A.N. Alright. So this chapter was intended to go longer, but I was loathe to spend an inordinate amount of time describing the tedious flight over Du Weldenvarden. Acknowledging that, the next chapter should really get the story going. Read and review please.

"You'd be safer if you stayed here in Ellesméra, Meira."

"Perhaps." I answered levelly. "But I would not be happier. I thought you and father said you would do anything to make me happy."

My mother nodded. "And we will. That is why we are letting you come, but we are making the rule that you will not seek out a fight with a rider or dragon if this does indeed amout to pitting rider against rider. You will promise or we will leave you here. Meira?"

I ground my teeth together. "Fine. I promise that I will not purposefully seek out a battle with a rider or dragon. Happy?"

"Yes." My mother took me in her arms, something she hadn't done in years. "You are my only child, Meira. I just want you to be safe. Your father will be talking to you as well, but we want you to know, just in case something goes wrong, that we love you and that we are proud of you."

I nodded, unable to think of an adequate response. Then I grinned. "But I bet father will not be so sappy about it, will he." As she stared at me with a lopsided smile, a look I seemed to get more often than normal smiles, I kissed her cheek. "I have to say my goodbyes to Vanir."

I contacted him with my mind and met him outside the door to his house. The sun was just at the treeline and I didn't have much time, but I wanted my last moments in Ellesméra to be spent with my friend. Gwendolyn had said her goodbyes already and was tending to the injured rider and his golden dragon. I paced impatiently until the door opened. He looked sad, but I was grinning ear to ear at the prospect of seeing the world.

"Can you believe it, Vanir? I'll finally get to meet humans, people like me!"

He made his best effort to be happy for me, but I had always been able to read him. He must have noticed that my face fell because he frowned more. "Don't let me ruin your happiness, Meira."

I smiled again to please him. "I was thinking that once I am out of the elves' domain, I will take up a new name." I said to break the silence that had grown between us. I had never been one for long silences. "I've never liked it, you know that, but entering a new world would be the perfect opportunity to change it."

He only nodded. "What were you thinking of for a name?" It was not uncommon for an elf to change their name after a few hundred years.

I shrugged. "Not sure." He started walking and I did not realize where we were going until we reached the arch that was the entrance to the queen's garden. "Vanir?"

"They got your sculpture put into place, would you like to see it?" I nodded and we began to walk through the gardens. I suppose I did think they were pretty, but in my mind the untamed beauty of deep Du Weldenvarden blew the gardens away.

I stopped in my tracks and Vanir smiled, his first true smile of the morning at my dumbfounded expression. In a patch of beautiful blood red lilies with black throats, stood the masterpiece of my hands, the carved dragon I had so aptly named Skogrdýr. It had been masterfully positioned under the shade of a leafy tree. As the branches moved in the breeze, the rising sun danced on the back of my creation, creating the illusion that the scales actually gleamed like a real dragon's. "It's amazing." I whispered to myself.

As my luck seems to go, Vanir picked up my words and laughed. "Have you truly sunk to complimenting your own work in such a way?"

Without thinking I punched his arm. "Shut up." I then frowned. This was the last time they would be seeing each other in a long while, if not forever. I chased the thought of forever from my mind. Suddenly serious, I turned to him. "Vanir, I want you to have something to remember me by."

"I'll never forget you, Meira. How could I?"

I looked down. "My life is over a quarter over, Vanir, but you will outlive me by hundreds of years, perhaps millennium even. I want to give you something that will make you think of me years later, when you remain and I am… gone."

He nodded solemnly, joking aside. I reached into my bag and withdrew the practice sculpture I had made, the one that hadn't been decapitated of course, and placed it in his hands. "You want me to have this? Are you sure?"

"Of course."

Vanir thanked me. I looked at the building we were leaving. He saw me. "What are you thinking?"

I grinned, unable to help myself. "I'm thinking that since I am leaving, I will do something I never dared to do if I wanted to live in Ellesméra."

"Why am I thinking this will land me in trouble?"

"Wimp. Give me a second." I reached out my mind and whispered a phrase quietly in the ancient language. "It worked." I said, beginning to giggle as I turned to run.

"What did you do?" He asked.

I lost it then, unable to contain myself. Unable to breathe, I stopped running. "I may or may not have done something to baby Arya." I started lauging again as Vanir paled noticeably.

"What did you do, Meira?"

"I turned her orange. I doubt anyone but Gwendolyn will be able to reverse it and even that might take a day or two."

He gaped. "Arya?" He questioned with a hint of incredulity as if doubting my sanity. "You are the bravest person I have ever met." I smiled at him. "But it may be foolish to wait around for the queen. Besides, its past dawn. You're late."

"You can't be late until you arrive, so technically I am not late. But you are right." We reached the dragons and he looked at me silently before embracing me tightly, nearly crushing my ribs. "I'll miss you." He said in my ear. I hugged him back tighter. Then he released me and smiled. "I do have one suggestion for a name. I don't know much human history or culture, but there is a popular children's story among the elves. The heroine was a tremendous fighter and outsmarted her opponents at every point with her wit. Reminds me of someone."

I grinned at him. "What name?"

"Angela."

"Good-bye, Vanir." I hugged him again before mounting Vanilor. I blushed as I realized all the riders had been watching us amusedly, but that did not stop me from waving to him one last time. Everyone had been waiting on me. I counted eight riders and their dragons. All but Vrael, but he was leading the elven army. Vanilor, the leader of the group when Vrael or his dragon, Fundor, were absent, roared and the group took to the air, battering the surrounding forest with gusts from their mighty wings. I watched as Vanir raised a hand in farewell.

Angela. I contemplated with a small smile as I watched my friend disappear. I was Angela.

Sorry to anyone who was looking for some sort of romantic connection between Angela and Vanir (As interesting as that might have been. Too bad no one has written it.) There might be action in the next chapter. We get to see how Angela can handle herself. Please review, it means a lot.