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“Here?”

“Lower. I remembered.”

He nods and smiles, running the side of his finger along the fish. “You did well.”

I grin at him so hard that he looks up again.

My new bow’s over by my pallet with the arrows, line, and stake still tied to it, and the leather grip’s gone dark where my wet hand was. I want to pick it up again, but he’ll only tell me to rest my shoulder.

“This bow’s better than the other one. I barely had to pull.”

“It’s made for you.”

“You should make all my bows. It improves them.”

He breathes out through his nose and lets go of the fish.

I could stop there. He’s admired it, and I’ve shown him the hole twice.

“This little one was harder.” I pick it up by the tail. “Kept turning away from me. I nearly left it, but we need enough for both of us.”

He’s looking at me again, not the fish.

“And I missed the first shot. Only the first. After that—”

“Kestria.”

I put the little fish down next to the others.

All right. Here it comes.

“Why did you come back?” His hand’s flat on the stone with the claws hanging off the edge.

I wipe my fingers on the damp cloth. “And leave you my fish?”

He just waits, both ears turned my way.

“I meant it. You could’ve gone.”

“I know you did.” I fold the cloth over my fingers. There’s another scale stuck by my thumb, and I go after that too.

Ugh. Just say it.

“When Keer picked me up, I didn’t know it was him. Then I saw his back, and I knew, but he wouldn’t stop running. I couldn’t make him listen.”

Rauk’s claws come up off the stone.

“I kept thinking you’d find the bow. And the fish. I’d told you to stay here, and then you wouldn’t know where I’d gone.”

I look up from my hands. He’s standing very still.

“I was frightened you’d think I’d left you. That was the first thing, once I knew it was Keer. You’d think I’d waited until you couldn’t follow me.”

His ears lower, and I put the cloth down.

“I didn’t want to leave you like that.”

“And when you go home?”