Akagi felt peculiar dread building in his stomach. Was it really necessary to go through all of this? Where everyone could see? He supposed he owed it to King Trode. After all, it wasn't every day your life got altered drastically. That would happen in a few hours when everyone would get ready.

For now, he decided re-reading the letters of his friends would help calm the nervous butterflies inside. He wanted to write a book about their adventures so when they were all old, the memories that would eventually fade in their minds would stay fresh in the pages of a tome. It was odd to start at the end, but Akagi hoped he could piece the narratives together into a cohesive whole. Eventually.

First, what happened to Jessica…

Jessica fingered the coiled whip on her belt and tried not to let the bouncing of the cart affect her too much. The winding path of the cart driver should put her at the entrance to Alexandria by the end of the day.

During the journey with her friends, Jessica climbed mountains, sailed seas, flew to places never touched by man or beast. In the traveling, the mage realized the potential for going anywhere and doing anything. She even mentioned at one time she wouldn't mind living near the Monster Arena to be a trainer. But strangely, a lengthy conversation with Angelo changed her mind. Or at least put off the decision to live elsewhere.

"Are you serious about living near the Monster Areana?" Angelo had asked her one sunny day in the courtyard of Trodain.

"Maybe. I'm not sure. There are a lot of places I could end up. The world's a large place, choir boy." Jessica lied on the grass, eyes closed and perfectly happy with the world at that moment.

"That's certain." He paused for so long the mage opened her eyes and squinted at him.

"Were you going to add something?"

"Just collecting my thoughts, my friend," he murmured apologetically. "But I wonder is, in the middle of all your thoughts of world travel, where does your mother fit into it?"

"What?" The question seemed like such a non sequitor, she looked at him strangely. "What would my mother have anything to do with traveling?"

"Were you going to tell her you weren't coming back? Maybe in a note, perhaps? Seems a bit offhand, wouldn't you say? 'Sorry mum, haven't seen you in ages, won't see you for ages more, living elsewhere, love Jessica'?"

"You forget, you weren't there for that episode with my mum. Honestly, I can't stand her."

The Templar had snorted. "I could say the same about YOU on some occasions, Jessica. Let's be frank in that we've all had our days we got on each other's nerves, but we eventually brushed it aside."

Jessica's ire began building at that point. Angelo could do that easily with her and the opposite also held true. "You thought I could be annoying? The same holds true for you!"

"I never said it didn't. I'm saying that people we're close to WILL get on your nerves. But we should give them a chance to put themselves to right. She's your mum, Jess. On some level, parents are always annoying. It's their job."

"Why are you defending someone you don't even know?!"

Angelo's steely gaze silenced any more angry retorts. "Because. If I had just a chance to talk with my mother again, even if it were one last time, I would take it. You have all kinds of opportunity to connect with your mum and you're throwing it away based on an argument you had long ago. You have a chance to at least try and make things right.

"If you throw this chance away, you're just selfish."

Hearing a lesson on selfishness from the prince of narcissism himself nearly made her spit at his pretty face. But, after some time calming down and thinking about his words, Jessica grudgingly realized he had a point.

The mage looked behind her. The tower of Alexandria soared above the landscape. The familiar thrill of it reminded her of a thousand days of traveling this road and knowing home was almost there. With not even a sting of tears anymore, she could recall holding Alistair's hand and pointing to the tower.

Her heart leapt. There was the tree she climbed at the age of seven. The wall for the town drew near. And soon, bidding the cart driver farewell, she looked at the entrance to the town.

"Miss Jessica! Miss Jessica!" squealed two high pitched voices.

"Bangerz! Mash!" Now with a sting of tears in her eyes, she knelt down and hugged the two boys. "Oh, I've missed you so much!"

"Miss Jessica is here! She's returned!"

Now all the mage could do was stand there and received the greetings and fair wishes of the people of her town. People she never even talked to stopped to say hello. There was cheering and even talk of an impromptu feast.

All this, just for me? Not even because I'm part of a ruling family. Just because I'm…me. And they missed me.

"Rhapthorne is no more! He won't harm our village and our world any longer!"

Somehow in that bold declaration, the villagers decided it meant lifting her on their shoulders and parading her around town, up the hill and to the manor. Jessica's elation faltered as her mother stood in the doorway, arms crossed in front of her chest. "What a thoughtless child. You can't have a feast out there. It's going to rain soon." Her mother smiled. "We shall have it indoors. Come on, you lot! We're celebrating my daughter coming home!"

Much, much later, Jessica curled herself into her old bed. Too many glasses of wine would probably give her a pounding headache in the morning, but now she floated on feeling.

Not much had been said with her mom between the feasting and the drinking, but a softness lingered there that hadn't existed before. Knowing her mom would also be nursing a hangover, perhaps later in the afternoon would be the chance to have a good long chat about this and that.

"Everyone, this is my daughter, Jessica, and she helped save our village!"

For the rest of her life, she would hear the roar of the crowd after her mother yelled out those words. And feel the burning kisses of many an adoring man wanting to give her congratulations. Especially one. One of her brother's younger friends, a lad by the name of Harper. She'd had a bit of a crush on him as a young girl, but never did anything on it. Now, he seemed to be quite intent on getting to know her better. And why not?

Right. Maybe the next day, after the talk with mum, I'll see if I can't have a friendly chat with Harper. It was a start anyway. To what, she didn't know. But it felt like a good start.

Something else she'd have to thank the Templar for.

"Angelo, mate, you eva' think of settlin' down with one lady?" Yangus asked him while the four of them settled for their last evening in Trodain together, drinking wine and eating a fine meal.

"I sincerely doubt it," he replied, patting a napkin over his lips.

"Why's that?" Akagi asked, curious.

"Think you'll be disappointing all the ladies in the world if you stick with just one?" Jessica teased him.

"Well, it's just something I've thought about for a long, long time." Thoughtful, he swirled his wine glass and sipped. "When you want to stay with just one lady, usually that involves marriage or at least strict promises to stay with her and her alone. All of my encounters with women have been brief, to be sure, or just mere flirtations for fun. I enjoy all kinds of women.

"If I were to promise one woman I'd be hers alone, it'd mean no more lurid encounters. No more flirting with the ladies for fun. Right now, if I promised a woman I'd be hers alone, eventually I would break that promise because in all honesty, I adore and love the chase and the flirtation." He shrugged. "So then, because I couldn't help myself I would break my promise with her and wound my lady deeply. What kind of man would that make me?"

"But what if you met someone you really thought seriously about?" Jessica pressed him.

"Well, even then, I might be afraid to do anything. My father made promises and vows to my mother and broke them. Because of that, it caused years of anguish to me and my brother. I know what a broken promise does to people. If I didn't feel in my heart that I could fulfill those promises for all my days, I wouldn't say them."

It certainly made her think. Something mutual did grow between them during the long journey, but Angelo put it into perspective in their goodbyes to each other. "Jessica, you're a lovely woman. I'm a lovely man. We'd overpower the world together. It would be interesting…but you deserve the kind of man you don't have to wonder if they're keeping their word to you. See if there isn't someone out there you can make a start with, even if it's something small. Let it grow."

The rejection, if it was one, had stung her pride a little, but now, back in her bed in Alexandria, seemed wise. Harper was no gambler or wencher, but a kind man. Perhaps a bit quiet, but that wasn't a bad thing entirely.

Certain events made more sense, considering the farewell letters Akagi packed with her things. You could rail at the Goddess for things that weren't fair or be thankful you had time to fix things while you could.

Jessica, safe in her room, realized her place remained here in her home.

To be continued…