After that, the days of travel went past quickly. They would make it to Rayfield that night, but Tianna had not been able to find anyone that could be a potential travel buddy. Despite her determination she couldn’t let just anyone travel with them. She would have to wait patiently for the right opportunity to present itself.

While she was lost deep in thought, Rayfield came into view. Rayfield was a well organized town, though it had no wall. Traffic was being carefully directed by its guards due to the busyness of the festival, but everything continued to move at a steady pace. They were let into the city without the guards blinking an eye, and they managed to an inn with two tiny rooms to spare.

The tiny rooms were truly as described with barely enough room for the bed and not much else to them, but it was good enough to stay one night. However, the window kept calling to Tianna. This was the first time she had even been in town during a festival, so the sights and sounds coming in from outside were new and enticing. She decided to ask Jerath if she could explore it after dinner.

The dining room was packed, but it was better than attempting to eat in one of their rooms. “Jerath,” Tianna began, pausing as she tried to figure out how to word it, “Do you think I- we could maybe visit the festival after dinner?”

He frowned. “I am sure you are aware of the potential danger,” he commented.

“Just for a little bit,” Tianna pressed, “We have been travelling nonstop for several days. Shouldn’t we take a break and have a little fun?”

Jerath studied her intense look of determination for a few moments before giving in. “Fine, but you can’t leave my side, even for a moment,” he warned, “If you do, I won’t make any more exceptions.”

Tianna beamed back at him. “Thanks,” she said and began making her food disappear at a much faster pace. From the sounds of things, this might be her first and last chance to ever enjoy a festival so she intended to enjoy it to the fullest.

“Change into a cloak before we head out. Preferably one with a hood that can hide your hair,” Jerath instructed.

“Aren’t we already in public?” Tianna asked, glancing around at the busy dining room.

Jerath also glanced around. “The less travellers who see it the better. I am not expecting you to wear a hood constantly inside as well. As far as we know your life is not in danger so we don’t have to take such drastic measures yet.”

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“Yet?”

“As we get closer to the capital it will get harder to keep your identity concealed,” Jerath replied, “As I said before, many things will have to change once we pass through Belleas.”

Tianna took a deep breath and nodded. She took a quick stop to her room to grab a cloak and came back to the dining room once she put it on. Jerath was waiting for her near the entrance.

“What do you want to do first?” he asked.

“First?” Tianna repeated, “Explore, I suppose. I don’t really know what there is to do at a festival like this.”

Jerath nodded and seemed to think about something for a few moments before guiding her to a game stand. “Festivals usually are filled with games and food. Since we just ate, we should explore the games first.”

“Good idea,” Tianna agreed.

The game Jerath had taken her to was one where you were given three balls to throw at a stack of cups. You got a prize based on how many cups you knocked over and in how many throws. Tianna threw too hard the first time and the ball went over the cups. Her second throw didn’t reach them, and her third hit one of the cups on the end which caused a total of two cups to fall off the stack.

The prize turned out to be a pair of socks. They were good quality, but none of the pretty prizes on the display had been socks. Also, they were socks made for men and too big for Tianna.

“Do you want these?” she asked Jerath.

“That might be helpful,” Jerath agreed, “This is my first time in human form so I don’t have enough of certain pieces of clothing.”

“I guess it would be strange for a dragon to think about socks,” Tianna mused, “It looks like there is another game over there. Can we check it out?”

As the night went on, Tianna got better at playing the games, and she found some interesting foods among the stalls that seemed like they might be convenient for travel. Jerath only played one game, but his aim was perfect and he got one of the best prizes.

“Just one more?” Tianna asked Jerath.

“You said that two games ago,” Jerath reminded her, “This one really will be the last one.”

“Okay,” Tianna agreed, and approached the large bucket. This game’s objective was to scoop up apples with a very long handled, but small spoon. Just as she dipped her spoon into the water, someone bumped into her and slipped something into her free hand.

“Good luck, Princess,” they chuckled, and moved away with the crowd.

Tianna whipped around to see who it was, but the person was wearing a deep cloak and a mask. Carefully, she opened the paper that was slipped into her hand. It was a short note, but it was enough to shake her. It read:

‘I know the information you are seeking. Come and find me when you are ready. Signed, the Anonymous Watcher.’

“What is it?” Jerath demanded, and snatched the note from her.

“Jerath,” Tianna began, feeling eerily calm despite her racing mind, “The Anonymous Watcher is one of the Black Wolf’s apprentices, right?”

“He is,” Jerath agreed solemnly, “This is bad news for us.”

“What should we do?” Tianna asked, the calm slowly subsiding and leaving only hysteria behind.

“Get some sleep for now,” Jerath replied, “As soon as the sun rises tomorrow we need to make a break for Belleas. Our only hope is to make it there before the Black Wolf’s forces do.”

“Will Belleas really be safe?” Tianna asked. She clenched her fist in an attempt to stop her fingers from trembling.

“It is one of the few places where the Black Wolf has no influence. Belleas is a safe haven. As long as we are customers, the merchants will make our safety their highest priority.”

Tianna thought of Matt, and relaxed slightly. “Then let’s get back to the inn,” she said, “And you need to sleep too.”

“I will try,” Jerath replied.