This chapter is dedicated to Silverleaf of the Faerie for being the story's one hundredth reviewer. Thanks!

–Not one of my better days.–

I woke up in a cold sweat, my hands clenching the sheets and my body trembling as the last remnants of my nightmare disappeared. As images of death and my parents' lifeless bodies, I could not help myself from weeping quietly. I had been separated from everything familiar and I was alone.

A hand touched my shoulder briefly and I leapt up, a dagger in my hand as I faced the person who had touched me. The wide eyes of my host, Teresa, immediately reminded me of where I was and that I was safe. Her expression showed concern and she sat in a chair near the fire, still looking at me.

"Are you alright? I put some tea on the fire that will help you relax and fall back asleep."

I sat up, drawing the blankets with me. I realized that I did not know the name of the rider I had killed. The idea upset me. Teresa was still watching me, waiting for a response. "I… I'm fine." I stuttered embarrassedly, still shaken from the graphic horrors of my vivid dream. "I'm sorry I woke you up."

"Don't be. I wake up often in the night anyway when I am brewing." Teresa shrugged. "You didn't wake up Thomas, he's a deep sleeper.

She handed me a cup of tea and offered me sugar. I took a small spoonful and then handed it back, bringing the hot liquid to my lips. For a while, as we drank our tea, we sat in silence.

"I've always found it calming to be awake at this time of the night. It is so silent and calm."

I shook my head. "I've never liked the night. In Elesméra when I would be up in the dark, everyone could see almost perfectly but for me. I stumbled around as if blind, unsure of who or what was out there. It was a weakness."

"I could see that." She said thoughtfully. "But here you are the same as the rest of us." She finished her cup of tea. "If you feel able to test your capacities as a healer, a man will be coming in around noon to pick up a potion I brew to help him sleep. He has a limp from a poorly healed break in his leg from when he was younger. Is that within your ability?"

I nodded, a slight smile touching my lips. I did not wish to be a burden to them. Teresa could support herself and her son, but an extra mouth would lead to difficulty. "Thank you." I said, the nightmare banished from my mind, no longer haunting me with its terrors.

At dawn, I awoke and Teresa, after a small breakfast, sent me out into the city to find a certain glassblower to refill her supply of vials for her potions. Glancing at a map of the city she had drawn for me, I began to navigate the streets. Eventually I found myself in the part of town most of the crafters occupied. A long straight street held branches with separate buildings, shops.

I walked almost to the end, near the wall and turned to my right. Sure enough, there was a shop with all sorts of glass bottles and jars. Curiously, I entered, pausing in the doorway.

A middle-aged man with a gray beard and rosy cheeks walked over. He nodded to me as he placed a box of bottles on a shelf. "Hello. Did you need something?"

"Yes." I dug in my pocket and handed him over a sheet of paper that Teresa had written. The man went into a back room, leaving me standing in the doorway, and brought back a small box full of vials. Paying him, I departed, making my way back to the shop. The city confused me and completely ruined my sense of direction. Dropped in the deepest depths of Du Weldenvarden I could navigate myself anywhere, but walking in the city, a place travelled by children, I was lost.

Eventually I made it back and pushed through the door, setting the box down. Teresa threw an amused look at my obvious annoyance and began to put away the glass where it belonged.

"Haldrin, the man with the limp, should be arriving shortly." I nodded and went to sit on a chair with a book she handed me with hand drawn pictures of plants, from their roots and leaves to their stems and flowers, side by side with detailed descriptions of all the properties of the plant, including their uses whether good or ill. It had fascinated me when she told me that she had written the book herself, and I had become determined to learn about the herbs. How she had managed to calm me and put me to sleep with them left me amazed at their use and yet afraid of the potential danger they could possess.

I almost didn't notice when a man walked in, but he drew my attention from the book as he went to the counter. Teresa walked over and picked a neatly labeled bottle from beneath the counter and set it on the glass surface.

