Lady Amelia encourages Harry to go on with her plans to ride with Cassie and Beth and invite them for lunch, insisting that social rituals should continue regardless of Corlath’s arrival. As Harry rides out across the desert to meet her friends, she reflects on how, while she was once homesick for the forests of her home, she has begun to feel at home in Daria. She recalls a conversation she had with Jack, during which he confessed that he remains in the post by choice, as he is unwilling to leave. However, he warns Harry that those who grow too attached to the land often become strangers to their own people.

While with her friends, Harry and the girls discuss the Hillfolk and Corlath. They speculate on what Corlath might be like, teasing one another about stories of him being possibly “mad” from the magic. When they return from their ride, the girls find Corlath already at the Residency. A group of seven unbridled horses stand silently outside. 

A moment later, Corlath emerges from the house, surrounded by Sir Charles, Jack, Richard, and Mr. Peterson. He is clearly angry, but briefly stops when Jack says something in his language. When Corlath meets Harry’s eyes, she is momentarily frozen by the intensity of his gaze. However, the moment passes quickly, and Corlath leaves on his blood bay horse, followed by his men.

Corlath and his Riders depart from the Residency, frustrated and angry after the failed meeting with Sir Charles and his associates. As he rides away across the desert, Corlath broods over the fruitlessness of his visit and the inability of the Outlanders to understand or accept his warning about the looming threat from the North. He recalls his father’s advice to avoid the Outlanders and reflects bitterly on the burdens of the kelar, a magical ability that offers him strength and foresight. His thoughts are disrupted by recurring visions of Harry. He tries to dismiss these visions, but the kelar insists on showing her to him.

Back at the Residency, Harry tries to shake off the strange encounter with Corlath. Over a subdued lunch, Jack explains that communication with Corlath broke down immediately due to language barriers and mutual mistrust. The consensus among the group is that Corlath’s request for troops and weapons was impossible to grant given the political risk.

Corlath returns to his desert camp and debriefs his Riders, and they accept the news of the meeting’s failure without surprise. Corlath reflects on the main threat facing his people: Thurra, a Northern warlord with powerful magic and growing influence. Corlath knows that even if the Northerners are eventually defeated, the devastation they could inflict on Damar might be irreparable. The Outlanders would colonize Damar under the guise of progress, and the Hillfolk’s identity would vanish forever. 

Corlath suddenly hears himself say that he will return to the Outlander town, and bring the yellow-haired girl, Harry, with him. His Riders, though surprised, say nothing, aware that this must be guided by kelar. Corlath himself is startled by the command, but is compelled to obey.

Harry struggles with sleeplessness following the unsettling visit from the Hillfolk and spends her nights staring out her window at the moonlit desert. She recalls how, when she’d asked Jack about what he said to Corlath, he told her it was a traditional Hillfolk pledge of loyalty. Harry then finally falls asleep.

Meanwhile, Corlath, though troubled by the idea, prepares to return to the Residency to abduct Harry. He reassures his Riders that Harry will be treated as a “prisoner of honor” (52), though they remain uneasy. After waiting three days to ensure the Hillfolk’s visit is not connected to her disappearance, Corlath sneaks into the Residency under cover of darkness, finds Harry asleep in her window seat, and uses his kelar to ensure she stays asleep as he spirits her away.

Harry wakes up disoriented on horseback, slung across a saddle, and promptly faints. When she wakes a second time, she is given food and drink by a cloaked man who finally reveals himself to be Corlath. Though startled, Harry regains her composure, and Corlath allows her to ride with him instead of across the saddle this time. They ride through the night toward the mountains and reach the Hillfolk’s camp at sunrise.