The meeting between Gallus' pack ended on an at least somewhat acceptable note for Peiter. He still did not like the idea of Gallus pursuing this foolish idea, but the fact that they would be talking about it later meant that he could calm down for the moment. The sun set shortly afterwards, and one by one, everyone in the camp started to get to sleep. 

---

By this point, everyone had become accustomed to long treks across the desert. At no point was it "easy", but they knew how to adjust their habits to make the trip as pleasant as possible. They knew how to keep themselves from overheating, while still protecting themselves from the sun. They knew exactly when to eat and drink to keep themselves from feeling consistently thirsty, which was helped by the fact that the Orcrest clan had given them more than enough supplies for the journey. Moving across the desert was as uneventful and repetitive as ever, which quickly became boring for the children in particular, but they were at least safe. 

Thanks to the smaller size of their group, they moved more quickly in general and were able to reach the forest with plenty of supplies to spare. At a town near to the border, they were able to sell their camels, carts, and the barrels they had been using to store water, in order to purchase boats to bring them upriver to Bravil. They purchased three, and though it would be cramped, it would be enough to get them and their supplies to the city. They had to be cautious crossing the border; however, using the same strategy Colors had used to get the clan across before, it was fairly easy to sneak a much smaller group into Cyrodiil. The river was slow-moving enough that they were able to row themselves upstream until they finally reached the city. From there, they sold the boats quickly at a slight loss, then found a ship willing to take them as passengers to the Imperial City. It was not a long voyage, so the price was reasonable, and it left them with plenty of coin to hire a carriage or two to take them the rest of the way to Bruma. 

After the Imperial City, the group's journey back to Bruma was almost identical to the first time they had made it months prior, except they were not attacked by highwaymen this time. Over the course of their journey, Peiter had shown slow, steady improvement to his mood. He was not depressed as often, and he was more willing to spend time with others, particularly Sabine. Although, he still had not even suggested any physical intimacy. He was by no means cured of his problems. He was more distant from everyone, physically and emotionally, than he had been before his injury. Ri'vashi and Marcaille, meanwhile, had become more open with the others during their travels. Ri'vashi was already quite familiar with Meesei and Gallus, but she had not previously spent a great deal of time with the members of either of their packs. After many long nights around campfires, however, she started to open up, no doubt under the influence of Gallus' advice. She could still be considered somewhat shy and distant, but it was a step in the right direction. Marcaille, on the other hand, had no particular anxiety about being social, but she also was not very open about private matters. She had no problem describing her past as it pertained to magic and alchemy, especially towards Ahnasha. However, she was largely silent on more personal matters. 

Eventually, the time was finally upon the group to return home, or for Ri'vashi and Marcaille, meet their new clan. They had reached Bruma, and had quickly started on the path up the mountain. It had been many months since had seen snow,  or felt the cold, and while it was not an entirely welcome sensation for some of them, it did bring back memories. When they finally came upon the entrance to the cave leading down to their home, even Lorag gave a subtle, satisfied smile. They had no doubt already been spotted by a sentry, so they were expecting that there was already a welcome ready for them inside. 

"Seeing this cave again...it is almost surreal." Ahnasha commented.