The walls of the Room shuddered. For a moment, they were the black walls again, then the diamond walls, then just walls. They needed to be just walls as those were the strongest, but for some reason, they kept fluctuating. No, not “some” reason. Felitïa had a good idea why they were fluctuating. It was her inability to concentrate and focus. Every time she felt a twinge of anxiety, the “just-walls” changed to black walls, and as she calmed herself, they changed to diamond and then to just-walls.

What she didn’t understand was why she kept getting these twinges of anxiety. Why was she so nervous, and why couldn’t she calm herself for more than a short time?

The trip here had gone reasonably well—not perfectly, but it could have been worse. Miana had brought her, Zandrue, and Borisin to the farm where they had been born, a few miles outside the town of Lhabao in the southern region of Singea. As Miana had explained, this was the only place they had any decent memory of, as they had moved out of Singea at a young age. They had no memory of more populated areas.

That was fine for Felitïa. Low-populated areas were what she wanted right now. The fewer people, the less difficulty she had keeping herself from falling into their heads.

So of course, she had fallen right into the nearest person’s head the moment they arrived. She had jumped back out immediately, and she was reasonably certain that person had not even noticed, but it still shook her.

But it was also something she should have gotten over by now. And she had. At least, she was fairly certain she had. She’d gotten past much worse times of falling into people’s heads. Why should this one bother her so much?

Maybe because the person whose head she had fallen into was Miana’s grandmother?

That certainly made it more embarrassing, but not something that should leave her shaken for so long. It had been almost a full day and she was still having these twinges of anxiety.

There was a yell from another room, then Miana’s voice speaking loudly in the Singean language, followed by their grandmother, Chesa, speaking loudly—and angrily—back.

There had been a lot of arguments between Miana and their grandmother, and that certainly hadn’t helped Felitïa’s nerves. Chesa had been understandably terrified when three people and a horse had materialised from nowhere in front of her. It had taken some frantic explaining from Miana to calm her down a little.

Then Felitïa had messed things up.

Chesa had finally stopped screaming, and Felitïa was just getting the walls in the Room back together after falling into Chesa’s head.

Miana led their grandmother over to Felitïa. “Felitïa, may I present my grandmother, Chesa?”

Felitïa had no idea what sort of gesture was appropriate here, so she chose to curtsy. “Felitïa Asa Folith.” She would have said more, but she knew Chesa wouldn’t understand her.

The emotions flowing from Chesa changed from scepticism and annoyance to awe, then just as quickly to anger directed at Miana. She said something hastily to Felitïa and placed her hands to her chest. Then she turned to Miana and yelled at them. Finally, she dropped to her knees and lowered her face and hands to the ground, pointed towards Felitïa. She began babbling in her own language, embarrassment and shame (and still some anger at Miana) flowing from her.

Shame and embarrassment flowed from Miana as well. “She’s apologising for not having a gift for you.”

“Did you tell her—?”

Miana shook their head. “I’m sorry. I forgot to warn you. You gave three names. In Singea and Chay, only royalty have that many names. Most people don’t even have two.”

“Oh gods.” Felitïa had hoped to avoid anyone learning of her royal status, but she didn’t blame Miana. She blamed herself for not thinking before speaking. Even though she hadn’t known about the tradition with three names, there was always the slim possibility someone might recognise the Folith name. “Tell her I forgive her. I arrived without any prior warning, so it’s not her fault.”

Miana said several things in Singean, but Chesa only shook her head and continued to wail at Felitïa. Miana shrugged, a deflated look on their face and their shame intensifying. Felitïa had never seen them so shaken before.

“Maybe you should try talking to her,” Zandrue suggested. “I know she can’t understand you, but…”

Felitïa knelt down and placed a hand on Chesa’s shoulder. The old woman looked up, tears in her eyes. Felitïa smiled at her and spoke as soothingly as she could. “It’s all right. I forgive you. Please, stand.” She made an upward motion with her hand, and stood up.

Chesa bowed her head again, said something else, and slowly stood up. She stared daggers at Miana, then looked to Felitïa, placed her hands on her chest, and said something else.

“She apologises again,” Miana said.

Felitïa handed the Staff to Zandrue. It screeched as it left her hands—it didn’t like other people touching it these days—but she ignored it. She then placed her hands on her chest and bowed her head to Chesa.

