Julan did exactly as his father instructed and thanked Thoarantilth before leaving with Leeus, though Kaleeth did seem to show some amount of concern as she watched the pair exit the tent. However, she did not say anything out loud at the moment, in their present company.

Thorantilth remained polite and friendly towards Julan until he left, and continued to remain busy working on his potions afterwards, but his words lost much of their obvious emotion as he continued. "I can make something for you to give to Julan if any pain happens to return to him later. I have to say, I am somewhat flattered by your apparent faith in my abilities. I have had to treat such wounds from rites like these before, and their parents are usually less...contained."

Finally turning back to face them, Thorantilth smiled at Kaleeth. "I suppose you do take after your father after all, Kaleeth. At any rate, as I said before, there does not seem to be much to worry about for Julan. Considering the depth of his wound and for how long he was fighting on it, he lost much less blood than I would have expected. And those spells must have healed him significantly as well, for as much as the lacerations had already closed. He is remarkably durable."

---

Ahnasha's time was mostly spent, as she had told Fendros, cleaning herself, then preparing some sort of a dinner for them all, in the event that Fendros did actually return with Rhazii. By this point, there was not too much meat left from the bodies that Ahnasha would still consider to be in a state to be eaten. Strictly speaking, werewolves, being disease-immune, could eat even the most foul, rotten carrion safely. However, that was not something that Ahnasha, or any sane lycan, would willingly do outside of the most desperate situations. Fortunately, the bandits did have enough preserved meats and vegetables stored for a decent meal, and Ahnasha had actually started to butcher some meat the last time she waited in the camp, though had left it behind when Rhazii did not return to her. She decided to throw it all into a stew, in order to make the more heavily salted meats seem a bit more pleasant. However, she did not eat one bite by herself, and instead just kept feeding the fire enough to keep the pot warm while she waited for Fendros and Rhazii.

For Ahnasha herself, she, of course, had much time alone to think, but tried to avoid it as much as she could. At this point, she was not completely sure what kind of a problem she had, or if she even had a problem at all. Rhazii certainly seemed to think so, but there were realities of the war that he could not understand, and that she hoped he never had the misfortune of understanding. Whatever the right answer was, she did not think she was going to reach it alone.

Janius feigned a sigh of relief as best as he could. "Kaj-Julan, in turn, takes after his mother in determination. Still, we have some experience with wounds like that. Not Julan, but us. We have definitely seen worse where people less durable than Julan...took longer to recover."

Though an unabashed deflection of any notion of their lycanthropy, Janius was telling a half-truth. Skirmishes with cultists left them plenty of unsightly memories of friendly casualties.

"Something for the pain would be very much appreciated," Janius added. "The boy is energetic now, but he may start feeling it more going to sleep tonight. Although, at any rate..." he looked to Zharan and Kaleeth. "Unless there is anything else, we should probably leave you to your work. Thank you again, Thorantilth."

---

The sun was low and the sky orange by the time Ahnasha heard soft footsteps on grass. Fendros emerged from the edge of the camp with Rhazii following along behind him. He still had the bloodstain on the shoulder of his shirt, but it had dried and browned. He kept his eyes to the ground and his face low.

Fendros put on a small smile and raised a hand as they approached.

Their quiet walk ended next to the campfire. Rhazii's eyes were puffed as if he had been crying recently.

"Ahna," Fendros said. "Rhazii's got a few things to say."

Rhazii left a long pause. He blinked away as if ashamed. It took him a moment to bring himself to look at Ahnasha.

"I'm sorry I hurt you." He began. "I panicked. Then my beast panicked. Neither of us were really in control."

He paused again to gauge Ahnasha's reception.

Thorantilth hummed a moment to himself. "Yes, the young ones always seemed to be surprised at how long a wound can bother them. It is often much worse later than it was when they received it. But, I am sure you know your son better than I. I will let you know when I have prepared the ink. Unless there are any delays, I should be able to have his marks completed just in time for our migration."

Once the three of them did take their leave, Zharan decided to bring up a point that had piqued his curiosity, almost as soon as they were out of the hut. "You said you two still fight? I didn't expect you to keep to a warrior's life after you left, Kaleeth. You always seemed convinced that you would forever be horrible at it. Do you mean to tell me that the armor you showed in was not just for show?"

