It wasn't the same as having Hansel at her back. Miguel was largely an unknown to her, someone who had arrived more recently and didn't seem exceptionally social. Gretel didn't fault that. She wasn't much for talking, either. But she would hope that the man at her back knew how to watch himself and to handle a weapon if it came down to it.
Fortunately, it seemed that they weren't likely to encounter any hostilities. Nothing charged out of the brush at them, and there were no people as they approached the village. Most of the buildings were burned down to husks, smoldering frames that barely resembled the huts they probably had been. Gretel paused, surveying what she could see, and exhaled slowly.
"You want to look for survivors?" She asked, barely more than a whisper. Gretel doubted they'd find anyone, but she understood the impulse to check just the same.