Rana raises her eyebrows, but flips through the notebook's pages. 

Each page bears a single pressed flower, with notes around the edges of it detailing its type and significance.

Layla's actually a little charmed, and she's not even the one recieving the notebook. She wouldn't have thought Baqir would have been the kind of person to offer thoughtful gifts. 

"Sister, would you like to see?"

Rana holds out the notebook.

"Certainly. Pass it here."

Layla takes the notebook and flips through it herself. There are many small notes in a close flowing cursive.

"Is this your handwriting, Baqir?"

"No, no, mine's nowhere near that precise. I had the flower-seller make some notes for me, that's all. I know Rana's interested in natural history, so..."

Baqir settles his hands in his lap. "It's a trifle, really. I only had two days to find something."

Layla passes the pressed-flower book back to Rana and simply nods.

"Koshari?" Fayruz looks up from her cooking pot.

"Please." Baqir offers up his bowl.

Fayruz fills it, then moves on to fill the bowls of the others at the fire - Fahim, Batul and Hayat. They're talking among themselves in low voices.

Layla accepts a bowl as well, and starts in on the meal.

Baqir tries the koshari.

"This is quite good," he says. "My compliments to the chef. I particularly like the lentils you selected, they're good-quality. You have a sense of your ingredients. The chickpea garnish works well too."

Fayruz nods. "Thank you," she says. "It's a family recipe. The biggest compliment you can pay me, though, is to let none of it go to waste."

"Of course." Baqir digs into his meal.

It seems Baqir is at least capable of being civil for brief periods. She doesn't know why she's surprised. 

He's still Evil...

Layla digs into her own koshari. 

After a few minutes Baqir hands his bowl back. 

"Where shall I sleep tonight?" he asks. "I've brought my own tent, but if Rana would like my company...?"

She honestly had not expected Baqir to give Rana the option. 

"It's up to her," she says. "Rana?"

Rana looks over at Baqir, coolly assessing him. 

"... I think I'd like to sleep with Baqir tonight," she says. "We have a lot to discuss."

"Whatever your heart desires, sweet Rana."

He gets up fom the fireside and unslings his Bag of Holding, from which he disgorges a tent. 

"Care to help me set up?"

"Of course." 

Rana gets up from the fire and starts helping Baqir set up his tent.

No crisis?

No crisis. 

Okay. She will have to talk to Rana in the morning.

For tonight, she'll sleep alone. Naila's on the opposite watch to her.

A few days pass in this manner. No gnolls are sighted as they cross the wastes. Baqir is civil at meals and even a little charming. Rana and Baqir share their tent and Rana babysits him when he's around the caravan. Munir and Yasmin stay with the other clan, further down the caravan line.

Layla doesn't ask what her sister is doing to keep Baqir happy. She doesn't want to hear the details, and she trusts Rana. 

The question of whether to ask Baqir why he's Evil hangs unresolved. Things seem settled enough, and that's enough to make Layla hesitate to ask.

The peace can't last, though. One morning Baqir comes back from his morning watch sporting a purpling bruise along his collar. 

He's quiet about it, but the fact that Rana won't talk to him says a lot.

Layla draws Rana aside from the campfire and brings her back into the privacy of her own tent, leaving Naila to watch over Baqir.

"Okay," she says. "What happened?"

"I got woken up by Baqir between my legs with my skirt off. To be fair, I had gone to bed nude. I thought he was a gnoll in the darkness and kicked him and went for my dagger."

Rana crosses her arms and lets out a huffed breath. "He surrendered and apologized as soon as I pulled my knife. Apparently he thought it would be a great idea to wake me with head in the morning. He says he'd been up for an hour already doing his spell preparations."

"Well that's a mess and no mistake. I can see him - trying to do a good thing for you, in a very stupid way - but seriously, does the man have no common sense? We're in the middle of the wastes and it was the middle of the night. He's lucky you didn't stab him." 

She crosses her arms. "Do you trust his intentions were actually good?"