The rest of the day passed without incident, as did the first half of the next day. Anticipation for my return to Haelling Cove began to mount within my household, and my attendants were anxious about their pending unemployment. I offered them to return to Haelling Cove with me and they said they'd consider it, but I doubted that they would. It mattered little to me; though I had enjoyed Regeda's embroidery tutelage and Pae's pleasant harp music I could find women of similar skill in the Reach if I wished.

Prince Alum arrived that night as he had promised, and I saw him five more times before I left for Haelling Cove. I continued to supply him with bloodberry wine, in the hope that when I was gone he would miss the taste and subsequently think of me.

We spoke of little that mattered, and it was a pleasant diversion from my impending departure. I did talk to him of Milos and Ioran's visit, but he was unsurprised and even proud of my response. I did not ask him about his pardon as he had said nothing of it during the conversation. I sensed that it made him feel uncomfortable, and I didn't want to risk an argument so close to the date of my departure.

Eventually I had my last date with the Prince, and as I farewelled him on the doorstep I thought of how far we'd come. He kissed me on the lips and then held me tight. I felt safe in the warmth of his embrace. I was so comfortable there, I felt that I might die if he backed away, but eventually he did and I somehow survived.

'I will see you soon, Saemara. If you are delayed, I beg that you write to me,' Alum said. He reached into his pocket and withdrew a wrist bracelet. Its band was gold and a central aquamarine – the stone of my House – was the only break in its pattern of crosshatches.

'It's so beautiful. Thank you, Alum.' He smiled in gratitude at my appreciation of his expensive gift. My eyes were damp as I said, 'I will write, I promise.'

'Safe travels, Saemara,' he said, kissing me once more. He did not tell me that he loved me, nor I him, but the depth of our connection would have been hard to deny at that moment.

As he left, I felt his presence replaced by the frosty chill of his absence, as if all that was good in my life had vanished. I realised that I had already come to depend upon him and I prayed to both Cha and Yoru that night, begging that nothing should come between us while I was away from the capital.

I spent the final evening before my departure packing my chests. I had acquired some new clothes and furniture during my stay at Hollowhold, but the carriage still only had room for two chests. Some of my clothes were out of fashion, but none were ill-fitting as I had scarcely grown in the previous two years. I knew that once I had left Hollowhold, my house would be allocated to some other visiting noblewoman and anything I left behind would be sold or burned. Therefore I packed the mirror that had come with the room into my chest. The clothes I was leaving behind would more than pay for it in Hollowhold - but not in the Reach, where mirrors were rare and expensive. Now I had one of my own.

I had to constantly remind myself that my return to Haelling Cove was only temporary, as would all of my visits to the city in the future. Once I had come of age and attained my parents' permission to marry Prince Alum, I would return to Hollowhold and pursue our relationship.

I had considered the possiblity that my parents would not approve of my relationship. Father, I thought, would applaud Alum's suit, as it had been many generations since the Tfaeller family had last intermarried with the House of Goldmane. I had no doubt that the presence of Alum's housecarls at the city during their time of need would have boosted Father's opinion of the Prince such that he would not only be willing to betrothe me to him, he might even desire it.

Mother's wishes were more complicated. I had never been able to predict her. I felt that she would oppose it, for whatever reason. Possibly she would echo Prince Milos and Highfather Ioran, believing that the prestige of wedding a Prince was not worth the loss of practical benefits that could be gained from wedding another, such as Duke Wilbern. I was prepared for such a response, but I had an inkling that she would surprise me. Usually her criticisms were at a more personal level. She'd no doubt harrass me for chasing Master Robarin away, and for ceasing my lessons with Master Orjeik. I was more concerned that Mother would accuse me of rushing headlong into a relationship with Prince Alum purely out of his desirability as a man and his eligibility as a bachelor.

I packed the family portrait, and the gold bracelet Prince Alum had given me on our last date. I didn't want to wear it, for Duke Wilbern had spoken of highwaymen that plagued the roads between Helmfirth and the capital. I had a few silver coins left, and those I kept on my person so that I could pay for food and lodgings during the journey.

Eventually my chests were packed, and I directed my servants to carry them to the carriage in the morning. I took the opportunity to ask them if they'd be travelling with me. Regeda answered first, shaking her head that she was staying at Hollowhold.

'I have never lived outside this city, my lady. Perhaps when you come back to court Prince Alum, I will be able to serve you once more.'

'You are certain?' I asked her. 'I have tried to be kinder to you than my past servants, for I appreciated your talent for embroidery.' I felt compelled to be honest for my heart was beginning to ache. If my attendants chose to come with me, I would retain a piece of Hollowhold in my life.

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'I am, my lady. And it is not for want of your kindness that I remain, it is simply not my path to travel,' Regeda said, and I bowed my head.

'And you, Pae?' I looked into the green-eyes of my harpist servant.

A strange fire was kindled there, one birthed from anger rather than sadness.

