Kai and Sama headed out to the markets to buy warm clothes as soon as Rubi got back. Mimi wrote them a list to take with them and they bid their farewells. All the coins Sama had been lifting from people's pockets was enough for them to sort out their needs. Rubi was happy to have taken care of the food as it was what she did for her crew regardless.

In the stable stalls, they put up their mules for the night, giving them plenty of hay and oats to fuel them tomorrow. While they ate, Rubi went over Juda with a brush, kicking up the dust and dander in his hair into the air and making her sneeze. She talked to him while she did, remembering the horses back home.

Elegant, majestic creatures with sharp, defined heads, long, strong legs and their tails always held high like a flag. They had glossy coats in every solid colour she had ever seen on a horse, though the ones belonging to the royal palace tended to have white, swirling hair patterns on their undersides and white socks of various lengths. Their long tails and manes were sometimes streaked with white too.

As a child, she had many favourites that came and went. A beautiful steel-grey mare that turned white with age before her eyes as the years went by. A seal brown colt too wild and spirited for royal ceremonies but with a heart for running and jumping. They lost hours of the day together at high speeds, only slowing down to a trot when someone who would report back to her father came into view. He had a terrible fear that she would fall, and of course, she did several times, but he never found out.

She had truly loved riding horses when she was younger. Having this long-eared, stocky hybrid was the closest thing she had now, and she intended to love him wholeheartedly.

"Why are you so good and so cute? Tell me, you delightful, munching creature."

"Rubi, you really need to stop talking to that donkey." Kagemaru insisted. "He can't reply."

"He's a mule and he's perfect." Rubi retorted, scratching Juda's chin, his mouth full of hay. "And you'd reply if you could, wouldn't you? Yes, you would!"

"Should I name mine?" Mimi asked.

"No." Kagemaru said immediately.

"Yes." Rubi said at the same time, deliberately louder.

"I shall call her Jun. What will you call yours, Kagemaru?"

He ignored her, assembling the straps of the pack saddle for the next day. It looked like there was a lot of gear to carry, but it was the minimum Rubi would risk carrying. After talking with Indra's parents she had plotted a journey across the foothills between towns and villages where they could restock supplies when necessary. There would be anywhere from three to five days travel between stops, the terrain uneven and rocky.

Indra's parents had assured her the mules would have enough new greenery to graze on as they were far from picky eaters, though a bag of oats would be well received. But once they headed out though, they were on their own. They may not see a single soul between stops. There could be heavy snowfall, torrential rain. If they travelled on higher ground, there could be avalanches, rockfall or mudslides.

When Kai and Sama came back it was dark, and Rubi was hungry for their last dinner in the inn and apothecary. Sama showed her matching set of woollen hat, scarf and mittens to anyone who would look. The wool was so soft, stained indigo. Kai had a larger set of bright blue knits, textured with knitted-in leaf patterns. They were a close colour match to the stripes on his cheeks. Together they made a whole rainbow.

They all sat down for dinner together. The kitchen wafted delicious smells at them, teasing what was to come. Rubi and Mimi spread their lists out in front of them, checking and double-checking they had the right supplies and the right amount.

Somehow, Mimi knew how much feed a mule needed by its weight, as well as how much each person needed in their rations. She wrote up calculations on the page for each person, being careful to overestimate rather than underestimate their needs. Rubi already had a good idea of what supplies to get committed to memory, but it was reassuring to have Mimi check it all over and confirm she had done a good job.

They went through the list from top to bottom, until finally their food arrived and Mimi was satisfied everything had been counted up appropriately.

"You did an excellent job, Captain." Mimi said. "We will be set for the first week of travel with ease. We will stock up again at each rest stop to stay ahead of our needs."

Out came the waitresses with their swishing black locks and laden with platters. The table was laid with flatbreads, rice, pickles and curries. The two crews dove right in because it was quite late now and they were all hungry.

"Kira, what's a good name for Kage's mule?" Rubi asked across the table.

He thought for a moment, chewing his goat curry thoughtfully.

"Fiore. Works for any gender. It means flower."

"Kage, your mule is now called Fiore." she decided.

"He doesn't need a name." Kagemaru sighed. "If he doesn't respond to it, it's not his name."

"You've clearly never owned a cat." Zodwa laughed.

"Can I name ours?" Sama asked gingerly, looking up at Kai.

"Of course you can." he replied warmly. "What would you like to name it?"

"Is it a boy mule or a girl mule?"

