Naclia sighed as the other women left. Even Lucied left. Pulling herself to her feet exhaustedly, she walked over to meet Talen and linked her arm with his, leaning against him for support.

Talen led his tired elf lover to their horse and helped her into the saddle. With her seated behind him, arms wrapped around his waist, he tapped his war-horse's ribs with his heels to a steady trot after his friends, rangers and centaurs.

Seri nodded in satisfaction as Mia finally ordered them to leave. She hurried over to Ilavirin and followed after the centaurs and rangers. As the rest of the party took off after the centaurs, Mia waited behind for a moment before following as well.

* * *

Sakura yanked the door open by the count of five. "All right! We're coming!"

Fenix held close to Sakura, the time they had been with each other had been close needless to say. He looked at the newcomer and clutched her even closer, if he was a bad guy, he would protect Saki with his life.

Back in the clearing, Sakura and Fenix on Sakura's horse and Ryna and Leaf on Naclia's horse had to gallop to catch up with the rest of the party.

* * *

Cassandra and the other centaurs were leading the way. She could hear the hoofbeats behind her of the elven and human party. Elven rangers were pouring out of the woods with their passing. She turned to look at Rain and Caradithil. "Well, it seems we finally got them moving." Cassandra muttered.

"Finally," Rain repeated. "I feared we turn to dust before we ventured forth from the village."

Caradithil and Dinalindel nodded in affirmation. Caradithil asked with a playful glint in his eyes, "They have enough time for such little drama... What do you say to making them move a litte faster?"

Dinalindel already precieved what his friend had in mind and smiled. Rain braced herself as the two quicked their steps from a slow trot to a quick-gliding canter.

* * *

As they road out of the forest, Seri edged Ilavirin closer to Azala's horse. Softly, she asked, "So? What happened with Mia and Sera?" she was anxious to know, and couldn't wait much longer.

Azala explained and Seri's face went blank for a moment. She rode silently, her eyes a little wide. Finally, she said something. "Sera..and Mia....is that even...possible?" He mind was running through the scenarios, and she shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Too strange," she simply added and rode on.

* * *

Fou-Lu rode up silently alongside Mia. He kept his distance, taking Talen's advice. Mia was still angry.

Lucied trotted inbetween their horses. He seemed to understand females better than Fou, there was no curiousity in his eyes, only concern, Fou-Lu could see it in the wolf's eyes when he looked at him.

The horses didn't seem to be bothered by Lucied anymore, they'd grown used to the wolf. Besides, Lucied had no interest in horses as a meal, he was a lone wolf--save his elven companions--and never killed more than he could eat.

Ryna and Leaf rode up alongside Mia, "We found Fenix and Sakura, they're at the end of the group," Ryna reported. She looked back and forth between Fou-Lu and Mia. Fou looked so sad that Ryna felt sorry for him, even if he was a dark elf. He was so meek though that he was not like any other dark elf she'd ever met.

She was curious as to what had happened, but she knew better than to ask or probe. She just let things be.

Leaf was burning up with curiosity though. She stared hard at both elves, trying to figure out if their faces could tell her anything.

* * *

As the heroes rode out of the Glassy Woods, Aiden caught a glimpse of familiar faces. Naclia, an elf he had grown up with for the fact they were merely a year apart in age. Leaf, he knew too. He quickly jumped onto his stead and hurried after the horse Naclia rode with a dark haired human. He'd heard the rumors of their arrival, so now seeing the human didn't surprise him. What did surprise him was the centaurs traveling with them.

He rode up alongside Naclia and smiled. "Well, well, well, that's a face I haven't seen in quite awhile!" Aiden said with a laugh.

Naclia was surprised by the voice which sounded vaguely familiar. She turned to see a familiar face from which that voice came. Narrowing her eyes, she stared at him for a moment. "Aiden!" she exclaimed. "By the gods, what are you doing here?" she asked.

Talen saw some elf ride up to Naclia and bigin a conversation like they were old friends. Were they lovers before? Talen thought, feeling a hint of jealousy. Talen discreetly turned to Naclia, "Who is that?" he asked suspiciously.

Aiden looked at the knight Naclia rode with, he seemed a little supicious of something. "So, who's your friend 'Clia?" Aiden asked, using the name he called her as a girl. Looking for a way to relieve the knight, he peered over at him, "Sir, I've know Naclia here since childhood. We grew up in the Mirror Forest, her, Terin and I." Maybe that would assure him.

