at parted the veil between the human realm and the realm of Faerie after a couple of hours walking. She had the idea that Jade's dream had been meant to tell her something as much as Jade, and so had decided to take Jade to her tree. Kat wasn't quite sure what she'd find there, but she guessed it would probably be important. She only hoped that Jade wouldn't faint again.

The walk through faerie was easy, and it was not long before the two girls reached Kat's tree. Along the way a friendship had been created, and when Kat suggested that they stop for lunch by her tree, Jade didn't object. They ate sandwiches and apples by the stream, and both lay back in the sun once they were full. Kat was almost dozing when a shadow fell across her face. She instantly jumped up, and threw her arms around the person standing there.
"Darren!" Kat cried. "I missed you."
Darren laughed as Kat smiled winsomely at him.
"I'm sure you did," he laughed. "Just as much as I missed you. I'm not staying though. Just came to tell you that Marc said he'd been watching you, and had spread the word about how you handled that difficult situation. And Anne-Marie wants to see you. I expect that you can bring your friend..."
Kat smiled, relieved. Darren had appeared in human form, and his message meant that there wouldn't be any major slip-ups before Jade was ready to deal with them. Kat introduced Darren to Jade, and the three chatted for a while before Darren excused himself to "continue on his journey". Kat then suggested that Jade come with her to see Anne-Marie, who she described as "a very old friend". Jade agreed without hesitation.

Jade was beginning to think there was something strange about all this. To begin with, she'd been walking all morning, and didn't feel tired. At first she'd put that down to excitement, but excitement only lasts so long. Then there was the way in which Kat knew exactly where she was going, despite having said she'd only been this way 10 or so times before. Jade supposed that 10 times was long enough to learn a path, but Kat treated it with the easy familiarity of a frequent passer. Plus there was the obvious friendships Kat had in the area, which Jade did not think would have been formed by just passing through. There was obviously a village around, as Darren had seemingly appeared out of nowhere, and hadn't been carrying travelling gear, so he obviously lived near by, as did this Anne-Marie person. Jade had never heard of a village this close to home in this direction. And then there was Darren himself - as she had been looking at him, she swore that she'd seen him... shimmer. And after that, his eyes had been blue, where she thought they had been brown before. All this though, could be put down to tricks of her imagination or other factors, and that is what Jade did as she followed Kat through the cool glade to meet Anne-Marie.

The next morning, Jade awoke with the sun shining on her face, alone in the room. She dressed slowly, then peeked around the room a bit. Kat's cloak was still on her bed, so Jade assumed she hadn't gone far. Jade collected her things, picked up her bag, then ventured out into the hall. She found her way down to the common room more by luck than anything else, and was greeted by a small gnomish-looking man.
"Mornin' Missy. Would ye like a bite to ate afore ye set out?"
Jade stared at the small man in astonishment.
"Uh... I'm looking for my friend, Kat. Do you... work here?"
"Indeedy I do! Tonttu Brandybuck, at your service!"
"Well Master Brandybuck... I'm looking for Kat... Kat... I don't know her last name, but we had a room together last night."
"Ah! Yars, I know that one! She's gone awarnderin'. She'll be back. Said to give ye breakfast, whatever ye wished."
"Oh... Where'd she go?"
"Nor'east, I think. I dunno, what do ye be wantin' in the way of food, lassie?"
"Porridge, I think, thank you."
"Would ye be wantin' a wee dram wit that also?"
"A what?"
"Ah... Probably no' then! Have a seat, I'll bring 'e out."

He moved away with surprising speed, and Jade found a seat at a table along one side of the room.
The common room only had a few patrons in it, and Jade observed them while she waited for her breakfast. The group in the corner were a group of young males, all with blonde hair and long slender bodies, wearing the oddest clothes Jade had ever seen. They had long bows and quivers of arrows strapped to their backs, and were talking to each other in a soft musical language. One of them laughed, and turned to look at her. Jade had time to see that his eyes were violet, before Master Brandybuck set a large wooden bowl in front of her.
"Ah, don' you go mixin' wit tha' lot, missy. Ye stick wit' young Kat, she'll look after ye."
"His eyes are purple," commented Jade.
"Well o'course they are! He's one of th' Lords!"
"What?"
"Ah... ne're ye mind. Ask young Kat whence she returns, and if'n she wants ye to know abou' tha' lo', she'll be the wan that's a'tellin' ye. 'Taint me place, no sir... Enjoy ye... porridge."

Jade turned her attention to her porridge and took a spoonful. It was the most delicious thing she'd ever tasted. It was hot and warm and sweet, filled with fruit and laced with cream and honey, and it filled up all the gaps in her stomach. Jade devoted all her attention to her breakfast, and when she was finally finished, Master Brandybuck whisked her bowl away and gave her a wooden cup, filled with water. The water was sweet and cool, and refreshed her completely. Jade put the cup down with a contented sigh, and settled back against the wall. Master Brandybuck returned again and took the cup.
"Enjoy yer meal, missy?"
"Yes, it was lovely. I've never tasted anything like it."
"Bet yer haven't," he chuckled. "Ye may want to wash up out the back, young Kat'll be back soon and ye'll probably leave soon after that."
"Thank you, I will."
Jade followed him out the back to the baths, and he showed her how to work the taps, then went back inside.