"I don't know. Have you asked?"

"No." she said. Her eyes widened. "Should I go ask?"

"I don't think you need to, but why not pick a name that anyone can have?"

"Hmm." she said, thinking carefully. "Well, I think any name can belong to anyone. So I should just pick a name I think they would like."

"That's a great idea." Zodwa said proudly, stirring their tea.

"Iria. That was my avoa's name."

"What does 'avoa' mean?" Rubi asked.

"My nai's nai."

"Oh. Her mother's mother." Kai explained. "Your grandmother, Sama."

"As in, Iria the Seer?" Gaku asked suddenly. He looked completely shocked. "Your grandmother is Iria the Seer?"

Sama nodded innocently.

"Who's that?" Rubi asked. "Someone famous?"

"Very." Gaku said seriously. "She was a very significant figure in Casaemos about a hundred years ago. Casaemos used to be a northern state of my home country, Miñacasa, before separating as their own nation. Both nations used to speak the same language, Xacasa, but now almost everyone speaks Caló. Iria could predict the future with near perfect accuracy."

"So she was a Collector?" Rubi supposed.

"No, not exactly." Gaku said. "Foresight is a gift passed down directly. Their children inherit it exactly as the parent had it, unlike Collectors, if they get it at all. It doesn't spontaneously appear like we can. Iria came from several generations of well-known seers. They were celebrated for their gift, probably because it was useful."

"Have you ever seen the future, Sama?" Rubi asked the little girl, uncertain if she wanted to know the answer.

"I'm not sure." she said honestly. "But I get good feelings about people sometimes. Like Kai. I knew he was good when I saw him."

"Maybe when you get older you'll be able to see the future too." Rubi suggested. "You could help a lot of people with a gift like that."

"Yeah!" Sama agreed. "I want to help lots of people."

"And you will." Kai nodded.

"I had good feelings about you, too." Sama added, looking at Rubi.

"Oh, you did?" she replied, remembering the first time she locked eyes with her. Floating in the sea, clinging to a dead Kai. Of course, that did not last long.

"Yeah." the little girl said. "I looked into your eyes and I knew."

"Thanks, that's really nice of you to say, Sama."

She smiled broadly, dunking her flatbread into some garlic pickle before eating it.

"When are we heading out?" Kai asked. "We're all packed up and ready to go."

"After breakfast." Mimi answered. "Indra and his parents will lead the way to our first stop in their hometown, and then we shall head out on our own."

Chandra hovered at the bar, drying glasses.

"I'm going to miss you all." she said, punctuating it with a sniffle. "I've never seen so much love and hope in my inn before. You'll come back to visit at some stage, I hope?"

"Of course." Rubi said immediately. "It's been so great to be here."

"I'll hold you to it." Indra said.

As they ate, Rubi saw Kagemaru scratching behind his shoulders. When he winced, she felt compelled to say something.

"You alright there?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah." he replied. "Just itchy. Like a scab."

"It'll do that." Kiramaru interjected. "I'm surprised it hasn't been driving you mad until now. Mine were sore, gross and flaky for ages."

"I wish dad had said something about this before it happened." Kagemaru muttered. "I didn't even know to expect it, let alone how to handle it."

"How many does your dad have?" Rubi asked, careful not to drop the word 'wings'. Kage still had them bound up under his clothes, as did his brother.

"Six. But mum has none."

"Six?" she exclaimed, her eyes wide as saucers.

"Damn." Kai said, impressed. "So you might end up with six too."

"Maybe." Kagemaru shrugged. "I've always had two. I thought that was all I was getting."

"I didn't expect that your mother doesn't have them." Rubi admitted. "I think I just pictured your parents as both being just like you, with one pair."

"We do look a lot like dad." Kiramaru said. "But we don't have any other relatives to compare ourselves to."

"Really? No aunts, uncles, cousins?"

"Nope. It was just us. In a big house on a hill."

"Sounds quite nice." Zodwa said. "I'd love a big house, a big garden, no neighbours."

"What would you do with all the space?" Rubi asked.

"Plant an orchard." they said confidently. "Rescue street dogs and cats, let them roam and feed them every day."

"That does sound nice." she agreed. "I'd love to have horses again. They'd appreciate a nice orchard for sure."

"Well, when we're rich, we'll buy our dream house." Zodwa promised, winking. "Hit up the farmer's market, bask in the sun, look at beautiful people. Maybe even in Akali. I can see you like the waitresses."

