*I do not own Jane and the Dragon or its characters

For all the Jane/Smithy fans this is for you. It was supposed to be part of an anthology with my other story "I Want You To Stay", but it took on a life of its own so yeah. Hope you enjoy!

After the wilderness years the was a section of the castle that was never repaired due to construction costs. No one visited that part of the castle, well at least not on a daily basis.

In the guise of night, two ventured through the hallway held up by lumber beems, stepping through the green undergrowth. Smithy guided the way while Jane followed, amazed by the sights. "I do not remember ever going through this area of the castle"

The comment made the blacksmith smile a little though Jane did not notice."From what I heard, it has been closed off for safety reasons"

A bat passed over them causing Jane to scream but Smithy covered her mouth right away, and waited till she calmed down. Jane pushed his hand away, slightly ashamed "Sorry"

"It could happen to anyone" he chuckled

The sight of broken wheels and burned carts came into view, drawing up certain suspicions. "Smithy, how is it that you know about this part of the castle? And pray tell what is it that you wanted to show me?"

"When I first came to the castle, I looked for places to hide my dream"

"Your dream?"

"Dream is the name of one of my chariots, the other is Hope"

"Chariots?"

"I will show you"

"You never told this to anyone?"

"No, but I wanted to show you since I had done you an injustice in the past"

"You must be joking. I do not recall such a thing"

"Do you remember that day when the king dismissed me from his service because of pig?"

"Yes"

"I talked back to you very rudely and I thought it was not right. For that I apologize"

"Smithy, whatever hurt you have inflicted, either I have forgotten or it has passed. But that was years ago, and I do not keep record of all my friends faults. I feel bad if you thought I held resentment against you. So it is I who should apologize"

"Either way, I still intend to show you"

At the end of the hall, he stopped before a pile of torn bedsheets hiding whatever was underneath. "Take it a look"

Jane's excitement grew as she pulled off the bedsheets to reveal two worn chariots."Smithy they are incredible, but where did you get these? "

"After the war, there were pieces of scattered war chariots and various scrap metals. With the kings permission, I leave the castle on my spare time with pig and any horse available and take back whatever I can find and repurpose it. Most of what I found like armor or broken swords are melted down for bolts and nails, but whatever the castle cannot use I incorporate into my chariots which were nothing but planks of wood when I first started"

"What do you intend to do with them?"

"I want to one day participate in the great chariot races in Rome"

"That sounds wonderful"

"But in order to accomplish that dream, it would mean leaving the castle. At first I thought it too big a dream for a blacksmith, but looking at them now, it feels somewhat real."

"Though it would be a great pain to lose you, and a great loss to the king, I think you have every liberty to fulfill your dream"

"I am surprised Jane, and here I thought you would want me to stay"

"Who would not? You are the steadiest person in this castle, but we will manage"

Thinking over what she said, she apologized "Smithy, I did not mean..."

"I know what you mean Jane, and it is unfortunate that I will leave the comfort of home to go to a foreign place but it is what I intend to do"

"You will visit us when you are in the country perhaps"

"Of course, it is practically a duty. Though I doubt it will be anytime in the near future"

"But it will happen someday. I do not doubt your word Smithy, though one could never be sure when you enter the world and all of her diversions"

Jane spotted hints of his smile, though she could have been mistaken. "I had no idea the world was a woman" he chuckled

"According to Jester it is a lot of things"

"I do intend to tie all lose ends before I go" he confessed

"You have unfinished business?"

Glancing over at Jane then looking the other way, he scratched the back of his head. "It is not that important at the moment. We should go before Sir Theodore takes notice"

"Is it really that late?"

Leading the way back, he said under his breath "I hope not"