***

The crowds had grown since breakfast and the city markets were in full swing. The pair pushed through the main way and stalls lining it. Rather than the few scattered among the low sections during a temple day, the entire main way up to the keep itself was packed with every sort of merchant. Food stalls assaulted the nose with every scent the plateau still had to offer alongside the foreign imports, although the most prominent was the longest lasting barely that could survive the trade routes. A few food traders pestered any Ascetic or pilgrim they saw with cases of turmeric root, spotting them among the sea of people as the only flashes of orange and yellow. The crowd had kicked up the street’s dust and a few of the foreign traders covered their mouths. Still, Janurana and Dhanur broke through, winding up the alleys to Dhanur’s home. A few of those resting in the alley's shade waved to Dhanur and rolled their eyes at how she, yet again, rebuffed their kindness. The pair were nearly running by the time they got through the door, slamming it shut as they got inside.

Dhanur slumped against the door and rubbed at her temples, half to soothe her headache and half to silence her inner voice.

‘Told you something would happen,’ it said.

‘Gehsek’s a tiger in bronze. Now he might be on his way.’

‘Maybe you should not have missed last time. Sorry. That’s a bad joke. Regardless, things are happening. They may turn out to be good after all.’

“I didn’t leave anything here, did I?” Janurana asked, peeking around the kitchen area.

“Huh? Oh, uh, no. That’s all I ever saw you with.” Dhanur waved her hand up and down motioning to Janurana’s person.

“Alright.” She took in a long, deep breath. “Then I should leave. I wish I could have remained Inside for a while longer.”

Dhanur blinked. She lowered her head and crossed her arms. The words bubbled at the rim of the pot, wanting to leave her lips but not quite able to do so. She tapped her foot.

There was a brief silence that felt much longer. 

Janurana sucked her teeth, looking away from Dhanur. “But, of course it wasn’t to be. Thank you again for your great help and hospitality,” Janurana said and started toward the door.

“Probably shouldn’t hang around myself now since I went in with you. Great. Not really what was supposed to happen.” Dhanur rubbed her temples again.

Janurana sucked her teeth, facing the door. “I’m sorry associating with me led to this. I should have left earlier.” She stroked the patch on her hip.

“No. It’s fine.” Dhanur sighed. “I helped you like I should’ve when I met you. Now I may’ve helped those Light lost freaks find you. It’s only fair I find you somewhere else to stay. I know a place that’ll be safe for a bit. You should be able to rest there before moving on. Maybe head north? Up to Uttara? No gwomoni there. Though they’d probably not like a southerner. Whatever. Still, it’s a place to rest.”

Janurana chuckled silently in surprise. “I suppose you would know of such a location, madam warrior. A veteran such as yourself must have a multitude of tales.”

“What?”

“Thank you. Where is it?” She blinked with a placid smile.

“It’s uh, It’s a bit of a hike and…”

“Would it be easier if you showed me?” 

“Uh, yeah. Sure. I mean, it’s that mountain up north, near Vatram. There’s a temple there and I know the guru. You can see it fine but, ya know, the Outside and the bridges are out,” Dhanur rubbed her neck.

“You really don’t have to. I’ve troubled you enough. I’ll be fine.”

“You didn’t wanna see the records when I said we should and now you have to leave. It’s only fair I make it up to you! I just said that.”

“And if you did not make me go I wouldn’t have been warned as to the lingering distaste for myself and my family after all this time.”

“Urgh!” Dhanur pouted. “Well, they don’t like me either and being associated with you now it’s probably best if I leave for a bit. Besides,” she pouted deeper, “I probably should’ve headed to this place myself a while ago so, just, ugh.” 

Dhanur’s complexion hid her blush but Janurana felt it all the same.

“Okay, shall I start packing for you?” She asked. When Dhanur nodded, she pillaged the trunk next to the hearth for roti stored within. “A few days’ worth? It can’t be so far.”

“Yeah. Yeah that’s fine. We’ll see if we can hunt anything on the way too. Whatever’s left after the Scorching.” Dhanur swallowed her emotions and watered the potted shrubs that decorated her first floor. “So uh, why didn’t you wanna read the records anyway? Thought maybe finding your family would be nice.”

Janurana froze. 

Dhanur pressed, carefully watching how much water the dirt soaked up, not seeing Janurana’s reaction. “I mean, I know you said they got attacked but there had to be someone left around, right?”

“Let’s just say it’s a tragedy between mother and daughter. Neither of whom want to see each other again.”

“You saw her? She’s still around? Then why did we go looking? It’s really that bad?”

“I live Outside.”

“Oh. Yeah. Yeah. Speaking of that.” Dhanur crossed to her storeroom. 

As she lifted the cotton curtain, she glanced behind, noticing Janurana’s tense expression. With a gulp and a grimace, Dhanur swallowed her emotions. Her travel drinking skin was within reach, and she quickly filled it from her personal urn that was treated with imported preservatives, and took a deep sip. Its contents slid down her throat but it wasn’t easier to silence her thoughts. Dhanur felt as if the voice in her head was always on, always hopping between chiding, hopeful optimism at unexpected hindrances, to its patronizing reminders of her failures in the past and present, to combatting her confusion as to why she was even bothering to help Janurana, to reminding her that Janurana and Aarushi looked so alike.

She sipped her drink again, then pushed to the back of the store room.

