>Wonder if any of them ever had a friend like Fearless here before they became youkai.
>"Yeah. Good company goes a long way sometimes."
>?It does, indeed!?
>And for her part, Grapefruit makes pretty decent company for the rest of the day ? a trifle odd, but inoffensive and cheerful. Maybe just a little of that's even starting to rub off on you. Or maybe it's that you've got your first real lead in days ? even if you have only a fairy's word for it. Your knightly escort is quiet for the most part, barring the occasional bout of whistling to herself or commenting grandly on the beauty of some tree or bird or somesuch. Periodically, she takes advantage of Thelonious's mountaineering skills to ascend rocky lookouts and reorient your course; you can't help but think it would be easier on both of them if she just
flew up, but the fairy never once dismounts from her goat except when you pause to rest. The goat himself seems remarkably content with this state of affairs, ambling steadily wherever she leads and only very occasionally pausing to nibble at bushes; your pack remains unmolested.
>Though it
does feel very heavy today. The aches in your body only worsen the more ground you cover and you're forced to slow even further as the day goes on. The pace would feel almost glacial were it not for the sense you might actually be approaching something. Still, even this cannot stop the day from feeling long by the end, when the sky begins to fade to red before you've seen even a single sign of progress ? just more oaks and maple and hollyhock and far, far too many rocks. Maybe it was too much to hope for. Maybe she doesn't
really know where she's going and you're going to have to resign yourself to more days spent walking around in circles with a decaying body. You've made some unnecessary detours as it is, you're almost certain; you've tried to track your course with map and compass and it's been far from direct. Knight or no, fairies aren't generally noted for their sense of direction; maybe it was foolish to trust in her.
>It is with the sun blazing crimson and thoughts like these swirling in your head that Grapefruit ? poised on an overhanging ledge ahead ? calls back with three simple words that make your breath catch in your throat.
>?There it is!?