Chesa’s shame didn’t lessen any, but a hint of relief now emanated from her. She spoke again, this time more calmly.

“She is offering you accommodation,” Miana said. “She says you can use her room. It’s the least she can do to make up for her offence.”

“Oh, I couldn’t take her—”

“Just take it,” Miana said.

Felitïa nodded. “Right, of course.” She bowed her head to Chesa again. “Thank you.”

Miana continued to translate. “She asks that you give her a few minutes to prepare the room for you.”

Felitïa nodded her ascent.

“She says it will be no more than a quarter hour.”

Felitïa nodded her ascent again, and Chesa hurried towards the nearby house. It was the first time Felitïa had had a chance to really look at their surroundings. The house was of mostly white stone with a flat roof. The doors and windows, however, particularly those on the third storey, were decorated in bright colours—mostly red and yellow, but with some others—and designs. There were exterior doors on every floor with exterior stairs providing access to them. Upon reaching the house, Chesa went up one of these stairs to the second storey, and then inside.

In front of the house was a small garden. Surrounding both the house and garden were large, overgrown fields that looked like they hadn’t been harvested in many years. Felitïa wondered what, if anything, edible still grew in them. Beyond the fields to the north, the mountains of Gangchag rose, blocking the horizon.

“You have two names,” Zandrue said.

“Some people do,” Miana said. “The second name is usually descriptive. In my case, though, my father gave me my second name when we moved to Chay. He wanted me to have a Chayan name as well as a Singean one.”

One of the windows on the second floor opened, and Chesa stuck her head out, yelled, “Maya!” and then closed the window again.

“Maya?” Miana said, looking towards the house. They sighed. “I think she means me. I better go help her.” At Felitïa’s nod, they hurried over to the house.

Zandrue yelped and dropped the Staff.

Felitïa!

“Fucking thing just...zapped me or something!”

Felitïa bent over and reached for the Staff. “Sorry, Zandrue.” She glared at the face of the snake. Behave!

Felitïa!

I said, behave!

The Staff went silent.

Zandrue rubbed her hand. “It’s okay. I’ll live. So, what do you think?”

“Of what?” Felitïa asked.

“All this. Everything. Honestly, I think that didn’t go too badly. Certainly could have gone worse.”

“You only say that because you weren’t the one being bowed and wailed at.”

Zandrue put her arm around Felitïa. “Oh come on, you know I’d love that if it happened to me.”

Felitïa rolled her eyes, and Zandrue laughed.

Somehow, I don’t think the stabling is going to be any good here, Borisin said.

That was when she had had the first twinge of anxiety, and the just-walls of the Room had shuddered and shifted into the black walls. A full day later, and it was still happening. Sometimes, she could go an hour or so without it happening. Other times, it happened every couple of minutes. She’d been trying to search her mind for a reason. Nothing had presented itself yet.

Chesa’s room was small but quite comfortable, even though Felitïa hadn’t slept well last night. Her mind had not gone out of control, at least. Miana’s presence seemed to help with that, although that was another thing she couldn’t quite explain. They hadn’t had sex last night, though it wasn’t that. Presumably, Miana’s presence provided some sort of calming effect for her.

The room, which Felitïa had not left for more than a few minutes at a time, had a large rug on the floor, apparently woven by Chesa. The wool it was made from was soft and thick, making it ideal for sitting on while meditating. It contained the design of a tiger. Staring at the tiger’s eyes provided a good point of focus for her concentration exercises.

Felitïa shivered as another twinge of anxiety passed through her. She focused on the tiger’s eyes again, and tried to calm herself.

Unfortunately, the door opened, and Miana stormed in, slamming the door again behind them. They sat on the rug in front of Felitïa, blocking the tiger’s face. They had changed out of their sailing uniform into a long robe with a wide front, loose waist, and long, wide sleeves. While it was mostly a light brown colour, the collar, cuffs, and hem were decorated with a darker wool. Miana stared Felitïa in the eyes. The emotions coming from them were a mix of controlled anger, hope, and embarrassment. “Can you teach me how to meditate?”

“Um, I suppose. I never took you for a meditator.”

Miana frowned. “Neither did I. Honestly, it always seemed a waste of time to me, but it seems to help you stay calm. I could use it right now.”

“Your grandmother?”