Sitting upon an ornate, weathered chest, which itself was a treasure from a previous adventure, was a pair of hide burden bags meant for a bull. They were kept full of traveling essentials like bandages and extra arrows in case she had to suddenly depart. They too were covered in patches not unlike Janurana’s sari, making them a haphazard patchwork of colors. With a reluctant smile, Dhanur put them over her shoulder and pried open the chest which sent a gentle smattering of dust blowing out from inside. The trinkets contained within were as expansive as those littered about her manor, but they either never found a proper place, were too valuable to leave lying around, or were kept near the bags should she have to travel again. The largest item inside was certainly all three.

Dhanur slipped out from under the flap, the bags nestled under one arm and an ax in the other. It was double headed and three times the size of a typical woodworker’s tool. It was as well–oiled as her armor, covered in scars, and gleamed with its radiant bronze as she brought it out to the brighter main room. One head shined more than the other, being a replacement.

“Here.” Without thinking, forgetting she wasn’t in the barracks with a new levy to haze, she lobbed the monstrosity through the air and opened the burden bags. She missed when Janurana snatched it mid–flight. Its head was wider than her torso, but she plucked it from the air with little difficulty. When Dhanur’s mind caught up with what she’d done, she snapped her attention towards the young woman. 

“Good catch.” Dhanur’s eyes narrowed as Janurana seemingly had no problem getting to grips with the ax, despite her comparatively diminutive size.

Janurana giggled. “Stronger than I look, eh? Climbed a lot of trees…” She let the weight of the ax pull her shoulder forward slightly, as though it were a touch too heavy, and smiled.

Dhanur stared in silence for a second. “Yeah, gotcha. Outside with tigers‘n all that. Makes sense, yeah.”

Janurana took in the ax and her eyes shined with restrained delight. She ran her fingers over the two polished heads and their still honed edges. “This is really for me?”

“Yeah.” Dhanur walked over to her and motioned over the curved double blades. “I got this one from a trader from way, far out east. Past the Rivers and the Valley far. Said it was different from the ones they used even there which’re like the axes around here. Ya know, like that bar on the end of a stick, not this half circle on each side. It’s nice, right? But he said he got it from someone from the Valley so who knows? I’ve tested it so it should hold up for ya.”

“Letting the Kumari handle fighting up close while you loose from afar? How valiant.” Janurana chuckled.

“What? No!” Dhanur flushed with more embarrassment and frustration and rubbed her neck. “It’s, you know, two handed, like how you always hold your parasol and, I don’t know, I figured you’d like this.”

“It’s fine. Only teasing.” 

Dhanur downed more drink, more annoyed at herself than Janurana for overreacting so quickly. She took in a few quiet rapid breaths and returned to the storeroom to top off her drink skin.

Rolling her eyes at the childish display, Janurana looked over her ax again. She wasn’t entirely familiar with weapons, but she knew enough to check the head, ensure it was flush to the handle and sharp, if the grip was well oiled, things she’d seen warriors do. She stopped and cocked her head. For a moment, she was sure she had seen an ax just like it, but even more than with Hegwous and Gehsek’s name, her memory was completely blank. It worried Janurana, but there were other memories she was glad she had blocked out, thus she slotted the gap into that category. She looked over her shoulder to see Dhanur was still in the storeroom and gave the ax a few swings, swiping, chopping, and pretending to lose balance with its weight as Dhanur emerged.

“Careful there. So, I know ya said you liked your old sari but your boots were pretty worn. So, here.” Dhanur placed a pair of spare boots gingerly at Janurana’s feet.

“Thank you, Madam Dhanur.” Janurana slid one on, pursing her lips as it was a bit too big. “The Maharaj,” she began, continuing despite Dhanur’s flinch. “Is she one of the people you said I resembled?”

“Yeah.” Dhanur took another drink.

“Will she be okay if you leave?”

Dhanur paused. “Should be. Aarushi’s young, not sick. We’re not fighting Uttara either. Be weird if she dropped dead. Let’s just go.”

***

Arriving at the northern gate, Dhanur hoisted the bags over her shoulders as they stood in the center of the crowd. It was smaller than those at the other three gates, but still enough to have them surrounded by traders, workers going to collect firewood, city guards going to procure the arrows loosed last night, and far less young pilgrims from the sun temple than there would have been before the Scorching, all of whom had their personal escorts. Most, especially the well–armed bodyguards, gave Dhanur a wide berth. She was prepped for travel with her hood up to keep her hair at bay. None had as ornate a piece of armor as her or a weapon as bright as her Kalia bone covered bow. Janurana was as conspicuous, her parasol held aloft and ax slotted into her sari’s sash. She looked over the gate’s surroundings and the crowd. Each trader had either a cart they pulled themselves, or a bull of their own for hauling the load. The last straggling few rushed from the stables near the gate with their bulls in tow, but Dhanur still had her bags on her person. 

The gate churned open once the final traders had taken their place in the mob. Janurana enjoyed watching the metal bars rhythmically sliding out of place. First was the single massive block of gleaming bronze. It ponderously slid up like a living, lumbering beast. It was oddly silent for something so large. Other mechanisms tripped once it had risen and countless smaller bars gave way, each slotting into place or sliding up to the top of the wall. Still by the same crank worked atop the wall, the doors scraped open, revealing the land before them.