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Kiro chuckled. "Don't worry, I won't let her hurt you," he reassured Joshua. His smile only widened when Tianara turned a narrow gaze on him. "Relax, dear. I'm not as badly off as I let the doctors think." He turned his attention back to Joshua and the others. "But since Tia will probably get angry if we continue on that tack, I'll move on. Why were you coming in the first place?" He glanced from Aria to Allen to Mac and back to Joshua. "I know a few of you. The town oddballs," he said with a sleepy smile. "Of course, they're immensely proud of all of you."

Tianara whacked him lightly on the arm, which only made him laugh. "Anyway," he continued mildly, "you were looking for me. Not me specifically, but my magical signature. Mine and those of the others. Why?"

Despite Tianara's uncomfortable look, she didn't seem to plan on expressly forbidding anyone to tell him. Neither, however, did she seem to want to tell him herself.

Kiro's face grew quiet and sombre. "I thought that might be it," he said quietly. "I'd been hearing rumors. They were...unsettling, to say the least of it. What happened to me..." He hesitated, shrugged. "It wasn't overtly because of the tension that's growing, but I think it's fair to say that it wouldn't have happened if that tension wasn't there."

Tianara turned confused eyes to him. "Are you saying that they know? About you and Rhi...the others?"

Kiro smiled painfully. "If you mean do they know the story, the history, and precisely what we are, no. But they have ears, dear one, and eyes, just like we do. They can see that you and I - and the others - are different." He shook his head a little, but winced almost immediately. "Ah. Ow. Don't let me do that again." A brief smile crossed his face. "I'm afraid I don't have a particularly large social network, but you might try Miriam and Kallie, down at the marine life centre - they know or guess a lot more than they talk about. There's always Syb - Sybil - of course." His eyes softened when he spoke of her. "My fiancée. I'm sure that given time, I can think of others."

((OOC: Send me a profile, I'll see what I can do. razz ))

Kiro sighed and closed his eyes again. "Tia," he mumbled, as whatever painkillers the doctors had given him began to kick in, "tell Syb. Tell her not to worry. Tell her what you've told me. It'll be okay." He was silent for a long moment, then nodded once. "Okay."

Tianara smiled a little at him, lifted his hand and brushed her lips across the knuckles lightly. When she put it down again, she turned her eyes to Joshua and the others. "There are two more in this town," she said clearly. "Just two. We have to find them, Joshua. Things are getting started, and we can't be left behind."

She rose. There was a brief glance back towards her brother, a look of regret, but it shifted to calm patience. She knew that she was doing what she had to.

Turning her gaze to the others, she repeated, "Things are getting started. We'd better get moving."

Tianara had to focus harder to find the next one. Her mind kept jumping back to the brother she was leaving in the hospital. But he'd be fine now. He'd told her what he had to tell her, and they had others to warn. Because, yes, the attack on Kiro might have been the beginning. It was a warning now, as much as a request for help.

After a few minutes, the usual light in her eyes faded out, and she was back in the trancelike state that was becoming common to her. "This way," she murmured, her voice growing cool and blank. She went down the stairs without another look. But then, why would she look back? It wasn't her anymore.

She led them out of the hospital and started on her way, never looking to see if they followed.

Tianara wound and wove her aimless, rambling way through the town. This time, her silent passage drew many curious looks - apparently people had seen her walking through before, and perhaps were wondering what was going on with this strange girl. Secure inside her own mind at the time, Tianara didn't even appear to notice. Once they were on the outskirts of town, however, she kept going.

It seemed something in their plans had changed, because Tianara had gone straight through town without so much as a hesitation. But the curiously blank look persisted, and it didn't seem as though anything was different this time.

Abruptly, Tianara halted in the middle of the trail that led out to the woods. Turning sharply, she went off through the forest. Although there was no trail, she walked as if there was one. Maybe, in her mind's eye, there was. She moved with total confidence across sharp stones and exposed roots alike, never stumbling. At last, she broke out into a small clearing, where a woman waited.

A tumble of heavy red hair fell around her face, and cool grey eyes examined Tianara and the rest of the group. "I heard you calling," she said softly, that same musical accent they had heard so often making itself obvious immediately. "And I came. You can wake up now."

Tianara shook her head slightly, and when she looked up at the woman sitting on the upturned, flat-topped rock, her eyes were clear. "Do you already know, then?"

"I've already sent them away," said the woman clearly. "My two youngest. The older three want to stay. I don't know what you want of us yet, but my three eldest children want to help us." She smiled, gestured. "Why doesn't one of you tell me why we're out here, instead of at the campsite with the rest of my family?"

Mac followed the group with Gale on his shoulder. When they found the next person, Mac was amazed at how quick they were. Wow, Tianara sure is working fast he thought to himself. A rustling came from a distance, and Mac turned to see. Nothing was there. Then Gale flew away from him and up into the sky.