“You know, Oldbeard reminds me of you.”
Lady Parhelion laughed as she watched the festivities unfold in the center of town. Even as Tai walked down the street, seemingly oblivious to the world around her, hawkers jumped on the opportunity to yell out their wares at her. They both spent a little too much time eyeing up the candied apples before moving on.
“You said that about Skozz too, didn’t you?” Parhelion chided. “Do I look like a dwarf to you?” “You’re short enough to be one,” Tai hissed in return, leaning her elbow against Parhelion’s shoulder. “And you drink like one.”
“Speaking of which. Did you try getting Bojo drunk again?”
Tai looked around in the streets, looking for signs of any of her companions or trouble. This place was much bigger than she had anticipated, though, and besides the ruckus of the party there was little to be concerned about.
“I bought him a drink first thing when we got into town,” she responded. “And he couldn’t hold it at all. Must’ve been a fluke.”
“Ah, well he’s cute anyways. He’d make a fine leader if it weren’t for-“
“The Observer?”
Lady Parhelion pursed her lips together and rocked back on her heels. Even in this spectral space, she somehow managed to trip on her bardic robes in the process.
“T-that’s not exactly what I was going to say. I thought maybe Bojo might be a viable leader if he could find something to fight for. What’s with you and the Observer?”
Tai’s eye twitched as she looked for a place to settle for the night. It seemed as though every bench was preoccupied with drunk lovers or various belongings. She kept roaming the alleys around the plaza.
“I get bad vibes from that god. She’s young. I like the old gods who know how to wheel and deal with mortals.”
Lady Parhelion looked wistful for a moment. “Do you think any of our gods are looking for us?”
The weight of the question would have been enough to make Tai pause on perhaps any other day, but by this point she had tackled the same thought so many times that Lady Parhelion’s voice seemed more like an echo.
“If they are, it’s probably for the best they don’t find me or the sisters.” She replied softly. Parhelion looked down for a moment, but then nodded.
The night drew on and Tai entertained Parhelion with the sights and sounds of the city. While she did not dance with the others, it felt as though she was there in some form.
“Can you dance with one leg?” Parhelion giggled, an image of Tai wobbling through the steps of her songs flashed into their minds.
“I can dance with five legs just as well as six,” Tai snapped back, a wild grin playing across her face. “Don’t you worry about that. And if I come home with this same body, I’ll have Preston cook me up something rad with this Chimera horn.”
“Eye for an eye, leg for a leg,” Parhelion whistled. “Look at you with your heroic symbolism.”
“It’s starting to grow on me.”
“So then, does that mean you’ll be aiding Kingsley, just as you aid Skozz?”
Tai shuffled through the quieter streets, the more suburban areas where residents were already turned in for the night.
“We’ll see what happens.”
“He’s a kind man, and he’s clearly been through a lot.”
“He pries too much, and he has his secrets.”
“So do you.”
“My secrets are harmless.”
For a moment, when Tai looked over she saw something change in Lady Parhelion. It was a familiar switch, from friend to commander. The way her face hardened but still kept the smile, the way the playful light drained from her eyes and was replaced with a calculating glaze. Tai respectfully stopped alongside the street and turned to her companion, awaiting orders.
“Your secrets are anything but harmless, Tai,” Lady Parhelion said, looking up into the sky. “They are dangerous because you have become dangerous. Any weakness of yours is now a weakness of theirs. If you are incapacitated by your own fear, then you bring harm to me, to them, and to the Nine.”
“I will be brave,” Tai promised. “Be better than that,” Parhelion said, turning down towards her. “To some, bravery is a cure. To you, it will be an ailment. If you lose your mind, may you burn down your enemies and not your allies.”
“I will not lose my mind.”
“Then you should get some rest,” Parhelion said. “Sane men don’t forgo sleep to wander the streets. Your paranoia is growing.”
“I will take care of it.”
“See that you do. Be careful, Tai.”
“And you, Parhelion.”
But as soon as Parhelion faded, Tai felt her legs ache and yearn to wander further. The night crept on and thoughts kept driving her forward. Vigil and Kingsley, strangers among strangers, they would have to be dealt with. So would their client, and the letter, and… and so many things. Everything wove together and demanded her attention, a woven puzzle that could only be unwound while her eyes stayed open. And before she knew it, her feet had brought her back to the hot springs where the drifters had slept, and the crest of dawn was just beginning to peak over the mountains.
And Tai stood on the patio, watching the sun burn out the sky.