Kaleeth was briefly hesitant, if only to try and think about how to avoid revealing anything she would not want to reveal. But, she could not delay too long without it seeming unusual. "Yes, I do still fight. Janius kept training me, and I kept getting better. I know I was never very good back when I was young, but...I guess I just eventually found the right motivation."

Zharan expression actually went as far as to show a smile, which was perhaps a first for Janius to witness from the man. It was more subtle on Zharan's face, but Janius could see something recognizable as pride for his daughter. "Hmm, suppose I should have guessed it, with all that muscle you have on you now. You look to be in peak condition, really. I'm just glad all the effort I went through to train you didn't end up going to waste in the end."

"So..." Zharan continued, his fleeting, heartfelt pride quickly giving way to a much harsher, more familiar attitude. "Why in the void haven't you challenged that kuuda Deerz yet and broken his ugly snout? You're still a hunter, you still have that right."

---

Despite all of the preparation Ahnasha had made, thinking of what she might say to Rhazii when he returned, she still took a short while to respond. There was little effort for her to hide her own regret. "I do not even remember the pain anymore, Rhazii. I have been hurt in so many ways, so many times, that it is just a vague blur to me. All that I am going to remember out of this is the fact that I hurt you."

"I never want to hurt you, Rhazii." She added.

Janius gave Zharan a brief look of surprise. It turned into mild concern but he did not play it up. "So, you heard of how he's been conducting himself around us." He turned to Kaleeth. "I'll admit, if there's a way we can get Deerz off our backs, it could be worth considering. Do you just need to fight him, or...?"

---

Rhazii lifted his lower lip and blinked a few times. He took a slow, deliberate breath.

After calming himself again, Rhazii continued. "I'm okay now. I know you only did that because you thought I was out of control." He closed his eyes tight and opened them. "Mother, I should have spoken up more -- I did not want to come out here and kill anyone. Even if they were criminals, it didn't feel right and I should have trusted my gut. I just went along because I didn't want to disappoint you or...or make it seem like I couldn't be a warrior. I wasn't ready. I should have said so."

Once again, Rhazii let Ahnasha speak. The primary issue was not raised yet, but he and Fendros would not have spoken for so long unless there were a number of things to say.

"Kaleeth told me." Zharan explained. "I expected there would be some who would not take kindly to your presence here. Perhaps not him, but it also is not too much of a surprise. He is both stubborn and proud. A good hunter, loyal to his people, and well-liked, but not kind towards outsiders. But, Master-Hunter Juran has recognized Kaleeth, and now your son, as hunters, and Deerz has no right to show such disrespect. And you, my daughter, have every right to challenge his insults to your honor."

Kaleeth was not entirely dismissive of the idea, but she was also far from enthused about it. [i]"I know I can do it, but I don't know if I want to fight him. Deerz used to be my friend, and I don't know if embarrassing him would really make things any better between us. He'd probably just be even more bitter."

Zharan shrugged. "It's your choice, but I don't think you should let him believe he can just walk over you without you making him pay for it."

Kaleeth looked down with her arms crossed. "I'll have to think about it." She replied noncommittally. Feeling her father's eyes on her, she quickly looked to Janius to change the subject. "There was something I noticed...did you see how that girl, Leeus, was acting towards Julan? And how he was looking at her? It has me concerned."

---

"I thought you were." Ahnasha said, making a conscious effort to keep eye contact with Rhazii and avoid acting too ashamed. "You did do well, but...I don't know if it was fair for me to expect you to do it. My first kill was more dangerous for me; I was more afraid. I didn't make any major mistakes then, but knowing what I know now, I know that I could have made mistakes easily. I wanted to keep you safe. You're serving as a scout now, or an apprentice scout, rather. I know you mostly stay within the cavern, but you do go to the surface. Anything could happen up there. I know your duties don't have you seeking out fights, or looking for the enemy, but...it could happen."

Ahnasha leaned forward slowly, placing a hand lightly on Rhazii's knee. [i]"You have to believe me; I didn't want to hurt you, Rhazii. And I don't mean physically, though I didn't want to hurt you that way either. I just wanted to make sure you were ready, and I thought the experience would make you safer. Even if it's not very likely, and not the job that you're supposed to be doing right now, there's still the fact that you are at a point in your life where you could, conceivably be forced to defend yourself against someone who wants to kill you. I was worried about you, and I just...wanted you to be ready."

