"Christian your so funny man!"
Anouz laughed heartily at Christian's comment, slapping him on the back. "You're full of surprises, aren't you? First that impressive magic, and now you're cracking jokes!"
Christian chuckled nervously, realizing he may have said too much. He glanced at me, and I gave him a subtle shake of my head.
"Ah, well, you know... stress brings out strange things in people," Christian said, trying to backpedal.
I decided to change the subject before Christian could dig himself into a deeper hole.
"So, little one," I called out to the girl leading us, "how much further to your village?"
The girl, who had been silent since we started our journey, turned back to look at us. Her eyes were wide with a mixture of awe and lingering fear.
"It's not far now. Just over that hill," she said, pointing to a rise in the distance.
