"North�Safety," Hawk said, shutting one eye against a sudden blaze of green light, which faded to reveal that the black horse had been replaced with a more grumpy, and more human, Teige. "How long was I out?"

"Put it this way, it's well past midnight," Teige replied, eyes still like headlamps as he knelt down beside Hawk in the damp. "I've been walking through this ditch for like an hour now. The police are pullin' people off the streets, checking papers. You in pain?"

"Just sore," Hawk muttered, propping himself up against the sloped wall of the ditch. Teige produced a grubby paper bag from the messenger bag, which had been slung about his neck. He handed it to Hawk.

"You flew from like noon to nightfall, I'm not surprised," he said shortly. "Here. It ent the best, and it's cold, but it's food."

Hawk extracted a neatly-wrapped burger from the bag--it�was�cold, and somewhat greasy, but Hawk's stomach groaned just looking at it.

"N-no, it's great," he said, and meant it, "How'd you get this?"

Teige flung himself down beside Hawk, already wolfing down his own hamburger. "Drive-thru," he said matter-of-factly, pillowing his head on one arm.

Hawk looked at him skeptically, unwrapping the hamburger. "Drive-thru," he said. "You went through the drive-thru as an evil nightmare horse."

"Had to get food, didn't I?" Teige said archly. Hawk snorted.

"Jeez. You sound like my brother."