It took a moon for Lilau to gain enough strength to step outside of her tent under her own power. It took another moon before she was able, or cared, to go farther. Through some stroke of luck, or more likely the will of the Fokla, the medallion she wore proved good enough to keep her power contained. Or at least enough to prevent another explosion.

As Lilau regained independence, Inalia came less and less, preferring to spend her time taking care of the injuries of the group’s hunters who never seemed to be without some need of attention. Radai, on the other hand, had shown up more.

This morning, as he’d done every morning since being introduced, he’d shown up at her tent with the first meal of the day. Also like every other morning, they ate seated on rugs and facing each other in silence. It seemed to be the Cat Tribe way. It was a custom Lilau appreciated. The obligatory talk afterwards, she appreciated less.

“What are your plans for today?” Radai asked.

Lilau bit back a sigh as she wiped her hands on a nearby strip of cloth. The same question every day. She wondered each time what kind of answer he really wanted. “Before or after the training sets Inalia wants me to do?”

“Either, I suppose.” Radai grinned at her, his incessant cheeriness at odds with the discomfort she felt around him, or any of the Cat Tribe. “Your training might change, though.” His eyes shifted to the hanging leather walls of the tent, as if he could tell if someone was listening in. “I heard Inalia talking to Macien. Pretty sure I heard your name.”

A surge of excitement passed through Lilau despite the idea of having to deal with the older, rough-spoken Macien.

Makotae sensed her change in mood, popping up from his splayed position behind her where he’d been dozing off the effects of his meal of antelope. The Weapons Master? If they’re going to put weapons in your hands, that means Inalia finally believes you’ve regained your strength.

It also means I’ll start having to repay my debt to the Cat Tribe soon, Lilau added. But if it gets me my bow and dagger, I’ll gladly do it.

Radai looked down, studying the pale-colored patterns on the rug he sat on as the silence between them stretched. Nearly every Silent Hunter had a Great Cat and understood the need to wait as Bonded talked. Lilau watched as the rainbow threads tangled within his head shifted to a single, clear blue. A sign he was conversing with his own Beast.

The threads in his body, as well as the pools of light in his eyes, had dulled over the moons, as had everyone’s. Like many things about Lilau’s new abilities, Inalia had no explanation for it, other than perhaps Lilau had grown accustomed to the sensations.

Lilau waited until the blue split into other colors before trying to speak. “Didn’t overhear when, did you? As fun as vaulting across Makotae is, handling a weapon again will be a welcome change of pace.”

Radai laughed. “I thought you’d like the idea. But no, I didn’t catch when. It’s best to keep walking where Macien is concerned.”

“Here, I thought you were trying to cheer me up.”

“Oh, I think you’ll handle the Weapons Master just fine. I, on the other hand, have thin skin, and Macien has a heavy blow.”

Lilau raised an eyebrow and stared at Radai, unsure of how to react.

He flashed her another grin. “Well, I loathe to end our conversation, but if Macien gets her hands on you today, I think it’s better if I let you get on with your morning. You know, enjoy the last bits of peace.”

Radai collected the bowls from their meal and disappeared out of the tent, leaving Lilau to frown. “He likes to joke,” Inalia had said after one particularly annoying day around him. “Don’t let it get under your skin. He is just having fun.”

Lilau failed to see how his strange half-compliments and smiled threats were any different from those who wished her harm in the past.

I’m not sure how, either. However, it’s true he seems to hold no ill will against you. Makotae stood and shook. Perhaps a bit of training will help you figure it out.

Lilau doubted it. It would distract her, though, and that was good enough.

The layers of her clothing fell into place as she stood. Once she’d become strong enough to step outside into the sun, Inalia had insisted she wear the flowing, hooded robes of the Cat Tribe over her pants and sleeveless tunic. She’d been reluctant at first, failing to see how more layers could help in the sweltering heat of the desert. The first time she’d stepped into the midday sun squashed those doubts. Clothing meant shade for sensitive skin. Fortunately for her, it was still early in the day. Hot, but not yet steal-your-breath hot. The perfect time for training.