“I can deal with rough and rowdy sailors without blinking an eye. I can put them in their place without breaking a sweat. But one old woman? By the gods, I’m at my wit’s end. She doesn’t like the way I dress. My hair is too short. I don’t wear enough jewellery. I have abandoned my people and culture. Of course, there, she’s ignoring the fact I didn’t have any choice. I was five years old when my parents moved us away. Oh, and for some reason I can’t figure out, she insists on calling me Maya. She knows that’s not my name, but she refuses to use Miana. Please teach me to be calm before I strangle her.”

Felitïa held back a chuckle and smiled at them. “Of course.”

Relief flooded from Miana, and they bowed their head. “Thank you. You don’t know how much it means to me.”

“I have an idea. You’re not the only person to have family difficulties.”

Miana sighed. “I haven’t seen her since I was five. She hasn’t seen me since then, and her response is… I’m not sure she believes I am who I say I am. I suppose I can’t blame her. If she’d shown up out of the blue on the Lustrous Rose claiming to be my grandmother, I’d probably be suspicious of her. I probably should have come back here years ago. I just…” With an exasperated grunt, they buried their head in their hands for a moment, then straightened up again.

“Try taking a deep breath,” Felitïa said.

Miana breathed in.

“Let it out slowly.”

Miana did as told, then stood up. “Thank you.”

“We haven’t even started yet.”

Miana smiled. “I know, but we can’t start right now. I have to go help my grandmother with a few things, but just knowing you’re going to help me is good enough for the moment.” They turned for the door, but then turned back. “Oh, you should really come down to dinner tonight. I know you’re still dealing with your anxiety issue, but at the moment, my grandmother considers your absence a just penalty for her disrespect towards you, but that will only last so long. Eventually, she’ll take offence.”

Felitïa took a deep breath herself, then nodded. “I’ll be there.”

Miana nodded and started to leave again, but stopped once more. “Sorry, I should have asked, how are you doing?”

Felitïa shrugged. “No change. I’m not sure what’s going on, but don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. This isn’t the first weirdness with my head I’ve had to deal with. I rarely figure it out, but it usually gets better eventually.”

Miana placed their hands on their chest and bowed their head. “I know you will. I’ll come back in an hour or so, and we’ll prepare you for dinner.” Then they actually opened the door this time, and left.

Meditating and staying focused went much better after that. She only had a couple of the twinges. Maybe Miana really did have a calming influence on her, even when Miana themself was anything but calm.

When Miana returned, they were carrying a similar robe to the one they were wearing as well as a jewellery box. “Zandrue and I went into town earlier and picked up a few things. It’s good Lady Anita gave us a lot of money. My grandmother knows you’re royalty, so while you’re here, you’re going to have to dress a little more like it. Plus, believe it or not, these robes are actually very good for travelling through the mountains in. The jewellery less so, but you don’t have to wear that after we leave here.”

Felitïa stood up. “I understand.”

Miana helped her dress. The robe, while the same basic cut as Miana’s, was a darker, maroon colour, and instead of woollen trim, it had silk and embroidered fabric in bright greens, yellows, and reds. Miana showed her how to fasten it and tie it at the waist.

From the box, Miana pulled out a curved wooden frame with numerous hooks and knobs. They spread the sections of the frame apart so they formed a triangular shape, and held it up towards Felitïa. “This is bazhu, a traditional headdress.” They held it above Felitïa’s head and hesitated. They tilted their head back and forth, face scrunched. “My mother showed me how to wear one years ago, but…”

“You haven’t kept in practice?” Felitïa said.

They nodded. “It sits on your head, and you decorate it with stones, crystals, and other jewellery.”

Felitïa took the bazhu from them and placed it on her head. It seemed a bit large, as her head could almost fit through it, so she adjusted its position a couple times until it stayed put. If she turned her head much, though, it would almost certainly fall off. “How is it supposed to stay in place, especially once it’s decorated?”

Miana stared at her for a moment. Then their eyes widened. “We have to braid your hair. Then we weave your hair through it…somehow. Take it off.”

Felitïa removed the headdress and handed it back to Miana. “I’ve never actually braided my hair myself. When I was a very young girl, my handmaids might have braided it sometimes. I don’t really remember. When I was back at the Palace last year and on Scovese, I generally asked my handmaid, Marna, to keep my hair designs simple, so she never braided it.”