As Jade was about to enter the common room again, she heard Kat's voice. Jade paused and listened for a moment, but couldn't understand any of the words. It took her a few moments to realise that Kat was speaking in the same musical language the men over the other side of the room had been using.
"Jemdae," Kat said. "Jade. Lintae miresta glinos, Laure, sorhinev bel borelda sirosnar."
Jade entered the room and looked curiously at Kat, wondering what she was saying about her.
"Ah, Jemdae," said Kat with a smile, "tirhilestrae une rel. Rel une runestdayis tiros gilnos?"
Jade stared at her blankly for a long moment.
"What?"
Kat looked startled for a moment, then laughed.
"Sorry, Jade. I said, there you are, are you ready to go?"
"Yes, I'm all packed. What language were you talking in?"
Kat smiled.
"The language of the area. It's my home town, this is where I grew up."
"That's why you know them, then?" Jade asked, glancing at the group of men.
Kat laughed again.
"Yes, that's how I know them. Lomeldur is a very old friend of mine."
"Lom- Lomel-?"
"Lomeldur. Call him Laure, everyone else does."
"Laure. That doesn't sound anything like his name."
"It means "golden". I'm sure you can see why."
"Yes. Is he coming with us?"
"No, why?"
"No reason. Just when I was coming in, you were speaking to him."
"I was telling him to let me go, because you'd be back soon. But enough chatting. I asked Tonttu Brandybuck to get us supplies. I trust you've eaten?"
"Yes, thank you."
"Good. We had best be on our way, then."
Kat called many cheerful goodbyes in the other language as they left the inn, and Jade followed quietly behind.

After half a day of walking, Kat called a halt for a lunch in a sunny glade. Jade was glad for the rest, and removed her shoes and stockings to walk barefoot in the grass for a few moments. Kat sat with her back against a tree and ate an apple.
"Now," said Kat, and Jade got the feeling that this little speech was the entire reason they'd just stopped. "Up ahead is dangerous country. We'll be passing out of my homeland soon, and approaching Varchalos."
"Varchalos? Isn't that the big city by the sea?"
"Yes."
"But that's thousands of miles away! We haven't gone that far!"
Kat hesitated a second.
"It's not that far away, and we have walked a fair distance. Anyway, as I was saying, it's a dangerous place to be. I'm going to tell you my true name, just in case something happens."
"Huh?"
"It's quite complicated. My family have two names. One is your true name, which only you and your namer know until you tell it to other people. It can be used to summon you. The other is your common name, which is what you get called. You already know my common name is Kat. My real name is Kalianah Evensong."
Jade sighed.
"That's a beautiful name."
"Thank you. If you get into trouble, just call my name. Call with your mind and your voice, and I will come. Only in dire trouble, though, ok?"
"Sure, I can manage that."
"You're one of very few people who know my name, Jade. Be very careful with it."
"Who else does?"
"Lomeldur. He was my namer, and he's one of the few people who go about by his real name all the time. Darren, who you met also knows. And there's a couple of other dear friends who know it also."
"I'll be careful," Jade promised.
"Good. Now, the other thing. Do you really like wearing those skirts?"
"These? No! Too hot in summer, too cold in winter, never dries when wet, bulky, heavy things..."
Kat smiled.
"So why not wear pants?"
"Men's gear?"
"Yes, men's gear. I do."
"I noticed."
"I'll lend you some breeches until we get to Varchalos. Then we'll get you some of your own."
"Ok," Jade said doubtfully, taking a pair and going behind a tree to change.
When she returned, she smiled.
"These are marvellous!"
Kat laughed.
"Glad you like them. Now let's get going. We should reach Varchalos by nightfall."

Varchalos was reached, and accomodation was found. Kat went out and bought some new clothes for Jade and herself, then wandered around, gathering information. She guessed that the mage guild would be wanting to get their hands on Jade, and so she made a note to avoid them as much as possible. Kat also gathered that they would be the most likely to be holding Queen Mab. Unfortunately their next port of call would be the city of Maelos, where the mage guild's headquarters was. But Kat figured they would be fine as long as they didn't draw attention to themselves. Just then Kat felt the unmistakable sensation of someone drawing power from the goddess, and that could only mean one thing - Jade was drawing from her "imagination". Kat turned and started running towards their inn.

