Jade Fern Grove departure to the west

Haunt stood there a moment before letting out a huff. Her failure disappointed her, especially after all that effort, but she knew she still needed lots of practice. Kaertok said as much when she turned to face him. His words were frank, which Haunt appreciated. She nodded her acknowledgement, repeating the three most important ones in her head: You will learn.

She did not expect the lesson beside the stream, though she paid close attention when Kaertok explained her earlier error. She swallowed, wondering if he'd been following her that whole time. Haunt almost asked, though her tongue stayed still. She would rather not know, instead working on paying more attention to her surroundings even in the midst of an otherwise all-consuming hunt.

Rather than swim straight across, Haunt did as her father did, swimming at an angle to push against the current. She climbed out more or less across from where she'd begun. She shook the water from her pale coat and looked to Kaertok again, ready for anything else he'd like to teach her but equally prepared to walk home beside him in silence, his ghostly little shadow.