“Not to worry. I’ve had to braid my hair a few times.” Miana pointed to the bed. “Sit. I’ll take care of it.”

Felitïa sat and let Miana go at her hair. It was a painful experience. Numerous tugs and yanks indicated Miana’s lack of experience doing something like this. A growing sense of frustration ebbed from them, and as it got larger, the frequency of painful yanks increased. Felitïa tried stroking Lon and Nesh to distract herself.

After several minutes and yet another particularly painful tug, Miana groaned and directed Felitïa’s attention to the mirror on the wall. Felitïa walked over to it, and took a look at herself. She wasn’t sure whether to echo Miana’s groan or laugh. Her hair was a tangled mess. There were a couple clumps that looked vaguely like braids, while others looked like large, twisted knots. An intense sense of embarrassment and shame emanated from Miana.

Felitïa turned to face them. “Don’t worry about it. I understand it’s been a long time.”

“And I only actually did it a couple of times on my own hair, and I wasn’t very good at it. I thought it would be easier on someone else.”

“Why don’t we just ask your grandmother?”

The embarrassment and shame changed to nervousness and anxiety. “It would look bad to trouble her with something like this.”

“I’m a foreigner,” Felitïa said. “Surely she doesn’t expect me to know all your fashion styles.”

“No, but she expects me to.”

Felitïa tugged lightly on one of her semi-braids. “Well, this clearly isn’t working, so what else can we do?”

“What about Zandrue? Could she braid your hair?”

Felitïa thought for a moment. She couldn’t recall ever seeing Zandrue’s hair in braids, but Zandrue had a lot of skills. “It’s possible.”

Miana headed quickly for the door. “I’ll go get her.”

“You know she’s going to laugh her head off the moment she sees me, right?”

Miana was already through the door and didn’t respond.

With a shake of her head, Felitïa sat back on the bed and played with Lon and Nesh again, until a burst of laughter came from the doorway. Felitïa rolled her eyes. “I warned you she’d do that.” She raised her head.

Zandrue was standing in the doorway, blocking view of Miana, but it was clear Zandrue knew exactly who Felitïa was addressing. Zandrue strode over to the bed, sat beside Felitïa, and put an arm around her. Then she looked to Miana. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell your crew about this. Or Meleng.” She laughed some more.

Miana glared at her.

“Can you fix it?” Felitïa said.

Zandrue ran a hand through Felitïa’s hair. It quickly got caught in tangles. “Well… I’m not particularly proficient, but I’m sure I can do a better job than your handmaids.”

Felitïa sighed. “I don’t have any handmaids.”

Zandrue grinned. “Exactly, so there’s no way they can do a better job, and there’s no one else here.”

“There’s Chesa. I think we should ask her.”

“And dishonour Miana? I’d hate to have you as a lover if that’s how you treat them.”

Felitïa groaned.

Zandrue squeezed her comfortingly. “Don’t worry. I’m sure between me and Miana, we can create something passable.”

Felitïa nodded her approval, and Zandrue and Miana got to work. After some painful brushing the tangles out, it actually went fairly smoothly.

Sometime later, Felitïa stared at herself again in the mirror. The bazhu, decorated with numerous pearls, agates, and other stones, was sitting stably on her head with the points of the triangle to her left, right, and back. The braids were not particularly well done, but they were mostly obscured by the gems.

Miana brought over a couple bracelets, slipping one onto each of Felitïa’s wrists.

“Where did you get the gems and jewellery?” Felitïa asked.

“The more valuable stones and jewellery are from Lady Belone. The others are ones I picked up in town using Lady Belone’s money.”

“Anita sent jewellery with you? Why?”

“I asked her to, in case something like this happened. I didn’t tell you because I knew you’d insist that we didn’t need it.”

Felitïa pulled out her necklace of prayer beads so that it lay over her robe. “Yes, I suppose you’re right.”

Miana helped her adjust the necklace. “My crew quickly learn that I’m always right.”

“Yes, I’m sure they do.”

Miana smiled. “You’ll be happy to know you’re wearing much less jewellery than a typical Singean noblewoman would.”

At least that was something. She was starting to feel a little ostentatious. She turned away from Miana and went over to her pack, which was lying on the floor near the bed. “There’s one more thing I’d like to add to this ensemble.” After a quick search through the pack, she pulled out the cloth Miana had given her the day they met. She unfolded it while she walked back over to Miana. “How could I best wear this?”

