Page 46 of The Alien Noble's Little Human

My mind clings to the momentary frown of annoyance that I’m slowing him down.He’s keen to get back to Hanai. And away from you.

There is more vegetation this far down the mountain and a lot less snow. We find a fallen log to sit on and enjoy the warm sun on our faces.

“What are you looking forward to most when you get home?” I ask, laying my head on his shoulder. “Aside from the obvious. Seeing Hanai.”

“A bath and clean clothes,” he says instantly. “Followed by a good cooked meal.”

“Me too,” I say fervently. “And a nice soft bed.” I'm hoping to fill his mind with reminders of what on this trip hewillmiss.

“Yeah, it’s not much fun sleeping on the cold hard ground,” he says, not picking up on my hint. “Oh, and flushing toilets. Cannot wait for those.”

I laugh, but inside my heart is breaking a little. The ground is hard out here in the peaks, but at least I’ve been lying on it with Taurek.

“You’re looking forward to getting back then?” I say with a laugh that I don’t feel inside.

“Absolutely. Fine clothes, fine wine, and sweet music. My family. My life.”

And not me,I think sullenly.I’ve been such a fool.

I finish chewing on my pack rations. He’s right about one thing. The food is definitely better back home. I wash them down with snowmelt water then stand. “Come on,” I say. “Let’s go save our Princess.”

He looks relieved to be back on our way. This time, he's more aware, and he at least stops to look back if he realizes after a few minutes that I'm not walking abreast.

I’m still lagging behind hours later. I wish we could just stop for the night. The sun has already dipped behind the mountains, casting long shadows across the land. But I don’t want to say anything because I know how badly he wants to get back.

Suddenly, I almost bump into him. He’s stopped dead in his tracks in front of me. I look up to try and find out what’s amiss. Ahead, through the branches of the trees, I can see fire light flickering. I become aware of singing and the beat of a drum.

I make out what I think is the silhouette of three scrawny chordatas, not far from where our two were tied up. What if they've stolen them, and they want to take our possessions next? What if they take the roxolite?

“What is it?” I say.

“Shh!” he replies. “I’m going to creep forward and find out. You wait here.”

“No way. You’re not leaving me alone in the woods while you go off to investigate.”

“Okay, stay close and keep quiet then.”

We edge our way down the track until we can clearly see the dancers. They are clansmen. Many of them are wearing strange costumes and swinging long knives as they dance.

“Shit,” I whisper. “Are they going to kill us?”

“Maybe. Especially if they hear you asking.”

There is the crack of a branch breaking behind us. We both spin. My heart is pounding so hard, I swear it’s going to leap out of my mouth.

To my relief, I see that it’s Rylan. “No,” he says with a wide grin. “You’re not going to die today.”

23

TAUREK

“So, you’ve befriended the Avaris?” I ask Rylan.

“I’ve always been friends of the Avaris,” he answers. “No. The Avaris have always been my family. I trust them with my life. And with yours.”

I know this clan, which calls themselves the Avaris, is situated within my Kingdom, but generally, the clans have nothing to do with the running of the place. The beauty of the Mountain Kingdom is that if there’s a problem between two clans, they resolve it themselves. It’s rare for the Thane to be involved.

This means they don’t have much use for pomp and circumstances, and that’s exactly how I like things.

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