"Beylah vo." He wanted to say more, but he was coming to know his shei'tani well enough to realize that rock-stubborn clench of her jaw meant she was no longer listening. Anything he said now would just be wasted words. He glanced up at the sky. The sun was well past its zenith, the afternoon more than half-gone. "It's getting late. Let's finish the inspection."

He offered Ellysetta his wrist, but she only gave him a dark look and stalked away without him. He sighed and followed. She was not pleased with him or the plans he'd been making for her, and he couldn't blame her. He was asking too much of her, and he knew it. But what choice did he have?

They continued their walk of the perimeter, stopping occasionally to check defensive positions and greet the handful of Fey warriors manning the battlements. Though her eyes still flashed with temper, Ellysetta was a woman of her word. She clenched her jaw, listened to Rain and the Fey as they discussed the city's armaments and defenses, and asked pertinent, probing questions that proved she was paying attention and trying to absorb and process the information.

By the time they circled back around to the northern wall overlooking the city's sheltered harbor, the Great Sun was a scant two bells from setting, and Eren was waiting for them at the top of the stairs.

"All is ready, Feyreisen," he said when they drew near. "But you haven't much time."

"What is ready?" Ellysetta's brows drew together in suspicion.

"The surprise I promised you, shei'tani. The real reason we came." They returned to the fortress only long enough to change back into their leathers before Rain led Ellysetta to Blade's Point's sheltered port, where a sleek, low-slung boat carved of gleaming golden wood bobbed in the harbor, secured to the stone pier by thick woven docking ropes.

"You're taking me sailing?" She stared at the boat in disbelief. "You bring me here, tell me you're preparing me for your death, and you think I want to go sailing? Have you lost your senses?" She planted her fists on her hips, her eyes snapping with outrage.

"Las." He held up his hands in truce. "Not just sailing. This is the Bay of Flame, and the Great Sun will set within the next two bells. I thought you might like to partake of its magic."

Ellysetta remembered the legends of the Bay of Flame. According to ancient Fey myth, Lissallukai, the first tairen ever to cast a wing shadow over the Fading Lands, had breathed her fire upon the waters of the bay at sunset and spun magic into the world. Young Fey boys came here on their Soul Quest to swim in the waters of the bay at sunset and dream beneath the light of the fairy-flies to find their soul's true magic.

"This is another thing you think I need to do so I can take your place as Defender of the Fey, isn't it?"

He sighed. "I simply thought that since you've never had a Soul Quest, you might want to give this a try. There is magic here. Perhaps even enough to help you find your song or learn to trust yourself. Perhaps even enough to show you the path to completing our bond."

The patience in his voice made Ellysetta feel petty. Rain was the one going to war. She was the one staying safely behind in the Fading Lands, risking nothing.

Nothing except the possibility of spending the rest of her life without him. She bit her lip and looked away, blinking against a sudden rush of tears. That possibility didn't bear thinking about.

"Sieks'ta. I'm being childish. It's just that…" Her chin trembled. Her throat grew so tight she couldn't speak, and the tears she was fighting spilled over. She swiped at them with the backs of her hands. "I don't want to lose you, Rain."

His arms enfolded her, drawing her against his warm strength. "That is an impossibility, shei'tani. I am yours forever."

She turned, burrowing against him, pressing her face to the hollow of his throat. "You know what I mean." She spoke against his skin, feeling the pulse in his throat against her lips, the taste of him mingling with the salty wetness of her tears.

"I know." He stroked her hair and held her. "If I could, I would stay by your side and never leave you. But that's not a choice I can make. I must be a Feyreisen worthy of my crown. Only then will I be worthy of your bond."

"You're worthy now," she protested.

"Nei, I am not. You've always believed me better than I truly am, but now it's time for me to become that honorable Fey I see in your eyes." He tilted her chin up and thumbed away her tears, smiling with such gentleness she nearly started crying again. "Las, kem'san. Come share the magic of the bay with me. I've never known anyone yet who hasn't found a measure of peace after swimming the waters at sunset."

She drew in a ragged breath and nodded, drying her eyes with her palms. He would be leaving in a matter of days. There was no guarantee he'd ever return. She wasn't going to waste the time left to them on tears and accusations.

She gave him her hand to help her into the slender craft. Once she was seated, he pushed off from the dock, then took his own seat near the stern and spun a weave of Air to fill the sail and send them skimming across the bay towards the black sand beaches on the distant northern shores. The small, Elvish-made craft was swift and sleek, cutting through the waves and swells with ease.

The Bay of Flame was large, more a small gulf than a bay, and even with the Air-spun winds driving them, the sail from Blade's Point to the northern shores was going to take almost a bell. Needing to be close to Rain, she carefully made her way to the back of the craft to sit between his feet and rest her head on his thigh as he manned the tiller. "Do you know any Elvish sailing songs?"