• "How do you know?" she inquired.
    "I have yet to arrive in a town or city that does not have changelings involved in its history in some way," he replied.
    They continued talking until they stopped for the night. They made camp in a small grove of trees, then fixed a quick meal and ate in silence. He stopped her as she was about to turn in for the night.
    "Before you settle down to sleep, we will meditate," he said.
    "Why?" she asked.
    "Meditation relaxes the mind and calms the nerves," Gihan answered. "Sit there, facing me, and close your eyes."
    With a sigh, she obeyed, sitting down Indian-style facing him, and closed her eyes.
    "Breathe in as I count to seven, hold the breath, then breathe out as I count to seven," he instructed. "Empty your mind and concentrate on your breathing. Begin."
    Jana did as he instructed, trying to empty her mind as she did so. This was difficult, owing to the fact that her feet were sore from walking all day and she was tired. Twice, she nearly fell asleep from exhaustion. Finally, after fifteen minutes, Gihan shook her awake.
    "Time for bed, Jana," he said. She rose, then fell into her bedroll with a yawn. Within seconds, she was peacefully asleep. Gihan kept watch that night.
    The next morning, Gihan shook Jana awake before the sun was up. She groaned softly as she rose and splashed water on her face. Gihan handed her a towel, and she dried her face.
    "Why do we have to get up before dawn?" she complained.
    "We make better time if we start at dawn," he said. "Eat."
    He handed her an orange and a banana, and she ate while he rolled up his bedroll and tied it on top of his pack. She followed suit a few minutes later. Shortly after that, they continued their journey. By the end of the week, Jana was too tired to complain about anything.
    When Gihan went to wake her up on the eighth morning, he was surprised to find her already up. She was usually still asleep when he came to wake her.
    "I woke when I heard you moving around," she said, without looking at him.
    "You knew I was coming to wake you," he said. She nodded.
    "I've been sitting here meditating for the last fifteen minutes," she said. "And I've already eaten. All I have to do is pack."
    "Then do so, and we will continue our journey," he said. She nodded, then rolled up her bedroll and tied it to the top of her pack. Gihan did the same, and they broke camp a short while later.
    As they walked, Jana was aware of an odd scent on the air. At first, she didn't say anything, but when the scent lingered, she knew she couldn't stay silent.
    "Do you smell that?" she asked.
    "Do I smell what?" Gihan asked.
    "There's an odd scent on the air that's been lingering for about ten minutes now," she said.
    "Can you describe it?"
    "It smell similar to roses, yet it's more powerful," she said.
    "There are no roses anywhere near here," he said.
    "I know," she said. "But that's what it smells like. Can't you smell it?" Gihan shook his head.
    "No, apparently only you can," he said. "But that may be a good thing."
    "Why do you say that?" she asked.
    "Remember what I said the day we met?" he asked. "About how only a changeling can tell when another changeling is nearby?"
    "Luke said each changeling gives off a unique scent that only another changeling can detect," she said, nodding, "and that no two changelings have the same scent."
    "If only you can smell what you described, we may have found another changeling," he said.
    "Already?" she asked, surprised. He nodded.
    "We don't know how many, if any, free changelings are left," he said. "There may be hundreds, there may be only a few. Can you tell which direction the scent is coming from?"
    "Based on the fact that the wind is blowing west to east, I'd say somewhere up ahead," she said.
    "Let me know if the scent gets any closer," he said. She nodded, and they continued walking in silence. They had walked for nearly half an hour when the scent suddenly became much stronger. It was so strong that Jana nearly gagged from the smell.
    "We have company," Gihan said suddenly. She covered her nose and mouth with her arm and looked where he was pointing. Sure enough, there was someone coming toward them. They stopped and waited for the stranger to approach them, which didn't take long.
    "What're two strangers like you doing 'round here?" the stranger, a young woman who looked to be a few years older than Jana, asked.
    "We could ask you the same thing," Gihan said.
    "I caught a whiff of a strange scent on the air about an hour ago," the woman said. "So I came to investigate, and I found you two. Now that I'm up close, it seems like she's the source of the scent I smelled."
    "It seems you are the source of the one I smelled," Jana said from behind her arm.
    "You can take your arm down now," the woman said. "I can't smell your scent anymore."
    Jana lowered her arm slightly, so that her nose was exposed. Satisfied that she could no longer smell the woman's overpowering scent, she lowered her arm to her side.
    "I'm Karan," the young woman said. "Who are you?"
    "I am Gihan," Gihan said. "She is Jana."