Rubi felt her cheeks flush.

"You don't need to say it out loud!" she whispered back quietly.

"Rubi, at any age," Zodwa said wisely. "You're too old to be embarrassed for what, or who, you like."

That was true. Zodwa radiated with who they were. Statuesque, wearing their makeup like war paint, filling the room like a ray of sunshine. Not everyone could be like that.

"I wish I had your confidence." Rubi decided to reply, something akin to a mix of shame and admiration whirling inside her.

"It takes practice and it's hard." they replied. "But it's worth it."

As the night drew on and people put themselves to bed, Rubi chased a few pickles around her bowl with leftover rice, not eating because she was still hungry but because she was thinking. When they split off, would she take Hiiro with her?

"You alright?" Gaku asked. "It's pretty late, you must be tired."

"Yeah." she agreed, rubbing her eyes. "I just feel like if I go to sleep tomorrow will come too fast."

Hiiro nodded.

"Yeah. But you have important places to be."

"Have you decided what you are going to do?" she asked. "Come with me to the mountains or go with Gaku and meet us later?"

"I think I need to go home." Hiiro said plainly.

"Wait, what?" Rubi stuttered. "Why?"

"I need to talk with ubaba. There's no way he let Takumi leave like that and didn't look into where he was going. If there's a war brewing in the east, he surely knows something. He's a king. He's supposed to be interested in world politics."

Rubi mulled this over. If they were away from home, there was no way for them to know what he knew. He and Takumi would be the only ones talking global policies with Migiue's cabinet of officials. Takumi might be young, but he was not dumb. He was at a prime age for forming opinions about how the world worked, how to run a country.

"If Takumi is a Collector and he was headhunted by some far off ruler," Rubi thought out loud, "Ubaba is going to be devastated. All three kids he raised would be Collectors, and all three of us have left. He might even be angry."

"It's worth trying to talk with him." Hiiro said. "There's so much we may not know, and so much that might help us."

"It's up to you." she replied. "If you decide against it, you can join me in the morning up to the mountains. I understand if you don't."

"Thank you for understanding." he said quietly. "I've been gone so long. All this news about Takumi has me scared. Not just for his safety, but for everyone's. This is bigger than us. If Migiue's military power might be needed to protect our home and our allies, ubaba handles all of that on his own. It's in his interest to fill me in on what he knows."

"I know." Rubi sighed. "I'm just sad to see you go again."

"It's a tough decision. But I do love him, as much as I love you. We're stronger together." he paused. "Rubi, please promise me you won't go any further east than you have to. Please don't go looking for Takumi."

"I won't." she retorted immediately. "My crew and I can't take on a hostile nation."

"Even if you see an opportunity, you need to stay away. People get kidnapped and held hostage. For all we know, Takumi is leverage for something this new ruler wants."

"The Man with a Hole in His Head." she said quietly. "The one looking for Sama."

"And even if you don't keep yourself safe," he added. "Keep that kid safe."

"Which one, Kai, Sama or Take'Ichi?" she joked dryly.

"All of them," he said firmly. "Whether you find Mimi's home or not, please meet up with Gaku afterwards and stay safe."

"I will." she promised. "And you too."

"I'm always safe. We're made of strong stuff."

"Yeah, thanks ubaba!"

They laughed. The grizzled old man they called their father had certainly handed on some gifts. He never glorified violence, even though it had made up a significant portion of his life.

Rubi could remember proudly showing him her schoolwork as a child and only realising as a teen that he could read less well than she could. She remembered him poring over books, struggling to learn how to read Proper so he too could discuss the literature she studied. She liked to read aloud to him, the way he could really appreciate stories about heroes and villains, monsters and men, the heavens and the earth. He taught her to throw a punch and to keep her knees strong. He told her when to say no and when to run away.

She remembered measuring her height against his chest and hoping that one day, she would be as big and strong as him, and that she would love someone as much as he loved his children. She wanted to speak as fondly about someone as he did when he remembered their mother and how proud she would be of them.

Her mother. She was five or six years old when umama and Aunt Kurenai died. Hiiro was about nine. Takumi was only an infant.

How her father had screamed. The agony in his voice when there was nothing left to do. The palace walls shook with the echoes of someone who had lost the favourite part of their soul. The strength in his body was suddenly useless.

Time had run out.

