The walk back to the campsite took far longer than Rannok liked. It was obvious Sasha could not walk adequately, no matter how much she tried to hide how much pain she was in. Her foot caught on a branch. Rannok caught her arm just in time for her to avoid landing in the brambles on her face.

"Take my arm," he said.

"I'm fine."

Rannok resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her and caught her forearm instead so she would not fall. He could feel the crow overhead, flitting from branch to branch. He wasn't sure how he got a sense of which direction they were traveling in. Every once in a while a picture of where they were headed flashed into his mind. He followed it blindly, hoping without saying anything that the animal knew what it was doing.

"How long do you think it would take your father to catch up with us?" Sasha's arm stiffened. She stopped for a moment to regain her balance, then continued on. He followed a few steps behind her, still holding onto her arm as she brushed sticker bushes out of the way for them with her legs. She didn't seem to notice at all that they were ripping at her clothing.

"Sasha."

"What?" She stopped short and he nearly slammed into her back. He let go of her arm as she crossed them and stared at him, brushing a strand of curly red hair out of her eyes. She let out a huff of breath, like he was simply an annoyance she had to put up with.

"I asked how long we had to get away. I still don't understand why  you need to be running," he said. She flinched a little and turned her face away from him, still balancing precariously on just the toes of her one foot. 

"Did you ever consider there are some questions you shouldn't ask?"

A flame of anger flared in Rannok's chest. "I guess that's why you kept asking me about Terres even after I asked you to shut up because I didn't want to talk about it."

"That's not the same," she countered, and for a moment they just stared at one another. He could hear them in the trees, the reavers. He could hear their snorts and their footfalls, and feel their screams radiating through his chest. He would never forget their sounds, or stop seeing them in his sleep. It would follow him until he died.

"You're right," he said quietly. "It's not the same." He started walking again, not really all that concerned anymore with whether or not she fell and hurt herself. It wasn't any of his business, clearly. 

"I'm sorry I did that," she said as she followed, though Rannok had a feeling she only did it so he wouldn't leave her in the middle of the woods with an injured ankle. He wouldn't, but that didn't mean it wasn't sorely tempting.

"Why did you do that?" he asked. He let her step in front again and winced for her as she tried to step over a branch. He caught her arm again, then let go as soon as it was safe. She released a loud sigh from her lungs and shrugged.

"You seemed stupid and fun to fuck with. I didn't think it would upset you."

"Thanks," Rannok muttered, the sarcasm dripping from his voice. The crow's laughter echoed in the space between his ears, as loudly as if it were still sitting on his shoulder. He wanted to wring its neck.

"Most people don't get so upset when I flirt with them," she said. The tips of Rannok's ears burned. She stepped carefully out onto a deer trail and held a branch to the side so he could pass. 

"Well, you're terrible at it."

Another picture flashed in his mind, one of traveling up the deer path and up onto the mountain pass. He was sure it wasn't far now, though how long he couldn't say. He looked overhead for the crow. Its black and white feathers flashed from between the branches as it hopped from tree to tree. 

"We are five minutes from the road, and ten from Erean's campsite."

Rannok nodded. The way was clear, from what he could tell, and easy. At least once they were up on the pass he might be able to fly a little ways before the winds got too strong and he had to walk. It was clear Sasha couldn't cope with it, and though he still had no idea what was wrong with Erean, he couldn't either. It would be fine as long as they did not need to run.

"What happened to you in Terres?" she asked. He stiffened without meaning to and nearly pushed her into a rock. She caught herself on a nearby branch and extricated herself from it with bloody fingers. 

"A lot of things. None of them good."

"That's why you're afraid of the horses," she said, though it was not accusatory or mean, like it had been before. He softened a bit, though the memory still rang fresh in his ears. He was glad Driver was gone. 

"Yes," he said. 

"I didn't think they had horses in Terres."

"They don't."

Thankfully, she had the good sense not to ask anything more. He didn't think he could stand talking or even thinking about reavers out loud. He knew there would be nightmares tonight, worse ones that he wouldn't be able to sleep through. And there would be no ale to make it easier, because the innkeeper had stolen it. He shuddered.

The deer trail opened onto the road with almost no warning. Rannok very nearly stumbled off the edge, then pulled her onto the narrow pass. The way was barely big enough for one horse, let alone two and someone walking. It wasn't going to be an easy trip.

"How far are we from the nesting grounds?"

"I do not know, I have never been to this part of the mountains," the crow answered.

"We wandered off the map when we ran," Sasha admitted. She pulled it from her pocket and handed it to him. He unfolded it. Water had smudged most of the lines, but it was still barely readable, if he squinted. There was a pass marked through the mountains, but it didn't start anywhere near the village they had passed through. Instead, it started around the mountain on the other side, where there were no buildings. He swore under his breath. There was no point in yelling at her.

  "We need to tell Erean," he said. Sasha bit her lip, then nodded in agreement. She folded her arms across her chest and rubbed at her shoulders.

"He's not going to leave you here," Rannok said, though he wasn't sure that was truth himself. Erean was so quiet he scarcely knew what his plans were, but he was quite sure they didn't involve being lost in the mountains. Sasha said nothing. It did not make him feel any better.