Even as Carus went back to hurriedly paddling, Chelena lounged back into the boat. A tarp had been draped over the prow so that she would have a place to hide from the sunlight, but right now she sat boldly in the bright rays, little concerned with the tight feeling that was starting to grow in her skin. She cupped some water in her hand, letting it run through her fingers, before taking another handful and flinging it at Carus. He spluttered and nearly dropped the paddle, before rounding on her in indignation.
"This is serious, Chelena."
"I know," she replied, unconcerned with his shift in mood.
"But paddling in this river won't get us where we want to go much faster. You had a plan to speed things up, too, I hope?"
Carus was silent for a moment, but seconds later their concern was set aside. The colors of a small boat pushing its way through the waters was enough to draw Chelena's attention, and her sudden shift in focus was enough to cause Carus to look around as well. In the small boat was a Tiger anima, who rapidly pulled up beside their own small craft.
Chelena barely gave him a chance to finish stating his business before she was vaulting over the side of the boat and into that of Z'tir's. A knife had materialized from somewhere, and was now placed only a millimeter from his furred throat.
"Chelena!" Carus shouted after her, voice trapped somewhere between an order and a plea.
"Leave him be."
"I don't like him." she replied, the knife not wavering an inch.
"Or his colors."
"That is no reason to go slitting his throat," Carus replied calmingly, wings half open as he prepared to jump after his unpredictable companion.
"He's someone who can speed things up."
Z'tir pushed backwards, away from Chelena, and one massive, clawed hand came up to press against her side. Chelena doggedly kept the knife right next to his neck. At this rate they would both die together. Carus watched from his own boat, desperate but unable to intervene.
Finally, Z'tir spoke.
"I really am here to help," he said, unconsciously falling back into a more normal voice. Having a knife pressed to his throat is a good way to remember manners.
"You need to get to Hosia as fast as possible. No one can get you there faster than me."
Chelena contemplated for a second, then unexpectedly patted his furred cheek. The dagger was gone as quickly as it had come.
"Fine," she said, dancing quickly back over to her own boat. Carus grabbed her roughly and pushed her down, before tenderly stroking her cheek.
Once Chelena and Z'tir reached their peace, the two-day journey progressed smoothly. Even Chelena was forced to admit, although certainly not out loud, that they easily traveled twice the speed with the tiger than they would have without him. The Prosperous River remained calm underneath them, and the closest the group came to disaster was when a larger merchant vessel nearly ran over them. Only quick action on the part of Z'tir saved them from taking an unwelcome bathing. Chelena screeched angrily after the boat in an almost perfect imitation of the tree fairies. To her pleasure she even found one of their acorns in the seed bag, and she hurled it with surprising accuracy at the retreating boat, hitting the helmsman squarely on the top of the head. He spun around angrily, but by that point Z'tir had gotten them far enough away that the man could do nothing in retaliation.
Satisfied, Chelena returned to her shaded portion of the boat, ducked under the cover, and snuggled back up with Carus. The avian had not even bothered to get up, and he wrapped Chelena in a soft wing, leaving Z'tir entirely responsible for the boat.
It was obvious when they drew close to Hosia, simply because the commotion on the river grew tenfold. Hosia was not quiet at the best of times, but now refugees of all sorts were flooding in from the surrounding forest. The city could barely hold all the people inside of it, and it was bursting at the seams. Chelena and Carus slipped out from under the covered portion of the boat, Chelena's dark skin almost entirely wrapped in her various scarves. Fighting with the sun was one thing, but she intended to spend several hours outside and this was not the time for her to be collapsing from heat exhaustion. She wrapped one arm around Carus' waist, and even turned to throw a surprisingly friendly smile back at Z'tir, and together they watched the city draw steadily closer.