Up and Down

Mountains and Fault Lines

Spoilers for "In the Shadow of the Mountain".

"I shouldn't have reacted so harshly to your goblin... friend. I'm sorry. I'm glad you came."

He is still simmering with anger, she can feel it, hear it in every word. Anna closes her eyes for a moment, breathing in. He isn't truly sorry. But she needs that piece of triptych, and she needs him to watch her back in the caves.

"Very well. Tell me what you know."

"I've seen droves of Loyalists going up the mountain while I waited. They don't know about the triptych, how are they still one step ahead of us?"

Anna shakes her head.

"Somehow, Ranrok knows the Keepers' names and is searching any place connected to them."

"Then they should bloody tell you what's going on!" Sebastian's hand slices the air, frustration written on his every feature, "you have to press them!"

"It's not that easy, Sebastian," she keeps her voice cool and calm despite getting angry herself, "before I can access the Pensive and the memory I have to complete a trial. They aren't easy, let me tell you this much. They are showing me the memories in a particular order..."

"Either they don't trust you or you don't care enough about Anne to ask the difficult questions!"

Anna flinches, her hands balling into fists.

"How dare you," she can barely contain the tremble in her voice. It hurts, it hurts so much, right above her heart, it is as if a hole opened up in her chest, a hole with gnashing teeth biting into her, "of course, I care about Anne. But I'm tired of explaining myself to you. If this is how it's going to go, if this is how you really think, you should go. I'll do this alone."

Something in her face - her pain, her rage, her indignation - manages to get through to him. He backs up a step and rubs his face.

"No! I know. I... I went too far, I'm sorry. I am just so tired, so frustrated. I need answers... for Anne. I can't... please don't leave."

A bit rich for someone who stormed off the last time they talked - two whole days ago - and has been avoiding both her and Ominis since, but she bites her tongue. It's not a good time to argue about such things. Not when they will have to put their lives in each other's hands.

"Fine. Let's go."

She walks up the narrow mountain pass, and soon enough they encounter first of the Loyalist guards. Both of them release a Blasting Curse each, and she throws a barrel of gunpowder on top of the guards. It's over in a blink of an eye.

"All of the Loyalists deserve the same fate. Nice work," his tone is back to resentfulness, and Anna shakes her head.

"Not all goblins are like Loyalists."

Sebastian outright hisses but says nothing.

This climb is going to be a test of her patience, she can already tell. The gnawing pain in her chest still throbs and grows, and she would weep if she were alone.

Loud wingbeats make them both look up. Two skeletal horse-like creatures fly past them, paying them little mind. Free.

"Thestrals. Some say it's a bad omen."

"I wouldn't say that. Thestrals are kind. They shouldn't be feared."

"I know that," Sebastian drawls, in a dismissive tone she hasn't heard from him since they became fast friends after the first Defense Against the Dark Arts class. Not directed at her, anyway, "I'm trying to make small talk. I'm not going to go up this entire bloody mountain in silence."