"Haldrin, I have a matter of business that might interest you." She smiled. Teresa gestured toward me. "My sister is a healer from Teirm. She could heal you leg for you, free."

His eyes narrowed. "And what do you get from this?"

"Exposure. No one knows Angela is here, but you could get the word out. That is the price."

He looked directly at me. " And you know your art?"

"Yes." I raised my hand, a soft golden glow enveloping it before I drew a glimmering gem from the water in the air before letting it melt in my palm. "I know my art well."

He huffed, sounding brusque, but I could see from his eyes he was impressed. He looked at Teresa and then at me. "Very well."

I pointed him to a chair and then closed my eyes, feeling out the bone with my magic. I looked at him. "Not only the bone. Do you lack any feeling in that leg?" He nodded sharply. "I will do what I can. Be aware; this will be uncomfortable." I whispered a phrase in the ancient language, bending the magic to my will and working the bone slowly back into alignment. It set suddenly with a snap, but I had been shielding the pain. That done, I worked on the nerves, chanting a few sentences and swaying as I felt the magic take its toll. After ten minutes, I stood, wearied and gestured for the man to stand.

"I think that's it. Try to walk."

He gingerly put weight on his bad leg, wincing in anticipation but then his eyes widened and he walked to the other wall in back. "You… you actually healed it." Excitement filled his tone. "Thank you." I smiled, but a headache was setting in. Nodding, I returned to my chair and cleared my mind.

Teresa handed him his potion. "I will count on you to spread the word." She said.

"I will uphold my end as you have yours. She is quite the healer." With a wave of his hand, he left.

Teresa smiled at me and then came over. "You look awful." She said quietly.

I gave her a wry smile. "Thanks." I shook my head. "Trained by them or not, I am no elf. It's just… I'm weaker here." She nodded and I leaned back in the chair. Then I realized something. "Do you ever invent your own potions?" I asked quietly.

She smiled and nodded.

"Would you be able to make something that could help provide energy?"

Teresa frowned. "I don't know. I don't think that energy is something you can make." She mused. "I'll look into it though." I left to go and take a short nap. When I came back down, Teresa was sitting on a couch, trying to teach her son the letters. The sight made me smile.

"I think I'm going to go out and explore." I said, feeling locked in by the house. She shrugged and praised Thomas as he got his letters right. The boy giggled as she tickled him. I shut the door quietly behind me and walked to the square. Once I was there, I leaned against a lantern pole and watched what was going on around me.

It was fascinating to say the least. The humans went about their days with a frenzied confusion. They rushed from place to place, not heeding or not noticing what went on around them. It was so different from the elves that I felt as If I tried to enter the mix, I would be swept aside, too different to fit in the order.

"They say that girl is still on the loose though. You know, the one that killed a rider."

I froze and turned my head to hear better.

"Demon-spawn, she must be. Either that or the riders are growing weak."

"Haven't seen a rider these last few days. Strange."

"You haven't heard? There was some sort of rebellion. I've heard say that they are fighting amongst themselves."

"No?"

"I swear it's true."

"No wonder they can't keep the city peaceful. Can't even govern themselves."

"Really. Did I tell you my daughter is going to be married?"

I tuned them out as their conversation became mundane. The riders were fighting. Of course I knew it, but for everone else to be finding out meant it was probably getting serious. Running back to the shop, I realized that the army the elves had been mobilizing would have left by now. And at the speed that the elves travel, they might be on the edge of Du Weldenvarden.

In the shop, ignoring Teresa's questions at my running, I grabbed a platter from a shelf and filled it with water, casting a spell to see if I could reach the scrying mirror the elves used to communicate. I knew the words and the spell worked, a picture of the king's tent coming into sight.

He spun to look at the mirror and then he saw me. "Who?"

I suddenly realized that I had disguised myself and cast a spell to release the effects. Speaking in the tongue I was more comfortable in, I met the king's eyes. "I had to disguise myself." I explained.

