“Well, I hate cheese. Maybe you’re just picking up my habits.”

He rolled a roasted pepper in a piece of tava bread and grinned. “I could think of a worse fate.”

As she returned the smile, she saw two hunters approaching. Her back stiffened. Richard noticed her reaction and sat up straighter. These are two of Chandalen’s men. I don’t know what they want.” She gave him a wink. “Be a good boy? Let’s not have an adventure.”

Without smiling or answering, he turned and watched the two come. The hunters stopped in front of her at the edge of the platform. They planted the butts of their spears firmly in the ground, leaning on them with both hands. They both assessed her with slightly narrowed eyes and small, tight smiles that weren’t entirely unfriendly. The one closest pushed his bow a little farther up on his shoulder and then extended an open hand to her, palm up.

She looked down at the hand. She knew what it meant—an open hand offered without a weapon in it. She glanced up at him in confusion. “does Chandalen approve of this?”

“We are Chandalen’s men. Not his children.” He kept the hand out.

Kahlan looked at it a moment and then stroked her palm over his. His smile widened a little and he gave her a gentle slap.

“Strength to Confessor Kahlan. I am Prindin. This is my brother, Tossidin.”

She gave Prindin a slap and wished him strength. Tossidin held his palm open to her. She stroked it with hers. He gave her a slap and added his wish of strength. He had a handsome smile that matched his brother’s. Surprised by his friendliness, she returned his slap and greeting. Kahlan glanced to Richard. The brothers noticed the look, and in response both gave Richard a slap and greeting.

“We wanted to tell you that you spoke with strength and honor today,” Prindin said. “Chandalen is a hard man, and a hard man to get to know, but he is not a bad man. He cares deeply for our people and wants only to protect them from harm. That is what we do—protect our people.”

Kahlan nodded. “ Richard and I are Mud People, too.” The brothers smiled. “The elders have proclaimed it for all to know. We will protect you both, the same as any other of our people.”

“Will Chandalen?”

Both grinned, but neither answered. They pulled their spears up, readying to leave.

“Tell them I said they have fine bows,” Richard said. She glanced sideways to see him watching the two. She told his words to Prindin.

They smiled as they nodded. “We are very good with them.”

Richard’s expressionless gaze stayed on the two brothers. “Tell them I think their arrows look to be well made. Ask if I may see one.”

Kahlan frowned at him before translating for the hunters. The brothers beamed with pride. Prindin pulled an arrow from his quiver and handed it to Richard. Kahlan noticed that the elders were all quiet. Richard rolled the arrow in his fingers. Betraying no emotion, he looked at the nock and then turned it around and looked at the flat, metal point. He handed the arrow back. “Very fine work.” As Prindin replaced the arrow in his quiver, Kahlan told him what Richard had said. He slid a hand partway up his spear and leaned a little of his weight on it. “If you know how to shoot a bow, we would invite you to come with us tomorrow.” Before she could translate, Savidlin spoke to her. “Richard told me before, when you were here last, that he had to leave his bow behind in Westland, and that he missed it As a surprise, I made him one, for when you both came back. It is a gift to him for teaching me how to make roofs that do not leak. It is at my home. I was going to give it to him tomorrow. Tell him, and tell him that if he agrees, I would like to take some of my hunters and go with him tomorrow” He smiled. “We will see if he is as good a shot as our hunters.”

The brothers grinned and nodded their enthusiasm. They looked to be confident of the results of the contest. Kahlan told Richard what Savidlin had said.

Richard was surprised, and seemed to be moved by what Savidlin had done. “The Mud People make some of the finest fbows I have ever seen. I am honored, Savidlin. That is was poison, the result of an evil magic. They didn’t know that in Westland, where Richard was from, you could eat red things like apples. They had seen him eat an apple once before, when he had tricked them into not making him take a wife from their village by convincing them that his eating it might make his seed poisonous to his bride, but they sweated as they watched the two of them doing it again.

“What are you doing?” Kahlan asked him.

“Just eat your apple and then translate for me.”

When they finished, Richard stood, motioning her up next to him. “Honored elders, I have returned from stopping the threat against our people. Now that it is over, I would like to ask your permission for something. I hope you find me worthy. I would like to ask your permission to have a Mud Woman as my wife. As you can see, I have taught Kahlan to eat these things as I do. She will not be harmed by it, or by me, and in the same way, though she is a Confessor, I will not be harmed by her. We would like to be together, and we would like to be wedded by our people.”

Kahlan could hardly get the last of the words out past the tightness in her throat, and she could hardly keep from throwing her arms around him. She could feel her eyes burning and filling with tears, and had to clear her throat to finish the words. She put her arm around Richard’s waist to steady herself.

The elders suddenly beamed with surprise. The Bird Man wore a wide grin. “I think you are finally learning to be Mud People,” he said. “Nothing could please us more than for you two to be wed.”

Richard didn’t wait for the translation, but gave her a kiss that took her breath away. The elders and their wives applauded.

It was all the more special to her that they would be wedded before the Mud People. Kahlan felt at home here When they had come before, seeking help in their struggle to stop Rahl, Richard had shown the Mud People how to make roofs that didn’t leak. They had made friends, had fought battles together, with lives saved, and lost. In the process, the two of them had bonded with these people. In honor of their sacrifices, the Bird Man had proclaimed them Mud People.

The Bird Man stood and gave Kahlan a fatherly hug that felt as if he were saying that he understood everything she had been through and was happy she had at last found happiness. She shed a few tears against his shoulder as he held her in his strong arms. Their adventure, a long ordeal, had taken her from the depths of pain and despair to the heights of joy. The fight had ended only yesterday. It didn’t seem possible it could be over at last.

As they went on with the feast, Kahlan wished more than ever that it could end soon so she could be alone with Richard. He had been held prisoner for over a month, and had only rejoined her the day before. She hadn’t even really had a chance to talk with him. Or hug him nearly enough.

Children danced and played around the small fire while the adults gathered around torches, eating and talking and laughing. Weselan scooted down next to her, hugged her, and said she would make her a proper wedding dress. Savidlin kissed her cheek and slapped Richard’s back. She found it difficult to look away from Richard’s gray eyes. She didn’t want to. Ever.

The hunters who had been out on the plain the day the Bird Man had tried to teach Richard how to call specific birds with the special whistle he had given Richard as a gift, wandered by the elders” platform. All Richard could do that day was make a sound that called all the birds at once, but not different species individually. The hunters had laughed endlessly that day.

As they listened now, Savidlin made Richard show the whistle and tell again how he had used it to call all the birds that roosted in the valley filled with gars. The thousands of hungry birds had eaten the gars” blood flies, creating a panic. The diversion had enabled Richard to rescue Scarlet’s egg.