Naclia was so happy, she was nearly bouncing in the saddle. It was almost as if she had forgotten her exhaustion. She cuffed Talen playfully on his shoulder's armor plate. "Talen! This is my old friend Aiden. We've known each other since we were babies! He's only a year younger than me." That last statement was like a human saying he was only a month the younger.

She wrapped her arms back around Talen's waist, hugging him affectionately. "Aiden, this is Talen. He's my knight," she said with a proud grin. With Aiden's own admission of friendship, she nudged Talen with her shoulders. "See?" she whispered. "Nothing to worry about."

"Well, hello then Talen," Aiden said and extended his hand to Talen. "So, what brings you here? Last I heard, Naclia ran off with some knight a few months back. Before 'it' happened." he said and winked at Talen. "No offense about the 'some knight' thing."

Talen let his jealousy subside after Naclia told him who the guy was. "No offence taken" Talen said to the elf. Talen was still wasn't quite sure about Aiden but accepted him just the same. "I am here to help protect Naclia and her friends," Talen replied as he shook Aiden's hand.

Now that the pleasantries were over with, Naclia had more important things to discuss with her childhood friend. Those ahead of them were starting to pull away, it seemed the group was speeding up. "We should catch up," she whispered to Talen.

As the rode onward, Naclia turned to Aiden again. "I can believe why you're here, but I would have expected you to stay behind and help with the cleansing. Did Anaiya make it?" Naclia's voice was no longer playful, but serious.

Aiden shook his head. "No, my mother died. She was hurt badly in the battle. She died while we were traveling here." he replied solemnly. "I decided now would be the time to try and find my father. I've got quite a few centuries to spend searching."

Naclia smiled only slightly. "Well, we can use all the help we can get," she replied. "Hey, you see that little half-elf back there with the red-head? Do you recognize her?" Naclia's little smile turned wry. Leaf had been just a child when she left the forest to find her mother. Nobody thought she would make it, but she defied the odds.

Aiden glanced back and saw who Naclia was refering to. "Huh, strange that we all should end up together again. Well, almost all."

* * *

The centaurs at the lead began to speed up, forcing the rest of the party to hurry. Mia's hangover was beginning to fade, her head still ached though. She clucked to her stallion and gently tapped his rips with her heels and he darted forward. Lucied bolted after her, and Fou-Lu was likely to follow. Falis, it was nearly impossible to have space when he was there.

She slowed her stallion as they reached Cassandra. "I'll take the lead out of the forest, I know the road to Dragon Claw. Please pardon our delay, I won't allow it to happen again," Mia's voice had a hard edge to it, but it was understandable. She was obviously hurting. Not to mention the dark elf that was her constant shadow, whether she liked it or not.

"We should reach Dragon Claw by evening, though I'm not certain if we should actually stay in the city. If you wish it, we will camp a little ways further down the road," Mia explained to Cassandra and her fellow centaurs. She wasn't sure how the people of the city would react to three centaurs and an army of elves. "After Dragon Claw, we will ride to Honto, depending on the time we make, we may have to camp along the road. After Honto, it's north to Raiden."

Fou-Lu rode a little closer to Mia. Falis, he just wanted to be close to her. She seemed like she was in pain. But he now realized that she didn't want him near right now. He dropped back about a pace, Just behind her, but not too close. Lucied trotted up alongside Mia's horse, leaving Fou alone.

Cassandra continued her her fast canter. "You do know better than I," Cassandra replied simply. She turned to consult her companions. "Caradithil, Dinalindel, Rain, where would you be more comfortable? It would likely be best for us to stay in the city to prepare us for Raiden."

Mia heard Dinalindel's suggestion. "If you're willing, you could carry one of our rangers. If we double up on the horses, it may save a little time as well. When we stop to rest, they can choose their mounts."

* * *

The ride for the most part was uneventful. No zombies to worry about. Mia and a few others of the party had used to the ward against undead that her mother had taught them. Mia's hangover was gone, and she had forced herself to forget about Sera. It only worked until she saw either Sera or Azala though.

Their rest stop was a small glade off the main road. There was a spring flowing through from the mountains which they used to refill waterskins and water the horses. The rangers who had walked gladly took the chance to rest their feet and eat lunch. Those who had ridden stretched their legs.

When it looked like everyone was nearly done with lunch, Mia stood up on a boulder to get everyone's attention. "We need to make time, so everyone double up on horses. Cassandra and Dinalindel are willing to allow a ranger to ride them as well."

Fou-Lu still kept his distance from Mia. She had yet to make a move to be closer to him. At least Lucied came back. The wolf usually went to the women these days, but he sensed Fou's distress and came to comfort the dark elf. "Lucied, I'm worried..." he said softly to his companion as Mia made her announcement to the elves. "I don't want to lose her."