Janius did not broach further on the subject of Deerz. There would be no easy way to stand up to him if he was as stubborn as his behaviour suggested.

As for the matter of Leeus, Janius initially took a quick breath. "Ah, yes, I meant to inform you about that," he said, clutching his upper arm. "She's one of his new friends. We spoke about it and...well, you can probably tell they are fond. It should not be a worry – I explained the boundaries he was in."

---

"I understand all that, mother, I do," he said. "I just...I should have said no. I didn't. All the stress built up from being cooped up in the city, and all the pressure with the family, and I couldn't take it."

He placed a hand over one of his closed eyes. "And...then you crushed that woman's head. I didn't recognise you. Did you really not feel anything?"

Despite Janius' answer, Kaleeth's worries were not entirely calmed. "You already knew about it? I don't think it's something we should take lightly. I mean...are you sure Julan is ready to deal with that? Getting close to a girl that he obviously likes, then just leaving? Is he old enough? Mature enough? In this part of his life, he's probably nervous, confused, emotional..." She argued, her words quickening as she listed off the worries in her mind. "You told him the boundaries, but...what if he makes mistakes? Or did you tell him not to get too close to her? To just be friends?"

---

Ahnasha was not at the point of wanting to lie quite yet, so she shook her head lightly. "I didn't. Killing is something...common for me. You have to understand about this war we've been fighting for, well, most of your life. I've seen, felt, experienced so many horrible things. I've seen people killed mercilessly by the enemy, by Vile's soldiers. People who serve him, worship him, and are determined to destroy us for who we are. I've witnessed them commit atrocities against us, but then, when I have the advantage on them...when it is me bringing the blade to their throats, they look just as afraid as that woman did. I explained it to you before, and I wasn't lying. I've experienced that so many times that it...changed me. Maybe it broke me, I don't know. Maybe I shouldn't be this way, but it's what war can do to you."

Ahnasha sighed. "I don't mind you training to be a warrior, Rhazii. It could be a good path for you, but I want to try to make sure that you never have to live through a war. Being able to fight, to protect yourself, the innocent, the people you care about, that is honorable. But, war can demand something else entirely, something that can be much worse."

Janius glanced briefly at Zharanthixil when Kaleeth mentioned their leaving. He was not sure how wise it was to speak as if Julan would not be coming back any time soon. Nevertheless, he raised his hands and answered calmly.

"I made it absolutely clear to him what the reality was with regards to how long we are here," Janius said. "He's young, true, but there is nothing wrong with him making a few mistakes. In fact, I hope he makes a few mistakes. It is healthier to learn from these experiences rather than avoid them." He smiled and turned up his hand. "What's the worst that could happen, knowing our Julan?"

---

Rhazii listened to every word. He had nothing to say back at first. He just sat, breathing slowly, until he had no will left to resist tears falling from his face. His inhaling grew sharper. He tried his hardest not to sob.

"I don't know what to do," he mumbled.

Fendros knelt beside Rhazii and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Mother," Rhazii continued. "I want to see you how I did before, but...I'm scared that one day you're going to kill more people because it's easier. I don't want you to. It's not how I remember you. I wish you didn't turn into this."

Kaleeth crossed her arms, narrowing her eyes noticeably. "The worst that could happen? I'm pretty sure that I'm the example of what could happen. Obviously I don't regret what we have together, but...we shouldn't let it happen again. He's young, he's emotional. And now he's around Argonian girls for the first time in his life, he might not be thinking with his head. Yes, we should let our son make mistakes, but not when he could force someone else's to change forever." She argued, unable to say her meaning openly in the presence of her father, though Janius certainly understood.

Zharanthixil huffed. "Hal-Leeus? Probably shouldn't be a surprise that she's taken a liking to your boy. She's too curious about the outside for her own good, and her father encourages her too much. Letting her talk to the traders, teaching her Cyrodilic. She'd need to know more about the outside than most to take over his role, sure, but her focus should be on the village first and foremost. If Juran isn't careful, he'll end up raising her to leave, instead of as a hunter."