Miana smiled broadly. “It will make an excellent neckerchief under your prayer beads. Let me.” They took the cloth from Felitïa, who then lifted her necklace so Miana could tie the cloth around her neck. They spread it out at the front so the Singean symbol for love was clearly visible. Then Felitïa lowered the necklace again, and Miana adjusted it so it wasn’t obscuring the symbol on the neckerchief.

“I’ll make certain to tell your grandmother this was your gift to me when we met,” Felitïa said.

Miana sniffled, a tear forming in their eye. “Thank you.” Their voice cracked as they spoke.

Felitïa wiped the tear from their eye. “No, thank you.” She kissed them.

Zandrue clearing her throat made Felitïa step abruptly back. “If you two are finished with all the mushiness.”

Felitïa’s cheeks warmed.

“That is the first time in my life anyone has ever described me as mushy,” Miana said.

“Don’t worry,” Zandrue said. “I won’t tell your crew, but I warn you. There’s a limit to how much I won’t tell them. Keep it up, and…well, you’re approaching the line.”

Miana raised their eyebrows. “You keep it up, and I may have to flay you.”

Zandrue leaned in close to Miana. “I’d like to see you try.” With a laugh, she headed for the door. “I need to change. I’ll meet you both at dinner.”

“Don’t forget, barefoot!” Miana called after her. They then put their arms around Felitïa’s shoulders and leaned up. “Have I told you I like her?”

“No, but I knew.”

“I think you should reconsider asking her to join us when we have sex. We are going to be travelling together after all.”

Felitïa shook her head. “Bad idea.”

“Why?”

“You’d both want to be the dominant one.”

“And wouldn’t it be interesting to find out who would win?”

Felitïa groaned. “Not from my perspective. Besides, I told you my reasons for not wanting it, and Zandrue would never agree anyway.”

“A shame, but fair.” Miana kissed her, then lowered back down to flat feet and backed away from Felitïa. “We should at least follow Zandrue to dinner.”

“Agreed.”

The kitchen was in the centre of the storey. A small area in one corner was bare of anything on the floor apart from four small, but thick quilts laid out in a rough outline of a square. The rest of the room contained a wood stove, a counter for chopping, and several barrels and cupboards.

Chesa was standing at the counter when Felitïa and Miana entered. She laid a cloth over the top of a large wooden bowl with steam rising from it, then walked out in front of the counter. She made a deep bow, bending her knees and almost prostrating herself. Felitïa resisted the urge to insist she not do this.

Chesa then held out her hands, cupped, in front of her. Something in her hands glinted in the pale light of the room. Chesa began to speak, and Miana translated.

“Your Highness, please accept this gift from a lowly, unworthy peasant.”

Not sure how to proceed, Felitïa looked to Miana, who simply nodded towards their grandmother’s outstretched hands. Felitïa reached down and took the object. It was a ring, possibly made of silver. It had been recently polished and was reflecting the flickering light.

Chesa remained in her bowed position.

“It’s all right to tell her to rise now,” Miana said.

“You may rise,” Felitïa said and Miana translated.

Chesa rose and spoke more.

“It has been in my family for many generations, and would have gone to…” Miana sighed. “It would have gone to my mother and then me—she called me Maya again, of course. It would have gone to me if we hadn’t left her.” Miana said something in Singean to Chesa who waved her hand dismissively.

“It’s a very lovely gift,” Felitïa said.

“My grandmother says it will look good on you. You lack rings and that is something you should change. Noblewomen should have many rings.”

Felitïa chuckled. “Tell her this will be the first then.” The ring was clearly made for smaller hands than hers, but she was able to get it onto her pinky. Getting if off again might prove difficult.

Chesa put one hand to her chest with a smile, then turned and went back behind the counter.

Miana led Felitïa to the corner of the room with the quilts. “As royalty, you should sit first.”

Felitïa nodded, and sat down on one of the quilts. As she did, a shiver passed through her and the walls in the Room in her head became black again. Her mind slipped forward and across the short distance to Chesa. For a moment, there was an image. No, not an image. It was a memory, but it was just sound. Words spoken in anger and fear. Felitïa couldn’t quite understand them—she wasn’t fully in Chesa’s head to borrow her understanding—but the general feelings conveyed pleading.

