem fshy, but I? I survived."

  She paced back to the carriage, grabbing her bag and yanking out a wrapped block of cheese and some salted pork. She got right to chopping little bits, pouring wine in a wooden bowl and dumping the slices of meat in to marinate. Reaching in, she grabbed a pinch of salt and sprinkled it across, then called for Felix. "Oye, d! Fetch the girl and her birdie, we got a nice fire to keep her warm."

  Felix nodded and walked back to the carriage, leaving Reta to stir the fire and help it grow. She grabbed a fsk of water and took a sip, keeping the bottle raised. Tilting it over her palm, she poured a few drops on her hand. Gncing around to ensure no one was watching, she held her palm inches from her face, her eyes staring deeply with her free hand reaching out in concentration. A subtle trace of light emerged from the tips of her fingers, dissipating as quickly as she blinked. But soon came the result she loathed to see as the bit of water sucked up into a tiny ball, then expanded into a bubble that fit her outstretched hand. She stared deeply into the sphere as the fire behind it grew fierce, sending a warm glow of light across her front. The warmth was comforting, but at that moment Reta could only see into the bubble.

  She couldn't tell what she was looking at as only the campfire shown through it like a looking gss, magnifying the image and expressing the course flickers and sparks the fire carried.

  Or was it the brief image, that face that stared back at her when the fmes cracked a certain way.

  Reta closed her eyes, the bubble popping just before the others returned.