"Ildri of Wildwood, wake up."

Ildri rolled over and ignored the order.  She was too tired to get up yet.

"Wake up."  Ildri pretended that she could not hear.

"Ildri of Wildwood!  Wake up or so help me I will throw you on the horse still sleeping."

Only one person could be so domineering without just cause.  Ildri opened one eye to see Ty standing over her.  The sky behind him was barely bright enough to be called morning.  She wanted to go back to sleep.  "Just a few more minutes."

"Get up this instant."  Ildri was pleased to note that he sounded annoyed with her.  She kept her eyes tightly shut.  Sleeping for a few more minutes would hardly change anything.

And then a horrible splash of cold water hit her face and she jumped up sputtering.  "What do you think you're doing, you beast!?"

Ty looked annoyingly pleased with himself.  "Helping you wake up, but no need to thank me."

Ildri gritted her teeth together as she wiped the water off her face with the blanket.  "You're awful."

"I could have just left you here and let me tell you, I was heartedly tempted."

Ildri felt a hollow of anxiety at his words.  She did not want to be left behind.  If he did, what would she do?  She could probably find her way back to Wildwood, but the thought of the journey alone was frankly terrifying now that she was quite certain Ty was not going to hurt her.

Ty had swung around.  "I'm going to fill up my flask again at the stream.  Make yourself ready to leave," he ordered abruptly as he walked off.

Ildri frowned.  His true appearance might not be as knarred and lined as she had first thought, but it hardly made him less of a brute.  She quickly did as he had said although she resented him the entire time.

When Ty returned they set off again quickly.

They rode in silence for a few minutes.  Then Ildri asked, "When will we get to Valence?"

"Within two hours."

"Why didn't we just go there last night?" she asked.

"The horse needed a rest.  Like I said.  There is still a long way to go," he explained briskly.

Ildri sighed.  Her body hurt and she was stuck with a monster, which is what he was, even if he did not seem all that monstrous all the time.  She just wanted their journey to be over so that she could go home.

* * * * *

It turned out that Ty was correct.  They arrived at the edge of Valence after about another hour of riding.  Ildri looked ahead anxiously.  Even though she did not want to be out of Wildwood, she was a bit excited to see another town.  She had heard of Valence a few times.  It was a small town, but because it was on a main road there were sometimes travelling merchants within in its bounds.

Ty stopped the horse abruptly.  Ildri glanced back at him as he jumped down from the horse.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"We need to hide the horse off the road.  The people will remark his size and trappings.  He's obviously a warhorse, and he might be recognized if we chance upon the soldiers."

"I see," she agreed.  At least he was taking some precautions against those horrible men finding them.

Ildri followed him as he led the horse into the thickening forest.  They reached a stream, and Ty tied the horse with enough leeway that it could drink its fill.  He then moved deeper into the forest.  Why were they not heading back to Valence?  "Are you looking for something?" she asked, feeling moody.

He nodded but did not explain.  Finally they reached a rocky outcrop and Ty climbed up.  Ildri wondered if she should follow.  He ducked out of sight and then reappeared holding a cloth bag.

"That's what we came here for?" she asked in disgust as he climbed back down.  "A dirty bag?"

He gave Ildri a wry look.  "We would not be here if it was nothing more than a dirty bag."

"What is it?"

He just smiled and opened the drawstring.  Ildri could not see what was inside but she could hear a clinking sound.  "Ildri of Wildwood, I am going to trust you."

"What?"

"You already know that I am magically disguised, don't you?" he asked.

"What!?  No, how would I know that?"

He slanted her a look.  "Wasn't that why you were touching my hand last night?  To check?"

Ildri looked at him in horror.  "What?  You were awake?"

"I was, once someone touched me," he said with another sardonic look at her.

Ildri was outraged and she could feel her face getting hot.  "Then why did you keep asking me about that!  It's horribly embarrassing!  You're a beast!"

He shrugged, "It was funny.  I must get some reward for the trouble of dragging you along."

"Argh!" she snarled as she pivoted on her heel and stomped away.  He was such an obnoxious beast!  He mocked her constantly.  She longed to slap his face until it knocked the disguising magic right off.

She could hear that he was following her but she kept walking.  She would walk back to Wildwood.  All she had to do was follow the main road.  She could be there in two days, probably.  She did not know what she would eat or where she would sleep but she would find something.

"Ildri!  Don't be so angry.  You only have to endure my presence for another couple of days," he said.

She ignored him.  She was going home to Wildwood and away from him.

"It's not safe for you to travel through the wilds alone," he cautioned.

"What do you care?" she snapped.

"If you're caught by those soldiers or any number of other dangerous villains out there, there's no telling what will happen to you," he said in a tone that was obviously supposed to both frighten and pacify her.  "If there was time, I would take you home.  But the king needs to be warned.  The rumours of war seem to be becoming the reality.  You saw the soldier's encampment yourself.  If the king is not warned in time..."

Ildri turned around, suddenly furious.  "This has nothing to do with me!  Don't you see?  I'm just a kitchen maid!  The only reason I've been dragged into this all is because of you!"