She pulled herself away from Chesa’s head and back into her own. Only then did she realise she had fallen onto her seat on the quilt.

Miana had taken her arm. “Are you all right?”

Felitïa straightened herself. “Yes, just another twinge.”

Miana sat beside her, still holding her arm. “I don’t think my grandmother noticed.”

At the counter, Chesa picked up the large covered bowl, and said something.

“She wants to know where Zandrue is,” Miana said.

Right at the moment, Zandrue scurried into the room. “Right here!” She had changed into a robe like what Felitïa and Miana were wearing, with wool trim like Miana’s. She also wore a netted headdress with a few small coral beads. She sat on Miana’s other side.

Chesa carried the large bowl over and placed it on the floor in the centre. She then went back to the counter and collected a tray with several smaller wooden bowls on it. She placed two bowls in front of each quilt. One had a pale brownish white, steaming liquid in it. The other was empty. Over each empty bowl, she placed a pair of chopsticks. Then she placed one final bowl in the centre beside the large one. This one was the smallest bowl of all and contained a red sauce of some kind. Finally, she sat at the remaining quilt and removed the cloth from the large bowl. It was full of what looked like dumplings of some sort. She spoke and Miana translated.

“She hopes this humble meal is pleasing to you, Highness.”

“I’m sure it will be.” Felitïa picked up her chopsticks and stared at them for a moment. She knew of such instruments, but she’d never actually seen any before, let alone used them. She knew they were supposed to be used in one hand, but…

Miana leaned over and took her hand. They placed the chopsticks between Felitïa’s fingers and thumb and guided her hand over to the bowl of dumplings. It took a couple tries, but eventually Felitïa was able to pick one up, dip it in the sauce, and transfer it to her mouth. She took a bite, accidentally dropping the rest of it in the process. It was filled with cabbage and a meat Felitïa didn’t recognise. It had a mild flavour, though the sauce was slightly spicy.

Felitïa smiled at Chesa. “It’s very good. Thank you.”

Once Miana had translated, Chesa smiled and motioned for everyone to dig in.

Zandrue picked up her chopsticks and had no trouble picking up several of the dumplings and transferring them to her bowl.

“Figures you know how to use them,” Felitïa said. “I thought you’d never been to Singea before.”

“I haven’t.” With her chopsticks, Zandrue raised a dumpling to her mouth. “But Singea and Chay aren’t the only places in the world to use chopsticks, you know. I spent a lot of time in Ostanith when I was twelve. I learned then.” She popped the dumpling in her mouth and smiled. After swallowing, she indicated the bowl of hot liquid. “I don’t know what this is, though.”

Miana picked up their bowl of liquid. “Butter tea. It is very good, though a bit of an acquired taste.” They took a hearty drink, placed the bowl down, and wiped their mouth with their sleeve. They said something to their grandmother, who replied in the friendliest tones Felitïa had heard her use to address Miana. “I told her she makes the best butter tea I’ve tasted. She says she doubts that, but she thanks me for the compliment.”

“Is it true?” Felitïa asked.

“Is it the best?” Miana thought for a moment. “I don’t remember for sure. My mother only made it a couple times after we left Singea. It needs yak butter, which isn’t easy to come by in Chay. But I wasn’t lying when I said it’s very good. Try it.”

Felitïa picked up her bowl and brought it to her lips. She took a sip. It was very hot and burned her tongue, but it wasn’t unpleasant. Thick and savoury, the flavour remained on her tongue for several seconds.

“Woah,” Zandrue said. She had just taken a drink, too. “Could use some sugar. A lot of sugar.”

“I won’t tell my grandmother that,” Miana said.

Felitïa laughed. “You can give your grandmother my compliments.” She took another drink. “I like it.” She could definitely get used to it.

After accepting the compliment, Chesa asked a question.

“She wants to know about our method of getting here, and why we’ve come.”

Felitïa put down her bowl of tea. “I take it she wants something more specific than it was magic.”

With a slight smile, Miana nodded. “I think that much was obvious.”

“Tell her, the truth is, I don’t know much about it. Tell her it’s a power of the Pearl.”

Miana spent some time talking with their grandmother, obviously going into considerably more detail than Felitïa just had, and answering further questions from Chesa.

Felitïa.