Lilau pulled the robe up, securing it around her waist with a sash. She secured the arms and hood with similar strips of cloth. Less loose things meant less to flap around or catch, and that meant less likelihood she’d end up falling on her face.

Once her legs were free and she’d tucked her clothes close against her body, she walked from the tent, Makotae at her side, into the desert camp. Her eyes stayed firmly on the ground. The glaring gemstone hues of life encroached on the edge of her vision, as blinding as the sun climbing over the horizon. At least the Earth’s Blood no longer ran under her tent.

Unwilling to take the Fokla’s word at face value, Lilau had insisted on having her tent moved. It wasn’t much farther away, and still a part of the circle of healing tents, yet as soon as she’d moved, the glare in her sight and fire in her core had cooled a little.

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She’d exited her tent on the outside of the healing circle. Inalia’s tent stood large in the center, surrounded by six smaller tents. The smaller tents almost always had an occupant, but Inalia’s rules for healing kept the area quiet. Lilau would have preferred to stay. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough space for Lilau’s training, nor did she have Inalia’s blessing.

The rest of the camp’s two dozen or so inhabitants lived scattered across the sand, far enough away from each other to prevent holding in more heat, yet close enough to easily walk from one end of the camp to the other. Each short but wide tent sported walls of hanging rugs, leathers, or a mix of the two. “We are small, but one of many,” Radai had told her. A single part of outcast communities spread across a vast desert, fighting against an evil city. Or so his stories went. Lilau had a feeling he embellished. Either way, she was glad for the distance between homes and the few people.

A few greetings shot her way as Lilau hurried to the outskirts of the encampment. A goat bleated as she dodged around it, its companions echoing its cry.

“Fair hunting,” the goatherd called.

Lilau muttered a reply and moved on. She knew the feel of the goatherd, the look of the gray-brown light of his eyes, but she’d forgotten his name yet again.

Inalia and Radai may have claimed the Silent Hunter camp to be small, but there were still more people than she could keep up with, or cared to. Lilau only relaxed once she was too far from camp for anyone to bother her. The smell of hot sand already drifted up to greet her. She needed to finish her tasks quickly.

Makotae went rigid beside her, legs braced.

Lilau grabbed a handful of his guard hairs and pushed up onto his back. With barely a touch against his spine, she used her legs to propel herself onto the other side of him in what she hoped was a graceful dismount.

It was a simple maneuver, one she would have performed with Makotae at a full run not too long ago. After her injuries, it had become almost impossible.

Yet you are doing it better every day. You are healing well, Makotae reminded her.

Lilau patted Makotae, then grabbed his ruff for another lunge. He was right, of course. Every day, she grew stronger. Sometimes, it was hard to remember that in the face of what she used to be capable of.

She finished the standing vaults and moved on to walking. She progressed through her training, each exercise meant to rebuild her strength to the level she’d started with. It was exhausting. Still, it was cathartic in a way, and the heat building up over the sand didn’t fully register until she finished the last task.

With nothing left to distract, the heat engulfed her in a single breath. Lilau’s skin begged for a light breeze to stir the still sands as her chest heaved in time with Makotae’s panting.

The return trip to the healing circle was quiet. With the rising of the sun came the dwindling of Cat Tribe, and all, desert activity. People hid in their tents, animals in shelters of earth, rock, or scraggly brush. Even the goats were gone. No doubt moved closer to a watering hole.

Lilau’s hope for a long nap within her tent shattered as she came around the front of it. Inalia stood there, her Great Cat Niri at her side. Both pairs of eyes burned into Lilau, bright and bottomless. She looked away.

“Lilau. I wagered you would be back soon. Let us speak in my tent. I’ve already provided water to yours.”

