Ryan, Hadassah, Esther, Amakihi, Luke, and Marisa all made a bumbling procession through the woods. After a good night’s sleep, Esther felt much better, but she still leaned on Marisa for support, and still totally ignored Luke. Ryan and Luke were quietly conversing, and Hadassah and Amakihi were brushing away their footprints with a tree branch. “We must be careful,” said Amakihi, startling them all. “these woods can be full of dangers.” They all nodded, then suddenly heard the sound of hoof beats. All ducked down and prayed whoever it was didn’t see them.

As soon as the hoof beats passed, Hadassah took control of the situation. “Amakihi, you and I will go follow the hoof beats and see where they go. Esther and Ryan, go find a good place to camp. Marisa and Lucas, your job is to scout and tell us where people are, and if anyone is coming. Climb a tree or something.” Everyone nodded and scattered.

“Can you tell who he is?” Amakihi squinted in the sun. Hadassah shook her head. “No,” she whispered. They had followed the hoof beats until they stopped in a small meadow. As they peeked over the bushes, they saw that it was a boy, and watched him as he looked around. “Perfect,” he whispered, and clicked to his horse. As they turned, the boy’s crest was plainly visible: that of a dragon inside of a sun. Amakihi and Hadassah looked wide eyed at each other, and watched which way he rode. “I’ll follow him,” Hadassah whispered. “You go run and tell the others.” Amakihi nodded, and they shared a hug before running their separate ways. As she ran, Amakihi wondered at the boys face. It was kind, but had a hard set to it, as if he had been concentrating for a long time. He was obviously a scout, and obviously for Queen Abri. Or was it so obvious? She shook her head to clear it and concentrated on running. There would be enough time to think on these things later. For now she just had to tell the others.

COPYRIGHT 2006 by *CocoBabe*