It was the Staff calling, but before she could tell it to be silent, another twinge—this one particularly large—passed through her. This time, the just-walls of the Room didn’t turn black. Instead, they collapsed completely. She frantically tried to bring them back, but then…

She was looking at herself. And she was looking at Chesa. And at Miana. And at herself a second time. She was seeing through four pairs of eyes, and it was dizzying. She fell over and screamed.

No, it was Zandrue screaming, but Felitïa was screaming through her. Or no. They were all screaming. They were all one. One mind with four parts.

With another scream, Felitïa yanked herself out and back into her own head. She reconstructed the just-walls again, and then made a second layer of them, and a third to be extra sure, blocking out even emotions.

The bowl of dumplings was overturned, and several tea bowls had spilled. Chesa had scrabbled away and had prostrated herself on the floor, pointing away from Felitïa, babbling frantically.

“I’m sorry,” Felitïa muttered. “Oh gods, I’m so sorry.” She jumped to her feet. Miana reached for her, but she pulled away and ran from the room.

* * * * *

The walls were holding firm. She hadn’t had another twinge and it had been… She wasn’t entirely sure how long it had been. An hour? Two hours? Something like that.

She had lowered the extra layers so people’s presences and emotions could get in, but there weren’t many presences in her vicinity. Only Borisin’s and a few other animals’.

She was in the unkempt first storey of Chesa’s house, which served as a barn. It was dirty, full of animal faeces, rotting hay, and old, unused farming implements. There were a few scraggly sheep wandering about, and a single elderly yak, which mostly stood unmoving in the centre of the barn, only occasionally turning its head to look at Borisin.

Felitïa had remained on the floor by the back wall the entire time she’d been here, meditating and keeping herself calm.

Gods, she needed to learn better control of her powers. Who knew what could happen? Thank the gods Miana had brought her somewhere that wasn’t heavily populated, and she was going to need to remain outside populated areas as long as she was here—if possible. She didn’t know exactly where they needed to go. It was a monastery, but a monastery where? If it was in the middle of a large city, there were going to be problems.

But even here, in an unpopulated area, she had still affected three other people, one of whom knew nothing about her abilities, and was probably scared senseless by what had happened.

She should probably return upstairs soon, and offer a proper apology. It would be perfectly understandable if Chesa kicked her out. But she was a little afraid too—afraid to face what she’d done—so she sat here a little longer. Just a little longer, she kept telling herself. She’d been telling herself that for almost as long as she’d been sitting here.

She checked the walls in the Room again without really needing to. She knew instinctively what state they were in, but she needed to give herself something to do. Sensations from her mind floated by, occasionally colliding and forming fragments of memory. The taste of butter tea and the smell of Chesa’s dumplings kept going by, and kept colliding with each other to replay the memory of what had happened at dinner.

Sometimes, she wished she could forget all the bad memories. If they weren’t there taking up space in her head, maybe she could form a full image of Elderaan. It wasn’t fair that she couldn’t. Gods, memory was such a complex, unpredictable, inconsistent, and unreliable thing.

With a sigh, she stood up.

Going to head back? Borisin asked.

I need to apologise.

Honestly, given how badly she keeps this barn, I think she deserves a little scare.

She’s an old woman. Her whole family’s gone. She can’t do everything herself, and I get the impression she doesn’t have the money to hire others to do it for her.

Borisin snorted. Money. Just pieces of metal. You humans pay too much attention to them.

Probably, but it’s the way things are.

Yeah, I know. I’ll just be glad when we leave here. That yak doesn’t like me much, and I don’t want to have to hurt her if she tries to stab me with those horns.

I suspect we’ll be leaving soon. Maybe very soon.

Felitïa started for the doors, but they opened at that moment, and Zandrue walked in.

“Zandrue, I’m so sorry. I—”

Zandrue held up a hand as a momentary flash of fear burst from her. “I’d rather not talk about it. I know you’re doing your best. Let’s leave it at that.”

“Of course.”

Zandrue started across the barn, but the yak grunted loudly and lowered its head to point its horns towards her. It shifted its feet and looked about to charge. Zandrue spun around. “Oh shit.”

Borisin neighed loudly and jumped between the yak and Zandrue, while Zandrue ran outside. He turned to face the yak.

Felitïa spread the fingers of her right hand, and muttered a calming incantation. The yak grunted again, but more softly, and relaxed.

Borisin snorted. Did you have to do that? I was looking forward to teaching her a lesson?

