Calix did not, in fact, return the messenger hawks the next morning.
Nor the morning after that.
For days, which turned into weeks, and then a month, the birds remained their travel companions. Calix and Icarus slowly grew to tolerate one another, or, at the very least, bleeding ears and cheeks became infrequent incidents.
They would rise early every morning and ride their horses for hours before stopping at midday to take a break. While Calix and Kel ate bread and cheese, the hawks would scour for small rodents, and the horses nibbled on wild grass.
After everyone had been fed, watered, and rested, they would continue their ride until nightfall.