Kaleeth turned her head slowly towards her father. "Juran? You mean...she is the daughter of the Master-Hunter?" Kaleeth stopped and leaned in close to Janius, staring intently into his eyes. "This story is starting to sound a bit...familiar, isn't it? Maybe we should step in before it gets too familiar?" She appeared genuinely worried. It was not as if Leeus being related to the Master Hunter made the situation any more than a strange coincidence, but it did not take much for her to become protective over her son. Anything that she could point to that might strengthen her case, she would.

---

Ahnasha looked down, staring into the warm pot of stew that had been yet untouched. "There is a lot I wish could be different. I wish there had been no war to force this on us. But, maybe there won't be soon. The only real battle ahead of us will be against Daedra, not people. Then, for better or for worse, it will be over. Maybe there will be no more killing?"

As hopeful as she wanted to be that her statement was true, Ahnasha knew that she could not leave it on the flimsy hope that she would never have to kill anyone else in potentially hundreds of years of life. "But...I am not any different Rhazii, you know? For as long as you have known me, as long as you can remember, I haven't changed. This isn't anything new for me. The mother that loved you, still loves you. All those good memories you talked about were made by the very same person that I am right now. Maybe I will have to fight and kill again, but I am not going to go killing innocents. I am no murderer, no monster. No matter how I do or don't feel about it, I know that about myself."

Janius closed his eyes and let out a breath. "Okay, fine. If it's bothering you, we can catch up with Julan later and ensure he's taking the proper precautions. I doubt he is going to take things as far as we did." He leaned to look towards the site of the rite. "Although, it might be an idea to talk to Juran-Selth about this as well. He saw his daughter kiss our son in front of everyone after the rite. If we can know his position, and if he agrees to cooling off Leeus' advances, there could be less to worry about."

---

"Can you promise that?" Rhazii asked, opening his uncovered eye to Ahnasha. "Can you promise not to kill anyone else who doesn't need to die?"

Kaleeth let out a sigh and shook her head. "I can't believe you told him anything else other than to avoid getting close to her like that. Whenever we come back here again, she'll surely have moved on with her life."

Finally, Kaleeth uncrossed her arms and relaxed, at least somewhat. "But, you might be right. He is young, and I doubt he's going to be like...us. Maybe I'll go talk to Juran-Selth. I feel like there is a lot the two of us should talk about, with the bad history we've had. Clearing the air, and everything. Maybe you should go check on Julan?"

---

Ahnasha hesitated a moment on how to phrase her answer. "I can make that promise...to the limits of what I know. In the moment. I can't promise to never be wrong, get bad information from scouts or spies, or anything like that, but no warrior is all-knowing. We can only fight for what we believe in, fight to defend ourselves and loved ones, and make the best judgments we can. I think you will make for a great warrior, Rhazii. You have strength, skill, and most importantly, a good heart. If there is one thing I trust you for, son, it is that you will do what is right."

"You do have a lot to learn, Rhazii." Ahnasha said, putting on a smile as she moved over close beside Rhazii and wrapped her arm around him. "But, who knows, maybe I can learn something from you too?"

"Sounds well enough." Janius smiled. "It will probably not take too long to check up on Julan and Leeus. If there is not much to drill into Julan's ears then I'll come and find you. I admit I'm curious to know what kind of character the master-hunter is these days."

Janius made half a step away before he stopped himself. "Oh, one more thing. Zharanthixil, thank you for encouraging Julan. I fear his shyness gets the better of him sometimes."

---

Rhazii nestled himself closer to Ahnasha, still weeping but showing some hope. "I know you're not a god or anything. Just keep that promise."

Without any of the terror that filled him hours before, Rhazii carefully put his arm around Ahnasha in turn and closed his eyes with his face resting partly on her shoulder. "I learnt from you both first," he said quietly.

The two of them sat in silence for a long moment. The day would not be forgotten any time soon, but neither had it torn them apart for long.

Fendros eventually sat down on the opposite side to Rhazii and craned his head to look at him. "It was good of you to come and speak, Rhazii. It's been a long and harrowing day, but I think we've deserved a sit down. Time for dinner?"

