After a while they came to the forest. They worked their way down the sickeningly familiar path they’d taken the night they and Sky had discovered Alex’s grave. As they ventured farther in, Rohan began teaching Thisbe a few useful phrases. By the time they reached the mound of dirt that was Alex’s grave, which was now covered in fresh growth, Thisbe could recite several greetings from memory and give simple commands like “Hurry!” and “Follow me!” and “Watch out for that dragon!”

They settled in, not sure how long Dev would be. While they waited for him to arrive, Thisbe fired off the seek spell to Florence, then started learning words for their surroundings.

The evening wore on, and there was no sign of Dev. Thisbe wasn’t too worried—their spot in the forest was a bit of a trek from the market square. But then she started thinking things through and doubting their plan. With a start, she turned to Rohan. “Once the Revinir has the treasures, do you think she’ll she give Dev the luxury of another dragon ride? Or would she have lost the sense of urgency and sent him back on foot? That could take significantly longer.”

Rohan didn’t know the answer. “She doesn’t have much regard for us,” he said. “I wish I’d thought of that earlier.”

Thisbe pressed her lips together. “Let’s just sit tight. Even if she tells him to walk back, she won’t accompany him down to the dungeon. He could figure out how to sneak out of the castle—he knows his way around that place like no one else.”

“Let’s keep up hope,” said Rohan. “If he’s stuck walking, it’ll take him a good while longer.”

Thisbe and Rohan talked about everything that came to mind. Rohan filled Thisbe in about what he expected Maiven to do with the other black-eyed future rulers while she searched for answers. He believed she’d start immediately teaching them to use weapons as she’d learned them, rather than haphazardly, as they’d been forced to do under the Revinir’s control. And telling them the history of their people as rulers, as most of them had been captive since they were very young and wouldn’t know much about it.

“I want to learn that too,” said Thisbe.

“We’re all learning our own history at least a little through this ancestor broth,” said Rohan.

Thisbe rolled over to face him. “I’ve been meaning to ask you for days. What images are you seeing?”

Rohan stared at the sky and chewed on a piece of grass. He didn’t answer right away. “It’s troubling, to be honest,” he said, sitting up. His black eyes shone, and his expression was anguished.

“Why?” Thisbe asked. Her heart twisted, and she took his hand.

He looked down. “Like you, I see my mother as a girl.”