Kat burst into the room, disrupting Jade's concentration, and she looked up.
"We're leaving," Kat announced. "Grab your stuff and let's go. Now."
Bewildered, Jade did as she was told, and Kat grabbed her things and breezed out of the inn.
"The rooms were not to our liking," she informed the inn-keeper in a haughty tone as they swept past and out into the street.
Kat hurried them out of the city centre, and to another inn on the outskirts of town, with a slightly better reputation. Kat got them a room there, and they settled in. Then Kat turned to Jade.
"Please don't do that here," she said.
"Do what?"
"Your drawing. The city mages guild can feel it, and they don't like it. We can't afford to draw any more attention to ourselves than we already have."
"But why?"
Kat thought hard for an explanation Jade would accept.
"Ok, have you ever heard the expression that talent is magic?"
"Yes..."
"Well, it's true. At least, it's true to the mage's guild. And you have great talent in drawing, so to them you would be seen to be wielding magic. Do you understand?"
"Yes... But why should that matter?"
"Magic is outlawed in Varchalos, as it is in most major cities. Only those in the mage guild are allowed to use it, and they could arrest you, and me, just by accusing you without proof."
"Oh... Well I think that's stupid"

Kat laughed and Jade pouted until she realised Kat wasn't laughing at her and then joined in.

"Kat?" Jade asked after they stopped laughing
"Hmm"
"Could you... well could you teach me that language?" Jade asked hesitantly "Please?"

Kat thought for a second then nodded and agreed. Jade jumped up squelling in delight and hugged Kat tightly. Kat sort of stood there for a second surprised before letting her own arms fall down and hug Jade in return. After a few seconds Jade let go and then asked Kat if she wanted to see what she had been drawing. Kat agreed and Jade went and grab her sketch book out. Kat could have sworn it was a little thicker than the last time she saw it but wasn't sure if that was her mind playing tricks on her or just a result of constant use. Jade settled down on one of the beds and patted the bed next to her inviting Kat to also sit. Jade went to open the sketch book over her lap and then on second thought handed it to Kat. Kat looked at her questionally realising for the first time how private Jade was over her drawings. Jade nodded and said it was okay so Kat open the book.
Kat hadn't actually opened on the first page, infact she had sort of let it fall open. The image that met her took her breathe away. The clarity was so realistic that Kat reached out to touch the image. She withdrew her fingers a little disappointed that the image wasn't real. She looked up and noticed Jade watching her intently, Kat smiled and turned the page. Kat recognised the lake to be the one Jade used to sit by. In the lake was no normal reflection and whilst a few ripples distorted the image Kat clearly could work out the details. It was a large room which was barren. It had one window high up which wasn't that large. Under the window was a desk and chair that was shabby and splintered. By that was a young looking woman that was slouched on the floor. She had wings but they were tied behind her at what looked like a very unconfortable angle. Kat looked closer at the face and nearly dropped the sketch book. It was her Queen; Queen Mab. Kat started to pay more attention to the picture and spotted a clue that revealed where the Queen was being held. On the wall was ancient runes, faint but visible all the same.

"When did you draw this?"
"About two weeks ago, I was looking into the pond and that's what I saw"

Kat didn't know how she knew it was real but she knew. The writing clearly indicated that it was a room in the mage guild's headquarters. Kat put the book aside and grabbed her bag. She sat at the table and rummaged through the bag. Jade watched a little astonished and not quite sure what was going on. Kat grabbed out a small bowl, a flask of water and a small pouch. She placed them on the table. She swore to herself, they were bound for Maelos where the Queen was and Jade was bound to be drawn by Mab's power. She needed help.
Kat poured some water into the bowl and resealed the flask. She then picked up the pouch and opened it and grabbed a pinch of the powder inside which she then sprinkled onto the water. Kat stared into it and then started talking in the strange language from the inn again. Jade who was still watching flipped to the back of her sketch book and started to write as much down as she could. When Kat looked up and then looked at Jade she closed the book feeling sheepish. Kat didn't seem to notice much to Jade's relief.

"I have to go out for awhile, don't go anywhere you promise"
"I promise"
"I will be gone awhile most likely, I will have supper sent up to you. I don't want you to let anyone in you here me, get the keeper to put the food by the door and leave. I will be back"

At that Kat hastily got up and left without taking any of her stuff. Jade waited a few minutes before she got up and had a look into the bowl. The water looked a little blue but that was all. Jade sniffed the pouch and sneezed and then put it aside. She grabbed Kat's bag and then checked to see that Kat wasn't around before going to look inside it. To her amazement it appeared totally empty but that couldn't be right, she had seen Kat pull lots of things out and put them back. She reluctantly put the bag aside feeling more confused than ever. She stared into the bowl of water.

"Maybe you could shed some light onto the great mystery." She laughed.

Jade felt suddenly very alone and homesick. She started crying and her tears fell into the water.

"I wish my mother was here."
"I am always with you my child" Came the reply

Jade looked into the water and a white figure looked back, the one she had seen in her dreams. Jade got up suddenly from the table spilling the bowl and water in the process. Before she could even work out what she saw was real there was a knock at the door. Jade forgetting everything Kat said opened it. There in the doorway was the guy Kat had said was Lomeldur. He walked in and closed the door behind him.

"I figured you wouldn't listen to Kat's advice"
"Your that golden guy the one who always goes by his real name, right?"
"Yes that is I. The name is Lomeldur, or Laure for you simple folk"
Jade didn't like they way he spoke to her but she ignored that.
"Well Laure I have a question for you, if you always go around by your 'real name' then wouldn't your comman name by the one that would lure you as your real name should?"

His grimace turned into a smile and then a laugh that was musical to Jade's ears that she was sad when he stopped.