Zharanthixil, of course, was not one to smile at Janius' gratitude, but it was not to notice that he was being more willingly and openly friendly with Janius than he had been even just a few days before. "Shouldn't surprise you that I want the best for my grandson. I have to admit, you've done an adequate job with his training, even if he does have stubbornness bordering on stupidity. That can be fixed, though, with the right kind of discipline. He's a boy who could have a place here, and knock the teeth out of anyone who claims otherwise. If you want my advice, I say let him get close to the girl. Make friends, fall in love, become mates if they want. That could make it easier to convince him to want to settle down here when you're finally done with whatever business you have out there."

Kaleeth was behind Zharan, looking visibly uncomfortable at her father's suggestion. Zharan was clearly still under the impression that she intended to settle back down in her village at some point in the future, and she did not know how to break the truth to him.

---

On Fendros' cue, Ahnasha reached over and grabbed some wooden bowls she had stacked on top of one another, then placed them out in front of each of them. "I certainly would like some time to relax over a good meal. Or...at least as good as I could make it. It was slim pickings to find fresh meat that hadn't turned from sitting out all day. The bandits did have some salted meats and vegetables laying around, though, so I was able to get a decent stew going."

Ahnasha continued as she started to pour some of the stew into her own bowl. "Hopefully, it will be as good as what we have to look forward to tomorrow. Is your mother okay with not doing most of the cooking herself, Fendros? You probably don't remember this, Rhazii, but Shevari is quite the accomplished cook. She and my brother have their own business in Leyawiin doing just that. Based on all the letters I've gotten from my family over the years, she's learned a lot of different styles. Argonian, Khajiit, Breton, Imperial styles: both Nibenese and Colovian. She could make Dunmer-style cooking when we last saw her, and she's added some Bosmer and Altmer styles to her repertoire over the years. She's asked me a few times in my brother's letters if I could help her learn Nordic cooking since we've moved to Skyrim, but I keep telling her that Nordic cooking isn't...that great."

Janius tried and failed to stop his eyes wandering to Kaleeth's reaction. He responded to Zharan as evenly as he could. "Ah, yes, I'm sure it would. The trouble we simply wish to avoid is...er...we want to prevent Leeus from getting ideas in her head of leaving with us. Having someone sneak along behind us when the rest of the village is about to migrate is rather avoided."

He cut himself off before he said anything else obvious. "But anyway, I will see you both soon."

Janius smiled and turned to leave. There were all manner of spots where Julan and Leeus could be cleaning up. He did not believe it would be too hard to locate them.

---

Rhazii gave some space for Ahnasha to serve up. Though he looked tired, he did look on at the stew with his tail lazily lifting and falling behind him. "Is that the time I got to eat a dessert for dinner?"

Fendros laughed. "Just about. It was some Khajiit dish Shavari made for you."

"It's one of the few things I remember from when I was that young," Rhazii added. "I remember loving every bite."

"Well, lucky for you, Shevari is cooking again." Fendros looked to Ahnasha and lowered his voice. "I brought up the cooking with mother. It's probably not best to repeat this, but mother was absolutely fine with it. Said she..." Fendros feigned a cough. "She used to have Argonians cook for her all the time. Back in Morrowind."

There were indeed many places one could bathe in and around the village, with as much water as flowed through the swamps. But, Julan had made no attempt to hide his path to the very edges of the village. It was easier to pick up his fresh scent once Janius was beyond the huts, but curiously the pair had not stopped at the nearest section of river. Julan's scent carried Janius along the riverbank, through the trees, and out of the direct sight of the village.

Kaleeth's suspicions were proven reasonable when Janius came into sight of the pair. Julan and Leeus were sitting together along the edge of the river, kissing one another. However, it was not as if Janius was entirely wrong either. This was not like Janius and Kaleeth's passionate romance shortly after they met. Julan and Leeus were young, and still acted their age. Julan and particular was nervous and awkward, if his poor attempt at kissing was any indication.

---

"Lucky she didn't get poisoned..." Ahnasha muttered with a harsh scowl coming across her expression, though only for a few, fleeting moments. "But, I'm sure Shevari will impress. She is a professional, after all. Her whole business relies on cooking well enough to convince people to spend their gold on her food, instead of their own."

Ahnasha served a bowl of her stew to both Rhazii and Fendros, and there had even been more than enough utensils in the camp for all of them. It was a decidedly average meal in quality, but at least some of the meat was indeed quite good. Although, with as exhausted as both Ahnasha and Rhazii likely were at this point, anything they could get on their stomachs would be welcome.

