Keenin crouched by the warm fire with his hands wrapped around his knees, hypnotized by the flames, feeling like they were trying to whisper secrets. Stars glittered overhead, overlarge cloths were soft against his skin. He wasn’t sure what he expected. A cave in the forest. Really? Who lived like this? Better not to ask really. He supposed it was better than his previous home while he lived on the streets. But how did nobody know about the dragon? That was really beyond him. 

Dia was fussing over her own project at the edge of the clearing. She somehow reminded him of a mother hen. She had even stolen his clothes as he bathed in a river and left the baggy set he wore now. No shame. Wouldn't a normal girl demand he wash them? 

Dia stood outlined in the fading light, tipping a bag of what he believed was salt in a circle around the camp. He turned towards Clide who had managed to change himself from a dragon to a fully dressed boy in a blue trimmed tunic and wool leggings. He was using a long blade to lazily cut up a deer carcass. 

“What is she doing?” 

“Keeping away ghosts.”

“You’re joking, right?”

Keenin jumped when a hand landed heavily on his shoulder.

“Hey can you lower the flames. Our dinner will burn,” Dia said leaning in. 

“Excuse me?”

“The flames. Please lower them.”

“Uh…how.”

“Do you not know? You have that fire elemental. Right?”

She pointed beside him. He saw nothing in that spot. 

“You… you aren't going to sell me out right?” 

“Oh ya. I meant to ask about that.” He knew it. “Do you need help getting home?” 

“Huh. No.” 

“Really?” 

“Actually I'm looking for a teacher. If I just return home, I'll only be kidnaped again.”

She patted his shoulder twice, smiled, and walked off. Clide paused in his work.

“So can you lower the flames?”

“Uh, no.”

Clide blew an icy breath onto the burning logs. White crystals formed and the fire stuttered. 

Keenin was eating meat on a stick when Dia returned and pointed a walking stick at his face. 

“Take it,” Dia instructed.

Keenin moved to push it aside and paused. He felt its pretense and had seen it in dreams, but there it was. The tall decidedly male figure of flames stood near the fire with its head tilted to the sky and a hand outstretched to catch falling embers. 

Keenin withdrew his hand. The figure vanished. 

“See I told you,” Dia said. “You have a fire elemental following you.” 

“So I've been told. Do you always offer advice to strangers?”

“Of course not. Most people run away.” 

“What do you want?”

He couldn't afford to trust anyone so easily. Dia smiled and tapped his head with the stick. The fire elemental materialized. 

“Improve yourself. Try communicating with it. The more clearly you know what you want and the more clearly you mentally convey it, the better your magic will be.” 

“Really. Are you not afraid I'll break something expensive?” 

She tossed it onto his lap. “It's not mine anyways.”

Dia moved away from him to the roasting meat. She phased through the fire elemental on the way, neither bothering the other. The fire elemental glanced at Keenin knowingly, squat down near the fire, reached its hand and gripped the flames. The fire snuffed out completely leaving only smoke.

“Hey,” Keenin spoke in annoyance, “What aren't you telling me?” 

“Excuse me?”

“Listen. I know people don't hand others magical treasures without motive. And before you tell me I'm overreacting, I'm in this situation because I trusted someone.”

Dia closed her mouth because she had been about to dismiss his concerns, saying she was just helping. 

“That. Actually, it's strange. The guy who left this staff, Melsa, had a fire elemental like yours.”

That… really was strange. “Did you rescue him too?”

“He rescued us. I guess Melsa would be disappointed if he saw us now," Dia said.

"Why?"

"Well. We’ve sort of been trying to keep away from attention for different reasons. Melsa deserted the war. Clide… well you can imagine the threat he can be. And my case too. Normal people don’t see ghosts. We didn’t mean to stay in this place forever, but...”

“Humans are greedy,” Clide said. 

Keenin sighed. He had also learned this firsthand. So she was just desperate for a friend so this magic staff didn’t mean much. And they couldn’t betray him because they were all hiding. 

“Still, I don’t think I can take this,” Keenin said, passing it back. “I hope you can understand, but I don’t plan to stay.”

“Then borrow…”

He took her hand in his and gently pressed the staff back into her hold. She reluctantly took it over. 

“I would feel bad if I hurt your trust,” Keenin said. “I’m greedy for something too.” 

He couldn’t promise that he wouldn’t have to hurt them in the future to preserve his own peaceful retirement. After all, war demanded sacrifices. 

Keenin turned away, intending to climb a tree to sleep in, when his shirt was grasped. 

“Wait, you should know,” Dia said. “There’s a dead girl following you.” 

“I know.” He knew it must be the case. Someone who saw ghosts would know too. “I killed her.” 

A lie, but he didn’t want to talk about it. There was nothing he could do. People were waiting for him. 

Eventually, Keenin was left alone. He changed into his scale pants and sat in a tree trying to recall the place his lost map had indicated a teacher could be found. Keenin leaned back on the branch, letting his mind fall into the expanse of countless stars above. He put a hand briefly to his throat where Tess had threatened him in the dream. 

“Sorry I missed your funeral,” Keenin said for the both of them. “But, do you remember? You were the one who told me to leave.”