Well, he doesn't see why not, but – oh. Of course. He's a man, she's a woman, she's Osirian, he's a moron. "I mean, if you're alright with that." 

She is mostly referring to the fact that his hands are broken. Not that riding on the same horse isn't kind of - well, something she is going to have feelings about, not that she's very capable of determining what those feelings are right now - but they're already alone together hundreds of miles from civilization, which is already pretty uncomfortable, and also she's trying to focus on not dying. So.

"I think I'd rather try anything that sounds it might - lead to not dying. Even if it might not work. So - yeah."

"Alright." So he summons a horse. Now they've got a horse. 

...Now he's got to get both of them on the horse. Shit. Fuck. Are horses normally this tall? 

Yeah that's kind of a problem.

"Not very sure I can get onto it. Actually. I guess I should try." But she's not very good at hauling herself up things even at the best of times, and this is definitely not the best of times.

The starts munching on some leaves and doesn't help them even a little bit. 

Well. 

"Can you - ugh. Okay. I don't really have any clever ideas here so I guess I should just - do you think you should try first, or should I."

They're going to die. They're going to die out here in the middle of this godsforsaken jungle who knows how many hundred miles from home because neither of them can get on a fucking horse. 

"...maybe we could convince it to bend down?" 

" - I'm an idiot," she says, with feeling, and then makes a sound that sounds very much like it came from another horse. 

The horse kneels down.

"Okay. That's - something." And now she can try very hard to stand, very unsteadily.

Well, it's not the most graceful thing either of them have ever done, but they do – eventually – both end up on the horse. Elie manages to sort of support Naima with his elbows, and she only crushes his broken fingers against the horse a tiny little bit, and at one point the servant has to stop him from keeling over, but they're on and the horse is up and they're definitely making progress in what he's certain is some kind of a direction. So that's good. 

He is trying very very very hard to keep Naima steady in a way that's absolutely professional but this is sort of difficult when you're on a moving animal. 

She's feeling - kind of miserable about being sick and boiling alive, and kind of reassured despite herself about the fact that Élie is holding her now, and kind of really upset with herself for having any positive feelings about it because it's not really the sort of thing that ought to be happening, and - kind of depressed that he turned her down back in Sothis, honestly, because if he hadn't it would be a lot less ridiculous to be thinking about this, but he did, so in fact this is really a pretty ridiculous thing to be thinking about.

She's very weak. She tries to sit up, for a while, but she's not very good at it, and over time she ends up doing quite a bit more leaning. Probably if this is making it difficult to stay on the horse he will say something, or something.

"Hey Élie. D'you have - a plan for if I die in the night. Or something."

Well, he's been trying very hard not to think about that possibility. 

"If you – I'd get out of here and have you resurrected, of course. I think I could make it on my own, I can open a spellbook if I take enough time with it. ...Whatever happens, I promise you'll be alright in the end." 

"Okay.

"I can't pay for it anymore. Spent it all. I guess I'd earn it back."

"What? Of course I would pay for it. I still can. And I can sell the handcuffs in Quantium, they're worth more than you lost. You don't have to worry about this, Naima. I won't let you stay dead." 

"Okay.

"Thanks.

"I keep thinking that I have to think about what's going to happen to Rahim if I don't make it, and then realizing that there is absolutely nothing I can do about that."

"You don't have to worry about Rahim, if you die – which you won't – I'll take care of him. I might have to fight Shawil for it but I'm guessing you'd rather have me."

She laughs a little. More a breath than anything else. 

"I'm not even imagining what that would look like, right now."

"I don't know how it would go, there are probably Osirian laws about this sort of thing and he'd know them better than I do – but worst case scenario I  kidnap the baby and steal away to Absalom in the dead of night, so that's not a problem." 

Another small laugh, and then she's quiet for a while.

"I told Tariq I'd raise him to be lawful."

"Then I'll have to petition the courts. Or maybe we should share custody. And, of course, we can't leave Catherine out, and she's lawful too. I could tell them – " 

That we were married in secret, which makes him my son – thankfully, he has the sense the gods gave a turnip to shut up before that one makes it out of his mouth. 

"I could tell them it was what you wanted." 

Same small laugh sound, again, and then more silence.

"I guess it was."

"And I'd teach him to be a wizard, of course. I'm sure he's a genius, you can tell already, I've never met a child who learned how to get into into my bags so quickly." 

Tiny laugh.

"Tariq was so concerned about me. When I talked to him. Talking about how I seemed like I might be really lawless now, and was I being a good mother to our child. And I was all, no, I'm fine, I can do this. And then a week later I broke into your apartment, and stole your clothes, and broke curfew dressed as a man, and got stuck in the Mwangi expanse with you without even making adequate arrangements for what to do with my son if I didn't come back, and honestly I think maybe he was just right. And I don't know how I feel about that."

"...You know what I think of lawfullness. It's all very well for people who don't want to think too hard about the the way they live or their impact on the world, but, ultimately, it's just the value of living your life in accordance with some unchanging set of rules that won't ever be complete enough to describe all the situations we actually experience – they couldn't be, can you imagine, you'd never get out the door. I think it's better to be smart and wise and clear-headed about your values and let the law fall where it may.

I do understand why it's important to you, though. At least I'm trying." 

"Yeah.

"I don't think all that's right. But I don't really know what is. Probably I should think about it when I'm not boiling."

"It's pretty terrible weather for thinking." 

And they can ride for a while in silence.