Lucied lay down beside Fou and stared up at him for a moment. Fou knew what that look meant, it was suppossed to be comforting. "I hope she'll come around," he replied to the unspoken assurance.

As the elves stopped for a break, Ryna quickly slipped from the saddle to stretch her legs. She and Leaf shared a small lunch and waited for the others to decide to leave. Mia announced that they would be sharing horses with the rangers who walked. Well, at least Ryna and Leaf didn't have to worry about it. It looked like Mia's hangover was gone, but she still sounded like she was in a bad mood. Fou-Lu was actually keeping his distance for once.

Leaf sat crosslegged in the grass with Ryna, eating some bread and cheese. "So, care to tell what happened with that elf last night?" Leaf asked.

Ryna blushed and said, "What do you think happened?"

Leaf pouted for the lack of details, or a romantic story. Ryna felt responsible for protecting the young half-elf's ears from such carnal tales. Leaf had already heard too much for Ryna's likes.

"C'mon, tell me. Why did go with him?" Leaf begged.

"I was just lonely...everyone else had somebody and I didn't," Ryna replied.

"Is that all?" Leaf asked. She was disappointed now.

Ryna sighed. "Leaf, I don't want to talk about it. I probably shouldn't have done what I did."

Now Leaf sighed. She knew better than to keep grilling Ryna when she didn't want to talk.

The centaurs maintained their watchful vigilance, weapons in hand, and mentally prepared themselves for whatever might stray their way. Rain found the half-met and shaded looks more interesting than anything that might stumble near the large party's path. What a little drama, she thought to herself, sitting in the glade's grass, leaning against Caradithil, eating a small lunch before edged ever closer to group of elves. For the first time in her life, Rain had parted from her herd. She listened by the wayside, not having the courage nor the heart to introduce herself into the conversation. Tensely, her eyes ocassionally flicked back check on her herd members, while they lie in the tall glades of grass, long whip-like tails lazily flicking back and forth. Rain finished the rest of her lunch fondly offering the remaining scraps to a small bird, peeping nearby.

An elf called their party to attention, Dinalindel and Caradithil turned their heads. In a visible sign to display he would be the transportation, nodded his head in affirmation with Mia's words. Rain listened but paid more attention to the bird, who rested on her bent knee. She rubbed the bird's head and neck, sucessfully scratching a long neglected itch, causing it small feathers to fluff in pleasure...

Aiden remained close to Naclia and Talen. Naclia was the only friend he had here. She really seemed to love this Talen, Aiden was beginning to wonder if the human was really good enough for her. Of course, he couldnt' be too judgemental of humans, his grandfather was one. Aiden forgot that fact quite often.

After Mia's announcement seemed generally accepted by the crowd, she jumped down from her boulder and went over to her horse. She headed away, leading the horse with her to the creek. "Things are getting so confusing," she said softly to the horse, stroking his cheek.

Seri sat down in the grass beside Azala while they rested in the glade. She still pondered the possibility of Mia and Sera actually doing that together while she munched on an apple.

Mia seemed much more than hungover to the high elf, she was obviously distrubed by last night's events with Azala's sister. As the mercenary elf walked off into the forest, Seri considered going after her to talk, but thought better of it. Mia would recover like always.

She turned to Azala, who was just as troubled as Sera and Mia. "Azala, you still seem so bothered by...that. What are you going to do?" Seri asked him. "I mean, think about what we did last night," she added that last part with a grin.

Cassandra stood with her arms crossed over her chest, then stamped her hoof impatiently. She looked about for Mia, but the elf had disappeared. Most of the rangers had finished their lunches, and she hoped that meant they would be leaving soon.

She would wait only a short time longer, and if the woman did not return, they would leave and hope they only could catch up.

Mia returned to the clearing, leading her horse. "Time to go people!" she announced. "Everybody, mount up! We need to leave now if we want to make good time to Dragon Eye."

With that, Mia swung onto her big warhorse. The small elf looked a little odd on such a big animal, but he matched her personality for fierceness. She rode through camp, waiting for someone to decide to ride with her. Sure enough an elven man gracefully lifted himself into the saddle behind her. Mia rode on with barely a second glance to him.

