Though she had asked a different type of question this time, the man’s response made it obvious that he was not interested in answering questions at all. She was surprised by the snapping, but she didn’t complain to him. After all, what would be the point in arguing further? Maybe he was just exhausted from the travels, or whatever had preceded them. He seemed to fall asleep, which surprised Rhys a bit. She was not sure she was going to sleep at all around this strange man in a strange forest, but he seemed to do so with ease. Rhys noticed the creature coming around behind her, and debated putting the book away. She was so used to guarding the book that she reflexively pulled it closer to herself, before she scolded herself and continued to work. What would be the harm in Endi seeing it, really?

Rhys didn’t have too much time to debate just how much of her book the creature could see, because the man spoke up again. She hadn’t expected him to reply to her comment, and she was taken aback when he did, and responded so angrily. She was left sitting, confused, her mouth agape as he insisted that he wasn’t a bad person. She had never said he was—she had thought it a few times, but mostly when he was acting hostile towards herself or the guards. She watched him pull his boots and shirt on, and she wondered for a moment if he was just stepping away to clear his head. When he kept walking, she realized that he was possibly just leaving, and she closed her book, signaling apparently for Endi to go and catch up with him.

She took a few moments to compose herself. Unlike his clothes, hers were still wet, since she hadn’t felt comfortable taking them off by the water with him. He was a fair distance ahead of her, and she didn’t rush to catch up. Perhaps a little space was what he needed right now. She walked behind him, gradually picking up her speed to close the distance between them, but giving him a few yards still. They walked until after it got dark, and Rhys found herself hungry, thirsty, and exhausted. Further, she could barely see the steps in front of her. After she tripped on the third root, she put her hand on the tree, stopping. “Sir…I am going to stop.” She said. It wasn’t a request for him to stop as well, just a statement that she couldn’t go any further. She had no idea how far they were from her home, or from water or food, and she didn’t have anything in her bag to help with that. While it wouldn’t be the first time she had gone to sleep hungry, she preferred not to sprain her ankle when tripping over these roots as well. 

Looking around, Rhys saw a spot where the tree roots had grown out on a bit of a hill, leaving a small area beneath the roots that was concealed. She knew that the woods were not a safe place, and she wanted to provide herself as much cover as she could, so she began to move a few branches to go underneath of the roots. There was quite a bit more space under the tree, though she didn’t request for the man to join her. He would do what he needed, and she would do the same. She couldn’t force him to stay with her, and so she saved herself the frustration of being refused.