"That's what they've said," Ren replied after taking the mug in hand. He stared at his hand a moment, then the drink itself, and let out a silent sigh.

He missed his gloves. He should have been properly dressed instead of sitting around in his night clothes. He needed to wash himself, make a good meal, clean his house after such a long absence, do his usual training... but all of that sounded like so much effort. If he could just sleep properly for one night, that might be enough to get him out of this awful rut.

He didn't know how long that would take, but the tea certainly couldn't hurt.

"It's strange," he said after a sip and a few seconds of silence. "That people from so many different worlds would be familiar with the sorts of plants and creatures found here, when we're not."

He couldn't help but think of his father's stupid message about horses, months ago.