I’ll wait here, Makotae told Lilau.

Lilau sighed as Makotae disappeared under the flaps of their shelter, the sound of him lapping water echoing out. The tents blocked the sun, but they had no way of releasing heat on the inside without a breeze. In the dead air of the day, it was better to have the least number of bodies in each, especially ones as large as Niri and Makotae.

It made sense, yet Niri’s gem green eyes still bored into Lilau. They were painful even without looking. It made her skin crawl, and Makotae’s absence only made it worse.

Lilau followed Inalia, apprehension and all. The healer had proven herself repeatedly, and this time Lilau didn’t want to drive the tribe away. Not yet.

Inalia’s tent stood out among the Silent Hunters. It was the only one made entirely of cloth rugs. Considering the intricate tan patterns swirling across their surface, Lilau wondered how many were gifts from those she’d healed.

The inside remained cooler than Lilau’s by far. Perhaps another boon of cloth sides. Besides the walls, another thing stood out. Rugs made up the floor, yet in contrast to the camouflage of the walls, the floor rugs brandished bright blues, reds, and golds. A field of hand-woven flowers in a sea of brown.

A large earthenware pitcher, no doubt full of water, sat on the center, most colorful rug. Two bowls were placed on either side, with a much larger bowl full of water in the back of the tent. A myriad of tools, medicines, and items Lilau didn’t recognize had been organized at the edges of the walls. Many were tools of the healer’s trade, confirmed by the pungent, familiar smell of tinctures and pastes. Some things never changed.

Niri went to lap water out of the large bowl. Lilau sped up, dropping into position beside the water pitcher as the dryness in her mouth intensified.

Inalia smiled and joined her, waiting in silence as Lilau poured and downed two cups.

“Your physical progress has been remarkable,” Inalia said.

Lilau untied her robe. It billowed out, capturing some of the tent’s cooler air against the inner layer. She nodded to Inalia. The healer was single-minded, a trait Lilau liked. She always understood what the woman wanted.

“In a short couple of moons, you’ve gone from being unable to stand to doing fast-paced maneuvers on Makotae. Just as good, there had been no loss of control.”

Loss of control. Inalia made it sound so tame. Lilau supposed it sounded better than exploding.

“In my opinion as your healer, you’ve fully recovered from the Spirit Poisoning.”

Inalia paused, and Lilau perked up. Here came the real reason Inalia called her in.

“As such, I’ve talked to Macien about taking you as a trainee. Considering your current strength, I doubt relearning the bow and knife will take long. But….”

More hesitation. A sure sign Inalia had been told to say something to her. Something which had nothing to do with healing.

“Macien is also greatly skilled in desert survival and many Cat Tribe weapons. All of her wisdom is yours if you decide. The outcast camps do not take prisoners, only allies.”

“Those are Leader Zayla’s words,” Lilau said. The cadence and wording gave it away.

“Ah, yes. As I’m responsible for your healing, she is responsible for keeping relations.” Inalia shrugged, her face relaxing. “My job is finished. As long as another doesn’t need the tent you occupy, you can stay. But, if you want to stay in the camp for very long, I’d suggest telling Macien. She can provide shelter for you closer to her. May you hunt well.”

Lilau returned the blessing, accepted the sudden dismissal, and left. She had a great deal to think about, and doing so alone, save Makotae, sounded better than under the watchful gaze of a Cat Tribe member.

She lightly prodded Makotae’s mind. He’d learned to stay quiet while she healed. It was no longer needed, yet the lesson proved hard to forget. He didn’t respond. What was he doing that was so important? Lilau pushed through the leathers of their tent and got her answer.

Makotae lay sprawled across the central rugs, his paws twitching in his sleep. Lilau’s muscles relaxed. Her own eyelids were heavy. The growing heat of the day, combined with the fatigue from training, urged her to do the same as Makotae. Her decision could wait until the cooler hours of sunset.