They ran across the road and entered the more familiar neighborhoods of Grimere. Breathless, they wanted desperately to get to Maiven’s house before the dragons were given instructions by the Revinir. Once that happened, all hell would break loose as they went on the hunt for Thisbe and Rohan and the others. None of them would be safe outside.

When they reached Maiven’s neighborhood, they went through the back alley as before. With great relief they made it inside the house. There they found Maiven teaching her new subjects how to use a shiv and a dagger to kill an attacker. Things were getting very serious.

Maiven heard them enter and went to the door to secure it after they came inside. “Where’s Dev?” she asked in a low voice. “Didn’t he come to meet you?”

They told Maiven what had happened. Thisbe shared that the roar had seemed to trigger a premonition, which made her certain that Dev had been discovered and captured. Whether the Revinir had determined Dev was faking or she’d found out from the soldiers that the other black-eyed slaves had escaped, Thisbe wasn’t sure.

“At least you’re safe. I’m not sure what we can do for Dev at this point.” Troubled though she was over the news, Maiven also seemed deeply interested in what Thisbe had to say about premonitions. “Tell me more about your premonition, Thisbe. Have you ever had that happen before?”

“They started after I had my most recent dose of ancestor broth,” Thisbe said. She shared the feelings she’d had in Dragonsmarche when the Revinir was questioning her. And the sense of dread when she knew Dev had been discovered and captured.

Maiven clasped Thisbe’s hand between hers. She glanced around as the others were putting away their weapons and getting settled for the night. “I get premonitions too. I’ve been feeling them on and off for years. That’s how I knew the great evil person existed from my dungeon cell, though I didn’t know her name. So I believe you when you say you have these feelings. And I hope you’ll always tell me about them, even if the feeling is small. Chances are you have had other premonitions in the past but didn’t understand what they were or view them as a forecast for the future. The ancestor broth has made them more obvious to you. The more aware we are of these things, the more you and I can help guide our people to make the right choices as we move forward. Between us we can be doubly sure that we’re right in our way of thinking.”

“That’s so strange,” murmured Thisbe, while marveling over how Maiven so naturally included her as a leader here. “Why do you suppose it happens?”