Jack's POV

Jack couldn't help but cringe as they entered Raven's Ghyll. No, Dragon's Ghyll, he corrected himself; but despite the new name, the old memories still resurfaced. The last time he'd been here he and Ellen had almost died after they refused to kill each other in the Midsummer's Day tournament. He glanced over at her, and reached out for her hand. She smiled back at him, and suddenly he felt much better.

She was still recovering from the injuries she obtained at the Siege of Trinity, it was a slow process, made even slower by her eagerness to convalesce. Jack grinned. It had taken the combined efforts of Seph, his mom, Becka and himself to keep Ellen in bed. When she had heard of the trip to the Ghyll, nothing he could say or do had dissuaded her from coming. Although annoyed at Ellen's apparent lack of concern for her own health, he was secretly pleased she had come.
"We're here," said Seph suddenly, as they pulled to a stop at the top of a hill.

Finally, thought Jack. Driving nine hours in a van with Will, Fitch and Leesha had not been pleasant. As if they had heard his thoughts, they abruptly stopped arguing and filed out of the van, eager to stretch their legs, despite the cold weather. Jack, Becka, Ellen, Seph and Madison were left alone in a peaceful silence.
"They're probably going to find something else to argue about," said Ellen dryly. Everyone laughed, Jack realized that it had been forever since he laughed, the sound felt large and awkward in his mouth. Seph gently shook awake Madison, who, despite the nonstop commotion from the back of the van, had managed to doze peacefully throughout the majority of the trip.

"Maddie," Seph teased as they caught up with the others, "how on earth can you sleep nine hours straight?"
"Hmmm? Me? Oh, I'm not sure." She answered, clearly distracted by their utterly breathtaking surroundings; the snow dusted hills and valleys that dotted the landscape made the Ghyll an artist's dream.

"Well however you did it I wish I could have," said Jack, staring pointedly at Will and Fitch, both of whom turned to glare at Leesha. Everybody laughed, including Seph, who had regained his sense of humor after the siege ended.

Jack was amazed at how different his cousin was now that he quit using wizard flame. Seph's face which had been so haggard and gaunt looked healthy again, and he had regained the weight that no one had noticed he'd lost. Seph claimed that he was completely over the addiction, but some days Jack could see the longing in his eyes. He knew that Seph still craved the flame, but whenever he asked him about it, his cousin would quickly dismiss the idea, insisting he was fine.
"Lee, they're here!" The faint cry came from down the hill. Jack immediately recognized the singsong voice. "Seph! Jack!"
"Over here!" Jack replied. After a moment or so the small figure of Linda Downey appeared at the crest of the hill, followed closely by Leander Hastings. At the sight of her son, Linda broke into a run, flying across the snow, straight into Seph, nearly knocking him off his feet, despite her small size. Jack smiled to himself, it was good to see his aunt so happy for once. Will and Fitch however were cracking up. When she finally released her son, she ran straight over to Jack, slamming into him like a battering ram, knocking the breath out if him.

"It's good to see you too Aunt Linda," gasped Jack. He glanced over Linda's shoulder at Will and Fitch, who were both roaring with laughter. "You're next," he mouthed, glaring at them. Sure enough, after Aunt Linda released him she ran straight over to Fitch, knocking him clean off the ground. Jeez that woman is strong, thought Jack, as everyone exploded with laughter.

"Where's Jason?" Asked Aunt Linda, genuinely bewildered. She had been so happy to be reunited with everyone that she hadn't noticed anyone was missing. She looked around, but stopped when she saw everybody's faces. Oh man, thought Jack, they don't know yet, no one's told them. Jason had been like a second son to her. "No," she said, "no, no, it's wrong, you're wrong!" She looked around again, crying in earnest now, her tears leaving glistening trails upon her face. Hastings didn't cry, Jack had never seen him cry, but he inclined his head for a moment, then walked over to Linda, taking her shoulders, and leading her back towards the castle, everyone else trailing slowly behind them.

When they arrived at the castle they found a large home-cooked meal waiting for them, courtesy of Linda Downey. Dinner was an awkward affair, Aunt Linda sat quietly, observing all of them with a mixture of pride, love, and grief on her face. Hastings however was already questioning Madison about her gifts from the Dragon
"Are you still having trouble controlling your powers?" He asked, obviously intrigued. Madison nodded. "Seph and I will train with you tomorrow then," he continued, as if it were already decided. Jack spoke up.

"Well, if you're planning on training tomorrow, there's been some talk of a little duel between you and your son," Jack lied, thinking Aunt Linda could use a distraction.
"Great, I'll be there!" Fitch didn't give them a chance to refuse. "Showdown in the Ghyll!" Jack saw Hastings glanced over at Seph.
"Looks like you're going down," he said simply. Seph raised an eyebrow, his glittering eyes changing from green to gold.
"We'll see."

After dinner, everyone was eager to explore, especially anaweir Will and Fitch. The extravagant halls were lined with hidden doors, secret passages and ancient booby traps. Hastings had given them directions to the two neighboring towers that they would be staying in, one for the boys, and one for the girls. Seph and Leesha walked ahead of the others, using wizardry to disable the few traps Hastings had missed, like the two small, thankfully not poisoned, darts that had nailed Will in the ankle. By the time they made it to their rooms, Ellen was already out of breath. Jack half carried her up the tower steps to the room that Ellen and Madison shared.
"You know, I can take care of myself Jack," said Ellen sternly, as Jack helped her down onto the couch.

"I know you can," he replied softly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

" Well now that we've cleared that up, I'm going to bed," she said cheerfully. Madison and Leesha peeked their heads in, each with slightly wicked smiles on their faces.

"Hey lovebirds, I hate to interrupt, but this is the girls tower and we need our beauty sleep," Madison said, trying hard to keep a straight face.

"You'll have to see Ellen in the morning, okay Jack?" Leesha added, her expression matching Madison's. Becka winked at him.

"I'll see you later then," Jack said, grinning to himself as he jogged back down the steps, and up the opposite staircase that led to the boy's tower. He and Seph shared a large room at the very top. It was elaborately furnished, with two queen beds, a sitting area, and a private balcony.
Seph had already claimed one of the beds, and lay sprawled out on top of it.

"The girls kick you out also?" he asked, looking like he already knew the answer.

"Pretty much," Jack admitted, sitting down on his own bed. "Are you ready for tomorrow?"

"As ready as I'll ever be." Seph grinned, "want to bet he'll beat me in the first minute?"

"Nah, it'll take him at least three," Jack replied

"Thanks for the boost of confidence," Seph said, laughing.

" We'll see who's right tomorrow then," Jack said, excited. Despite his original reason for the fight, he couldn't help but wonder about the outcome.