Janius stopped a distance away when he spotted Julan and Leeus. He put a hand on his hip and sighed from his nose. It would not do to mortify them so suddenly. He felt bad enough interrupting what was probably a formative moment for the both of them. No, he wanted to let them off easy.

Janius backed away stealthily until he was out of sight and a good distance away. He then cupped a hand around his mouth. "Kaj-Julan!" He called out as if searching.

Only then did he proceed forward. They could have at least a few seconds to compose themselves.

"Kaj-Julan!" He called out again to give the impression he had not spotted them yet.

---

"I'm looking forward to it," Fendros said. He blew on a spoonful of stew. "But I don't think I need anything complex right now."

Rhazii swallowed his first mouthful and spoke up. "Yeah, this is good. By the way, I like Nord cooking. They don't cut the fat off their meats."

The scene that Janius stepped into for the second time was distinctly different from the first. They were still sitting in the river, close together, but Leeus was rubbing Julan's already-cleaned back with her knuckles, as if to scrub away some invisible dirt. Julan attempted to hide his anxiety, even if he did not do so particularly successfully. To his credit, he managed so look up at Janius calmly, without showing too much surprise. There was just a light, perhaps forced worry in his expression.

"Um, yes father, I'm here. Is everything alright? Does...the Treeminder want me back...or something?" He asked hesitantly.

---

For the rest of the evening, at least, Ahnasha was able to avoid any new crisis. They had their dinner, then returned straight back to Cheydinhal after nightfall. They had a short conversation with Ahnasha's brother when they passed by them in the main room of the inn, but nothing important was said beyond confirming that they would all be having their picnic at Lake Arrius north of the city, shortly after midday.

Ahnasha did not sleep terribly well, but nevertheless, made sure she was up early in the morning, then woke up Fendros and Rhazii in turn. While she was not quite as worried about her family as she had been before, she still felt it would be best if she was there at the lake long before her family arrived. She wanted to avoid having her family meet Fendros', without either of them being present. She had even given her family a slightly later time to arrive, to avoid having them meet Fendros' family on the path up to the lake.

Ahnasha had volunteered herself, Fendros, and Rhazii to help Shevari prepare their picnic, which is what they spent most of their morning doing. Shevari gave Ahnasha a long list of ingredients, substitute ingredients, and, if needed, substitutes for the substitutes to buy. Meanwhile, Fendros and Rhazii headed up to the lake with Shevari to set up the fires, cooking pots, and a cooking spit for their planned main course. The lake itself was small and idyllic, with its waters constantly moving from the small waterfall that flowed into it. There were clouds filling the sky, but it did not look like rain would be coming anytime soon, or at least not soon enough to bother them.

After Ahnasha brought up the first bag of ingredients, Shevari went ahead and started cooking what she could with what she had. Interestingly, Shevari seemed to act quite differently once she started her work. All morning, she had been friendly, if not somewhat shy, but after only a few minutes of cooking, she became quick, decisive, and focused. She had three dishes going at once, and did not show a hint of struggling to keep track of what she needed to do for each of them. Since Fendros and Rhazii were meant to be helping her, she became surprisingly...assertive in giving out her orders to them.

"I need the smallest kwama egg and two pinches of shredded bittergreen. Quick, quick." Shevari shouted out, holding out one hand expectantly while focusing on the stew she was stirring.

"There you are, I was looking all over for you." Janius approached wearing a friendly grin. "No, I just realised there was something important I forgot to tell you before you ran off." He looked to Leeus. "I'm sorry to pull you two away so soon. Julan, I need you for a moment." His lips thinned and he glanced at the ground. "Come, we need to speak alone again."

---

As evidenced by the slow state Ahnasha found Rhazii in the morning, his sleep had been similarly poor. Her sharp eye also noticed the bookmark in his book having advanced a much greater amount than most nights. Reading was Rhazii's usual way to calm down after a nightmare after he got too big to sleep in his parent's bed. All the same, the discipline he learnt from his militia involvement brought him fresh and ready by the time they set foot outside. Today was the big day. Or at least it was until yesterday.

Fendros and Rhazii were all too happy to have something to focus on. Assisting Shevari was anticipated to be an easy start and possibly a way to get to know her better. They knew at least a few new things about her already.

