Campsite

   "Wow," Taerre said. "Your grandmother is quite a person. Even as a spirit her strength is incredible."
   "I know," Darius replied. "I think that her strength is the reason she has been around for all this time."
   "Darius, I’m sorry."
   "For what?"
   "For doubting you. I have known you long enough to know better."
   "Taerre, you didn’t really know that much about me until tonight."
   "Maybe not, but I knew enough about your character. When we trained, you would never accept anything less than my best. But, the one time I was hurt, you stopped and took care of the cut on my midriff. You never tried to take advantage of me, like some of the others who only saw me as a path to my father’s side. You treated me as a equal, as a friend. Thank you."
   Darius looked at her, understanding her more now than he had before. "It must have been rough, knowing that most of your friends only wanted to get closer to your father."
   Taerre shrugged. "It sometimes hurt. My tutors wanted his favor, as did most everyone else I knew. I sometimes wonder if your grandmother did us any favors by handing over the throne to my grandfather. I’ve heard many of my kinsmen say that the humans were a bunch of opportunists, but we seemed to be that same way, once we had the chance."
   "I wonder," Darius said.
   "What?"
   "Well, there were few Elves in the human court and now there are almost no humans in the Elven court. Maybe, it doesn’t matter which race is in charge. We seem to almost be the same."
   Taerre thought about it. "You might be right. When humans ruled, the Elves were mostly outdoor types, living with nature. Now things are reversed. We seem to be locked inside the castle walls while you are out in the wilds. You know, a balance might be good. If we ruled together, then maybe both would be better off."
   "You might be right. But that isn’t up to us," Darius replied. "Our task is elsewhere."
   "True," Taerre said, thoughtfully. "I wonder what kind of ruler you would be?"
   "Dead, remember?"
   "Oh, sorry."
   "Never mind. Taerre, we don’t know when or where it will happen. Just that it will. It isn’t different from most folk. Now, how about some dinner."

   The two sat and ate in companionable silence, each bound up in their own thoughts. Taerre worried about her human friend, it seemed so unfair that he must die in order to save everyone else. Darius thought about getting Taerre to his grandmother’s cavern, wondering just what waited for them there.

   After dinner, Darius started repairing the one decent pack left while Taerre cleaned their dishes and inventoried their supplies.
   "There isn’t much left," she said. "No more meat, and only a few spices."
   Darius looked up for sewing the pack. "That shouldn’t be a problem. You just might be the best bow hunter I have ever seen."
   Taerre smiled at him. "Thank you. But we still have to find game, and I don’t know how long that might take."
   "I wouldn’t worry about that." Darius replied. "There is a herd of deer just north of us, less than two miles away. We will pass through their territory tomorrow, one the way to the cave."
   "And just how do you know that?"
   "I can smell them, or at least I could until the wind changed."
   "What?"
   "My sense of smell remains acute, even in human form. Somehow, I can retain some of the instincts and senses from being an animal."
   "Oh," Taerre said, thinking. "What’s it like? Being an animal, I mean."
   Darius shrugged, returning to his work. "Depends on the animal, is there any particular one you would want to know about?"
   "How about the cat you were earlier?"
   Darius stopped and looked up, his eyes far away. "The cat. Well a mountain cat is powerful. He can leap great distances. His paws are strong enough to knock down small trees. His claws are intensely sharp, coming from scratching on things, which strengthens them as well. His sense of smell is acute, he is agile, fast. I would enjoy being a cat except for one thing, he is alone too much."
   Taerre listened raptly, wrapping her thoughts around the being of a cat as Darius had described it. "What is your favorite?"
   "I have two. Wolf and falcon. The wolf is a fantastic animal; swift, strong, stealthy, and even better, it is a pack animal. Wolves live with and for each other. The falcon is a strong compact bird; fleet, powerful, smart. Of all the animals I could be, I enjoy these the most."
   "What is it like to fly?"
   "You launch yourself from the ground, your wings beating the air, first in a struggle to overcome it, then in concert with it. Soon you become one with the wind, using the warm air to create lift, easing the work your wings must do. You use your tail much the way a boat uses its rudder, to steer. Soon though, the mechanics are left to instinct and you just soar, rising high above the land, leaving all the earthbound below you, until the time has come to land. Then you return, and become again a part of the earth. Knowing that soon, once again, you may return to the skies, free, unfettered, flying."
   Taerre sat staring at the sky, envisioning flying free. "Just once, I’d like to experience it, flying that is. Darius, have you ever tried being something other than a predator?"
   "Many times, I’ve been a deer, squirrel, as well as a few others. Why?"
   "I was just wondering. Everything you described seemed to be aimed at hunting. I just wondered if there was any limitation to what animals you could become."
   "Well, there are some that I haven’t tried. I’m not interested in becoming a pig, for one."
   Taerre laughed, then thought. "What about a horse?"
   Darius looked at the elf sideways. "Looking for a free ride?"
   "Well, I was just thinking." Taerre said.
   "Sorry, but no. I tried becoming a horse, once," Darius said, standing and walking over to the stream.
   "What happened?"
   "I’m not sure. But, it didn’t work out right. I almost felt horse-like, but not quite. Something felt, I don’t know, off, different, like I was some other animal, but what, I don’t know. The feeling was so strange that I never tried again."
   "Well, so much for that thought," Taerre laughed. "The pack looks good. Who’s going to carry it?"
   "Well, since the pack is rigged to be easily dropped, I’ll carry it. That way if we see game, I can drop the pack and change to wolf. You will have an easier time drawing your bow and notching an arrow. Just do me a major favor."
   "What’s that?"
   "Don’t shoot me. I object to that."
   Taerre laughed. "I promise. Maybe we should get some sleep. I’ll take first watch. I have a lot to think about."
   "Alright. Wake me about midnight."
   "Sleep well, Darius."

   As Darius slept, Taerre drew her sword and a sharpening stone and slowly started to work the edge of the blade. The whisper of stone on blade helped clear her thoughts and allowed her to think clearly. The revelations about Darius explained a lot. It wasn’t the humans that had rejected him, he had kept away from them, hoping to avoid hurting anyone. He had only sought her out to fulfill the prophecy but his very nature helped them to become friends as well as partners. He had told no one of his ability, his gift. Only the spirit of his long dead grandmother had kept him anywhere near people. Taerre, figured that without the prophecy, Darius would have changed and roamed far from populated lands.
   Taerre turned as she heard a whimper. Darius was shaking his head back and forth, crying softly. She quietly stood and went to sit beside him. Laying a hand on his shoulder to calm him, she decided, then and there, that it didn’t matter what he was, he was her friend. She settled herself to sit with him and stroked his hair as he quieted and fell back to a deep sleep.