"I wanted to join," Fern says suddenly, half speaking over Ciri with the thoughtlessness of the young, though she has the decency to look embarrassed as soon as she's done it. Still, she looks aside, leaning a little against Rooster's stall. "Your Senior Warden, Alistair--he said Wardens aren't needed in the fight right now. He wouldn't let me."

It's been some days since that rejection, but still, it stings, and it's impossible to miss how deeply wounded she is by having this particular dream crushed.