[Susan Delgado]

Lenilos woke much refreshed. The thieves' blankets were very warm and when he rose to find that Livia had prepared a hearty breakfast of sausages and biscuits, he hurried out of bed and near the fire. Days of nothing but plain vegetables had given him a raging appetite for real food. Carathon seemed to feel the same way.

After breakfast, the had an argument about where they should go. Lenilos thought his self-imposed mission was over. He'd rescued his sister (in a manner of speaking. He didn't dwell too much on the way she'd really gotten away from the brigands) and that meant he and Hithduiniel could go home now. But they also had Livia to think about. Sometime she'd have to go home too, the question was when. Livia was tired of travelling and wanted to go home immediately, but so was Lenilos. Eventually, everyone realized that if they took Livia home first, they wouldn't have to do any more travelling later. That decided, they set off west toward Garolin.

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Eolinda watched as Remdil took himself more and more away from everyone else. It was worrisome, but she said nothing because discussing it might actually make it worse. He'd had these spells before and he always got over them eventually. Still, it was wise to keep an eye on him.
The fourth day of travelling dawned clear but cold. They rose, ate breakfast, and started on their way East. After several hours, Dineniel paused. She spotted riders on the horizon, four of them. She couldn't be sure if it was the kidnappers or someone else. They continued riding, cautiously.

As they approached, they could see that it was not the kidnappers. In fact-- with a cry of, "Livia!", she dove off her horse and ran toward the others, startling them. Livia jumped off her horse as well and Remdil, now that he'd realised what was going on, was not far behind. The three embraced and soft, tearful voices could be heard from the huddle.

After they separated and introduced each other to everyone else, the eight of them sat down to discuss what they were going to do.
There was little question about where Eolinda, Remdil, and Livia would go when the group spilt up. Few families had been so happy to be reunited. They were sitting a little way off, arms around each other and smiling.
Lenilos, too, was ready to go home. He'd left the farm rather precipetously and his parents probaly wondered what had become of their children.
Dineniel felt a little sad, watching everyone else in their happy families. She had no permanent home, though sometimes she wished she did.
Carathon, too, wished for a home. He wondered if it would be all right if he asked the Garoliners to take him with him when they went home. He was tired of living in the woods, eating whatever he could find, and he'd never seen anyone as pretty as Livia before.
The boy had considred what it would be like to return to Neniant, to go back to Blind Tobey and the other kids and live on the street the rest if his life, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to do that. Like Carathon, he'd seen the possibilities of relocating to Garolin.
Hithduiniel was not paying attention. She seemed to be watching a butterfly instead.