'Unlike Regeda, I will say what needs to be said,’ she began, and I braced myself for a performance in the style of Daegwin. ‘I will not come with you, my lady. You may have thought to be kind, but you were among the worst of mistresses in this city! You give orders with military bruality, giving no thought to the people who are to carry them out, and show no appreciation when they are carried out. Your casual cruelty and daily insults are made bearable only by the fact that my burden is shared with Regeda. Without either of these benefits, I would be unable to tolerate you. Countess.'

She said the last word as an afterthought, as if to ensure that I could not criticise her lack of proper etiquette. Nevertheless, I was deeply disappointed. I had made a conscious effort after Daegwin's departure to respect my servants' boundaries and they still scorned me.

I rolled my eyes to show that I didn't care, and then I realised that it was the truth. They were just servants, after all. I’d mentally prepared myself for this with the departure of each previous servant – I'd now been through a dozen since I was a child – and I felt little for them. They were even lower than soldiers to me for, as dirty as soldiers were, at least they were loyal.

I chose not even to acknowledge Pae's words by reciprocating her vitriol. Instead, I turned back to Regeda.

'I thank you for your restraint, and for entrusting me with your embroidery techniques. As a servant, you went beyond what was required.'

As I had intended, Regeda blushed, embarrassed to be caught between myself and Pae. I let silence reign for a moment, before turning back to Pae to prove that I was not intimidated by her spiel.

'I expect my chests to be loaded into the carriage prior to my departure from this house. And I expect breakfast in the morning.' She glared at me, but I stared her down until she succumbed.

'Yes, my lady,' she mumbled through gritted teeth.

With that, I ascended the stairs of my house for the last time, and fell asleep in my bed dreading the journey home. It was bad enough that I had to leave Hollowhold and Alum to return to the pathetic frontier town from whence I had sprung, but I also had to endure nearly two weeks of gruelling and potentially dangerous journeying beforehand.

The morning came and I saw that my chests had been removed during the night. I smiled – for all her words Pae was still a servant, and she’d sacrificed her dignity for the last of Father's coin. I smiled at that knowledge, even as I dressed myself in my dreaded riding outfit. My back and buttocks hurt just from looking at the stretched trousers but I donned them nonetheless.

As I stepped through the doorway for the last time I realised that I'd left the pennant attached to the front of my house. I thought to pull it down myself but it was too high to reach.

I made it to the grand stone archway through which I had originally entered the city. The carriage was smaller than that of our previous journey, but there were less passengers. Five of Father's men were our escort for the journey due to the death of Wargwa, the departure of Daegwin, and Wilbern's preference to remain at Hollowhold. One of the soldiers was master of the carriage, and the other four followed Timoth and I in ranks of two.

'Are you ready to go home?' he asked me, and I suddenly realised that we had very different opinions on the matter. Timoth's tone suggested that he’d considered this venture entirely temporary and was looking forward to finally returning to Ebonreach. I was the opposite: I had approached Hollowhold with the knowledge that I should find a proper husband, one who would take me from the Reach. It pained me to see how different our ends were as Timoth had always been my staunchest ally. So staunch, in fact, that he’d sacrificed the last two years of his life to travel with me.

'Just until the ceremony,' I told him carefully. 'I have a Prince to return to.'

'Of course,' Timoth replied, toeing the line between politeness and mocking.

It was good to see Lilac again. I'd visited the stables less often than I should have, and I got the impression that such harsh travelling would be an equal shock to both of us. I stepped into her saddle and grabbed her reins, as Timoth did the same upon his own steed. The weather was cold, and I was glad that my riding outfit included a wool-coated jacket.

'This time, we go around the Dreadwood Forest,' I said, also half-mockingly. If I so much as saw a deciduous treeline I knew that I’d be wracked with guilt at Wargwa’s death. I hoped that Father hadn't been waiting for my return to broach the topic, for he’d said little on the matter in his letters.

'Have you not been listening when I have spoken of this journey?' Timoth asked me seriously as he kicked his horse into motion.

I followed suit, and soon the whole caravan was moving. The indescribably tall stone entranceway passed above me, marking my final steps in the capital. I thought about Timoth's words, and realised that my unwillingness to leave Hollowhold had probably caused me to phase out of conversations about it.

'What do you mean?' I asked him.

'We ride only to Helmfirth. Father has arranged passage on a merchant vessel that will carry us the rest of the way down the Haelling,' Timoth explained.

'What? Why?' I asked in shock.

'I swear, Saemara, Mother is right about you,' he said, not knowing how much his words hurt me. I don't even think he intended it, he was just frustrated that I hadn't listened to him. 'The Haelling flows from the mountains to the coast. The current will be with us and will shorten our journey considerably.'

I nodded in comprehension. 'Will Lilac fit on the boat?'

'Yes. All with which we travel will be taken onto the vessel, though the chests may be separated from the carriage,' Timoth explained.

I had never been on a boat before. Despite its extended coastline, Halivaara's navy was small and was anchored off the southeastern coastline, away from where it could be attacked by vicious Frostlanders and Western Island longboats. Some merchant ships plied the Haelling, and I hoped that no raiders had made it through in recent days for we’d be bound to encounter them on our journey.