They found their way back to the river, and followed it farther from the city until they came upon an area where the water slowed and spread out into a calm pool before traveling on again in a small, more winding stream. The area around the pool was large and open enough that it would provide them ample space, but it was slightly lower in elevation, giving them some cover. Aurora guessed it was the best they would do, unless they wanted to travel even farther from the city.

Kiran knelt over the satchel, unpacking supplies for both him and her, laying them in two neat piles. For him, he had numerous empty vessels with which to collect magic. Aurora did not know whether these were jars they had had on hand that had already been enchanted by Jinx before her capture, or if he had sought out another witch—Zephyr, perhaps.

In her pile, he laid a series of Stormhearts, some of which belonged to him, others duplicates from the crew’s collection.

Still kneeling over the supplies, he looked up at her and asked, “What would you like to try first?”

Aurora searched the pile of Stormhearts, waiting for something to jump out at her, but her stomach was a jumble of nerves.

She shrugged and asked, “Where would you like to start?”

“Maybe something simple to begin? Wind? Or rain?”

Aurora nodded immediately, glad he had not jumped to something like a firestorm first. For while she was fairly confident now in her ability to call a storm, she was still unpracticed in her ability to control them. And it was just the two of them alone out here. If something went wrong … she could not think of that. Starting small did indeed seem the best option.

“Wind,” she said. “Maybe it will dry our clothes the rest of the way.”

He grinned. “Wind it is.”

He offered the Stormheart up to her, and she took it, turning it over in her hands. “How much do you think we need?”

He shrugged. “Wind is moderately useful. It can make a good distraction.”

“It is also good for clearing fog in a pinch,” she added, frowning at the memory of that day in the palace, the last time she had seen Jinx and Nova.

“I think we can get a mix of things to send to Zephyr. Then if she wants more or less of anything, she can let us know.”

Aurora nodded, then looked to Kiran. He was looking at her, and she realized she was stalling. With a sigh, she took a few steps back and closed her eyes. She began preparing to lower her walls, but this time she remembered what Sly had said about focusing on the boundaries of herself, not just keeping intrusions out. She worked to find those edges, and at the same time she let the walls she held up between herself and the world fall.