You can hear me, can't you? [ he doesn't need to see the horizon to hear her honesty. she does think the summit is getting further away. ]

It's probably... a trick of the light or... [ her shoulders lift in a shrug, giving up trying to explain it after approximately zero effort. she isn't a scientist or a maths prodigy, she doesn't need to know things like that. idly, her fingers twist out, a ribbon of her magic swirling through the sand and burning a mark into it. another glass star like breadcrumbs in case they get lost on the way back. ]

Suppose it doesn't matter as long as we keep going up.