After weeks of full body pains, violent seizures and burning fevers, it progressed to scarce episodes of consciousness until she finally went still. Aunt Kurenai went first. A few hours later, her beloved umama was gone too. Her ubaba cried at the funeral. No heaving sobs, no sniffling. Just streams of tears running down his weathered face, his jaw tightly locked.

Rubi cried so much that day that she remembered very little of the event. The days blurred together, like looking through watering eyes. It was as if the anguish had taken even her strength to make memories. But she did remember one thing, something that he said at the ceremony.

"In a long life of fear and uncertainty, only in her arms was I home."

That day taught her that everyone felt fear, some people are just better at hiding it. Anyone could break under the right circumstances. No one, not even her father, was invincible.

The last time she saw her mother's face was before they closed the lid of her coffin and carried her and her aunt to the tomb. She was too pale, her autumn brown skin ashen. Her long, wavy hair was too still. There was no smile on her kohl painted lips. All the jewel-studded gold finery and beautiful linen in the world could not resurrect a single spark of the energy she had once had.

Their ubaba, King Shuiro the Red, never remarried. There would never be another Imayou.

"Do you want to take the Disaster?" Rubi asked, realising her eyes were starting to water. "I'm sure Gaku wouldn't mind if you needed her."

Hiiro shook his head.

"No thank you, I don't want to take any of Gaku's crew from him. I'll go by land."

"Alright." she nodded.

"Maybe I'll go get a mule myself." he added. "That vendor may still have some."

"So long as you name it, you have my approval." Rubi said, forcing a smile.

"Of course," he replied. "Pets deserve names, even if they're working pets."

Rubi stretched, feeling how late it was now. The two of them hugged before going to their rooms. She closed the door, turning to be surprised to see that Gaku was still awake.

He was going over old plans that she immediately recognised as being blueprints for the Disaster. He was familiarising himself with it again. Even though he had created the ship, he had the good sense to have it all fresh in his mind. Vanity of your own abilities could be a risk at sea.

While Rubi was nowhere near as experienced as he was, she knew that ship from keel to top sail. It was her home. It was her palace.

"You alright?" he said as soon as he turned in the chair to see her. "Your eyes are puffy."

"Oh. Yeah." she said, immediately rubbing them. "Hiiro is going back to Kusanagi city to see our father. They were fighting a lot before he left but he believes it's necessary to see him again. The idea of going home, back to everything, just makes me feel so..."

There was no word.

"It's... bittersweet." Gaku said quietly. "I know. I can't really go home either. Too many people from the Navy would be looking for me. And maybe, the Patchwork Girl."

"Kage and Kira make it look easy never going home." Rubi said slowly. "They've never seemed to be homesick. Then, I see Take'Ichi who's still sad about it all every time we talk about it. About not fitting in, but still missing home. Mimi barely knows anything where she came from and she still wants to find out.

I know so much about home. The easiest thing would have been to never change anything. But I know I needed it. Yet... I still feel sad I can't go to my father on good terms."

"Your case is complicated too." Gaku said solemnly. "Cutting ties with family always is, even when it's for the best. We all have our reasons and I'm the last person you need to convince those reasons were good. I believe in you and your decisions. I believe in Hiiro. I know everyone here has good intentions, no matter where they came from. That's why we're friends."

"You're a little ray of sunshine, Gaku." Rubi murmured. "I just... ugh. I have too many feelings and not enough words. I'm just blabbering."

"It's alright." he assured her. "We should probably get some sleep."

"Yeah. Last night we're bunking up after all."

They climbed into bed in their undergarments. Rubi fluffed up his pillow, reorganising them to put the softest on the top.

"Back at the black market, in Port Kibo," Rubi said slowly. She wondered if her voice would fail her before she could finish what she wanted to say. "I was thinking about how whenever we meet up we get drunk."

"Yeah," Gaku agreed, nodding. "It's nice to celebrate when we all finally get together."

"I know, but it's been nice. Not being drunk together."

Gaku smiled.

"It has, hasn't it?"

"We might not see each other for a while, especially if we miss each other in Daikoku." Rubi continued. "So I wanted to ask something. Are you... do you find me attractive?"

Gaku went red in the face, right up to the tips of his ears.

"I, um," he stuttered. "I have done. But you're my friend first and I don't want things to be awkward between us."

"So yes?"

"Yes."

"If you wanted to, just for fun, we could... do it. Since it's our last night together, in this nice private room. Friends with benefits."

Gaku quickly looked around the room, automatically checking if they truly were alone and free to do as they pleased.

