As she enters the city, Jessa sits with pride on Moonglow. She doesn't know when or if she will ever enter the city again. She sighs lightly, but it's enough for Dhiren, on Wind, to look at her sharply. 

"Everything alright, Jessa?"

Jessa gives him a real smile of reassurance. "I'm fine, just realizing that it will be some time before I return here, if I do at all."

"I'm sure that you will, Jessa." Dhiren tells her.

Sorsha snorts, "I have no idea why you would want to return here, but if any one will, it would be you, princess."

Jessa gives a little laugh, "Only you, Sorsha, can make a simple statement sound so disagreeable. No worries, you won't be required to come with me if I do return."

Sorsha turns her hooded look to Jessa. "I will if I am assigned to your guard, Princess."

Jessa smiles at Sorsha, "But I will be the one to decide who will qualify for being my guard, Sorsha."

Sorsha stiffens at this. She hadn't thought about that. Are her fighting skills enough that Jessa would allow her to be her personal guard?

Sorsha is so lost in thought that she doesn't realize that they've come to Mistress Silverleaf's home. She shakes out of her thoughts as she takes Moonglow's reins.

"You are the best female fighter in Silva after me, Sorsha." Jessa whispers to reassure the elven girl. Sorsha looks thankfully at Jessa for her words.

By then the door has been opened and Dhiren and Jessa are ushered inside.

For the next while Jessa and Dhiren catch up with Lady Silverleaf until Jasper is able to join them. Then they get down to business.

"I hope your studies are about through." Jessa says getting straight to the point.

Jasper gives a worried look with Lady Silverleaf before turning his attention back to Jessa. "More or less, yes. Why the concern Jessa?" They had tried to be more formal and Jessa refused to allow them to be so.

"The old king is dying. The prince won't be the puppet that the king is and there will be trouble when it's time for him to take over the throne. It would be a good idea to go on a trip outside of Castlerock. As a matter of fact, I would like you, Jasper, to hire on as a guard for me as Dhiren and I make a wedding trip through the human lands as we make our way to the sun elves." Jessa can't help the sneer that comes on her face at the mention of the stuck up elves.

Jasper and his mistress take another long look at each other before she nods just a slight bending of her head.

"We would be pleased to join you and prince Dhiren on your trip."

Jessa smiles delightedly. "I will need you to make arrangements immediately. Place anything that might have value to you that others might try to take from you with Frosnak in a private vault. Should you ever have need of it you will be able to get it from any of her counting houses and the vaults are impregnable short of a full on assault by several ancient dragons."

Mistress Silverleaf gives a little giggle, "There are no more dragons."

All those in the room look at her incredulously. Well all but Jasper, he looks at her fondly.

"The one that gave Jessa the side wound in her fight at the pass? He was an ancient blue dragon. Most of the bandits were dragon kin of his make." Dhiren tells her.

Both Jasper and Lady Silverleaf look at them in shock.

Jasper is the first to recover. "Well that makes sense." He says thoughtfully while rubbing his chin with his finger and thumb.

Dhiren is more than a little upset at the reminder of the time that he almost lost his love. "What do you mean by that, Jasper?" His voice is demanding and angry. Jessa sets her hand on his thigh and he starts calming down.

"Forgive me, I meant no disrespect to either of you. I just couldn't understand how anyone was able to get past Jessa. She's damn near blinding in her speed and incredibly painful on her blows." Jasper should know, Jessa tested him regularly and taught him when she could. Which was every time that she stopped in to test him. Jasper had no choice but to learn quickly. Jessa didn't like having to repeat lessons when fighting and makes sure that they are very painful if she does.

Both Dhiren and Jessa relax a bit from his words. Dhiren gives him a rueful smile. "Yeah, I know what you mean. Jessa went full out against me before we left Silva. I only made it about half an hour before I was too beat to continue."

"So even if they hadn't been killed by arrows, my husband and the guards would likely have died quickly anyway?"

"I'm sorry, but yeah. The three that survived from my caravan only did so because they fought regular humans and not the dragon kin. The elves that died that day are the ones that fought and managed to kill the dragon kin."

"Them and Nathan, Jessa, don't forget how many he managed to kill."

"Yeah, Nathan." Jessa wipes away the tears that fall at mention of her friend and brother. "But then it's not everyday that the champion of Jethro fights dragonkin."

"Your friend was the champion of a god?" Jasper says in awe.

Jessa looks at him confused. "Yes. But you shouldn't be so shocked, Jasper, you are after all the champion of Lady Fey. Just like Dhiren is the champion for Lady Zira." She stops Dhiren from adding anything to her words. Dhiren just shuts up and sits back a bit.

"What?" Jasper and Lady Silvermoon both eject out of their mouths.

Jessa looks at them confused. "You didn't know? How odd that she didn't tell you. Why else do you think you survived that ambush?"

"I never understood why, I was just thankful that I had. At least once I came back here I was thankful." Jasper whispers out the amazed words out of his mouth. "I miss him still."

Jessa has to turn away to regain control of her own emotions. While she does so Dhiren responds to Jasper, "Understood. It's always hard to lose someone you love. It's harder when they are family, especially if they are the last of your family and you are or were close. Jessa still feels the loss of Nathan keenly and likely will for the rest of her life."

"Forgive me, Jessa. I had forgotten that your friend was like your brother." Jasper says mortified.

Jessa turns back to him and gives him a sad smile. "No need to apologize. We all lost people we cared about that horrid time three years ago. Some wounds will always be painful when poked. But sometimes it is necessary as well. I know neither one would be happy to see us so sad at this point.

"I need you two to leave the city as soon as you can. Wait for us outside the city. We might be leaving rather fast, if we aren't able to pick up a caravan before we leave we'll set one up in Silva." Jessa tells them before standing up and ending the discussion. She's had too little sleep to handle the emotions for long. She needs rest.

They give their goodbyes and make arrangements for meeting up before Jessa and Dhiren take their leave.