"What happened, Meira? I couldn't contact anyone."

He must have understood at the tears that stung my eyes. "They are dead. Everyone but I." I whispered.

Shock registered in his expression along with grief, but then is countenance softened. "Could you tell me exactly what happened?"

I nodded and then began to relate what had happened as they attacked, but before I had even started, he stopped me. "I am going to get Vrael first. He needs to know as well.

I waited for the leader of the riders to arrive before I began. I started from when the first dragon had attacked from above. As I reached of my father's death, I completely broke down, sobbing. Evandar waited paitiently.

"I'm sorry." I managed to get out between gasps. I jumped violently at a hand on my shoulder. A mug was placed in my hands and then Teresa left again. I appreciated her thoughtfulness and drank deeply, trusting that it would help. My heart immediately began to settle and I relaxed.

"Who was that?" King Evandar questioned.

Glad for the break in conversation, I glanced at the door. "I helped her son." I explained. "I'll get to that, but I need to finish before I am unable to."

"After… after my father died, I was still finally able to fight. The rider tried to attack me and I could enter the battle without breaking my oath. Rintín and Delton came to help me, but they were both already injured. Delton began to engage with him and then the rider threw a knife. It killed him before he knew what was happening." I gasped. "At that point, Rintín thought of nothing but destroying the dragon he was fighting. The rider then turned to kill me, but I don't think he expected that I would put up much resistance.

"I managed to get into his mind and stop him from moving. Rintín managed to kill the dragon he was fighting and my grip on the rider's mind began to slip. Before he could break free, I… I killed him. I beheaded him." I gasped, hugging my knees to my chest.

"My parents, their dragons, everyone was dead. Rintín was killed as he flew into the mess without a thought for self-preservation. There was only one dragon and rider left at that point, fighting in the air. I… I said goodbye to my parents and turned myself invisible to enter the city."

There was a long silence as Evandar and Vrael both stared at me. Then the king nodded. "Where are you now, Meira?"

"In the city. I saw some people hurting a child." I said. "I couldn't stand by and I helped him. When I brought him to his mother, I healed him and the mother is letting me stay with her as a healer. She owns an apothecary."

King Evandar looked at me. "What do you intend to do?"

I looked up at him. "I want to fight, but I cannot." I said. "I swore to my father that I would not fight a rider except for in self defense, and I would be of little use, so I will not. For now, I intend to stay here, disguised."

"Why?"

I met the king's eyes. "I was raised as an elf, but that does not change the fact that a quarter of my life is gone. I will not live forever. I don't know how I can explain this, but I need to know my people. Here is somewhere I can do well for myself. I… I always thought I would be like all the other humans, but I was surprised. I am one of a few that can use magic, and I would say that out of the humans, even including the human riders, I understand magic the best."

Vrael shook his head. "Child, you may have beaten one rider, but-"

"Vrael." The king said quietly. "Let her be. It is her choice, and I happen to agree with her. And she is the one to whom both Glaedr and Oromis owe their lives. She healed them where Gwendolyn failed."

The rider's eyes widened. He looked to me. "If that is true, the riders are in your debt. We might not have know of this until it was too late. I have gathered those who resided in Du Weldenvarden and we go to fight. You can rest assured that these traitors will be brought down."

I nodded. "Thank you." I whispered. Exhausted, I ended the spell and collapsed onto a chair. I leaned back, transforming my appearance back to my disguise and rested. Teresa came in and gave me another cup of something.

She met my eyes. "It is not quite supper, but I think you need sleep more than anything now."

Too weary to protest, I went up to my bed and lay down before downing the tea that almost covered up a bitter taste. It took a few minutes, but then I had fallen into a deep sleep.

I'm thinking a several month leap might be in order for the next chapter. I have to apologize about the wait you all had for this one. I got really into my other FanFiction and this one kind of got pushed aside. I'll do better, so expect more regular updates.

Anyway, please tell me what you think!