Bel poured more magic into the bubble floating above her hand. It wasn't dark, exactly; nothing had really changed. The moss was still glowing, tree trunks looked like gently stirred embers, and the occasional small light floated by. The ceiling glittered above them, even though the main crystal had to be miles away.

Even with everything glowing it still felt too dark.

"Bel could you please tone that down?" Heln sounded annoyed and distracted. When Bel glanced at him, he looked like he wanted to throttle her. That was an expression she was getting far too acquainted with, between him and Rhyss. "I'm trying to figure out where the exit is."

"I thought you weren't clairvoyant." Bel lowered the bubble as much as she dared.

"I'm not." Heln leaned his head to one side, like he was trying to hear something just out of range. Bel wondered if Heln's magic sense worked like hearing or something else, if they were even compatible at all, and was surprised she had never really asked. "I think, though, that the next room, or tunnel, or whatever it is will have a different feel than this place. So, if I'm right and if I can get a good feel on it then I might be able to get us a general direction. Maybe. Well, probably. If I'm right, then definitely. Probably."

"Wow. And here my idea was to pick a direction and hope for the best. I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but I'm really glad you're here." Bel patted his shoulder.

"Thanks. I think."

"I mean, if I had to get stuck down in the middle of the earth with anyone…"

"Yes, thank you, Bel." Heln cut her off, which was probably for the best. It was hard for Bel to walk around with both feet shoved in her mouth, though maybe they would stop hurting. "I appreciate it, and for what it's worth, I'm glad you're here, too."

Bel grinned and slung an arm around Heln's shoulders. "Thanks. Don't worry, I'm gonna get us out of here."

"I think Rhyss is the more likely candidate for saving us, but I do appreciate the sentiment." Heln didn't protest to being pulled down.

"Rude."

"Honest."

"Let him concentrate, Bel, please." Rhyss broke through their bonding moment.

Bel made a face at Rhyss, but she did step away. "Fine, since you said please and all, I suppose."

"Yes. Thank you." Rhyss held up a fist, which she realized about a step too late meant that they were supposed to stop. "Heln, just tell me which way. And next time let me know the plan before the plan starts?"

"I'm not sure it will work so I didn't mention anything." Heln closed his eyes again. Even in the dim light it was obvious that he was pale and his eyes looked a bit sunken. There was a smudge of dirt or moss on his cheek. Bel realized it was actually a bruise and winced.

Heln was taller than her and pretended that he was mature and responsible so everyone, even Bel sometimes, forgot that he was actually her little brother. Their dad never forgot. When Heln had come to live with him, the first thing he'd requested from Bel was to love him. The second was to protect him.

She'd done a pretty horrible job on both fronts.

"That way." Heln's voice cut through her thoughts. His eyes were still closed, but he was pointing slightly to the left. "Feels different that way. I think. It's really hard to describe or be really precise but it's definitely different that way."

"It's a direction." Rhyss apparently didn't want to discuss the finer points of magical sensing. She turned on her heel and started walking where Heln pointed. If there had ever been a path, it was long gone, though Bel thought she glimpsed the occasional stone in the grass. The undergrowth was still mostly clear and the trees around them were huge. It was slightly terrifying that Bel knew none of them came even close to touching the cavern ceiling. The cave was so immense she swore sometimes she saw clouds. Maybe sometimes it rained.

"You're doing great." Bel told Heln once Rhyss was ahead of them. Heln shrugged a little bit and followed Rhyss.

Bel kept up the rear, trying to not step on Heln's heels. No one was talking and it felt too quiet for her to break the silence. Moving forward was good, at least. She actually felt like they were going the right way for the first time since they'd ended up underground.

Despite that, she wanted to go back to the stones. She missed the tranquility. Under the trees, she felt like someone was following them, though she heard nothing and Rhyss never glanced behind them, so she had to assume she was imagining things.

The side effect to actually having a good imagination was that she could place a lot of things under the trees with them. None of them were good.

Bel realized after an hour of wanting to turn around and make sure nothing was there that it was actually what she was supposed to be doing. Rhyss wasn't looking back, she was focused on keeping them safe from the front.

And so Bel steeled herself, trying to ignore every scenario her mind had ran through, before turning around. There was nothing but trees and darkness behind them, but the uneasy feeling inside of her didn't diminish at all.

She already knew being Guard Trainee wasn't in her future. Maybe no one would get mad if she decided to become a scholar, at the very least she really wouldn't mind studying runes. It was surprisingly proving to be a useful thing to know. If she knew runes maybe they wouldn't have been in this mess.

Maybe she would study runes after this. She had a good memory, after all. It never hurt to have a plethora of background knowledge as an Enforcer, either. Especially if she still wanted to be a detective, like her dad.

Her thoughts weren't nearly distracting enough.

Looking back once had ensured that she kept glancing over her shoulder. She thought she heard something, or saw something, or felt something near the back of her neck, always just a breath away.

"Hey." It felt like it had been an eternity since anyone last spoke and Bel honestly could not take another minute. "Can we take a break and then maybe switch it up? I'm dying back here."

"Literally?" Rhyss sounded a little too hopeful.

"Maybe?" Bel tugged her ponytail over her shoulder. It was stiff with dirt, which was an absolute tragedy, but she didn't want to waste her magic on a cleaning script. At this point she doubted it would do much. "Possibly? And Heln should definitely rest."

"I'm fine." Heln sounded tired, but they all did. "You don't have to baby me."

"You are the baby. You're the youngest."

"And the tallest." Heln used her own words against her. If that wasn't just like a little brother. "As you said."

"You're right, and as the shortest—"

"Oh, maybe by like, absolutely nothing, since my boots have a higher heel than yours, and—"

Bel interrupted Rhyss. "As the shortest with the smallest but nicest legs, I am in need of rest and in setting the pace."

Both of the others groaned, and Bel was pretty sure they rolled their eyes.  The status quo was restored. Pretending to be selfish, and admittedly actually being a little selfish, was so much easier when she wanted to be nice.