"A queen has little right to leave her people," Crow's sister says, eyes distant and shoulders firm. "And I have long used up what right I had."

Crow readjusts on the windowsill, keeping her and the shifting mists outside equally in view.

The Dreaming City gives Crow a sense of claustrophobia. He can't shake the stiffness in his shoulders whenever he visits, like his body's waiting for someone to pop out from behind a convenient boulder with a rifle and a set of handcuffs.

Glint likes it here, though. Crow cradles his Ghost's small weight between his palms and tries to give Mara the answer she deserves. "Tough being more a role than a person. But it's a firm place to stand, right? Lets you know where you are."

"Wishing I were elsewhere." A rare bitter note from Mara, who has always been master of her own emotions.

"I've found it only a partial relief, myself," Crow admits. "I know I'm helping; I know I need some duty greater than myself to keep me from rushing off into the wild. But the wild has its pull…"

He rubs a thumb over the facets of Glint's shell. Glint butts up into the touch like nothing so much as a pleased cat. "I'd go in a second, with you or in your name, if not for duty. But… I like who I am now, sister. Crow-the-Vanguard is a better man than Crow-the-itinerant ever was. And Mara-as-Queen has always been the best of you."

Mara says, "Yes."

She has a hand up at her chin, a thoughtful posture turned almost vulnerable. Protective.

"I'm sorry," says Crow. "I know—I can feel how much Sjur means to you. Here we are, in the cages we picked, and we can't get ourselves to step back out the open doors. But… maybe we can find the answer all the same."

Glint pushes against Crow's fingers, trying to see out the window. Crow lets him go.

"We'll find a worthy knight for your quest. That's a promise from the Hunter Vanguard—and your brother."

Mara's hand curls silently against her heart.