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"You’re like all the others," she said in disgust "Dragging yourselves in fro to steal our food Go back to where you ca our queen as youron "Do we look like refugees siht not have been the best question since we had just stolen food and looked kind of tattered Still, there was a big difference between us and the other gentry we’d passed on this journey "The reason we’re here is to fall upon your queen’ssent us here to plead with her"

The riders exchanged questioning looks with each other "It’s true You don’t look like the usual rabble," adn of our worn state that we didn’t look like royalty either We certainly looked dom do you come from?"

"The Lilac Land," said Dorian quickly This was doe "It’s very far away We’ve been traveling a long time and simply want to free our land from the curse"

The riders had a quiet conference with each other and finally came to a decision "We’ll escort you to our borders," said the gray-haired woman "Just to be certain Once you cross into the next loyal kingdom, howeverbe warned You may not find such a warm reception The Mi"

This ardom I also found it sad that a place called the Mi to happen

"Thank you," said Dorian, in the humblest voice I’d ever heard hi We wouldn’t want to waste your valuable time, fair lady" He then di her one of his char, come-hither smiles To my astonishranted our break, but it was hardly the long bath I’d hoped for I ri By Kiyo’s report, eren’t entirely free of the blight yet, so there was no point in getting rid of the ware soet it on and off quickly once our journey resumed The layers were too heavy for the Beech Land but instantly needed when the road took us across the blight After about three crossings, we stepped fro now, and I couldn’t make out much in the darkness The heat and huh It kind of reminded me of Ohio

"This is the Mimosa Land," declared the Beech woh Dorian had certainly tried to woo it out of her with his shameless flirtation "And here we depart If the road maintains the pattern it has recently, you won’t cross the blight any her a bow "Your kindness will not be forgotten Nor will your beauty My drealossy hair"

She runted at that, but as the riders turned around, I caught sight of her s "That was ridiculous," I told Dorian, once she’d left "She’s not the kind of person to fall for your flirting"

"On the contrary," said Dorian "She’s exactly the kind of person to fall for it I understand these warrior maids, you know They live such harsh, cold lives, always trying to keep up with the menwhen really, they just need someone to make them feel like a woman And that, of course, is an area in which I excel Why, if I’d had ten hing too "Just stop," I said "I don’t want to hear it" Dorian grinned back at me, supremely pleased with himself

"We need toa "And post watches, if what she said was true about this being a hostile land"

The levity vanished, and ere back to business again The blight itself was h proof that Varia and her allies weren’t people anted to underestiht watch, and even those of us eren’t on duty had trouble sleeping The tropical setting was full of night noises, and I tossed and turned over each one of them, certain every insect or rustle of leaves was a co caone undetected or if the Mierous as the Beech captain had claihted ones, ees Regardless, we deeh to finally take our full break and get in soender shifts--soentry found silly--while the other half of the group gathered food The Mi on the road, but in this climate, one didn’t have to search far for sustenance

Once I was stripped and in the water, I was able to get the first good look at nancy weight was gone Unfortunately, this was largely because of the stringent diet I’d been on these last couple weeks I wasn’t showing quite as yure back than near-starvation Still, provided we survived this adventure, I could hope for nutrition soon and some return to my former state The scar from my C-section was still obvious, but that would be the case for the rest of h to have aenie"

There was an odd note to Jased frolanced over at her and saw that she and Keeli were focused on soazes and saw nothing at first Then, a slight ure I hadn’t noticed her because she literally blended into her surroundings

Ostensibly, she had the saentry or hu that was rereen, her skin tanned to a shade of nut brown Her only garment was a short dress made of leaves and flowers She watched us nervously, like a doe ready to flee

"Dryad," said Keeli matter-of-factly "Usually harh sometimes they made it over I’d never encountered one myself but knew "usually harmless" was an accurate statement Dryads were tree nymphs who preferred to be left alone in their woods When threatened, they could get aggressive Otherwise, they tended to be shy and were often inmen ere attracted by that Otherworldly beauty Dryads allegedly didn’t welcome those advances and could be quite hostile to the opposite sex

"I wonder if she could give us information about this place," Jasood idea and a surprising one from Jasmine, who tended to run to extremes