"Uhh, uhh, the eggs were..." Rhazii frantically pulled the desired kwama egg out of one of the laden baskets Shevari had brought. He wasted no time stepping back over to Shevari. "Here you go, Shevari," he said. "Uhm, father? The bitter-"

"I'm shredding as fast as I can!" Fendros was no professional cook. He focussed intently on swiftly cutting vegetables on a board without slicing his fingers.

"That's not bittergreen, father, that's black cabbage!" Rhazii exclaimed.

Fendros' eyes shot up with a look of a man in a battle. "I know! This is for the frittata! The bittergreen's in the box in the far basket!" He pointed with his knife. "Go!"

"Yes sir!" Rhazii did not know what bittergreen even was. He pulled out the first small box he found in the basket. "I'll cut them up right aw- oh, never mind, it's already dried and shredded."

"I, um...okay. Just give me a minute" Julan replied, moving slowly and lingering around in the water for a minute before finally climbing out of the river and following after his father. At the very least, it did look like he had actually been cleaned reasonably well.

Janius' deception seemed effective, as Julan seemed genuinely confused about what he wanted and why they would be speaking in private. He just looked up at his father, curiously and somewhat confused.

---

As demanding as Shevari was, there was something impressive about how she managed to cook so many meals so quickly and efficiently, and while still paying close attention to the fine details of each dish. She was going to be able to make a much larger meal for them in the few hours they had than Fendros might have expected.

Given Cheydinhal's proximity to Morrowind, Shevari had access to the right ingredients to make the core of their meal from Dunmer cuisine. She was making a special stew from a recipe that had once been popular in Vivec, which she had learned from a former resident of the city. At the same time, she was preparing a Telvanni frittata, similar to the popular kwama egg quiche, a side dish of Redoran peppered melons, and even an Ashlander nix-hound chili. Although, she gave no explanation on how she came across that sort of recipe. Provided Ahnasha was able to find their main course, they would also be having a kagouti roast. Beyond Dunmer cuisine, she was also planning on a few dishes from Imperial and Breton cuisine, with a dessert of Summerset rainbow pie, Sun's Height pudding, and her own personal sweetroll recipe.

Shevari grabbed the bittergreen from Rhazii and gave him his next command before she had even turned back around. "Get the cabbage to the frittata and stoke the fire under the chili. That should've already been done by now." She began, interrupting herself as she dashed over to the chili and sniffed the air over it. "No, no, the fire wasn't hot enough. If we don't get the sausages going now, they'll never be done in time. Get another fire going! Quick, quick!"

A few more minutes, mistakes, and delays later and Shevari was dashing between fires, muttering angry-sounding words in Jel to herself. She eventually stopped in front of Rhazii, looking as if she were going to expel all of her frustration at once. "Rhazii, this is not..." She began, but all at once, stopped in silence. Her Argonian eyelids blinked upwards a few times, and all of the tension in her body suddenly deflated. She stood up straight in front of him, smiling with her hands clasped together. "Oh, um...my apologies. I got a little carried away there. I sometimes...forget myself when I'm cooking."

Janius turned and walked with Julan. He looked over his shoulder one more time to ensure Leeus wasn't following. He began once out of earshot of her.

"So, I'll keep this brief," he said, looking to the ground as they walked. "Your mother and I had a talk about you and Hal-Leeus. She expressed some concern – you're young, experiencing new things, it's easy to get carried away."

Janius slowed to a stop near a tree he could lean on with his hand. He looked at Julan directly. "First things first. Do you know where our potions are to cleanse early stage lycanthropy? You've been carrying one around, right?"

---

Perhaps owing to their previous experiences, Fendros and Rhazii were coping with Shevari's demanding orders with good composure. It was their lack of speed and precision which left something to be desired. Their effect on Shevari was not lost on them.

Rhazii looked up from the coals he was prematurely raking with a long stick. He tightened his jaw in anticipation of being shouted down, but was instead left unsure of how to react to Shevari catching herself.

He stood up slowly. "It's okay Aunt Shevari." He ran his hand over his ear. "Er, sorry to rile you up. I've never cooked like this in my life. I'll just...let the fire pick up some more and go back to stirring the sauce."