Ty suddenly looked just as angry.  "Listen, Ildri!  I'm sorry that I dragged you away from Wildwood!  Is that what you want to hear?  If I had any way of confirming that you had nothing to do with Saul's activities, I would have left you to mourn your precious traitor in peace.  Really, if you want to cast blame, blame Saul for being a dishonourable—"

"I don't want to hear you talk about Saul!" she snapped.  "It's your fault he's dead!  He was always kind to me, unlike you!"

"Oh, I understand.  So it doesn't matter what someone does as long as they're nice?  That's why you don't care that your little boyfriend was a traitorous spy."

"I loved him!" she howled and started crying.

"There are men without honour and their loyalty is towards anyone who has sufficient coin in to pay.  They are like locusts consuming everything in their paths, and your precious Saul was one of those.  You're a fool if he still has your loyalty even after you know that.  He was using you, Ildri."  Ty's voice was harsh as his words.

Ildri sank down in a little ball on the ground and cried some more.  What did she care what he thought?  She cried because she missed Saul, and because she was guilty of not missing him as much as she should if she loved him as much as she had believed she had.  She cried because she missed the safety of Wildwood, and because she missed her parents.  And she cried because maybe, just maybe, she had been tricked and used again in someone's efforts to hurt Lord Wildwood and the king.  Did people only get close to her to take advantage of her?  First a friend; then a love.  Was that all that she was good for?

Ty spoke again in a softer voice.  "I'm sorry I was so harsh but it was all true.  We have to keep moving."

Ildri wiped off her face with the back of her hand.  He might be right.  She stood up.  "Let's go."

Ty seemed relieved that she had agreed so easily.  She smiled bitterly.  His plan was clearly all about winning her cooperation.  She shrugged.  If she cooperated, she would be back at Wildwood sooner and able to continue on with her life.  Everything would be perfect just like she had planned because she would will it to be.

"Here," he said, handing her a small vial.  "Drink this."

Ildri looked at the small vial in her hand.  It was filled with a milky purple liquid.  It looked distinctly unappealing for consumption.  "What is it?" she asked, holding it gingerly in her hand.

She was surprised when he answered directly.  "It's a solution that will change the way you look."

Ildri looked at him cautiously.  "I don't want to change the way that I look."  It was not precisely true, but she did not want to drink the potion.

"It's only temporary, of course.  It'll be safer if you are not so recognizable."

"What about you?"  Ildri asked, still not drinking the potion.

He held up another vial.  It was similarly cloudy but was more of a blue colour.  "Why is yours different?  What will I look like?"

"That one will make you look much older, which will help as they are looking for an old man and a young girl."

"What will yours do?"

"It's a new one that I'm trying.  We'll have to see."

Ildri looked at him and asked in a careful voice.  "Did you make these?"

"Yes."  He looked neither proud nor ashamed of the fact.

"Are you a warlock?" she asked, but she already knew the answer.

"Yes."

"That's like a witch, right?  Like Anya."

"Anya?" he repeated.

"I thought that she was my friend, but she was a witch," she explained flatly.

Ty looked at her with a raised eyebrow.  "I hardly see how one precludes the other."

Ildri looked away.  Everyone said that warlocks and witches were thieves of magic.  They had no principles and it was no wonder that people like Anya and Ty would be willing to do such things.  It was only natural that people like them would be willing to spy and take advantage of people.  Anya had nearly killed Lord Wildwood on several occasions and Ty was obviously capable of murder.

"She was a murderer and she tricked us all.  She tried to kill Lord Wildwood.  And she then tried to kill the king."

Ty nodded as recognition dawned.  "Anya Davies.  The story of her almost destroying the king's throne room was spread far and wide.  Seems she's quite resourceful and talented."

"You would be impressed by that," Ildri said, unable to keep her growing contempt out of her voice.

Ty was staring at her and Ildri could not quite meet his eyes.  "Why would I be impressed by that?  Because you realized that I'm a warlock now?  But no doubt, it would be perfectly fine if I was a wizard, wouldn't it?"

"No, you would still be a brute," she said coldly.  She did not want anything to do with a lying warlock.

"Fine.  Now drink the potion."

"No," she said stubbornly.

He loomed over her and suddenly Ildri was reminded that she should be afraid of him.  He was more powerful than her physically and magically.  If he wanted to hurt her it would be easy for him.  "Drink the potion, Ildri of Wildwood."

She was tired of being pushed around by him and she did not want to drink his vile potion.  "I don't want to drink anything made by a warlock," she snarled.  She immediately regretted her words, but it was too late to call them back.

"Very well," he said; his face hard as he took the vial back from her.  "Go back to Wildwood.  If you are very careful you can probably make it back safely.  I won't send Farrel after you and you won't have to deal with my presence any longer."  With mechanical efficiency he removed the stopper from his vial and swallowed the entire potion in one gulp.  Then he turned and began to walk away.

Ildri could hardly believe that he had let her go just like that.  Had she made him upset?  Should she care?  She realized that she did.  But she should not.  After all, she had gotten what she wanted.  She could go back to Wildwood.

She could follow the road easily enough as long as she stayed out of sight of anyone she met.  She told herself that she could be safe but even as she did the horrible crushing fear of being alone in the wide world consumed her.  She could feel herself shaking as the realization set in.

But she was not a little girl any longer.  She was much older and she was an adult now.  She could take care of herself.

The gnawing fear in her belly was not listening but there was nothing much that Ildri could do but make her way back.  If she did not start walking she would never make it back.