I thought you didn’t want to hurt her?

That was before she threatened my friend. Don’t tell Zandrue I called her that.

Felitïa rolled her eyes and laughed. Don’t worry. I won’t. I’d better go check on her. She hurried across the barn, around the yak and Borisin, and out the doors.

Zandrue was sitting on the stairs to the second floor. “Fucking animals. I wish I knew why they hate Volgs so much. We don’t smell that much different from humans. Is Borisin all right?”

Felitïa sat beside Zandrue. “He’s fine, just a little annoyed I calmed the yak before a fight broke out between them. He’s convinced he’d win. The yak’s horns make me not so sure.”

Zandrue chuckled. “That’s Borisin for you.”

Felitïa took a deep breath. “How’s Chesa?”

“Scared shitless, though less so now. Miana’s been calming her. Honestly, I think this might have helped the two of them bond a little.”

Felitïa lowered her head into her hands. “Gods damn it, I fucked up, Zandrue.”

Zandrue placed a hand on Felitïa’s shoulder. “You slipped up. We knew there was a risk when we came. I don’t personally like it, as you well know, but I accept it. For Rudiger’s sake.”

Felitïa raised her head a little and leaned it on Zandrue’s shoulder. “Yeah, but Chesa didn’t know the risk. Neither do any other people we meet along the way.”

Zandrue hugged her tightly. “Right, they don’t. If you’re really worried about it happening again, you can always go back. Now we’re here, Miana and I can continue on our own. I’d do it by myself, but I need a translator.”

Maybe she should. It was tempting, but it was an idea she’d already dismissed quite some time ago. “If I go back, I don’t have a means of getting the two of you back. The best I could do is come back here to pick you up, but I wouldn’t know when. I doubt Chesa would appreciate me popping in every few days to see if you’re back or not.”

Zandrue chuckled. “No, I don’t suppose she would. Guess I’m stuck with you then.”

“You’d be lost without me.”

“Lost, no, but maybe mangled by the next angry yak.”

A creak in the stairs made Felitïa look up. Miana had come outside and was descending towards her and Zandrue.

Felitïa jumped to her feet. “How’s Chesa?”

“Doing better. She’s cleaning up now.”

“I should go apologise to her.”

“I’m sure she’ll appreciate that, but I’d also expect her to be cold towards you. She doesn’t trust magic much. I tried to explain to her that what happened wasn’t really magic, but I don’t really understand the differences myself. To her, telepathy is just another kind of magic.”

“It’s understandable,” Felitïa said. “I don’t understand the differences half the time either. How are you doing?”

Miana raised their eyebrows. “I’m fine. I kind of like the experience of blending our minds.” A hint of lust began emanating from her. “I like seeing myself through your eyes, feeling what you feel.” The lust abruptly vanished, and she cleared her throat. “Though I would prefer my grandmother not be there at the same time.”

Zandrue stood up. “You know I’m present right now, too?”

Miana chuckled. “Yes, I do. Sorry if I embarrassed you.”

“It takes a lot more than that to embarrass me, don’t worry.”

Miana looked back at Felitïa. “I did learn a few things from my grandmother, though. I asked her if she knew about the monastery we’re looking for, or the monks. She said she’s heard rumours of a monastery in the Gangchag mountains that protects a sacred relic. She doesn’t know exactly where it is—she doesn’t even fully believe it exists—but it does give us a general direction, and confirms it’s not in any of the cities.”

“It’s a start,” Felitïa agreed. “I suppose she wants us gone?”

“Not exactly. She says we’re welcome to stay as long as we want, but I suspect she’ll be glad when we leave.”

“We’ll leave first thing in the morning.”

Miana shook their head. “No, tomorrow, I’ll go into town and ask around there. You need to stay here so there aren’t any repeats of what happened with a larger number of people. Hopefully, I can get more precise directions. We’ll leave the day after tomorrow.”

“What if nobody in town knows anything?” Zandrue said.

“Then we go to the next town. Felitïa stays outside, of course, and we see what they know. Eventually, we have to find someone who knows where we need to go.”

“Agreed,” Felitïa said.

Remaining here another day should not be a problem, as long as she limited interaction with Chesa. She could spend most of it in the barn. It would give her more time to explore her mind and hopefully find out why she was experiencing these anxiety twinges.