Fitz and Prince Dutiful land back in Buck, via the Skill-pillar. Exhausted, hungry, and desperate, Fitz sets out to try and rescue the Fool and Nighteyes. The Piebalds were waiting for them, however. With some quick talking, Fitz convinces them he could be on their side and to exchange his friends for him and Dutiful. 

We're on the edge of our seat, reading Fool's Errand by Robin Hobb, book 1 of the Tawny Man Trilogy in The Realm of the Elderlings. 

After Fitz dreams of Nighteyes and the Fool and receives a threat, he wakes Dutiful and tries to figure out a way to get back home to Buck. Dutiful, sharing consciousness with Peladine and the Cat, attacks Fitz until a Skill command makes him stop fighting. Together they look for clues where they are and Fitz determines he must use the Skill-pillar to go back. He plans on leaving Dutiful until they are confronted by an Other. 

After passing through a Skill-pillar, Fitz and Dutiful find themselves stranded on a beach. Dutiful has his first experience losing himself to the temptation of the Skill River, and Fitz has to bury his grief to help keep them both alive. Fitz encounters a mysterious being, finds mysterious objects on the beach, and goes to sleep wondering about his friends. 

Still being pursued by the Piebalds, but resting for now, Fitz is woken up by Nighteyes. Dutiful is almost fully with the Cat and Fitz, through the Skill, learns of Peladine. Waking up, Fitz, Nighteyes, and the Fool flee, trying to escape the pursuit. Unfortunately, they are cornered by the standing Skill Pillars and take their last stand. Saying their goodbyes, Nighteyes and the Fool convince Fitz to escape through the pillar. 

After narrowly escaping from the Piebalds, Fitz leads Lord Golden and Prince Dutiful to rest before moving on. Fitz and Dutiful are at odds, taking turns being aggressive to one another. But, playing good cop/bad cop with Dutiful, Lord Golden slowly gets the story of what happened to the Prince. 

Fitz, the Fool, and Nighteyes wake up alone with Laurel and the Piebald prisoner having left. Fitz is concerned even more with the Prince's situation, so they set out to catch Dutiful instead of follow the deserters. A chase, a fight, and an escape later, Fitz and company run from the Piebalds with a sullen Farseer in tow. 

Fitz, Lord Golden, and Laurel wake up and continue following the trail left by Prince Dutiful and the Piebalds. They encounter a trap that happened to chasing villagers and surge forward into an ambush of their own. They capture a young Piebald that Laurel seems to have a connection with. Fitz is convinced that the only way to find the prince is to get information out of this man any way he can. 

Fitz, the Fool as Lord Golden, Nighteyes, and Laurel wake up and continue tracking Prince Dutiful and the Piebalds. As night nears, they enter a village with an inn, unfortunately named the Piebald Prince. Fitz's mind clouds, and the party discovers the tragedy that befell their quarry. Will they catch up in time, or will they discover that the prejudiced villagers exacted their "justice" against the Prince? 

In the morning, Lord Golden and Tom Badgerlock gather up supplies and Laurel to leave Galekeep in disgrace. Fitz, as Tom, takes the lead to track Prince Dutiful's group. They meet back up with Nighteyes, and Laurel starts to get a bit suspicious of Fitz. At night, Fitz reaches out with the Skill and fully connects with someone who is not Dutiful. 

Fitz, as Tom Badgerlock, tracks down the injured Nighteyes, planning their next moves and reconnecting. Back at Galeton, Lord Golden has come up with a plan to be excused without suspicion. He purposefully gets drunk during the dinner, flirts with young Sydel, and makes a fool of himself. Tom collects his master, and they prepare to pursue Prince Dutiful in the morning.