Are we there yet?

The North is to South what the Clock is to Time

There's East and there's West and there's everywhere life

I know I was born and I know that I'll die

The in-between is mine. I am mine.

East of Argentum. En'Kara is on the horizon, but the mornings are anything but temperate. It is rainy and cold. I find little to complain about, however. I have the company of Merchants and those in their employ, the camaraderie of good men. Camp food, to a man with simple tastes, is palatable. Mina, as it turns out, is becoming blanket-worthy. What she lacks in formal training, she makes up for with a fervent desire to please, and be found pleasing. However, despite these simple and sustaining pleasures, I know now that I have been gone far too long. I feel the pull of Home.

And the feeling, it gets left behind

All the innocence, lost at one time

Significant, behind the eyes

There's no need to hide. We're safe tonight.

"I am cold, Master," she said to me just this morning.

"I am not surprised," I replied. "You are not properly dressed for walking in this weather."

"I mentioned this to my Master," she said.

"And what was his response, pretty Mina?"

"He beat me," she said. Her words were whispered, not only to emphasize her meek demeanor at the prospect of being beaten again, but also to mask her frustration. And probably her anger. I lose track of her grievances, honestly. 'I am cold.' 'I am needy.' 'I am hungry.'

The ocean is full because everyone's crying

The full moon is looking for friends at high tide

The sorrow grows bigger when the sorrow's denied

I only know my mind. I am mine.

"Men can be impatient when their methods are questioned," I told her.

She mumbled something imperceptible. It sounded expletive-laced, but I did not choose to press the matter. She was already walking with a hitch in her step. If I beat her again, I might have to carry my own pack. After a brief pause, she let out a huff and answered.

"Yes, Master."

"We are almost home," I said charitably. I thought this might buoy her spirits.

"Master?" she said hopefully, with an endearing and altogether feminine grunt as she tugged the strap of my pack, to reset it on her shoulder.

"I aim to be home by The Waiting Hand," I said to her. She would have no idea precisely when that would be, or how long we had yet to walk. Still, it was enough to put a smile on her face and a new determination in her stride.

It might be another five or six hands, but there was no need to dampen the girl's mood.

And the meaning, it gets left behind

All the innocents, lost at one time

Significant, behind the eyes

There's no need to hide. We're safe tonight.*

*'I Am Mine' lyrics by Eddie Vedder