"Yeah," he said with a smile. "I think that'd be nice."

Together they dressed down to their underwear and lay down on the sheets together. There was no need to rush. Rubi felt like Gaku knew that and was happy to take things slowly, but at the same time she felt too shy to look at him while he undressed.

Should she help? Should he undress her? Was that essential to have real sex?

"Have you done this before?" Rubi asked nervously.

"Yeah. Not with anyone special though. You?"

"Uh, once. It was a spur of the moment kinda thing. Y'know, hormones."

"It was all good though?"

"It was exciting and fun, but over pretty quickly. I thought there'd be more?"

"More what?" Gaku asked uncertainly.

"Just. More." she tried to explain. "It felt like it was just getting good and then he was done. We had to rush off so we wouldn't get caught."

"Where was this?" he asked, his eyebrows raising.

"If I tell you, don't laugh."

"I won't! If I do, I'll tell you something funny that happened to me."

"Alright... it was in the tack room of the stable. He was a junior stable hand I liked. It smelled so strongly of saddle oil it was almost unbearable. I was glad to be out of that room."

When Gaku did not laugh at her, she felt a lot more at ease.

"Why did you stop seeing him?" he asked.

Rubi shrugged.

"After that I think he lost interest. He just stopped looking at me the same. Better than him telling every soul around that he hooked up with a princess."

"Definitely better than that."

"What about you? Did you pick a funny story as your penance if you laughed?"

"I did," he confessed. "You want to hear it?"

She nodded, either giddy with nerves of what was to come or for a hilarious story.

"My first time was with a husband and wife."

Rubi's eyes went wide.

"Really?" she drawled.

"Really." he insisted. "I was at a bar somewhere in Continental Peninsula, fresh off a trip to the Peninsula East Islands, where Dimitar and Murat are from. The languages are very different, so I was using very limited Luštis in a place where they speak Loshn. I'm floundering. This bartender is looking after me and is being quite generous with his pours. I'm not drunk but I'm feeling brave and bubbly.

This pretty lady starts talking to me and is very friendly, we're bouncing broken Luštis and Mainlander off each other, having a good time. Then her partner comes up to us and invites me back to their room. Because I'm feeling brave, I accept.

Everything is going well and we're having fun. Then, I went to move across the bed, to get out of the way or whatever, and my foot slips off the mattress. I smashed my foot into the bed frame and broke my two end toes. My toenails were bleeding, but it didn't hurt much at first, but as I sobered up it really started to. There was blood all over the bottom of the bed. I had to creep out of their room on two swollen, broken toes and not wake them. Neither Dimi or Murat believed me how I did it."

"It does sound equal parts unlucky and ridiculous." Rubi agreed.

"It totally happened." he insisted.

"Alright, I believe you. Mostly."

They laughed and looked at each other fondly. Rubi saw a kindness in Gaku's grey eyes. There were those little gold flakes she liked so much, the deep charcoal ring around the outside edge of the iris. She noticed he even had little freckles on his eyelids. She liked them. There were a few around his mouth too. There was a tiny freckle on his lower lip, perhaps some fainter ones too if she looked closely enough. Should she kiss him?

Gaku leaned forward and before she knew it, his soft lips were pressed against hers. He was warm against her. It was nice. There was something safe there, right where their skin touched. Something she could not find sailing from port to port, tavern to tavern, bar to bar.

Her fingers came up to his head, stroking his hair softly. His hands felt strong and reliable as they touched her bare waist. He was guiding her on top of him. Her leg slipped over his body so that she was straddling his hips. It was pleasant and she felt safe, but she felt her body was not responding how she had hoped.

There was too much uncertainty.

"Gaku,"

"Mmhm?"

"I don't think this is doing it for me."

He pulled away immediately, his concerned face framed by the pillows.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"I don't know." she said honestly. "I'm just not feeling it. I think I need to laugh with you more than I need anything else. Maybe now just isn't a good time. I'm sorry."

She watched his face, anxiously waiting for it to change. Would he be angry? Would he be upset that she led him on and changed her mind? Surely, Gaku would never...

"You don't have to be sorry at all." he said in the most genuine way she had ever heard. "We won't do anything you don't want to."

Rubi slid off awkwardly onto the mattress, but emotionally she could not have felt more supported or understood.

"Do you want to just cuddle?" she asked, pulling the sheets up.

"Yeah." Gaku smiled. "That'd be nice."