Through the crowd, Kayo saw him--Osahar, the man destined to be the next chief once Remir stepped down. Osahar, her future husband. They reached the dais at the same time from different directions. His jaw looked tight, his blue eyes fierce. The tone he took as he greeted her was polite, though restrained, but she could feel the fire raging inside him, just as she'd felt it ever since Enisha died and her name had been smeared. She'd avoided him as much as she could, but now... Now there was no getting away from Osahar and his white-hot anger. Together, they took their positions on the dais behind the current Chief and High Priestess. Kayo clasped her hands in front of her, brow twitching.

"That's all you have to say to me?" she hissed beneath her breath, quiet enough that only Osahar would hear. "You realize what's happening tonight, right?"

She smiled out at the crowd, though she didn't feel it. All around them, people celebrated. This was an occasion that would likely only happen once, perhaps twice in a person's life. Sonriette was large, but not so large that their tribe were strangers to one another. The people in that crowd knew her, knew him; had watched them grow up and train for their roles; had watched the trials they'd endured over the years.

And now, their final trial. This one would not be public. The Sonriette wouldn't see what happened out there in the desert as they faced their final challenges. This would also be the first time they wouldn't be alone for a trial. They had each other, though Kayo felt sure that would be the greatest obstacle of all.

And if they failed... If they couldn't find the ruins, collect the Star of Anbrea, and make their offering of blood to the gods... They'd either have to die out in the desert or return in shame. She'd be stripped of her [i]kashra[/i] and title, and all the years she'd spent enduring scrutiny, clawing her way to the top, would be in vain. It would be the same for Osahar. If they failed, he'd no longer be afforded the honor he'd worked so hard to gain. His trials had usually been physically demanding--sometimes life threatening. Indeed, there were fewer among the male trainees than when they'd been children. A few graves now dotted the cliffs, white banners flapping from the stone markers to show the people buried below had died before manhood.

Maybe her sharp words had been a mistake. Maybe she should have been polite and restrained. Restraint had never been her strong point, admittedly. Her eyes flicked up to him, though her face stayed fixed. She tried to relax her mouth, which kept pursing into a frown, lips pinched. Ahead of them, the Chief and Priestess were engaged in conversation, neither paying attention to them nor offering a buffer.