Fou-Lu looked up as Mia returned. He hoped she was feeling well enough to talk to him, but she only strode on by and mounted her horse. As she did, and annouced they were leaving, Fou went to his drab looking gelding and mounted. Lucied tagged along at his heels. As they headed out of camp, he caught his breath as another man climbed into Mia's saddle with her. He clenched the reins and growled to himself. Fou was so distracted by Mia's rider that he didn't feel someone jump on his horse behind him for a few moments. A pair of small arms encircled his waist and he looked back to see the pretty face of blonde-haired, blue-eyed elven woman smiling at him.

He stared in confusion for a moment, then blushed and turned back around in the saddle, worrying what someone would think if they saw him blushing.

Naclia sighed softly and sat up after Mia announced they were leaving. She turned to Talen, whom she had been laying against and kissed him gently. "Time to go then," she said and stood. She wandered over to their horse and waited for Talen to mount first.

Aiden jumped to his feet and went over to his horse. He waited for a moment, waiting for one of the rangers to jump on with him. A woman that he had seen around the forest while he had been there quickly sought him out. She pulled herself into the saddle and smiled.

"Hello," Aiden said with a grin. He had had his eye on her around the forest, but they never really had the chance to talk. "I'm Aiden. Who are you?"

"Aaewin," she replied. She was a pretty woman with pale blonde hair and deep violet eyes.

"Aaewin...lovely," he said with a laugh, then rode out after the rangers and heroes.

Ryna stood and brushed herself off. "Well, time to go Leaf," she said and went to their horse. She climbed into the saddle and pulled up Leaf behind her, then followed the rest out of the glade.

Cassandra nodded in satisfaction as the elves started to leave. She stood and waited for a ranger to choose her. A young elven man walked up to her, looking shy. "Pardon...would you allow me...?" he asked uncertainly.

Cassandra gave him a slight smile and nodded. "Certainly," she said. The ranger climbed onto her back and held onto her shoulders. The weight on her back felt odd, she didnt' know how the horses could stand it, especially with saddles and bridles. She then headed out after the rest of group, staggering a little at first with the unfamiliar weight until she got used to it.

Talen followed Naclia to their horse and mounted. "Let's go," Talen told Naclia as he bent down to help her up. Talen nudged the horse and gave a little knicker to get him to move.

Azala didn't know what to do, after all, Mia was his friend, but she had also had made love to his sister. That was weird in itself, but the fact it was his sister was even worse. He was actually glad at the mount call, he would deal with this later."I don't know what i'll do, but when I do, i'll let you know. Well, lets go..." With that he mounted his horse.

Seri sighed as Azala left. He was very upset about what happened, while Seri was simply confused. She headed over to Ilavirin and mounted. As she rode out after Azala, a male ranger, likely someone who knew Azala, hoped on his horse. A woman choose to ride with Seri, likely because they were both small women on a small horse.

Seri looked back at her passenger, "Hello, who are you?"

The other woman had the usual blonde hair, porcelain skin and blue eyes of elves. She was just about as small as Seri. "Kiandra," the woman replied. "You are...?"

"Seri, of the Forest of No Return," Seri replied.

"Oh, you're a high elf?" Kiandra sounded surprised. Soon, Seri and Kiandra were talking about their forests and cultures, comparing traditions and exchanging stories about their forests. There was one question burning in Seri's mind, but she wouldn't ask it until she and Kia had talked longer.

Mia rode on at the head of the group, her mind was only on the road and trying very hard to get the thought of Sera out of her head. She realized the elf behind her had his hands on her hips, and not in a way that would help him hold on. Mia glanced back at him, then down at his hand. "What are you doing?" she asked sharply. He immediantly pulled his hands away and put them on the cantle of the saddle instead.

After a long silence, he finally spoke up. "I'm uh...Darin, who are you?" he asked.

"Mia," she replied just as sharply as she had spoke before. He was silent for a little longer.

"So what's that dark elf about? He's glaring murder at us," Darin said.

Mia looked back at Fou-Lu riding behind them, also noticing the pretty female ranger hanging onto him. He was oblivious to her. "Bloody fool," she murmured.

"Is he your lover or something?" the elf asked. Mia merely nodded in reply. "So I take he's jealous," Darin said.

"I suppose so," she replied and shrugged. "Falis, I just realized how much I barely know the man."

"Barely know him? How long have you known him?"

"Five months or so. But all the time we've spent in battle never allowed me to learn about what he's really like. I know his lifestory, but I don't know him," Mia explained.

"Interesting," Darin replied. "Do you want to tell me more? It sounds like you have a lot to get off your chest."

Mia found herself telling him the whole story of her and Fou-Lu. It did feel good to finally have someone to talk about it too. Everything was so intense, she truely wondered if she had time for him.