The road back from the Frostback Mountains is long, winding, and very cold, which is almost but not quite enough to dampen the spirits of Aria's ragtag bunch of misfits. Sure, almost getting killed a bunch of times wasn't the greatest time she's ever had, but they've resolved a succession crisis and managed to get one out of three of their treaty groups sworn to aid them in combat, which is very nearly enough for her to convince herself that she's not just a little girl playing dress-up and wildly swinging a grown person's sword around.
They're approaching the foot of the mountain range when she spots the kid.